Meeting Abstract
P3.93 Wednesday, Jan. 6 Rearing environment, nest sanitation and chick growth and development MATSON, K.D.; BLOM, M.P.K.*; LOZNIK, B.; TIELEMAN, B.I.; MAUCK, R.A.; University of Groningen; University of Groningen; University of Groningen; University of Groningen; Kenyon College k.d.matson@rug.nl
Rearing environment can influence young birds in many ways. We investigated how experimental manipulations of rearing environment, with a focus on nest sanitation, shape growth and immunological development in altricial chicks. Over the last half century, research on the precocial chicks of domestic poultry has revealed a positive relationship between improved animal housing sanitation and increased chick growth. The growth advantage is thought to result from a decreased need to divert energy towards background inflammation caused by the antigenic milieu. In wild birds, nestling growth is important for survival, so a cleaner rearing environment may impact offspring fitness. In this experiment we compared Eastern bluebird (Sialia sialis) chicks that were raised in natural nests in re-used nest boxes with chicks that were raised in artificial nests in sterilized nest boxes. Additionally, one chick in each nest was challenged with sheep red blood cell injections; injected chicks were compared to size-matched control chicks. We evaluated our nest box cleaning technique by enumerating microbial colonies on agar contact-slides. We measured chick growth in terms of mass, tarsus length and wing length as measured on days 2, 4, 8 and 15 post-hatch. We assayed several immunological parameters using small blood samples collected on days 8 and 15. Initial results clearly demonstrate our ability to sanitize nest box environments but simultaneously highlight the challenges associated with immunological studies in young chicks and with confounding factors associated with our sanitation treatment. In the future we will employ molecular techniques to analyze samples of chick-associated bacterial communities in an effort to elucidate any differences in microbiological status between the treatment and control groups.
