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¹ Wildlife Health Center, University of California–Davis, One Shields Ave., Davis, California 95616, USA
² St. Catherines Island Center, 182 Camellia Rd., Midway, Georgia 31320, USA
³ California Animal Health & Food Safety Laboratory, Maddy Laboratory, One Shields Ave., Davis, California 95616, USA
⁴ Georgia Department of Natural Resources, 116 Rum Creek Dr., Forsyth, Georgia 31029, USA
⁵ Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, 4005 S. Main St., Gainesville, Florida 32601, USA
⁶ Miller School of Medicine, Division of Comparative Pathology, University of Miami, PO Box 016960 (R-46), Miami, Florida 33101, USA
⁷ Department of Nutrition, St. Louis Zoo, 1 Government Dr., St. Louis, Missouri 63110, USA
⁸ Vitamin D Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Boston University, 85 E Newton St., Fuller Bldg., Room 1022, Boston, Massachusetts 02118, USA
⁹ White Oak Conservation Center, 3823 Owens Rd., Yulee, Florida 32097, USA
¹⁰ Department of Pathology and Infectious Diseases, University of Florida, College of Veterinary Medicine, 2015 SW 16th Ave., Gainesville, Florida 32610, USA
¹¹ Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study, Wildlife Health Building, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, 589 DW Brooks Dr., Athens, Georgia 30602, USA
¹² Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration, 55 Coogan Blvd., Mystic, Connecticut 06355, USA
¹³ Corresponding author (email: kcinsd{at}hotmail.com)

ABSTRACT:   The Alligator Snapping Turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) is a large freshwater turtle endemic to river systems that drain into the Gulf of Mexico. Turtle populations were sharply reduced by commercial harvest in the 1970s and 1980s; however, the species has yet to be protected under the Endangered Species Act. While anthropogenic stressors such as habitat fragmentation and degradation and illegal capture continue to threaten populations, the degree to which disease may be contributing to any decline of the Alligator Snapping Turtle is unknown. Data were collected from 97 free-ranging Alligator Snapping Turtles in nine waterways in Florida and Georgia from 2001 to 2006. Eleven turtles were captured more than once, resulting in a total sample pool of 123. Reference ranges were established for complete blood count, plasma biochemistry values, trace metals (mercury, zinc, copper, lead, and arsenic), and nutrient parameters (vitamins A, E, D, and selenium). Variations by capture location, sex, and season were detected and likely resulted from external factors such as habitat and diet. Turtles sampled in one location were positive for tortoise herpesviral antibodies. Blood mercury values also differed among populations. This study provides justification for the use of these long-lived aquatic turtles as biologic monitors of the health of local freshwater ecosystems.
  Key words:  Alligator Snapping Turtle, hematology, Macrochelys temminckii, mercury, plasma biochemistry, wildlife health.