Table 3.
Effects of age on iron indices (mean ± 1 SD) in bottlenose dolphins by population
| Juveniles (female, < 7 y; male, < 10 y) | Adults (female, 7–24 y; male, 10-24 y) | Adults 25 y and older | Kruskal–Wallis P | |
| Charleston and Indian River Lagoon | ||||
| Number of dolphins | 24 | 33 | — | |
| Iron (μg/dL) | 99 ± 46 | 84 ± 29 | — | 0.43 |
| Total iron-binding capacity (μg/dL) | 268 ± 75a | 209 ± 27 | — | <0.001 |
| Ferritin (ng/dL) | 343 ± 483 | 222 ± 197 | — | 0.19 |
| Transferrin saturation (%) | 38 ± 15 | 41± 15 | — | 0.80 |
| Haptoglobin (mg/dL) | 23 ± 23 | 18 ± 18 | — | 0.13 |
| Ceruloplasmin (mg/dL) | 13 ± 12 | 17 ± 12 | — | 0.09 |
| Navy Marine Mammal Program | ||||
| Number of dolphins | 15 | 60 | 25 | |
| Iron (μg/dL) | 227 ± 86 | 249 ± 136 | 193 ± 173 | 0.06 |
| Total iron-binding capacity (μg/dL) | 389 ± 96 | 346 ± 118 | 323 ± 109 | 0.12 |
| Ferritin (ng/dL) | 2000 ± 3936b | 7535 ± 12184 | 7045 ± 16268 | 0.001 |
| Transferrin saturation (%) | 60 ± 19 | 68 ± 22 | 51 ± 28b | 0.02 |
| Haptoglobin (mg/dL) | 24 ± 23 | 29 ± 25 | 41 ± 47 | 0.23 |
| Ceruloplasmin (mg/dL) | 27 ± 9 | 27 ± 11 | 22 ± 7b | 0.03 |
The superscripted letters indicate values that are significantly higher (a) or lower (b) than others in the same row.