Journal article
Health assessment of Conolophus subcristatus, Conolophus pallidus, and C. subcristatus X Amblyrhynchus cristatus hybrid (Galápagos land iguanas)
PLoS One, Vol.14(10), e0222884
2019
Abstract
The land iguanas, Conolophus pallidus and Conolophus subcristatu are large and charismatic lizards endemic to the Galápagos archipelago, but little information exists on their normal health parameters. The former is restricted to Santa Fe island, while C. subcristatus inhabits the islands of the central and western region of the archipelago. Both species are classified as vulnerable by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. As part of a population health assessment authorized by the Galápagos National Park, wild adult iguanas from three islands (North Seymour, South Plazas, and Santa Fe) were captured in July 2018. Data from a single C. subcristatus X Amblyrhynchus cristatus hybrid captured on South Plazas is also included. We analyzed blood samples drawn from 52 healthy wild adult land iguanas captured on three islands. An iSTAT portable blood analyzer was used to obtain values for pH, lactate, pO2, pCO2, HCO3-, sO2%, hematocrit, packed cell volume (PCV), hemoglobin Na, K, iCa, and glucose. Standard laboratory hematology techniques were employed for PCV determination; resulting values were also compared to the hematocrit values generated by the iSTAT. Body temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate, and body measurements were also recorded and compared to previously published data for the marine iguana (Amblyrhynchus cristatus), which shares a common ancestor with the land iguana. The data reported here provide preliminary baseline values that may be useful in comparisons between captive and wild populations, between wild populations, and in detecting changes in health status among Galápagos land iguanas affected by anthropogenic threats, climate change, or natural disturbances.
Details
- Title
- Health assessment of Conolophus subcristatus, Conolophus pallidus, and C. subcristatus X Amblyrhynchus cristatus hybrid (Galápagos land iguanas)
- Authors
- Gregory A Lewbart (Author)Colon J Grijalva (Author)Paul P Calle (Author)Karen Ingerman (Author)Juan Pablo Munoz Perez (Author) - University of the Sunshine CoastGalo Quezada (Author)Carlos A Vera (Author)Gabriele Gentile (Author)Carlos A Valle (Author)
- Publication details
- PLoS One, Vol.14(10), e0222884; 12
- Publisher
- Public Library of Science
- Date published
- 2019
- DOI
- 10.1371/journal.pone.0222884
- ISSN
- 1932-6203
- Copyright note
- Copyright © 2019 Lewbart et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
- Organisation Unit
- School of Science and Engineering - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Science, Technology and Engineering
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99451490902621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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