Illegal killing/taking of birds is a growing concern across the Mediterranean. However, there are few quantitative data on the species and countries involved. We assessed numbers of individual birds of each species killed/taken illegally in each Mediterranean country per year, using a diverse range of data sources and incorporating expert knowledge. We estimated that 11–36 million individuals per year may be killed/taken illegally in the region, many of them on migration. In each of Cyprus, Egypt, Italy, Lebanon and Syria, more than two million birds may be killed/taken on average each year. For species such as Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla, Common Quail Coturnix coturnix, Eurasian Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs, House Sparrow Passer domesticus and Song Thrush Turdus philomelos, more than one million individuals of each species are estimated to be killed/taken illegally on average every year. Several species of global conservation concern are also reported to be killed/taken illegally in substantial numbers: Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata, Ferruginous Duck Aythya nyroca and Rock Partridge Alectoris graeca. Birds in the Mediterranean are illegally killed/taken primarily for food, sport and for use as cage-birds or decoys. At the 20 worst locations with the highest reported numbers, 7.9 million individuals may be illegally killed/taken per year, representing 34% of the mean estimated annual regional total number of birds illegally killed/taken for all species combined. Our study highlighted the paucity of data on illegal killing/taking of birds. Monitoring schemes which use systematic sampling protocols are needed to generate increasingly robust data on trends in illegal killing/taking over time and help stakeholders prioritise conservation actions to address this international conservation problem. Large numbers of birds are also hunted legally in the region, but specific totals are generally unavailable. Such data, in combination with improved estimates for illegal killing/taking, are needed for robustly assessing the sustainability of exploitation of birds.

A total of 4420 male Glossina morsitans morsitans Westwood were captured on man fly-rounds in Katete District, Eastern Province, Zambia between February 1991 and December 1993. Of these flies, 1680 were captured before June 1992, during which period 989 flies were also captured on odour-baited electric screens operated in the same area. Non-teneral flies were analysed for fat, haematin and residual dry weight and their wing-vein length was measured. There were well marked annual cycles in wing length, fat and residual dry weight. Flies were biggest at the end of the rainy season, and smallest at the end of the hot dry season. Fat levels were lowest before the onset of the rains and highest in the cool season. Residual dry weight was a function of haematin content and the degree of wing-fray; these factors were used to correct the residual dry weight to zero haematin. Corrected residual dry weight and wing-vein lengths were most highly correlated with relative humidity in the month prior to capture (r > 0.8 and 0.6 respectively). Correlations with saturation deficit were weaker; temperature accounted for <20% of the variance. Fly-round flies had a consistently higher residual dry weight than those from the electric screen, but their fat levels were lower. The distributions of log haematin levels differed little between the two sampling methods and were adequately described by a model where capture and feeding rates increased exponentially after each meal. The increase in the feeding rate after each meal differed little with season and was closely similar to that estimated for female G. pallidipesAusten in Zimbabwe.

Transmission experiments were conducted to compare the transmissibility of genetically different Trypanosoma congolense (Savannah subgroup) strains isolated from cattle in a trypanosomiasis endemic area of eastern Zambia. A total of 17 strains were compared. Three strains were extremely virulent with a short pre-patent period, high parasitaemia and a short median survival time (between 5 and 9 days) in mice. The remainder of the strains belonged to the moderate (6 strains) or low (8 strains) virulence categories with median survival times between 10 and 30 days and >30 days, respectively. Batches of 40 teneral Glossina morsitans morsitans (Diptera: Glossinidae) were offered a single bloodmeal on mice infected with one of those strains. Flies were dissected to determine their infection status 21 days later. The proportion of flies with procyclic and metacyclic infections differed significantly between trypanosome strains and were significantly higher in flies infected with extremely virulent strains (P=0·033 and P=0·016 for the differences in the procyclic infection rate of strains with moderate and low virulence, respectively and P=0·005 and P=0·019 for the differences in the metacyclic infection rate of strains with moderate and low virulence, respectively). On the other hand, moderately virulent strains had, in general, higher procyclic and metacyclic infection rates compared to low virulent strains. But the differences were not significant (P>0·05). The outcome of those experiments shows clear differences in transmissibility of trypanosome strains associated with their virulence. This observation confirms the theory for the evolution and maintenance of virulence in a parasite population and may explain the persistence of virulent trypanosome strains in a susceptible host population.