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New Respiratory Mycoplasma Species Described From Common Buzzards

Common buzzard perched on a low concrete structure
Research: Evolution & taxonomy, Genetics & genomics

A previously unclassified bacterium from the respiratory tract of common buzzards (Buteo buteo) has been described as a new species, Mycoplasma tracheobuteonis. Mycoplasmas are very small bacteria that lack a cell wall and often live on mucosal surfaces such as the respiratory tract. Some species are harmless colonisers, while others can cause disease, so finding a new respiratory mycoplasma does not by itself show that it is pathogenic.

The researchers selected ten representative strains from a larger group of 36 closely related, previously unclassified Mycoplasma isolates. Eight of the ten representative strains came from the respiratory tract of common buzzards, while two came from other birds of prey. The samples had been collected during necropsies and field investigations in Austria, Germany and Spain.

Genome comparisons supported a distinct species

Conventional genetic markers initially placed the strains close to several recently described raptor-associated species in the Mycoplasma synoviae group. These markers were useful for showing their close relationships but did not by themselves provide the clearest separation.

Whole-genome comparisons and phylogenomic analyses showed that the ten representative strains formed a distinct taxonomic group. MALDI-ToF mass spectrometry supported the same conclusion by producing a characteristic protein “fingerprint” that separated them from the closest known species.

The proposed name Mycoplasma tracheobuteonis reflects the organism’s predominant isolation from the trachea of common buzzards. The designated type strain came from the choana — the opening at the back of the nasal cavity towards the mouth and throat — of a common buzzard collected in Saxony, Germany.

No clear respiratory disease was linked to the bacterium

Most birds from which these isolates were obtained had died from non-infectious causes such as trauma, poisoning or emaciation. The researchers found no relevant gross or microscopic respiratory lesions associated with the isolates.

The study therefore establishes a new bacterial species and a strong association with the respiratory tract of common buzzards, but it does not demonstrate that M. tracheobuteonis causes respiratory disease. Further work would be needed to determine whether it normally behaves as a harmless coloniser, an opportunistic pathogen or something in between.

Sources and image credit

  1. Kugler, S., Kübber-Heiss, A., Dinhopl, N., Auer, A., Loncaric, I., Schmidt, V., Ramirez, A. S., & Spergser, J. (2026). Mycoplasma tracheobuteonis sp. nov., a novel respiratory Mycoplasma species from the common buzzard (Buteo buteo). Microorganisms, 14(6), 1224. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms14061224Primary open-access peer-reviewed study published 29 May 2026. Ten previously unclassified Mycoplasma strains—eight from common buzzards—formed a distinct species by phenotypic, MALDI-ToF and genome-level analyses. Isolates came from Austria, Germany and Spain; most birds died from non-infectious causes and no relevant respiratory lesions were linked to the bacterium.

Image: Zeynel Cebeci / Wikimedia Commons — wild Common Buzzard photographed at Gölyaka, Karataş, Adana, Turkey, 27 March 2021; representative species image, not a bird from the study · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

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