RESUMO
The New Zealand sea lion is an endangered species endemic to New Zealand. While causes of death are well described for pups of this species, mortality in adults is poorly characterised. This study investigated causes of death in 136 New Zealand sea lions in two different populations: a major breeding site on remote, uninhabited Enderby Island in the sub-Antarctic, and a slowly increasing recolonising population on the inhabited mainland. For animals with at least a partial diagnostic investigation (nâ¯=â¯112), the most frequently diagnosed causes of mortality were infectious disease (41/112; 37%), particularly tuberculosis due to M. pinnipedii (20/112; 18%), and conspecific trauma (27/112; 24%). Anthropogenic trauma was an important cause of death in mainland sea lions (9/33; 26%). Deliberate anthropogenic mortality has previously been identified as the greatest potential threat to population recovery for mainland sea lions, and as human and pinniped populations increase, managing interactions between these species will become increasingly important.
RESUMO
Diffuse infiltrative gastrointestinal lipomatosis (DIGIL) is characterized by widespread proliferation of adipose tissue within the submucosal and subserosal layers of the gastrointestinal tract. Here we describe a case of diffuse infiltrative colonic lipomatosis in a 3-year-old male Vietnamese pot-bellied pig. Gross anatomical changes included obesity with sparse small intestinal contents and no colonic contents. The colonic lumen was narrowed and the colonic wall was diffusely thickened (â¼5 mm), white, homogeneous and soft. Other findings were vesical uroliths and mild fibrinous pneumonia. Histologically, the colonic submucosa and muscle layers were expanded and almost completely replaced by sheets of adipose tissue admixed with scant fibrovascular tissue. Other minor changes included mild fibrinous pneumonia, splenic lymphoid depletion and testicular atrophy. The colonic changes in the current case are consistent with those described for DIGIL. This is a rare condition in human beings and animals and has never been described in pigs.