ABSTRACT

Hypercalcemia in reptiles is generally associated with egg production in females, but it may also be due to excess supplementation, primary hyperparathyroidism, or osteolytic conditions. Extreme (>40 mg/dl; >10 mmol/L) hypercalcemia was noted in a singly housed, approximately 9-yr-old female prehensile-tailed skink, Corucia zebrata. No evidence or notation of this condition was found in International Species Information System values or any other reference. In at least one species, the indigo snake, Drymarchon corais, hypercalcemia has been determined to be a normal finding in healthy animals. To characterize the importance of this case, chemistry data from prehensile-tailed skinks at five different institutions were collected and analyzed. Calcium levels in prehensile-tailed skinks were found to be positively correlated with elevated total protein levels (R = 0.63937). In females, the correlation was greatest when the hypercalcemia was observed. The most important factor observed with hypercalcemia was sex; all animals with hypercalcemia were female. The etiology of the hypercalcemia in this species is unknown, but it is suspected to have a hormonal influence due to the fact that all individuals with plasma calcium levels greater than 20 mg/dl (5 mmol/L) were female. Corucia zebrata is a viviparous species that is found in a tropical environment in the Solomon Islands, where seasonal temperature variation is minimal (23–31°C [73.4–87.8°F]). It is unknown whether the hypercalcemia demonstrated by this study occurs in free-ranging skinks, which may be an element of consideration for further study.