Blood biochemistry of olive ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea) sea turtles foraging in northern Sinaloa, Mexico

Abstract

Blood parameters provide an excellent tool to evaluate the health status of wildlife. However, there are few studies about health parameters of sea turtles in Mexico. For olive ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea), no information was available to establish the health baseline for the species. The objective of this study was to establish reference blood biochemistry values for olive ridley turtles in the northern Sinaloa foraging area. Between 2013 and 2015, 82 olive ridley turtles were captured. Body condition index (BCI) presented a mean of 1.46 ± 0.14 (1.17–2.02) that categorized the population with excellent body condition; in addition, 99% of the turtles captured had a good physical appearance. Blood was collected for biochemistry analysis from 60 turtles. Significantly higher values of total protein, albumin, A/G ratio (albumin/globulin) and PCV (packed cell volume or hematocrit) were observed in adult when compared to subadult turtles. On the other hand, no significant differences were found when females and males were compared. Based on the BCI, physical assessment, and blood parameters, and compared to other sea turtle species, olive ridley turtles in northern Sinaloa were considered in excellent health. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to establish normal blood biochemistry values of foraging olive ridley turtles in northern Sinaloa.

Blood analytes of immature Kemp’s ridley sea turtles (Lepidochelys kempii) from Georgia, USA: reference intervals and body size correlations

“…As expected, all plasma proteins showed significant positive correlations with SCL min . Other sea turtle studies have noted similar size-related increases and suggest that these changes are related to dietary shifts, immune stimulation, physiological changes associated with vitellogenesis and/or somatic growth ( Frair and Shah, 1982 ; Kakizoe et al , 2007 ; Casal et al , 2009 ; Osborne et al , 2010 ; Rousselet et al , 2013 ; Espinoza-Romo et al , 2018 ; Stacy et al , 2018a ).…”

Blood oxygen stores of olive ridley sea turtles, Lepidochelys olivacea are highly variable among individuals during arribada nesting

“…Because of an equipment failure it was not possible to weigh the females sampled during arribada nesting. For these females, mass was estimated using a regression from published data on olive ridley morphometrics (Espinoza-Romo et al, 2018; n= 59, mass = -47.44 + 1.13 x SCL, r 2 = 0.70, p < 0.001.). This equation predicted the mass of the turtles that were weighed with a mean error of 4%.…”

Multiple-antibiotic resistance of Enterococcus faecalis in an endangered olive ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea): A case report

“…The turtle presented clinical signs, including lack of appetite and bilateral elbow joint swelling. Plasma biochemistry analysis indicated an elevated creatine kinase level (16,005 U/L), lactate dehydrogenase level (16,518 U/L), total protein level (5.9 g/dl), albumin level (2.4 g/dl), uric acid level (1.1 g/dl) and calcium level (10.4 g/dl) when compared with values obtained from healthy wild olive ridley turtles (Santoro and Meneses, 2007;Espinoza-Romo et al, 2018). Radiographs indicated osteolysis of the humerus, radius, and ulna (Fig 1).…”