Ruptured-yolk peritonitis and organochlorine residues in a royal tern

The female adult royal tern was found on Marsh Island, Cape Remain National Wildlife Refuge, South Carolina, on 17 May 1973. The specimen was placed in a freezer (-29 C) until necropsied on 1 March 1974. The necropsy revealed three broken eggs in the oviduct; they appeared undersized and thin-shelled. Coagulated egg contents were found in the body cavity and coated the peritoneum, mesenteries, and air-sac membranes; a fibrinoid peritonitis was present.