Physiological parameters and their response to handling stress in a neotropical migratory shorebird

D´AMICO, V.L.; PALACIOS, M. G.; BAKER, A. J.; GONZALES, P. M.; MADRID, E.; BERTELLOTTI, M.

JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE DISEASES

WILDLIFE DISEASE ASSOC, INC

Lugar: Journal of Wildlife Diseases; Año: 2016

0090-3558

Physiologicaltraits are promising indicators of population health in the face of rapidchanging environments. We obtained values of diverse physiological parameters forTwo-banded Plovers (Charadriusfalklandicus) in coastal sites in Patagonia, Argentina, with the objectiveof determining the timeline in which these parameters become affected by thestress of capture and handling and of obtaining reference values for futuremonitoring of these patagonian populations. We analyzed packed cell volume, whiteblood cell profile, heterophil /lymphocyte ratio, bacterial agglutination titer,and total protein, glucose, triglyceride, and cholesterol levels in apparentlyhealthy birds. Glucose, total white blood cell count, lymphocytes and eosinophillevels showed changes with handling times > 60 minutes after capture. The remainingparameters did not manifest significant alterations in response to capture and handlingof up to 232 minutes (average = 105.2 ± 56.7). Therefore, although researchersshould attempt to obtain blood samples as soon as possible after capture, inclusionof physiological parameters in monitoring studies of species not easily sampledin a few minutes, as Two-banded Plovers and other shorebird species duringmigration, should not be discouraged. Data presented here constitute the first physiologicalreport for the species and can be considered as reference values during the non-breedingseason at Patagonian coastal sites.