ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Osseous Pathological Changes
in the White-Tailed Eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla)
in its Central European Habitat
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1
Department of Animal Anatomy, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland
2
Department of Preclinical Sciences and Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland
3
Department of Vertebrates Morphology, University of Natural Sciences and Humanities, Siedlce, Poland
4
University Center of Veterinary Medicine, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland
5
Institute of Zoology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland
Submission date: 2017-06-29
Final revision date: 2017-12-04
Acceptance date: 2018-02-11
Online publication date: 2018-09-19
Publication date: 2018-12-20
Corresponding author
Jan Włodarek
Poznań University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 28, 60-637 Poznań, Poland
Pol. J. Environ. Stud. 2019;28(2):701-708
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ABSTRACT
The aim of our research was to examine bone health in white-tailed eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla) that
died in the years 2010-2016. The research was conducted on 37 complete skeletons of eagles that came
from the territories of Poland and Germany. CT and digital radiography were used in the research, and
anatomical and histological analyses were carried out. We described macroscopic bone lesions in 14 birds.
The most frequently found forms of pathological changes were osteophytes, which formed mainly in pelvic
limbs. They were found less frequently in certain wing bones, as well as the clavicle and the sternum.
In four cases, proliferative bone lesions were accompanied by osteoarthritis. Osteochondritis dissecans
(OCD) was diagnosed in six birds, including one in the early stages of the disease. The lesions were found
in most cases in the knee joint area and affected mainly the proximal epiphysis of the tibiotarsal bone.
In one bird, a macroscopic presentation typical of osteomyelitis was observed on the tarsometatarsal bone,
which might have been associated with its fracture and lysis. There was also one case of lesions typical
of osteosarcoma. The analysis of individual bones of each skeleton revealed that bones from pelvic limbs
more often underwent pathological changes, especially the tibiotarsus and associated joints. However,
it is difficult to accept this observation as a rule without research on larger material. One cannot exclude
the possibility that some types of changes in bones, such as osteosarcoma and OCD, may result from
poisoning with heavy metals, particularly cadmium.