Bulgarian Journal of Veterinary Medicine, 2023, 26, No 1, 108114 ISSN 1311-1477; DOI: 10.15547/bjvm.2365 Short communication FERAL PIGEONS AS RESERVOIRS FOR HAZARDOUS CHLAMYDOPHILA PSITTACI STRAINS WITH ZOONOTIC POTENTIAL S. ASGHARI 1 , H. STAJI 2 , H. R. MOHAMMADI 3 & I. ASHRAFI TAMAI 4 1 Graduate of Veterinary Medicine, 2 Department of Pathobiology, 3 Department of Clinical Sciences; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Semnan University, Semnan, Iran; 4 Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Tehran University, Tehran, Iran Summary Asghari, S., H. Staji, H. R. Mohammadi & I. Ashrafi Tamai, 2023. Feral pigeons as reser- voirs for hazardous Chlamydophila psittaci strains with zoonotic potential. Bulg. J. Vet. Med., 26, No 1, 108114. Chlamydophila psittaci is found in pigeons worldwide. The abundance of feral pigeons living in close contact with humans and livestock are considered a significant risk factor for human and farm animal infections. In Iran, little is known about the prevalence of C. psittaci and its genotypes in pigeons. The present cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the prevalence of C. psittaci in feral pigeons and to genotype the detected strains. In total, 384 fresh faecal samples were collected from different areas in Semnan (Iran). Out of all samples, 0.52% were positive for C. psittaci genome in Real Time- PCR. The partial ompA gene sequencing revealed that detected strains were identified as genotypes A and E. This is the first report of C. psittaci genotypes A and E in feral pigeons in Iran. The occurrence of C. psittaci genotypes A and E in the faeces of feral pigeons suggests potential environmental con- tamination with C. psittaci by pigeons and raise a public health concern. Key words: Chlamydophila psittaci, feral pigeons, genotypes, Iran Chlamydia psittaci (C. psittaci), a recog- nised zoonotic threat, is an obligate intra- cellular Gram-negative bacterium causing clinical problems in birds and mammals (Knittler & Sachse, 2015; Burnard & Polkinghorne, 2016). Feral pigeons are abundant birds and are considered major reservoirs of important pathogenic bacte- ria including C. psittaci. They can shed this infectious agent in the environment without any symptoms or when they are clinically diseased (Heddema et al., 2006; Burnard & Polkinghorne, 2016). Pigeons are circulating in urban and suburban re- gions worldwide and get in close contact with humans in public places and live- stock in farms (Magnino et al., 2009; Dickx et al., 2010). Zoonotic transmission of C. psittaci from columbiformes was reported for the first time in 1941 (Meyer,