NECROTIZING ENTERITIS AS A CAUSE OF MORTALITY IN LAYSAN ALBATROSS, DIOMEDEA-IMMUTABILIS, CHICKS ON MIDWAY ATOLL, HAWAII

A necropsy survey of Laysan albatross, Diomedea immutabilis, chicks on Midway Atoll in June 1993, 1994, and 1995 revealed 54% (21/39), 67% ( 49/71), and 93% (15/16), respectively, to have enteritis as the most s evere pathologic finding. The lesion was limited to the ileum, ceca, a nd large intestine. We were unable to attribute a single infectious et iology to this lesion. Many birds with enteritis also exhibited renal lesions similar to those encountered in chickens experimentally depriv ed of water. We propose that enteritis is a significant cause of morta lity in Laysan albatross chicks on Midway and that it may be a sequela to dehydration. It is likely that the pathology of dehydration in Lay san albatross differs from that in chickens largely because of diet.