Pathology in the Olive Ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) that arrived to the shores of Cuyutlan, Colima, Mexico

The purpose of this work was to report the causes of mortality of eleven Olive Ridley Turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) that arrived to the shore of Cuyutlan, Colima, Mexico, in a critical health condition between the months of June and September of 2006. The signs presented were: inability to swim, weakness, loss of weight, sunken eyes, lethargy and mesh lesions in fins and shell. The necropsy was carried out. Representative lesion samples were collected from the main organs and they were fixed in 10% buffered formalin pH 7.2 using the histological technique and the hematoxylin-eosine tint. The results were: six cases (60%) presented multifocal hepatic haemochromatosis, three (30%) presented multifocal non supurative myocarditis, two (20%), multifocal granulomatous nephritis associated with Paecilomyces sp with calcification. Intestinal lymphangiectasia and heterophilic diffuse perihepatitis. Other pathologies included: one case (10%) presented cutaneous fibropapillomas, bacterial necrotic ulcerative dermatitis; one more presented multifocal granulomatous pneumonia associated with Paecilomyces sp; in three cases, intestinal trematode (Adenogaster serialis); in five epibiontes (Chelonibia testudinaria) in fins; and in one, a blood parasite (Toddia sp). The findings of these diseases will permit to propose preventive medicine with the aim to preserve marine turtles in Mexico..