Occurrence and demographics of upper respiratory tract disease in the Abacoa Greenway gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus)

Upper Respiratory Tract Disease (URTD) is a highly contagious illness, caused by the bacterium Mycoplasma agassazii. URTD has affected the gopher tortoise population in the Abacoa Greenway, and is believed to have a high mortality rate. In this study, 18 samples of tortoise blood were collected from this location. Fifteen of the 18 samples were collected from previously tested individuals. Comparisons between the previously tested tortoises were made. According to this study there is no documented mortality rate with URTD in Abacoa. Results show that four tortoises have continued to test positive for the antibodies for several years, suggesting a chronic state of the disease. Four other tortoises have gone from positive results to negative results indicating that their immune systems' production of antibodies has tapered off, suggesting the ability to recover from the disease.