title: Epizootic mortality of free-living green turtles, Chelonia mydas, due to coccidiosis.
abstract: At least 70 wild green sea turtles, Chelonia mydas, died in the Moreton Bay area of southeast Queensland, Australia over 6 wk in spring 1991. Based on the necropsy of 24 turtles, there was a severe enteritis or encephalitis associated with Caryospora cheloniae, a coccidial pathogen previously recorded only in farm-reared Ch. mydas hatchlings. Infection was characterized by the presence of coccidia in extra-intestinal lesions. Oocysts were observed to sporulate, after which sporozoites escaped into seawater to form a novel stellate configuration. We conclude that C. cheloniae is pathogenic for life stages other than hatchling Ch. mydas and that naturally-occurring coccidiosis is a significant disease of free-living Ch. mydas.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Pathology, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
authors.forename: A N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Gordon
authors.forename: W R
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Kelly
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Lester
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003044:Coccidia / Q000502:physiology; D003048:Coccidiosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000662:veterinary*; D004660:Encephalitis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D007411:Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D007422:Intestines / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology; D011793:Queensland / Q000453:epidemiology; D012623:Seawater; D013170:Spores; D014426:Turtles