wildlife veterinarians working on distance Guafo island Chile discovered deadly heart damage, known as cardiomyopathy in five South American fur seal pups they had captured and placed in bags up to 30 minutes, a common practice to consider the smaller seals. As part of a biological survey during the island, researchers had caught and released fur seals for 4 years without deaths captivity, but the sudden cluster triggered an investigation. Necropsy revealed that the puppies had chronic hookworm infection, which worsened their immune system and sent their adrenal glands in hyperdrive. The adrenal glands produce stress hormones that speed up the heart, the team believes that the captivity and the trauma of bagging pushed the baby seals on the edge. The examinations, reported in Marine Mammal Science , revealed unmistakable lesions of cardiomyopathy in heart muscles of the puppies. Fur seals become the second marine mammals, after the dolphins, shown to develop heart disease after handling or captivity. Biologists suggest that field officers should look for signs of chronic infections in seals, such as discomfort or unusually rapid breathing before handling animals and risking further damage.
See Science . Shots
0 Komentar