Monitoring the health status of free-ranging tammar wallabies using hematology, serum biochemistry, and parasite loads

Robert, Kylie A.; Schwanz, Lisa E.

doi:10.1002/jwmg.561

Cited by 20 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…Serum albumin reflects long-term protein status, while urea levels shift in response to short-term protein availability (45). Creatinine is reduced when muscle mass decreases due to protein catabolism in the body (45, 46). Although we did not find statistically detectable differences between populations in creatinine and urea, in both cases they tended to be lower in urban populations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Serum biochemistry suggests grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) have poorer physiological condition in urban settings

Schmidt

Treberg

Kinnunen

et al. 2019

Preprint

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22Human food waste in cities presents urban wildlife with predictable, easily accessible high-23 calorie food sources, but this can be both beneficial and harmful for individual health. We 24 analyzed body condition and serum chemistry (electrolyte levels, markers of kidney and liver 25 function, protein, glucose, and cholesterol) in an urban and rural population of eastern grey 26 squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) to assess whether proximity to the human food waste that is 27 associated with urban habitats had ill effects on health. We found no differences in body 28 condition between habitats and no evidence of malnutrition at either site. However, urban 29 squirrels had higher blood glucose, lower potassium, phosphorus, chloride, and albumin:globulin 30 ratios. These results align with previous findings of increased dietary sugar in cities, and suggest 31 that urban populations of grey squirrels are under greater environmental stress than rural 32 populations. 33 34 Introduction 36The distribution of resources available to animals is fundamentally altered in cities. Urban 37 vegetation and tree cover, important natural food sources for wildlife, are reduced and patchy. 38Exotic species in urban plant communities may differ in phenology from native species, leading 39 to changes in diet and foraging behavior among urban fauna. Human food waste is a plentiful 40 new resource in cities which often allows animals to reach high population densities. Dietary 41 shifts and higher densities in stressful urban environments could cause animals to be in poor 42 physiological condition (1, 2). To explore how changing habitat quality associated with 43 urbanization affects animal physiology, we looked for signs of ill health in a successful urban 44 mammal, the eastern grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis). 45 46 In general, urban wildlife populations will lose access to natural food sources while gaining 47 access to new foods associated with human trash and supplemental feeding. Human foods found 48 as litter tend to be easily accessible, calorie-rich (3), and have lower nutritional value than 49 natural food sources (4). Human food subsidies are a double-edged sword: increased calorie 50 intake may positively influence body condition, survival, and reproductive success, however at 51 the same time its limited nutrient quality may make it detrimental to animals' overall health (5). 52Alterations in food availability, predictability, and quality has the potential to induce major shifts 53 in nutritional status among urban wildlife (3). 55Successful urban colonizers tend to be generalist, opportunistic omnivores that can take 56 advantage of human food waste, sometimes to the point of complete dependency (6). In such 57 species, urbanization leads to rapid changes in diet composition (2, 3, 6). Diets high in 58 4 carbohydrates and saturated fats are linked to increasing trends in obesity in humans (7), as well 59 as to elevated risk of cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes and other metabolic disorders (8, 60 9). Simi...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Serum biochemistry suggests grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) have poorer physiological condition in urban settings

Schmidt

Treberg

Kinnunen

et al. 2019

Preprint

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“…Most blood parameters can be associated with numerous physiological functions and are complicated in many species by variations with age, sex and geographical location (e.g. Hasselmeier et al ., 2008 ; Greig et al ., 2010 ; Clarke et al ., 2013 ; Maas et al ., 2013 ; Robert and Schwanz, 2013 ). While extensive reference ranges and elaborate metabolite tracking for a given disease state may exist for domestic species, the comparably limited information for many wild species at risk poses significant challenges for effective monitoring protocols and management strategies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…‘normals’) may be elevated or depressed relative to those of individuals residing in the wild for a wide range of mammals (e.g. harbour seals, Hasselmeier et al ., 2008 ; possum, Clarke et al ., 2013 ; wallabies, Robert and Schwanz, 2013 ). Furthermore, the effects of captive research could extend beyond the holding, because released individuals may undergo a period of readjustment of uncertain duration (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The influence of time in captivity, food intake and acute trauma on blood analytes of juvenile Steller sea lions,Eumetopias jubatus

2015

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“…Using pes length, we calculated a measure of adult body condition using the deviation of its actual body mass from the average, given its size, to assess the general health and fitness of individuals over time [ 31 ]. Body condition is significantly associated with total gastrointestinal parasite burden, and many serum biochemistry and hematology analytes in tammar wallabies ( M. eugenii ), demonstrating body condition as a reliable indicator of general health [ 40 ]. We used a linear mixed model to account for variation within and between rock-wallabies, where rock-wallaby identity (ID) was included as a random effect.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Finding the Balance: Fertility Control for the Management of Fragmented Populations of a Threatened Rock-Wallaby Species

Willers¹,

Martin²,

Matson³

et al. 2015

Animals

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Simple SummaryBlack-flanked rock-wallabies (Petrogale lateralis lateralis) can reach high numbers in fragmented populations in the West Australian wheat-belt, where they can damage crops and cause habitat degradation. As they are threatened, we wanted a non-permanent control method that did not adversely affect the body condition of treated females compared to untreated females, using body condition as an indicator of general health and fitness. We gave adult female rock-wallabies deslorelin contraceptive implants to suppress their fertility and monitored the impact for three years. Treated females did not conceive new young for over two years. We did not detect any negative effects on body condition, suggesting that deslorelin may be an effective tool for managing overabundant populations of marsupials.AbstractPopulations of Australian marsupials can become overabundant, resulting in detrimental impacts on the environment. For example, the threatened black-flanked rock-wallaby (Petrogale lateralis lateralis) has previously been perceived as overabundant and thus ‘unwanted’ when they graze crops and cause habitat degradation. Hormonally-induced fertility control has been increasingly used to manage population size in other marsupials where alternative management options are not viable. We tested whether deslorelin, a superagonist of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), would suppress reproduction in free-living adult female rock-wallabies without adversely impacting body condition. We trapped, synchronised reproduction and allocated female rock-wallabies to a placebo implant (control, n = 22), one (n = 22) or two (n = 20) subcutaneous implants of deslorelin. Females were then recaptured over the following 36 months to monitor reproduction, including Luteinising Hormone levels, and body condition. Following treatment, diapaused blastocysts reactivated in five females and the resulting young were carried through to weaning. No wallabies treated with deslorelin, conceivede a new young for at least 27 months. We did not observe adverse effects on body condition on treated females. We conclude that deslorelin implants are effective for the medium-term suppression of reproduction in female black-flanked rock-wallabies and for managing overabundant populations of some marsupials.

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Monitoring the health status of free-ranging tammar wallabies using hematology, serum biochemistry, and parasite loads

Cited by 20 publications

References 44 publications

Serum biochemistry suggests grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) have poorer physiological condition in urban settings

Serum biochemistry suggests grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) have poorer physiological condition in urban settings

The influence of time in captivity, food intake and acute trauma on blood analytes of juvenile Steller sea lions,Eumetopias jubatus

Finding the Balance: Fertility Control for the Management of Fragmented Populations of a Threatened Rock-Wallaby Species

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