Abstract
The crested porcupine is a widespread naturalized Italian rodent of African origin; nevertheless, very little information on the population abundance and its health status is available. In this study, the hematological and serum chemistry profile of 10 free-ranging captured crested porcupines was established for the first time. The mean hematological values resulted: 5.7 SD 0.4 M/μL for red blood cells; 13.6 SD 0.8 g/dL for hemoglobin; 77.3 SD 5.7 fL for mean corpuscular volume and 30.1 SD 4.7 g/dL for mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration; 14.4 SD 7.2 K/μL for white blood cells; and 557.0 SD 469.9 K/μL for platelets. The mean urea and creatinine values resulted with 19.8 SD 8.3 mg/dL and 1.6 SD 3.0 mg/dL, respectively. The mean value of total protein was 6.7 SD 1.0 g/dL, with values of albumin higher than globulins. The mean activity of creatine kinase, aspartate transaminase, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, and alkaline phosphatase was 927.3 SD 607.6 U/L, 199.2 SD 70.8 U/L, 16.9 SD 13.7 U/L, and 256 SD 75.8 U/L, respectively. Highest values of alkaline phosphatase were recorded in two porcupines presenting severe injuries with clear signs of infection. These preliminary results may be a helpful tool in order to assess porcupine health status.
Highlights
The crested porcupine (Hystrix cristata) is a naturalized Italian rodent of African origin widely spread throughout the Italian territory [1,2]
The capture-marking activity and handling protocols of porcupines was approved by the Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research (ISPRA) with protocol number 22,584 of the 8 May 2017 and protocol number 150,071 of the 16 March 2018 and by Tuscany Region with the Decree n. 14,235 of the 3 October 2017 n. 4842 of the 6 April 2018 in each area, six capture traps were placed along pathways connecting porcupine settlements to food-patch areas, where porcupine presence signs were regularly detected
The same author reported the hematological profile of one healthy porcupine and some biochemical values of two free-ranging individuals [26]
Summary
The crested porcupine (Hystrix cristata) is a naturalized Italian rodent of African origin widely spread throughout the Italian territory [1,2]. It is a monogamous, burrowing, mainly herbivorous and nocturnal mammal [3–8]. The crested porcupine is strictly protected by European and Italian. The crested porcupine is able to adapt itself to different habitat types where vegetation offers adequate woody and/or bush covered areas and food availability [9] in the Italian agro-ecosystem, the crested porcupine has benefitted from the increase in the production of agricultural crops, leading to an increase of porcupine–human interaction and conflicts [10,11]. The crested porcupine is considered a pest species throughout all its distribution range [11]
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