Hematology of Free-ranging and Managed Texas Horned Lizards (<i>Phrynosoma cornutum</i>)

McEntire, Michael S.; Pich, Ashley A.; Zordan, Martin; Barber, Diane; Rains, Nathan D.; Erxleben, Devin R.; Heatley, J. Jill; Sánchez, Carlos R.

doi:10.7589/2017-05-117

Cited by 6 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…We recorded lizard sex and mass at the time of collection and marked capture location with a handheld global positioning system (GPS) unit. Prior to release, veterinarians from Fort Worth Zoo collected blood, fecal, and other tissue samples to screen for parasites and disease (McEntire et al ). After the veterinarians cleared the lizards as healthy, we transported them to the release site at MWMA for introduction into soft‐release enclosures.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial Use and Survivorship of Translocated Wild‐Caught Texas Horned Lizards

et al. 2019

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The Texas horned lizard (Phrynosoma cornutum), a state threatened species in Texas, USA, appears to be declining throughout much of its distribution. Because of popular interest in restoring lizard populations, we conducted a 3‐year radio‐telemetric study to evaluate the feasibility of reintroducing Texas horned lizards into previously occupied areas with suitable habitat characteristics. We translocated lizards from natural populations in western Texas to the McGillivray and Leona McKie Muse Wildlife Management Area (MWMA) in the Cross Timbers and Prairies of north‐central Texas, an ecoregion that has experienced apparent local extirpations of horned lizards. We translocated lizards after partly restoring a 32.5‐ha portion of the MWMA from ashe juniper (Juniperus ashei)‐honey mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa) woodland to mid‐grass prairie. After a 10‐day acclimation period and soft release, we tracked 57 horned lizards from March 2014 to October 2016 to evaluate daily movements, spatial use, sources of mortality, reproduction, and changes in body condition. Daily movement averages (1.16–174.18 m) and area used by individuals (<0.01–6.81 ha) were similar to those recorded for natural populations, with peaks in movement occurring in May and June. Annual survivorship for individuals (1.1–47.2%) was also similar to that reported from natural populations; however, survivorship declined across the 3 active seasons. Although mortality of translocated lizards was high, body condition remained relatively stable across active seasons, and reproduction occurred each year, indicating that translocation could be a viable option for restoring horned lizard populations to previously occupied parts of their range. © 2019 The Wildlife Society.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial Use and Survivorship of Translocated Wild‐Caught Texas Horned Lizards

et al. 2019

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“…For that reason, the results in this study are compared with other related lizard species. PCV and RBC counts were similar to closely related lizards (James et al, 2006;Dallwig et al, 2011;McEntire et al, 2018), and polychromatophilic cell mean was 1.33%. In normal reptiles, the percentage of polychromatophilic red cells is from >1 to 2.5% (Heatley & Russell, 2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 54%

Peer Review #1 of "Health status of Polychrus gutturosus based on physical examination, hematology and biochemistry parameters in Costa Rica (v0.1)"

Troiano¹

2021

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Studies evaluating the health status and characteristics of free-ranging wildlife populations are scarce or absent for most species. Saurian health assessments are usually performed in species that have conservation issues or that are kept in captivity. The Berthold's bush anole (Polychrus guturossus) is one of eight species belonging to the genus Polychrus, the only representative of the family Polychrotidae. Only a handful of studies have been reported concerning these lizard's morphological variation, ecology, and natural history, probably because P. gutturosus is a canopy dweller and it can be difficult to locate individuals. It is believed that deforestation and habitat modification could pose a threat for this species, although to date no health assessment has been done. The aim of this study was to generate health baseline data on P. gutturosus. Forty Berthold´s bush anoles (20 males and 20 females) were sampled at the Pacific versant in Costa Rica, where physical examination, skin and cloacal temperatures, and blood samples were obtained from individuals immediately after capture. Animals from the studied population were all healthy (body condition 2.5-3.0/5.0). No lesions or ectoparasites were detected, but hemoparasites were found in nine individuals. Hematological and biochemical values were obtained, and the morphology of leukocytes were found to be similar to other iguanians. A positive correlation was found between the tissue enzymes Aspartate amino transferase (AST) and Creatinine kinase (CK) and a negative correlation was found between skin and cloacal temperatures and AST and CK. There were positive correlations between female weight and total protein, Calcium, and the Calcium and Phosphorus ratio. No significant inter-sex differences were found in biochemical values, despite females being larger than males. This is the first health assessment performed on a free-ranging canopy dwelling

