Ovarian Activity and Pregnancy in the Siberian Tiger, Panthera tigris altaica, Assessed by Fecal Gonadal Steroid Hormones Analyses

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Feces were collected from two female and one male Siberian tigers, Panthera tigris altaica. Steroid hormones were extracted from lyophilized feces and quantified by enzyme immunoassay. The fecal contents of estradiol-17β (E 2 ) and testosterone in the females and male, respectively, changed markedly throughout the year. The fecal E 2 contents of females Nos. 179 and 238 increased at 26.4 ± 8.0 and 28.0 ± 14.2 day intervals, respectively. However, the fecal contents of progesterone (P 4 ) in the female kept alone did not change. In contrast, the other female, which was kept with a male, had increased fecal P 4 contents after copulation. The fecal progesterone levels of the pregnant female remained high during her 106-day pregnancy. Reproduction in Siberian tigers, as in other Felidae, remains poor and unclear. With its restricted population, it would be a challenge for scientists to learn and familiarize themselves with the reproductive potential of Siberian tigers to improve the breeding potential of captive tigers. Gonadal steroid hormone analysis is a major point in reproduction, and assessing its changes could allow the enhancement of captive breeding programs. In the last two decades, there have been 3 reports on the endocrinology of the Siberian tiger [5,6,9].Serum hormones are the most accurate reflection of gonadal activity. Lately, some studies have shown similar patterns in serum and fecal hormones, and utilization of fecal samples as a noninvasive tool is widely used to monitor gonadal activity in farm, wild and zoo mammals [5,8]. Most steroid hormones are metabolized in the liver, discarded into urine and waste material in feces, and finally removed from the body through the defecation mechanism. A previous report indicated that in domestic cats, > 85% of progesterone (P 4 ), estradiol-17β (E 2 ), and testosterone (T) are excreted in feces [3]. It has also been reported that monitoring fecal gonadal steroid hormone changes could indicate the characteristics of gonadal activity in some Felidae species, such as cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus), clouded leopards (Neofelis nebulosa), snow leopards (Uncia uncia), leopard cats (Felis bengalensis), and tigers [2-6, 9].The present study was undertaken to illuminate the reproductive status of Siberian tigers by assessing the changes in the fecal contents of P 4 and E 2 in female tigers and T in a male tiger.The animals monitored included a single female (Japanese Studbook No. 179, 13 years of age at the beginning of this study) housed at Yokohama Zoological Gardens, Kanagawa, Japan, and a female (No. 238, 6 years of age) and male (No. 239, 8 years of age) housed at Tama Zoological Park, Tokyo, Japan. All tigers were sexually mature based on their individual ages when this study was conducted. They were fed a diet consisting of horse meat and chicken heads.Fecal samples were collected within 18 hr after excretion once or twice a week from November 2004 to October 2005 for No. 179 and from March 2004 to June 2005 for Nos. 238 and 239. They were stored at -2...

Faecal Estrogen and Progesterone Concentration in Captive Royal Bengal Tigresses

“…The increase in estrogen during proestrus and estrus observed in the present study finds the support from early workers (Seal et al 1978, Seal et al 1985, Graham et al 2006, Putranto et al 2007a, 2007b, Honghai et al 2009and Groot et al 2013). Higher concentration of estrogen in estrus might be due to formation of multiple follicles.…”

Effect of katuk (Sauropus androgynus) powder supplementation on the levels of progesterone (P4) and estradiol-17β (E2) hormones in kacang goat (Capra aegragus)

“…The assessment of levels of reproductive hormone was done in some of wild animals such as Sumatera tigers and Siberia tigers (Putranto et al 2007a(Putranto et al , 2007b, Sumatera Orang Utan, Sambar deer (Putranto et al 2011) and Burgo chicken (Putranto et al 2012). In this study, the measurement of levels of reproductive hormone in the kacang goats treated by the katuk powder supplementation in the animal feed was the first research paper published in scientific journal.…”

A non-invasive identification of hormone metabolites, gonadal event and reproductive status of captive female tigers

“…The length of the ovarian cycle was calculated as the number of days of the peak fecal E2 interval for periods not exceeding 50 d (that is, longer than about twice the estimated cycle length) (Putranto et al 2006a;2007a). The peak fecal E2 contents were defined as those values that were greater than the mean of all values from an individual tiger (Putranto et al 2006a;2007a).…”

“…The peak fecal E2 contents were defined as those values that were greater than the mean of all values from an individual tiger (Putranto et al 2006a;2007a). …”

“…Unfortunately, there are only five living subspecies tigers left on the world recently. The critically endangered subspecies, the Siberian tiger (P. t. altaica) is estimated at approximately less than 400 and 400-500 individuals in the wild (Putranto et al 2006a;2007a).…”