Rl. Deswart et al., HEMATOLOGY AND CLINICAL-CHEMISTRY VALUES FOR HARBOR SEALS (PHOCA-VITULINA) FED ENVIRONMENTALLY CONTAMINATED HERRING REMAIN WITHIN NORMAL RANGES, Canadian journal of zoology, 73(11), 1995, pp. 2035-2043
Twenty-two young harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) were fed herring from
either the relatively unpolluted Atlantic Ocean or the heavily pollute
d Baltic Sea as part of a 21/2-year immunotoxicological study. Blood s
amples taken at regular intervals were analyzed for routine haematolog
y and clinical chemistry. Minimal differences between the two groups w
ere observed in these parameters over the course of the experiment. Of
the 20 clinical chemistry parameters analyzed, slight differences wer
e found in serum levels of urea, creatinine, magnesium, and cholestero
l. In haematology profiles, red blood cell counts and haematocrit valu
es were higher in seals fed Baltic herring, but these differences dimi
nished over time. Neutrophil counts were also higher in this group of
seals, especially during the second half of the feeding study. Factors
affecting haematological and clinical chemistry parameters within fee
ding groups included gender, age, and season. The data collected demon
strate a relative insensitivity of clinical chemistry parameters to th
e effects of chronic exposure to environmental contaminants accumulate
d through the food chain, but suggest the induction of clear alteratio
ns in differential white blood cell counts. In addition, a comprehensi
ve set of normal ranges for healthy harbour seals is presented.