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“…Packed cell volume and RBC counts were similar to closely related lizards (James et al, 2006;Dallwig et al, 2011;McEntire et al, 2018), and polychromatophilic cell mean was 1.33%. In normal reptiles, the percentage of polychromatophilic red cells is from >1% to 2.5% (Heatley & Russel, 2019).…”

Section: Analyte (Units)mentioning

confidence: 60%

“…Studies evaluating the health status and characteristics of free-ranging populations are, however, scarce or absent for most species, especially those that are rarely seen in the wild (Bell & Donnelly, 2006;Whitfield et al, 2007;Dallwig et al, 2011). In lizards, health assessments reported in the literature have usually been done on species that are threatened (Alberts et al, 1998;Espinosa-Avilés, Salomón-Soto & Morales-Martínez, 2008;McEntire et al, 2018), endemic (Lewbart et al, 2015;Arguedas et al, 2018), or kept in captivity (Ellman, 1997;Mayer et al, 2005;Laube et al, 2016), providing information on the survival of species with conservation issues. However, free-ranging species with no apparent threats have generally not been evaluated as well.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Health status of Polychrus gutturosus based on physical examination, hematology and biochemistry parameters in Costa Rica

Arguedas¹,

Ovares²,

Arguedas

et al. 2021

PeerJ

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Studies evaluating the health status and characteristics of free-ranging wildlife populations are scarce or absent for most species. Saurian health assessments are usually performed in species that have conservation issues or that are kept in captivity. The Berthold’s bush anole (Polychrus guturossus) is one of eight species belonging to the genus Polychrus, the only representative of the family Polychrotidae. Only a handful of studies have been reported concerning these lizard’s morphological variation, ecology, and natural history, probably because P. gutturosus is a canopy dweller and it can be difficult to locate individuals. It is believed that deforestation and habitat modification could pose a threat for this species, although to date no health assessment has been done. The aim of this study was to generate health baseline data on P. gutturosus. Forty Berthold’s bush anoles (20 males and 20 females) were sampled at the Pacific versant in Costa Rica, where physical examination, skin and cloacal temperatures, and blood samples were obtained from individuals immediately after capture. Animals from the studied population were all healthy (body condition 2.5–3.0/5.0). No lesions or ectoparasites were detected, but hemoparasites were found in nine individuals. Hematological and biochemical values were obtained, and the morphology of leukocytes were found to be similar to other iguanians. A positive correlation was found between the tissue enzymes aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and creatinine kinase (CK) and a negative correlation was found between skin and cloacal temperatures and AST and CK. There were positive correlations between female weight and total protein, calcium, and the calcium and phosphorus ratio. No significant inter-sex differences were found in biochemical values, despite females being larger than males. This is the first health assessment performed on a free-ranging canopy dwelling lizard. These findings provide baseline data that may be useful for future monitoring if the species faces changes in health status due to anthropogenic causes or natural disturbances.

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Hematology of Free-ranging and Managed Texas Horned Lizards (Phrynosoma cornutum)

Cited by 6 publications

References 13 publications

Spatial Use and Survivorship of Translocated Wild‐Caught Texas Horned Lizards

Spatial Use and Survivorship of Translocated Wild‐Caught Texas Horned Lizards

Peer Review #1 of "Health status of Polychrus gutturosus based on physical examination, hematology and biochemistry parameters in Costa Rica (v0.1)"

Health status of Polychrus gutturosus based on physical examination, hematology and biochemistry parameters in Costa Rica

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