Abstract |
Microbial pest control agents (MPCAs) are microorganisms applied to the environment to control the proliferation and spread of agricultural or silvicultural insect, arthropod, or plant pests. Standardized protocols were determined to determine the pathogenicity of proposed MPCAs to nontarget avian species. The mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) and bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) were selected as test species as they are used routinely by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for evaluation of effects of chemical pesticides on wildlife. Three routes of exposure of the birds to MPCAs were evaluated: oral, intravenous (I.V.), and respiratory. The report discusses only oral and I.V. routes. Autographa californica nuclear polyhedrosis virus was used as a representative viral agent; Metarrhizium anisopliae was used for a fungal agent; and Salmonella pullorum (a known avian pathogen) was selected as a representative bacterium. A known avian pathogen was used for the bacterial challenge to verify that the protocols would detect pathogenicity if it were present. |