Isolation of Mycoplasma synoviae from the red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa)

Following an outbreak of respiratory disease in a group of red-legged partridges (Alectoris rufa) and chickens (Gallus domesticus) housed in the same unit, a mycoplasma was isolated. Its biochemical profile and the growth-inhibition test enabled it to be identified as Mycoplasma synoviae. Histopathological analysis revealed an intense inflammatory reaction in the respiratory tract, together with epithelial hyperplasia and lymphocyte infiltration. The rapid serum plate agglutination test, and the haemagglutination-inhibition test, revealed the presence of humoral antibodies to Mycoplasma synoviae in the partridges studied.