No abstract

Complete physical examinations and biomedical sample collection were performed on 70 free-ranging ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) from three different habitats in the Beza Mahfaly Special Reserve (BMSR), in southern Madagascar, to assess the impact of humans and habitat on lemur health. Lemurs were chemically immobilized with ketamine and diazepam administered via blow darts for concurrent biomedical, morphometric, and behavioral studies. Subsets of the animals had blood analyzed for hematology, serum chemistry, micronutrients, fat-soluble vitamins (vitamins A, D, and E), measures of iron metabolism, and polymerase chain reaction assays (PCR) for Toxoplasma gondii, Hemoplasma spp., Bartonella spp., Ehrlichia spp., Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and Neorickettsia risticii. Results were compared on the basis of gender and the habitats at the study site: reserve (intact gallery forest), degraded (human inhabited and altered), and marginal (dry didieracea forest with heavy grazing and tree cutting). Levels of vitamin D, triglycerides, and cholesterol, and measures of iron metabolism for BMSR lemurs were greater than those previously reported for a free-ranging lemur population (Tsimanampetsotsa Strict Nature Reserve, Madagascar) with less access to foods of anthropogenic origin. BMSR ring-tailed lemurs from a habitat with less water (marginal) had higher sodium (P = 0.051), chloride (P = 0.045), osmolality (P = 0.010), and amylase (P = 0.05) levels than lemurs from other BMSR habitats, suggesting that these lemurs were less hydrated. Vitamin D levels of male lemurs were higher (P = 0.011) than those of females at BMSR, possibly because of differences in sunning behavior or differential selection of food items. The biological significance is uncertain for other parameters with statistically significant differences. All samples tested (n = 20) were negative for the pathogens tested using PCR assays. Continued concurrent biomedical and ecological research is needed at BMSR to confirm these results and determine their association with population mortality and fecundity rates.

Background Across China and Southeast Asia, an estimated 17,000 bears are currently farmed for bile, primarily for traditional medicines. Depending on country, bile is extracted daily via transabdominal gallbladder fistulas, indwelling catheters, or needle aspiration. Despite claims that bears do not develop adverse effects from bile extraction, health issues identified in bears removed from bile farms include bile-extraction site infections, abdominal hernias, peritonitis, cholecystitis, hepatic neoplasia, cardiac disease, skeletal abnormalities, and abnormal behaviors. We present a comprehensive assessment of the effects of bile farming by comparing serum biochemical and hematological values of bears from farms that were bile-extracted (BE) and bears from farms not bile-extracted (FNE) with bears from non-farm captive (ZOO) and free-range (FR) environments. We hypothesized BE bears would have significant laboratory abnormalities compared to all non-extracted bear groups. We also hypothesized BE bears would have reduced long-term survival compared to FNE bears despite removal from farms. Results BE bears exhibited the highest values and greatest variation (on a population level) in laboratory parameters compared to all non-extracted bear groups particularly for alanine transaminase, gamma glutamyltransferase (GGT), total bilirubin (TBIL), alkaline phosphatase (ALKP), blood urea nitrogen, creatinine (CREA), and total white blood cell count. Significant differences were detected between bear groups when accounting for season, sex, and/or age. BE bears exhibited greater mean serum GGT compared to all non-extracted bear groups, and the odds of having elevated TBIL were 7.3 times greater for BE bears, consistent with hepatobiliary disease. Biochemical parameter elevations in BE bears persisted up to 14 years post-rescue, consistent with long-term effects of bile-extraction. BE bears that arrived with elevated CREA and ALKP had median survival times of 1 and 4 years respectively, and regardless of laboratory abnormalities, BE bears had significantly shorter survival times compared to FNE bears. Conclusions Our results provide strong evidence that bile extraction practices not only represent a temporary constraint for bears’ welfare, but confer distinct long-term adverse health consequences. Routine laboratory panels may be insensitive to detect the extent of underlying illness in BE bears as these bears have significantly reduced survival regardless of biochemical assessment compared to FNE bears. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12917-019-2006-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Lemuricola (Madoxyuris) bauchoti Chabaud, Brygoo et Petter, 1965 is redescribed from material collected from the ring-tailed lemur, Lemur catta, from the Beza Mahafaly Special Reserve in Madagascar using the scanning electron microscope. This is a new host record and the first oxyurid reported from the ring-tailed lemur. Previously, records of each species of the subgenus Madoxyuris have been restricted to a single host species, but the close relationship between these nematodes and their Strepsirrhini hosts will only be proven when additional records fill in the gaps in their distribution.

Asiatic black bears (Ursus thibetanus) face chronic stress in bile farms. In this study, we investigated whether bile-farmed bears show significantly high levels of stress at rescue and whether stress levels reduce over time in a bear sanctuary where the bears are supported with environmental enrichment and veterinary care to improve animal welfare. We measured stress hormone levels using faecal cortisol metabolites (FCM) in 16 Asiatic black bears freshly rescued from bile farms in Vietnam. Fresh faeces were collected from each bear on the rescue truck and on a weekly basis for a 22-week study period at a bear sanctuary in Vietnam. Results showed that for all 16 rescued bears (with one exception) individual FCM levels from truck samples were above mean baseline FCMs of bears previously rehabilitated to a bear sanctuary. This suggested the majority of the rescued bears were still capable of showing a stress endocrine response during the rescue operation despite being exposed to conditions causing chronic stress in bears on bile farms. Results showed that mean FCM levels of the rescued bears differed significantly between time-periods (higher at the rescue [on truck samples] compared to week 22 samples) and mean FCM levels showed an overall decline over the first 22 weeks after they arrived at the bear sanctuary. The bears also demonstrated acute FCM stress responses to management interventions at the sanctuary, such as veterinary health checks and transportation. In conclusion, rescued bears tend to modulate their stress endocrine response after rehoming at the bear sanctuary. This is an important result, indicating that the rescue effort and rehabilitation of bile-farm bears is effective. Whether this also coincides with behavioural adjustments in rehabilitating bears (eg lessening of stereotypic behaviour) warrants further investigation.