Fungal airsacculitis associated with multiple helminth infestations in a black-eared kite (Milvus migrans)

A young, female black-eared kite was rescued from a small reservoir adjacent to a rice paddy in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. The bird was given a fluid diet through the esophagus and started to eat by herself from the fifth day. Her fecal samples were examined for parasites on the seventh day and fluke eggs were detected. Capillaria and Ascarididae eggs were also detected from day 19 and day 32, respectively. The bird started to show loss of appetite from day 22 and finally showed no appetite on day 35. On day 38, the bird was treated with Profender Spot (Bayer Health Care, Tokyo, Japan) but died on day 41. A necropsy revealed a thickened air sac associated with considerable fungal growth. Histopathologic examination showed that the mucous membrane of the saccobronchus was thickened with hyphal proliferation, and the fungus was identified as Aspergillus fumigatus. A number of trematodes, thin nematodes, and four roundworms were obtained from the alimentary tract. Parasitologically, they were identified as Neodiplotomum pseudattenuatum, a Capillaria sp., and Porrocaecum phalacrocoracis, respectively. In conclusion, the bird was diagnosed as having fungal airsacculitis associated with multiple helminth infestations.