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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Vet. Sci.
Sec. Zoological Medicine
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1484082

Hematologic and clinical chemistry reference intervals for six species of wild birds frequently rescued in the Republic of Korea

Provisionally accepted
Myeongsu Kim Myeongsu Kim Zun zun Wut hmon Zun zun Wut hmon Woochan Jang Woochan Jang Geonwoo Baek Geonwoo Baek Jae-Ik Han Jae-Ik Han *
  • Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, Republic of Korea

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Objective: Reference intervals for hematologic and clinical chemistry values are useful when diagnosing a pathologic condition in animals. This study establishes relevant reference intervals for six species of wild birds that are frequently rescued at wildlife rescue centers in the Republic of Korea.Method: Forty-two Eurasian eagle owls (Bubo bubo), 34 Oriental turtle doves (Streptopelia orientalis), 73 domestic pigeons (Columba livia domestica), 27 brown hawk-owls (Ninox scutulata), 76 common kestrels (Falco tinnunculus), and 25 Eurasian magpies (Pica pica) were included in this study. Only released birds were included because they were judged to be clinically healthy through physical examinations, blood examinations, radiographic examinations, and flight evaluations. The reference intervals were set according to the American Society for Veterinary Clinical Pathology guideline, and if there were fewer than 20 birds, the reference intervals were set between the 2.5th percentile and the 97.5th percentile.One-way ANOVA was performed to compare hematologic and clinical chemistry parameters among species.The total protein levels in carnivorous birds (Eurasian eagle owl, brown hawk-owl, and common kestrel) were significantly higher than those in omnivorous birds (Oriental turtle dove and domestic pigeon). The common kestrel exhibited significantly lower white blood cell counts and heterophil counts than other species. The Eurasian magpie had significantly higher eosinophils than other species.This study provides reference intervals for wild birds often rescued at wildlife rescue centers in Korea. It is expected that these reference intervals will be used as important data in diagnosing diseases in rescued wild birds.

    Keywords: Reference intervals, Hematology, CLINICAL PATHOLOGY, wild birds, wildlife medicine

    Received: 21 Aug 2024; Accepted: 23 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Kim, Wut hmon, Jang, Baek and Han. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Jae-Ik Han, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, Republic of Korea

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