Feral pigeons: A reservoir of zoonotic Salmonella Enteritidis strains?

Salmonella enterica infections in pigeons are generally associated with pigeon-adapted strains of serovar Typhimurium that are of little public health concern. Here, we isolated Salmonella Enteritidis phage type 4 (PT4), an important human pathogen, from a population of feral pigeons in Brussels, which was further characterized by Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis. All pigeon isolates belonged to the same pulsotype, which has been present in Belgian pigeons at least since 2001 and is associated with poultry and disease in humans. A high prevalence of 33% of Salmonella Enteritidis in Brussels combined with dense pigeon populations suggest that feral pigeons may constitute a significant, but unrevealed reservoir for contracting salmonellosis in the urban environment.