RESUMO
Blood parasites such as haemogregarines and haemosporidians have been identified in almost all groups of vertebrates and may cause serious damages to their hosts. However, very little is known about biodiversity of these parasites and their effects on some groups of reptiles such as terrapins. Moreover, the information on virulence from blood parasites mixed infection is largely unknown in reptiles. With this aim, we investigated for the first time the prevalence and genetic diversity of blood parasites from one genus of haemoparasitic aplicomplexan (Hepatozoon) in two populations of Spanish terrapins (Mauremys leprosa), a semi-aquatic turtle from southwestern Europe with a vulnerable conservation status. We also examined the association between mixed blood parasite infection and indicators of health of terrapins (body condition, haematocrit values and immune response). Blood parasite infection with Hepatozoon spp was detected in 46·4% of 140 examined terrapins. The prevalence of blood parasites infection differed between populations. We found two different lineages of blood parasite, which have not been found in previous studies. Of the turtles with infection, 5·7% harboured mixed infection by the two lineages. There was no difference in body condition between uninfected, single-infected and mixed-infected turtles, but mixed-infected individuals had the lowest values of haematocrit, thus revealing the negative effects of blood parasite mixed infections. Immune response varied among terrapins with different infection status, where mixed infected individuals had higher immune response than uninfected or single-infected terrapins.
Assuntos
Coccidiose/veterinária , Coinfecção/parasitologia , Eucoccidiida/genética , Variação Genética , Tartarugas/parasitologia , Animais , Biodiversidade , Coccidiose/epidemiologia , Coccidiose/parasitologia , Coinfecção/imunologia , Interações Hospedeiro-Parasita , Prevalência , Tartarugas/imunologiaRESUMO
Many studies have shown the importance of colorful ornamentation in mate choosiness or intrasexual conflict. However, research on color ornaments has focused mainly on birds, lizards or fish, but remains practically unknown in other animal groups such as turtles. In addition, female ornaments and their relation with sexual selection also remain almost unknown. Here, we measured the coloration of the shell and the limb stripes of male and female Spanish terrapins Mauremys leprosa and explored the existence of sexual dichromatism and the relation of color characteristics with body size and health state estimated from the immune response to the injection of an antigen (phytohaemagglutinin test). Our results showed that shell coloration, which could be constrained by natural selection to be cryptic, changed with body size, but did not differ between sexes. In contrast, females had brighter and less ultraviolet-saturated and more orange-saturated limb stripes than males. In females, interindividual variation in limb stripe coloration was related with body size and immune response suggesting that this coloration may inform honestly about multiple traits that could be important in sexual selection. In contrast, coloration of limb stripes of males was duller than in females, and was not related with any trait suggesting that coloration is not important in sexual selection for males.