Oro-pharyngeal protozoa in captive bustards: Clinical and pathological considerations.

An oro-pharyngeal protozoal survey was carried out in captive bustards in the United Arab Emirates. .Endolimax spp., .Entamoeba gallinarum, Acanthamoeba spp., .Naegleria spp. and .Coccidia spp. were the protozoa isolated from the oro-pharynx of clinically normal birds. The protozoa species involved in oro-pharyngeal diseases were .Trichomonas gallinae and .Entamoeba anatis. Most of the protozoa observed in clinical cases were associated with severe secondary bacterial infections possibly due to the suppression of normal oro-pharyngeal bacterial flora which includes .Escherichia coli, Enterobacter spp., .Klebsiella spp. and .Citrobacter spp. In this respect, .Pseudomonas spp., and .Staphylococcus spp., were isolated from individuals affected with oro-pharyngeal diseases. In such cases, inflammatory changes in the oro-pharynx were detected associated with white-yellow caseous nodular lesions, mucous discharge, exfoliation of epithelial cells and the presence of inflammatory cells.