Can Suttonella ornithocola entail a potential hazard to songbirds? A systematic review

Abstract

Passeriformes populations have experienced a marked decline in number during the last decades. Several infectious agents have been described as key factors for this population’s decrease, as they can cause mortal diseases like the recently reported Suttonella ornithocola. S. ornithocola is a bacterium from the Cardiobacteriaceae family that has been linked to several outbreaks. This systematic review aims to collect all the scientific information available about S. ornithocola to better understand its epidemiology and pathogenesis and to assess the potential hazard that it can pose to garden songbirds. Although it has been considered a respiratory pathogen, S. ornithocola has been isolated from several organs, suggesting a systemic pathogenesis. However, it has also been described as a normal taxon from the microbiota of some bird species. Therefore, further studies in healthy birds are necessary to establish if S. ornithocola is a primary pathogen or an opportunistic bacterium in songbirds.