[Study on the presence of yeasts in the feces of the rock pigeon (Columba livia Gmelin 1789) from rural areas].

The diffusion of rock-pigeon (domestic form of Columba livia Gmelin 1789) is greatly increasing owing to its high reproductivity; for this reason it is present in both countries and cities. This bird is considered an important vector of pathogens to man and domestic animals, and today it represents a serious hygienic-sanitary problem. Therefore we checked for the presence of yeasts in feces of rock-pigeons nesting in the Regional Park "La Mandria" (near Turin), visited mostly by school-children and retired. The yeasts isolated were: Candida albicans, C. krusei, C. guillermondii, C. intermedia, C. lusitaniae, C. parapsilosis, C. pseudotropicalis, C. rugosa, C. tropicalis, Cryptococcus albidus, C. laurentii, C. neoformans, C. terreus, Pichia membranaefaciens, Rhodotorula rubra, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, S. oleaginosus, S. telluris, Torulopsis candida, Trichosporon cutaneum. The incidence of the species isolated is reported on Tables 1 and 2.