Institute for Conservation Medicine, Saint Louis Zoo, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Charles Darwin Foundation, Santa Cruz 200350, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador.
J Zoo Wildl Med. 2023 Jul;54(2):301-309. doi: 10.1638/2022-0047.
We report hematology and biochemistry reference intervals (RI) for the critically endangered Cuban crocodile (). In November 2019, we sampled 43 adult crocodiles (6 male, 37 female) under human care at the Zapata Swamp Crocodile Farm in Matanzas, Cuba. These crocodiles are part of a breeding program for the species registered by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). Visual health evaluations were performed immediately after manual restraint, and blood was collected from the postoccipital sinus. We performed packed cell volume (PCV), total solids (TS), complete blood counts (CBC), and biochemistry profiles for each crocodile on the day of sampling. Mean PCV ( = 42) was 21.1 ± 5.0% and TS ( = 42) 7.3 ± 1.2 mg/dl, respectively. Absolute white blood cell (WBC) ( = 40) was 9.6 ± 5.7 ｘ 109/L. Similar to other crocodilian species, the dominant leukocyte was lymphocytes (70.7 ± 10.4%), followed by heterophils (18.7 ± 9.7%). Two of the crocodiles had a high heterophil:lymphocyte ratio (0.87 and 0.74), although on visual exam they were both considered healthy. The range of creatine kinase was 41-1,482 U/L, and the higher values may be a reflection of muscle exertion at time of handling. Limitations to the study included skewed sex ratios and high lipemia and hemolysis in most samples collected. These are the first reference intervals reported for this species, including the first descriptions of WBC morphology. These data are valuable for the management of animals at the Zapata Swamp Crocodile Farm, for comparison with free-living Cuban crocodiles in Cuba, and for comparison with those managed under human care outside of Cuba.
我们报告了极度濒危的古巴鳄（）的血液学和生化学参考区间（RI）。2019 年 11 月，我们在古巴马坦萨斯的萨帕塔沼泽鳄鱼养殖场对 43 只成年鳄鱼（6 只雄性，37 只雌性）进行了采样，这些鳄鱼是受《濒危野生动植物种国际贸易公约》（CITES）注册的该物种繁殖计划的一部分。在手动约束后立即进行视觉健康评估，并从枕后窦采集血液。我们在采样当天对每只鳄鱼进行了红细胞压积（PCV）、总固体（TS）、全血细胞计数（CBC）和生化学分析。平均 PCV（n=42）为 42±5.0%，TS（n=42）为 7.3±1.2mg/dl。绝对白细胞（WBC）（n=40）为 9.6±5.7×109/L。与其他鳄类相似，优势白细胞是淋巴细胞（70.7±10.4%），其次是异嗜性粒细胞（18.7±9.7%）。有两只鳄鱼的异嗜性粒细胞：淋巴细胞比值较高（0.87 和 0.74），尽管从视觉检查来看，它们都被认为是健康的。肌酸激酶的范围为 41-1482U/L，较高的值可能反映了处理时肌肉的用力。本研究的局限性包括偏态性别比例以及大多数采集样本的高脂血症和高溶血。这些是该物种的第一个参考区间，包括对白细胞形态的首次描述。这些数据对于管理萨帕塔沼泽鳄鱼养殖场的动物非常有价值，可与古巴自由生活的古巴鳄进行比较，也可与古巴以外受人类照顾的管理的鳄鱼进行比较。
