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Abstract. The relative abundance of different types of white blood cells (i.e. leukocyte profile) can provide important information
about the physiological condition of animals. Baseline values for leukocyte profiles are well known for a variety of mammalian
and avian taxa, but there is less information about ‘normal’ levels for reptiles and amphibians. We here provide leukocyte
parameters and morphological descriptions of white blood cells in wild urban Northwestern Gartersnakes (Thamnophis
ordinoides) in the Greater Victoria Area, BC. Blood was sampled by cardiocentesis and white blood cells were counted from
prepared blood smears. Lymphocytes were the most abundant cell type, followed by azurophils, basophils, heterophils, and
monocytes. Eosinophils were not identified in the blood of these snakes. The ratio of heterophils to lymphocytes (H:L) is a
reliable index of chronic stress in vertebrates and is therefore potentially useful in assessing the impact of stressful challenges,
such as predators and anthropogenic disturbances, on wildlife.
Key words. Leukocyte profile; physiological condition; reptiles; heterophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (H:L); chronic stress;
anthropogenic disturbance; urban wildlife management
Study species
1
Department of Biology, University of Victoria, PO Box 3020,
Victoria, BC V8W 3N5 Thamnophis ordinoides is a diurnal terrestrial
* Corresponding author e-mail: kahbell04@gmail.com snake (Stewart, 1968; Gregory, 1978) that is found
536 Katie A. H. Bell & Patrick T. Gregory
predominantly in meadows and along forest edges small snakes (SVL of 1 m or less, e.g., Gartersnakes;
(Stewart, 1968; Gregory, 1984b; Matsuda et al., 2006), Campbell and Ellis, 2007).
where it preys on slugs and earthworms (Gregory, 1978; To collect the blood, a syringe was held with the
Gregory, 1984b; Matsuda et al., 2006). It ranges from needle pointed cranially, and the needle was then
southern British Columbia to northern California along inserted slightly between two ventral scutes at an angle
the Pacific coast of North America. of 30° from the snake’s body surface. The angle of the
needle was then increased to 45° and slowly inserted
Sampling and Processing Snakes until it touched the snake’s spine. The plunger was
slowly pulled back as the needle was slowly pulled out
We searched for snakes between 9am and 8pm on
of the snake until blood started to enter the syringe. The
sunny, cloudy, and lightly rainy days from May to
syringe was held steady until about 3 units (0.03 mL)
August 2012, when Gartersnakes were most active
of blood were collected. This is well below the safe
(Stewart, 1968; Gregory, 1984a; Lind et al., 2005) and
amount of blood to collect from these snakes: reptiles
captured 126 snakes by hand. We collected various
can tolerate removal of up to 10% of the blood volume,
kinds of information from each captured snake (e.g.
which corresponds to 0.5-0.8 mL for a 100 g individual
SVL – snout-vent length, reproductive state if female,
(Sykes and Klaphake, 2008). The syringe was set
presence of injuries) for use in subsequent analyses not
aside (in the shade if outside, keeping it vertical with
presented in this paper.
the needle end down) briefly while other measurements
were taken from the snake. In no instance was there any
Sampling blood
sign that the snake was injured by this procedure.
To obtain accurate measures of white blood cell
abundance, one must collect whole blood that is not Preparing blood smears
diluted by lymph fluid (Thrall et al., 2004). Blood drawn
Two to six blood smears per snake were prepared by
from veins is often diluted, given the close association
placing one drop of blood onto a microscope slide and
between blood and lymphatic vessels (Thrall et al.,
used the bevel-edge slide technique to create a smear
2004). Therefore, cardiocentesis (puncturing the heart)
(Perpinan et al., 2006). The slides were then air-dried
is preferred to other methods (e.g., caudal venipuncture)
and labelled.
when collecting blood from snakes (Thrall et al., 2004),
In the laboratory, smears were stained on the same
so we used that approach in this study.
day that they were prepared, using CAMCO Quik
To obtain a blood sample from the heart, the snake
Stain II (buffered differential Wright-Giemsa stain). A
was held firmly on its back, elevated at about 45° to
Wright’s-Giemsa stain is sufficient for identifying most
the ground (head up) between the thumb and index
leukocytes with ease (Alleman et al., 1999). The smears
finger. The heart is in the anterior 1/3 of the body, just
were submerged in stain for 10 seconds, and then
craniad the lungs (Campbell and Ellis, 2007; Sykes and
immediately transferred to tap water for 20 seconds,
Klaphake, 2008) and was detected either by observing
after which they were left to air-dry. Once dry, the
the movement of the ventral scutes (indicating
smears were lightly wiped with a Kim Wipe to remove
heartbeats) or by palpating the ventral surface, starting
excess stain from the backs of the slides. Finally, the
at the base of the head and moving caudally (Campbell
slides were stored in slide boxes for later leukocyte
and Ellis, 2007). In the rare event that the heart was
profiling.
not detected by one of these methods, we identified the
most cranial area of lung movement – the heart is just
Leukocyte profiling
anterior to this point. When using the latter method to
locate the heart, more puncture attempts were required Only the single smear with the largest area of
to collect blood because the exact location of the heart monolayer cells was profiled for each snake (N=126)
was not known. under 1000X oil immersion (Zeiss immersionsoel),
Cardiocentesis was performed using Becton, using a Leitz Laborlux S compound microscope. The
Dickonson and Company (BD) Ultra-Fine insulin leukocyte profile was started at the most distal edge of
syringes (0.3 cc, 12.7 mm length, and 29-gauge needle). the feather end of the smear and proceeded one field
We chose this method because it is non-lethal, safe to of view at a time, across the entire smear in an ‘S’
use on non-anesthetized snakes (Campbell and Ellis, fashion. Only fields of view with >15 erythrocytes in
2007), and is manageable for one person, at least for a monolayer were considered (Davis and Maerz, 2008).
