Members of the phylum Microspora are a group of unusual, obligate intracellular eukaryotic parasites that infect a wide
range of hosts. However, there are a limited number of microsporidial infections reported in avian hosts, and no parasite
species has been defined as an avian pathogen. A microsporidian organism was recovered from the droppings of a clinically
normal peach-faced lovebird (Agapornis roseicollis) and established in in vitro culture. Intermittent parasite spore shedding
was documented over a 2-month period using calcofluor M2R staining of cloacal swabs. The organism was identified as
Encephalitozoon hellem based on protein and antigenic profiles and molecular sequencing of the small subunit and internal
transcribed spacer regions of the ribosomal RNA gene.