Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 18, 2026

Protocol for Production of a Genetic Cross of the Rodent Malaria Parasites
Published on: January 3, 2011
Malarial parasites as geographical markers in migratory birds?
Sylvia M Fallon1, Robert C Fleischer, Gary R Graves
1Smithsonian Institution, Genetics Program, 3001 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008, USA. fallons@si.edu
Abstract:
We tested the hypothesis that malarial parasites (Plasmodium and Haemoproteus) of black-throated blue warblers (Dendroica caerulescens) provide sufficient geographical signal to track population movements between the warbler's breeding and wintering habitats in North America. Our results from 1083 warblers sampled across the species' breeding range indicate that parasite lineages are geographically widespread and do not provide site-specific information. The wide distribution of malarial parasites probably reflects postnatal dispersal of their hosts as well as mixing of breeding populations on the wintering range. When compared to geographically structured parasites of sedentary Caribbean songbirds, patterns of malarial infections in black-throated blue warblers suggest that host-malaria dynamics of migratory and sedentary bird populations may be subject to contrasting selection pressures.
Related Concept Videos
Malaria
Migration
Symbiosis
Diversity of Protists II

