Effects of urban sugar water feeding on bird body condition and avian diseases

Abstract

Garden bird sugar water feeding is increasingly popular worldwide, but little is known about its effects on bird health and associated diseases. There is a concern that feeding stations can accumulate pathogens and facilitate pathogen transmission between individuals, resulting in adverse effects on body condition of visiting birds. We tested the effects of sugar water feeding in urban New Zealand backyards by sampling target species for multiple infections and comparing bird body condition. For this, we compared backyards with and without sugar water feeders and again compared existing sugar water feeders with various sugar concentrations in two cities and in two seasons. Birds caught in gardens with sugar water feeders had poorer body condition; however, birds had better body condition in the city with the warmer climate (Auckland), during summer, and in gardens with high (≥20%) sugar concentration in sugar water feeders in winter. All screening tests for Chlamydia psittaci and Salmonella spp. returned negative results. Avian poxvirus prevalence in tauhou ( Zosterops lateralis) was four times higher in the city with a warmer climate. The likelihood of lice infection in tauhou was lower in gardens with feeders, in the warmer city, in summer, and at feeders with higher sugar concentrations. In tūī ( Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae), the likelihood of lice infection decreased with an increase in sugar concentration. Coccidia infection was 4.25 times higher in tauhou in gardens with feeders. Despite the identified risks associated with sugar water feeding, there appear to be potential benefits for native nectarivorous birds, specifically in winter.