Gastrointestinal obstruction in penguin chicks.
A 7-day-old gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua) was found dead and postmortem examination revealed impaction of the ventriculus with feathers. A review of mortality in gentoo penguin chicks from 1997 to 2007 at that institution revealed another case of feather impaction of the ventriculus in a 4-week-old chick, a sibling of the previous chick. A third case of gastrointestinal impaction occurred in a 24-day-old king penguin (Aptenodytes patagonicus) with omphallitis and enteritis. In this chick, a fibrin mat produced a complete obstruction of the intestine at the level of Meckel's diverticulum.
Center for Conservation and Research, Henry Doorly Zoo, 3701 South 10th Street, Omaha, NE 68107, USA.
David
D
Perpiñán
Thomas G
TG
Curro
D000818:Animals; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000473:pathology*; D007415:Intestinal Obstruction / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D046429:Spheniscidae