Molecular Detection of Mycobacterium avium avium and Mycobacterium genavense in Feces of Free-living Scarlet Macaws ( Ara macao) in Costa Rica.

We conducted a study of the two main populations of free-living Scarlet Macaws ( Ara macao) in Costa Rica to detect the causal agents of avian tuberculosis using noninvasive techniques. We analyzed 83 fecal samples collected between February and May 2016 from the central and southern Pacific areas in the country. Using PCR, we first amplified the 16S region of the ribosomal RNA, common to all Mycobacterium species.