Green Turtle Fibropapillomatosis: Tumor Morphology and Growth Rate in a Rehabilitation Setting.

Fibropapillomatosis (FP) is a neoplastic disease most often found in green turtles (). Afflicted turtles are burdened with potentially debilitating tumors concentrated externally on the soft tissues, plastron, and eyes and internally on the lungs, kidneys, and the heart. Clinical signs occur at various levels, ranging from mild disease to severe debilitation.

A Coupled Human and Natural Systems Framework to Characterize Emerging Infectious Diseases-The Case of Fibropapillomatosis in Marine Turtles.

Emerging infectious diseases of wildlife have markedly increased in the last few decades. Unsustainable, continuous, and rapid alterations within and between coupled human and natural systems have significantly disrupted wildlife disease dynamics. Direct and indirect anthropogenic effects, such as climate change, pollution, encroachment, urbanization, travel, and trade, can promote outbreaks of infectious diseases in wildlife.

Ecological regime shift drives declining growth rates of sea turtles throughout the West Atlantic.

Somatic growth is an integrated, individual-based response to environmental conditions, especially in ectotherms. Growth dynamics of large, mobile animals are particularly useful as bio-indicators of environmental change at regional scales. We assembled growth rate data from throughout the West Atlantic for green turtles, Chelonia mydas, which are long-lived, highly migratory, primarily herbivorous mega-consumers that may migrate over hundreds to thousands of kilometers.