Sexual differences in blood values of the pigeon, Columba livia

Abstract

The blood of the domestic pigeon, Columba livia, was examined for its haematologieal characteristics and chemical constituents with a view to finding if there existed sexually oriented differences. The values obtained, such as red blood cell (RBC) count, white blood cell (WBC) count, cholesterol, uric acid and protein, were within the range of those reported for other avian species. However, mean corpuscular volume (MCV), haemoglobin content (Hb), blood volume, plasma glucose and length/width (L/W) ratio of red blood cells were found to be higher in pigeon blood. Values for haematocrit (Hct), RBC count, Hb, MCH, cytosome and nuclear length, nuclear volume, and cytosome and nuclear L/W ratio of RBC were significantly higher in males than females. Similarly, plasma levels of sodium, potassium, protein, albumin and uric acid were also higher in males than females. In contrast, MCV was significantly higher in females than males.