van Elk CE †, Osterhaus ADME *, Kuiken T *
† Dolfinarium Harderwijk, Harderwijk, The Netherlands
* Department of Virology, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Neonatal mortality of marine mammals is highly undesirable in captive collections. Because the aetiology is often poorly understood, maximum effort is warranted to identify the cause of death in each case. A bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) born at the Dolfinarium Harderwijk died five days after birth. Nursing was not observed. The carcass was investigated by pathology, bacteriology, and clinical chemistry. At necropsy, meconium and amniotic fluid were found in the lungs, and there were haemorrhages on the head, urinary bladder and around the falciform ligament. Bacillary sepsis was detected in multiple tissues, including the navel, and was characterized by haemorrhage, neutrophil infiltration, and intralesional bacilli. By bacteriology, these bacilli were identified as Escherichia coli. The serum gamma globulin concentration was 1-2 g/l (normal 7-20g/l). In conclusion, this calf probably suffered from asphyxia due to a difficult expulsion and failed to suckle. The resultant failure of passive antibody transfer via colostrum allowed E. coli to invade the body via the navel, causing a fatal E. coli sepsis.
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