Michael Tuma
Drawing blood from a desert tortoise
Michael Tuma sticks the tortoise while Lucia Acosta handles. The tortoises in this study were tested for Upper Respiratory Tract Disease, caused by a Mycoplasma. Desert tortoise and gopher tortoise populations have suffered marked declines since this disease was introduced into wild populations. This study, lead by Dr. Kristin Berry at the USGS, seeks to understand the spread of disease in desert tortoise populations. Photo taken at epidemiology research site near Daggett, California, May 17, 2007.
Drawing blood from a desert tortoise
Michael Tuma sticks the tortoise while Lucia Acosta handles. The tortoises in this study were tested for Upper Respiratory Tract Disease, caused by a Mycoplasma. Desert tortoise and gopher tortoise populations have suffered marked declines since this disease was introduced into wild populations. This study, lead by Dr. Kristin Berry at the USGS, seeks to understand the spread of disease in desert tortoise populations. Photo taken at epidemiology research site near Daggett, California, May 17, 2007.