Ultrasound-guided sampling of the lateral abdominal vein in the grey nurse shark (Carcharias taurus, Rafinesque 1810)

Abstract

The paired lateral abdominal veins (LAV) provide alternative venipuncture sites in grey nurse sharks (Carcharias taurus, Rafinesque 1810) and their efficacy was assessed using morphometrics, necropsies, ultrasound-guided blood sampling and by comparing serum biochemistry between the LAV and caudal vein (CV) with values from the latter published previously. The mean length of the CV was 2.8% of total length (TL) whereas each LAV was 22.4% of TL and, when combined, was approximately 16 times longer than the CV. The mean tissue thickness overlying each LAV increased significantly (p