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Nesting Green Turtle Tagged in Cuba, Recaptured in Florida
Title
Nesting Green Turtle Tagged in Cuba, Recaptured in Florida.
Creator
Felix Moncada, Christina M. Coppenrath, Sarah Hirsch, Gonzalo Nodarse, Annie Page-Karjian, Ashley M. Reeves, Justin R. Perrault
Date Issued
2019
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FAUIR000561
Format
Document (PDF)
NONPIGMENTED VERSUS PIGMENTED: HEALTH VARIABLES AND GENETICS OF ALBINO FLORIDA GREEN TURTLE (CHELONIA MYDAS) HATCHLINGS COMPARED WITH NORMALLY PIGMENTED HATCHLINGS FROM THE SAME CLUTCH
Title
NONPIGMENTED VERSUS PIGMENTED: HEALTH VARIABLES AND GENETICS OF ALBINO FLORIDA GREEN TURTLE (CHELONIA MYDAS) HATCHLINGS COMPARED WITH NORMALLY PIGMENTED HATCHLINGS FROM THE SAME CLUTCH.
Creator
Justin R. Perrault, Jacob A. Lasala, Charles A. Manire, Christina M. Coppenrath, Annie Page-Karjian, Alyssa Blew, Nicole I. Stacy
Abstract/Description
At the time of hatchling emergence from a nest laid on Juno Beach, Florida, US, by a normally pigmented green turtle (Chelonia mydas), 23 albino hatchlings and 75 normally pigmented hatchlings were observed. This condition is rarely seen in sea turtles, and little is known about blood analytes and genetics of albino wildlife to date. Therefore, the objective of our study was to assess and compare morphometric measurements (mass, minimum straight carapace length, body condition index),...
Show moreAt the time of hatchling emergence from a nest laid on Juno Beach, Florida, US, by a normally pigmented green turtle (Chelonia mydas), 23 albino hatchlings and 75 normally pigmented hatchlings were observed. This condition is rarely seen in sea turtles, and little is known about blood analytes and genetics of albino wildlife to date. Therefore, the objective of our study was to assess and compare morphometric measurements (mass, minimum straight carapace length, body condition index), carapacial scute anomalies, a suite of hematologic and plasma biochemical analytes, and two glucose analysis methodologies (glucometer and dry chemistry analysis) in albino (n¼20) versus normally pigmented (n¼24) hatchlings from this nest. Genetic analyses were completed to identify paternal contributions of hatchlings and to test Mendelian inheritance assumptions. Although morphometric measurements, scute anomalies, and leukocyte morphology were similar between albino and normally pigmented hatchlings, several differences were observed in blood analyte data: immature erythrocytes, packed cell volume, heterophil:lymphocyte ratio, and glucose concentrations (by both methodologies) were significantly higher, whereas absolute immature heterophils, absolute lymphocytes, number of erythrocyte micronuclei, sodium, and chloride were significantly lower in albino hatchlings compared with normally pigmented hatchlings. Considerations for these differences include a stress response from sampling (e.g., timing of procedures or possibly from photosensitivity or reduced visual acuity in albinos) and different osmoregulation, which may reflect physiologic variations or stress. There was a small positive bias (0.10 mmol/L) with glucose by glucometer, similar to reports in other sea turtle species and confirming its suitability for use in hatchlings. All albino hatchlings analyzed (n¼10) were from the same father, but the normally pigmented hatchlings (n¼24) were from two other fathers. These findings provide insight into the physiology and genetics of albinism in sea turtles. Key words: Biochemistry, genotype, glucose, hematology, leucism, method comparison, multiple paternity, sea turtle.
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Date Issued
2022
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FAUIR000549
Format
Document (PDF)
Comprehensive health assessment of green turtles Chelonia mydas nesting in southeastern Florida, USA
Title
Comprehensive health assessment of green turtles Chelonia mydas nesting in southeastern Florida, USA.
Creator
Annie Page-Karjian, Ryan Chabot, Nicole I. Stacy, Ashley S. Morgan, Roldán A. Valverde, Sydney Stewart, Christina M. Coppenrath, Charles A. Manire, Lawrence H. Herbst, Christopher R. Gregory, Branson W. Ritchie, Justin R. Perrault
Abstract/Description
Important indicators of population health needed for large-scale sea turtle population recovery efforts include demographics, disease and mortality trends, condition indices, and baseline blood data. With this comprehensive health assessment of adult female green sea turtles Chelonia mydas nesting on Juno Beach, Florida, USA, we (1) established baseline health indices; (2) identified individuals with evidence of infection by chelonid alphaherpes viruses 5 and 6 (ChHV5, ChHV6), which are...
Show moreImportant indicators of population health needed for large-scale sea turtle population recovery efforts include demographics, disease and mortality trends, condition indices, and baseline blood data. With this comprehensive health assessment of adult female green sea turtles Chelonia mydas nesting on Juno Beach, Florida, USA, we (1) established baseline health indices; (2) identified individuals with evidence of infection by chelonid alphaherpes viruses 5 and 6 (ChHV5, ChHV6), which are implicated in fibropapillomatosis and respiratory and skin disease, respectively; and (3) compared measured health indices between turtles that did versus those that did not test positive for ChHV5 and/or ChHV6. All 60 turtles included in the study were in good body condition with no external fibropapillomatosis tumors. Hematological and biochemical reference intervals were established. Via quantitative PCR (qPCR), 5/60 turtles (8%) tested positive for ChHV5, and all turtles were negative for ChHV6. Of 41 turtles tested for antibodies to ChHV5 and ChHV6, 29% and 15% tested positive, respectively, and 10% tested positive for antibodies to both viruses. Notably, there were no statistically significant differences between health variables for nesting turtles that tested positive for ChHV5 DNA versus those that tested negative; and also no differences between turtles that tested positive for ChHV5 or ChHV6 antibodies and those that did not. This suggests that these viruses are enzootically stable in Florida’s adult green turtles. This study provides a health profile of nesting green turtles in southeastern Florida applicable to temporal and spatial investigations of this and other populations.
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Date Issued
2020
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FAUIR000559
Format
Document (PDF)