@article {5396,
	title = {Peripheral blood characteristics of gravid Schreibers{\textquoteright} long-fingered bats, <i>Miniopterus schreibersii natalensis</i> (Microchiroptera: Vespertilionidae).},
	journal = {S. Afr. J. Sci.},
	volume = {93},
	number = {9},
	year = {1997},
	month = {1997},
	pages = {414-418},
	abstract = {The high erythrocyte count of bats is generally considered an adaptation for the high metabolic requirements of flight. The results from 24 gravid Schreibers{\textquoteright} long-fingered bats, used in this experiment, showed a high erythrocyte count (11.04 {\textpm} 0.72 x 10^12 l-1) of small cells (mean cell volume = 51.23 {\textpm} 0.86 fl) and a resultant haemoglobin concentration of 18.35 {\textpm} 1.11 g dl-1. There were indications of two different erythrocyte populations present in the circulation and a degree of polychromasia was observed in 50\% of smears. Two haemoglobin components were consistently seen on Paragon alkaline haemoglobin gels, and the haemoglobin electrophoretic mobility was markedly lower than that of human blood. Lymphocytes represented the largest percentage (54.9\%) of white blood cells. Neutrophils demonstrated overt hypersegmentation, with their granules, if present, not staining with either Wright{\textquoteright}s stain or haematoxylin and eosin. We conclude that haemoglobin concentration rather than erythrocyte counts should be taken as a reflection of oxygen carrying capacity as the high count of smaller erythrocytes represents diffusion and haemorrheological, rather than oxygen-carrying adaptations.},
	keywords = {blood, Chiroptera, erythrocyte counts, haematology, haemoglobin, Miniopteridae, Miniopterus natalensis, oxygen carrying capacity, physiology, South Africa},
	author = {Viljoen, M. and van der Merwe, M. and Bower, G. and Levay, P. F. and Grobler, A. S.}
}