White blood cells in Northwestern Gartersnakes 537
Results
Blood could not be drawn consistently from the hearts
of very small snakes. Therefore, we report results only
from individuals with SVL > 20 cm (N=126). Also,
no eosinophils were seen in Northwestern Gartersnake
blood, nor were there any blood-borne parasites in the
Figure 1. Notched boxplots of the five different types of
red blood cells of these snakes. leukocytes (Lymphocyte – L; Azurophil – A; Basophil
Lymphocytes were the most abundant cell type in – B; Heterophil – H; and, Monocyte – M) in blood of 126
circulation (55.667±1.409 per individual, median= 57; Northwestern Gartersnakes. The pie chart in the top right
Figure 1). Next, ordered from higher to lower average displays the relative proportion of each white blood cell of all
abundance per snake, were azurophils (22.968±0.999, types in blood.
538 Katie A. H. Bell & Patrick T. Gregory
Figure 2. Gartersnake lymphocyte (black arrow) surrounded by Figure 3. Gartersnake azurophil (black arrow) surrounded by
red blood cells – CAMCO Quik Stain II (buffered differential red blood cells – CAMCO Quik Stain II (buffered differential
Wright-Giemsa stain). Some aspects of the graphics might Wright-Giemsa stain). Some aspects of the graphics might
only be fully comprehensible in the PDF version where they only be fully comprehensible in the PDF version where they
are reproduced in colour. are reproduced in colour.
Figure 4. Gartersnake monocyte (black arrow) surrounded by Figure 5. Gartersnake basophil (black arrow) surrounded by
red blood cells – CAMCO Quik Stain II (buffered differential red blood cells – CAMCO Quik Stain II (buffered differential
Wright-Giemsa stain). Some aspects of the graphics might Wright-Giemsa stain). Some aspects of the graphics might
only be fully comprehensible in the PDF version where they only be fully comprehensible in the PDF version where they
are reproduced in colour. are reproduced in colour.
White blood cells in Northwestern Gartersnakes 539
increase the number of circulating heterophils (or in circulation takes hours to days for reptiles, there is
neutrophils in mammals and amphibians) and decrease minimal potential for elevated CORT caused by capture
the number of circulating lymphocytes across all and handling to influence changes in H:L (Davis et al.,
vertebrate taxa (Davis et al., 2008; Davis et al., 2011). 2008; Davis et al., 2011). Overall, leukocyte profiling
The abundances of azurophils (a type of monocyte only is a consistent and predictable method to assess chronic
in snakes; Sykes and Klaphake, 2008), monocytes, stress in wildlife populations (Davis et al., 2008). In
basophils, and eosinophils are not dictated by changing other reptiles, chronic stress is indicated by H:L > 2:1
concentrations of corticosterone (CORT) in circulation. (Davis, 2009). Whether this applies to T. ordinoides
These cells function specifically in response to infections remains to be seen. Leukocyte profiles of blood collected
and injury: monocytes defend against bacterial during different seasons, years, and from different wild
infections; basophils aid with a variety of inflammatory populations, as well as from experimental settings is
responses; and, eosinophils defend against parasitic required to determine whether the values collected
infections (Davis et al., 2008). Therefore, comparative from this study are baseline or in fact stress-induced.
analysis of the ratio of heterophils to lymphocytes Nonetheless, the methods outlined here provide a
between individuals is a way to indirectly infer stress starting point for assessing relative stress levels in the
levels. urban settings in which we sampled snakes; that will be
Stress is a physiological response to unfavourable the subject of a future missive.
environmental conditions, or stressors, that is measured
by changes in glucocorticoid (e.g., CORT in birds,
Acknowledgements. Funding for this work was provided by a
reptiles, and amphibians, and cortisol in humans and Discovery Grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering
teleost fish) levels and the subsequent alteration of Research Council of Canada to PTG. We thank: Dr. Chris Collis
other physiological and behavioural processes (Bailey and the veterinary technicians at the Glenview Animal Clinic for
et al., 2009; Lupien et al., 2009). Reptiles display this instruction on cardiocentesis and blood smear preparation; Dr.
‘classical stress response’ (Moore and Jessop, 2003; Andy Davis (University of Georgia) and Dr. Dorothee Beinzle
(University of Guelph Ontario Veterinary College) for clarifying
Taylor and Denardo, 2011).
the morphology of Gartersnake leukocytes; Heather Down for
There are three alternative methods for interpreting
aiding with capturing the leukocyte images; and to Graham Dixon-
the relative stress levels of wildlife: analyzing CORT MacCallum for help with fieldwork. Snakes were collected under
levels in plasma; determining fecal concentrations of permit from the British Columbia Ministry of Environment and
glucocorticoid metabolites; or conducting a leukocyte from The District of Saanich, and the project was approved by the
profile of blood smears to indirectly infer CORT levels University of Victoria Animal Care Committee.
from the ratio of two types of white blood cells. The
third method is the preferred technique to assess chronic References
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