Abstract
The white-bellied sea eagle, Haliaeetus leucogaster, is a large territorial raptor species associated with coastal regions, lakes and river systems. It has an extensive distribution from the western coast of India throughout the Indo-Malaysian region, Papua New Guinea and Australia. Blood samples of the white-bellied sea eagle housed at Nakhonratchasima Zoo, Nakhon Ratchasima province in northeastern Thailand, were collected. Morphological observations of the thrombocytes were examined using scanning electron and transmission electron microscopy. The results revealed the following information: thrombocytes of white-bellied sea eagle were oval to rod-shaped with a rough membrane and the presence of a spread monolayer. Within the cytoplasm of the white-bellied sea eagle, thrombocytes were vesicles of varying sizes. During blood clot formation, the thrombocytes spread their membrane and used pseudopodials to attach to red blood cells causing blood cell clumping to occur. This study indicates that the morphology and activity of the white-bellied sea eagle thrombocytes differs from other non-mammalian thrombocytes.
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Acknowledgment
We would like to thank the Zoological Park Organisation under Royal Patronage of His Majesty the King for the blood sample from the white-bellied sea eagle. The authors are grateful to Dr. Surasart Somsa for assistance in blood collection.
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Narkkong, NA., Aengwanich, W. & Tanomthong, A. Morphological observations of the thrombocyte of white-bellied sea eagle Haliaeetus leucogaster . Comp Clin Pathol 19, 263–267 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00580-009-0861-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00580-009-0861-4