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

SUBMITTER: Espinoza-Romo BA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6059397 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature