Journal
JOURNAL OF FISH AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT
Volume 9, Issue 2, Pages 591-597Publisher
U S FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE
DOI: 10.3996/042017-JFWM-034
Keywords
reptile; Testudinidae; drink; water loss; Mojave; Sonoran
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Funding
- USFWS's Biological Opinion for BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System Project [8-8-10-F-24]
- NRG Energy Services
- Google Inc.
- BrightSource Energy
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Some terrestrial chelonians, including Mohave desert tortoises Gopherus agassizii, reabsorb water from urine stored in their bladders, and thus they may experience an elevated risk of dehydration if they urinate in response to interactions with humans. Field biologists can use several methods to attempt to replace voided urine with hydrating fluids, but each has drawbacks or unknown efficacy. Here we evaluate the efficacy of offering juvenile Mohave desert tortoises water via needle-free syringe for ingestion through the nasal and oral passages. Only tortoises offered >= 12 mL of water, which equated to >= 40 mL of water/kg body weight, gained weight during the hydration attempt. We recommend that field biologists offer at least 40 mL of water/kg body weight when using the nasal-oral hydration method with a minimum of 15 mL offered regardless of body weight. The nasal-oral technique and minimum volume recommendations may be useful for other terrestrial chelonians, and we recommend attempting rehydration via this simple technique when alternate methods are not available to alleviate the potentially harmful effects of handling-induced loss of urine.
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