Sporadic cases of cryptococcosis have been reported in marine mammals, typically due to Cryptococcus neoformans and, more recently, to Cryptococcus gattii in cetaceans. Cryptococcus albidus, a ubiquitous fungal species not typically considered to be pathogenic, was recovered from a juvenile California sea lion (Zalophus californianus) rescued near San Francisco Bay, California. Yeast morphologically consistent with a Cryp-tococcus sp. was identified histologically in a lymph node and C. albidus was identified by an rDNA sequence from the lung. Infection with C. albidus was thought to have contributed to mortality in this sea lion, along with concurrent bacterial pneumonia. Cryptococcus albidus should be considered as a potential pathogen with a role in marine mammal morbidity and mortality.
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1 October 2012
Cryptococcus albidus Infection in a California Sea Lion (Zalophus californianus)
Shannon Mcleland,
Colleen Duncan,
Terry Spraker,
Elizabeth Wheeler,
Shawn R. Lockhart,
Frances Gulland
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Journal of Wildlife Diseases
Vol. 48 • No. 4
October 2012
Vol. 48 • No. 4
October 2012
California sea lion
Crypto-coccus albidus
fungal infection
pinniped