A REVIEW OF MORTALITY IN TENTACLED SNAKES (ERPETON TENTACULATUM) IN A MULTI-INSTITUTION ZOOLOGICAL COLLECTION BETWEEN 1966 AND 2017.

The tentacled snake (Erpeton tentaculatum) is a viviparous aquatic snake that is a desirable species to exhibit in zoological collections because of its unique appearance and feeding strategies. Despite its presence in zoo collections over the past 50 yr, a comprehensive review of mortality and morbidity in the species has not been published. This study retrospectively reviewed 125 pathology reports from tentacled snakes in a multi-institution zoological collection in New York (The Wildlife Conservation Society's Bronx and Central Park zoos) between 1966 and 2017. Just over half of the deaths were due to infectious disease (n = 67; 53.6%), and of these, over half (n = 40; 59.7%) were due to fungal dermatitis. Fungal histomorphology was consistent with Paranannizziopsis spp. in most cases. Death due to bacterial infection was also relatively common (n = 21; 16.8%), and one-third had intralesional bacilli consistent with Mycobacterium spp. (n = 7; 5.6%). The most common comorbidities included gastrointestinal parasitism (n = 44; 35.2%), renal pathology (n = 31; 24.8%), and lipid accumulation of hepatocytes (n = 13; 10.4%). This retrospective review suggests that managing infectious diseases plays a role in the long-term care and survival of captive tentacled snakes.

TREATMENT OF CRYPTOSPORIDIUM SERPENTIS INFECTION IN A KING COBRA ( OPHIOPHAGUS HANNAH) WITH PAROMOMYCIN.

Feces collected from a wild-caught, young adult king cobra ( Ophiophagus hannah) were repeatedly positive for Cryptosporidium on both direct immunofluorescent antibody (DFA) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and sequencing identified the organism as Cryptosporidium serpentis. Infection was subclinical, as the snake was in good body condition and active, and readily consumed dead rats that were scented with snake skin. A course of paromomycin, inserted in feeder rats, was initiated at 360 mg/kg, orally, twice weekly for 6 wk. Feces collected at the end of treatment were negative for Cryptosporidium on PCR, as were feces collected 3 wk, 6 mo, 12 mo, and 18 mo later. At higher dosages, paromomycin may prove useful and may be curative for early gastric and intestinal cryptosporidiosis in squamate reptiles.