Values for Several Blood Parameters in Eastern Wild Turkeys

Abstract

Hematocrit, hemoglobin and plasma levels of cholesterol, glucose and total protein were determined for three groups of eastern wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris). One group consisted of 112 blood samples obtained, by making collections every two weeks, from four pen-reared birds over a 13-month period. The second group contained 55 blood samples obtained from trapped turkeys, with 31 samples from gobblers killed during the spring hunting season comprising the third group. Mean hematocrit for males and females were determined to be 41.4 ± 4.3 and 40.3 ± 4.1, respectively, whereas, hemoglobin levels were 13.9 ± 2.7 (g./100 ml.) for males and 13.7 ± 2.3 for females. Total plasma protein (g./100 ml.) was 4.7 ± 0.5 for males and 4.6 ± 0.5 for females, with plasma glucose (mg./100 ml.) being 336.2 ± 69.9 and 335.1 ± 57.7 for males and females, respectively. None of the above values were significantly different (P > 0.05) when comparing sexes for the whole 13-month study period. However, mean plasma cholesterol level (mg./100 ml.) for males (123.2 ± 26.7) was significantly different (P < 0.05) from that for females (159.8 ± 38.1) for the same period of time. A comparison of the above parameters for all turkeys trapped in January–February with those for the pen-reared turkeys, for the same two month period, showed a significant difference (P < 0.05) for hemoglobin, hematocrit and plasma glucose. Likewise, values for plasma glucose and total plasma protein for gobblers killed in March–April were significantly different (P < 0.05) from the pen-reared birds for those two months. Additional variations in all five parameters due to changes in age and season are discussed, where appropriate, throughout this paper.