44 
SriKOCHiETOSIS OF SUDANESE FOWLS 
The disease 
in imported 
fowls 
'rhe endemic 
disease 
Symptoms 
Morphology 
of the spiro- 
chsetes 
It was in November, 190C, that I received three l)laok Leghorn fowls from the Grand Hotel, 
Khartoum, which, from the symptoms they presented, I thought might be suffering from a 
spirochcEtosis. Microscopical examination of the blood confirmed the diagnosis. 
As there was no record of this disease having been described elsewhere than in Brazil, 
I thought it possible that these birds, which had been recently imported from Italy, might have 
come in contact with infected fowls from South America. I obtained the history of their 
purchase, and found that 10 black Leghorns had been bought at Eapallo, five Brahmas at 
Ciavari near Rapallo, and four Brahmas from Politza, on October 22nd. They had been shipped 
at Genoa on the 2Ith, and had arrived at Port Sudan on November 1st. One Leghorn and three 
Brahmas had died in the Bed Sea. Some of the birds had suffered from diarrhoea on the 
voyage. They arrived at Khartoum on November 10th, when they were apparently well, 
except one Brahma cock. On November 3rd, ticks were found upon them and they were oil- 
dressed. By November 21st they were all dead, except the three which were then sent to me, 
and which were extremely ill. The history forthcoming was that they had suffered from 
diarrhoea, and that they kept their heads low as though weak. They had taken food fairly 
well. It was also reported that all the native chickens with them in the fowl-run were 
apparently (juite well, and that no pigeons were affected. 
Subsequent inquiries and examinations showed, however, that there was no need to 
consider the question of infection during transit. Spirocluetosis was found to be a common 
disease in Sudanese fowls, the hen-run at the hotel was discovered to be swarming with 
Arejas persims, and no doubt the reason why these imported fowls presented the disease in 
such an acute and grave form was because they belonged to special breeds, which, as Marchoux 
and Salimbeni pointed out, suffer much more severely than the common varieties. 
It may be said at once that, out of some 100 common Sudanese fowls examined in varying 
stages of the disease, I do not think I have seen any affected as severely as these imported 
birds. The Sudan fowls tend to pass into a special chronic stage, hereafter to be described, 
and rarely succumb with the rapidity which characterised the fatal issue in the black 
Leghorns. 
Symptoms. —Fig. 4 gives a good idea of the aspect of one of these bii’ds in the last stages 
of the acute disease. Note the drooping head, the ruffled feathers, the closed eyes, the 
somnolent aspect. Fig. 5, which presents a similar aspect, is that of a Sudanese cock, also 
in a dying condition, but suffering from the chronic type of the disease which, as will be shown, 
is characterised by the presence of intra-eorpuscular forms of the spirochsetes which invade 
the red blood corpuscles, wherein they appear to pass a resting stage. Both in the acute and 
chronic forms there exist anaemia and emaciation, while diarrheea is not uncommon. Towards 
the end the legs give way from weakness, or possibly true paresis, and the hapless bird lies 
prone on the gi’ound, along which its neck is stretched, and it is unable to raise its head. 
In fact, the whole clinical picture answers to that described in the case of infection by 
Sp. gallinarum. The spirochaetes exist in large numbers in the peripheral blood of imported 
fowls. In fresh films their movements are exceedingly rapid, and at first, as a rule, 
one only recognises their presence by the agitation they 2 U'oduce amongst the red cells. 
When one has become more accustomed to the field of vision the combined darting, ripjjling 
and shivering movements become evident, and the parasites are seen every now and then 
sjjeeding across the field. Very frequently one gazes at a field which one knows is full of 
spirochaetes, and yet no trace of them can be seen till suddenly a tiny, semi-translucent 
corkscrew form quivers into sight for a second and as sjjeedily vanishes. There is no great 
difficulty, however, in the case of a heavy infection, but in Sudanese fowls, where it may be 
very slight, ^srolonged and careful examination is required. It must not be too prolonged, for 
the sp)iroch£etes, after a varying but comparatively short time, lose their motility when kejit 
