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Animals
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Behavioural Endocrinology: Applications for Wildlife Management
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Behavioural Endocrinology: Applications for Wildlife Management

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Wildlife".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 March 2024) | Viewed by 4091

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Andre Ganswindt

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Mammal Research Institute, Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of Pretoria, Private bag X20, Hatfield 0028, South Africa
Interests: behavioural endocrinology in mammals, reptiles, and birds; address proximate and ultimate questions concerning regulative endocrine mechanisms with links to animal conservation, climate change, human–wildlife conflict, land transformation, and urbanisation
Dr. Webster Andrea

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Postdoctoral Researcher, Mammal Research Institute, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of Pretoria, Hatfield 0028, South Africa
Interests: behavioural endocrinology; ecotoxicology; carnivore ecology; wildlife management; non invasive techniques in terrestrial mammals with links to environmental health; endocrine disruption; one health and behavioural ecology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The analysis of hormone patterns is key to understanding basic physiological functioning in wild, captive and domestic animals, as it relates to their reproduction, metabolic activity, health and welfare. Historically, researchers have often exclusively evaluated behavioural patterns associated with fluctuations in environmental conditions, responses to anthropogenic disturbance and adaptations to animal husbandry practices. As behavioural endocrinology combines the disciplines of endocrinology via monitoring physiological biomarkers, behavioural biology and wildlife ecology, advances in the field of endocrinology allow researchers to quantify and assess reproductive and stress-related steroid hormone concentrations in a variety of novel matrixes. The ability to quantify physiological responses to changes in behaviour is a tool that can be applied to improve the welfare of animals in zoological, domestic and free-ranging settings. Additionally, this approach can be combined with ecological, nutritional, ecotoxicological and wildlife management-related research to provide species- and sex-specific information.

This Special Issue invites original research and reviews that highlight studies applying traditional and non-invasive methods to quantify endocrine biomarkers, thereby addressing some of the challenges related to animal husbandry, welfare conservation and population management in wild, captive and domestic animals.

Prof. Dr. Andre Ganswindt
Dr. Webster Andrea
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

 

Keywords

  • behaviour
  • endocrinology
  • behavioural endocrinology
  • wildlife
  • wildlife management

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 2326 KiB  
Article
Validation of Fecal Glucocorticoid Metabolites as Non-Invasive Markers for Monitoring Stress in Common Buzzards (Buteo buteo)
by Lara-Luisa Grundei, Tanja E. Wolf, Florian Brandes, Karolin Schütte, Fritjof Freise, Ursula Siebert, Chadi Touma and Michael Pees
Animals 2024, 14(8), 1234; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14081234 - 19 Apr 2024
Viewed by 1143
Abstract
For wild animals, being in captivity in wildlife centers can cause considerable stress. Therefore, it is necessary to establish and validate non-invasive tools to measure chronic stress during rehabilitation. Eight Common Buzzards which lived in permanent husbandry were placed individually into prepared aviaries [...] Read more.
For wild animals, being in captivity in wildlife centers can cause considerable stress. Therefore, it is necessary to establish and validate non-invasive tools to measure chronic stress during rehabilitation. Eight Common Buzzards which lived in permanent husbandry were placed individually into prepared aviaries and their feces were collected before, during and after a stress event for biological validation over a period of seven days. The extracted fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fGCMs) were analyzed with three different enzyme immune assays (EIA) to find the most suitable one. Additionally, we aimed to investigate the stability of fGCM levels after defecation because further metabolization by bacterial enzymes can lead to changed results. The Cortisone-EIA performed best in males and females and showed that the stress event led to an fGCM increase of 629% (557% in females and 702% in males) in relation to basal values. We found no significant differences between the sexes, but observed significant differences between different times of day. FGCM concentration significantly changed after eight hours at room temperature. Our study successfully validated the non-invasive measurement of fGCM as a stress indicator in Common Buzzards and could therefore lay the foundation for future studies providing new insights for animal welfare research in Buzzards. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Behavioural Endocrinology: Applications for Wildlife Management)
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16 pages, 328 KiB  
Article
The Levels of Cortisol and Selected Biochemical Parameters in Red Deer Harvested during Stalking Hunts
by Katarzyna Dziki-Michalska, Katarzyna Tajchman, Sylwester Kowalik and Maciej Wójcik
Animals 2024, 14(7), 1108; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14071108 - 4 Apr 2024
Viewed by 1233
Abstract
As a reactive species, the red deer is sensitive to both negative exogenous and endogenous stimuli. An intensive hunting period may have a particularly negative impact on game animals. The aim of this study was to determine the plasma cortisol level and biochemical [...] Read more.
As a reactive species, the red deer is sensitive to both negative exogenous and endogenous stimuli. An intensive hunting period may have a particularly negative impact on game animals. The aim of this study was to determine the plasma cortisol level and biochemical parameters in 25 wild red deer (Cervus elaphus) harvested during stalking hunts in correlation with the sex and age of the animals. The mean cortisol concentrations in the stags and hinds analyzed in this study were similar (20.2 and 21.5 ng/mL, respectively). Higher HDL cholesterol values were found in the blood of the hinds than in stags (p < 0.05). Similarly, the mean levels of LDL cholesterol, lactate dehydrogenase, and alanine aminotransferase were higher by 21%, 16%, and 42%, respectively, in the blood of the hinds. In contrast, the levels of alkaline phosphatase, bilirubin, and aspartate aminotransferase were higher in the stags (by 30%, 49%, and 36%, respectively). There was a negative correlation of the cortisol concentration with urea and bilirubin and a positive correlation between cortisol and aspartate aminotransferase in the stags (p < 0.05). In turn, a negative correlation was found between the cortisol and urea levels in the hinds (p < 0.05). In summary, the stress caused by stalking hunts and the characteristic behavior of red deer during the mating season had an impact on chosen biochemical parameters. The increased concentration of cortisol resulted in a decrease in the carcass mass, which may lead to the deterioration of the physical condition of animals on hunting grounds. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Behavioural Endocrinology: Applications for Wildlife Management)
11 pages, 2554 KiB  
Article
Relationship between Fat Status, Stage of Gonadal Maturity and Hormonal Variation of Turdus philomelos (C.L. Brehm, 1831) Wintering in Apulia during 2018–2020
by Simona Tarricone, Antonella Tinelli, Giuseppe Passantino, Nicola Zizzo, Annalisa Rizzo, Antonio Ciro Guaricci, Antonella Perillo, Valeria Buonfrate, Alice Carbonari, Maria Antonietta Colonna and Marco Ragni
Animals 2024, 14(2), 215; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14020215 - 9 Jan 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1214
Abstract
In this study, we aimed to evaluate the development of the fattening condition and the reproductive status of the song thrush from December to February. For this purpose, the chemical and fatty acid compositions of the pectoral muscle were analyzed in relation to [...] Read more.
In this study, we aimed to evaluate the development of the fattening condition and the reproductive status of the song thrush from December to February. For this purpose, the chemical and fatty acid compositions of the pectoral muscle were analyzed in relation to the fattening state of the birds. Moreover, their reproductive activity was evaluated via the anatomical and pathological examination of tissues and through the assessment of sex steroid profiles. One hundred ninety-five thrushes captured by local hunters during the 2018–2019 and 2019–2020 hunting seasons in different provinces of the Apulia region in Italy were used. The first step was the measurement of bird body mass, and the amount of subcutaneous body fat was estimated visually. During post-mortem examinations, the pectoral muscle was excised and used for chemical and fatty acid analysis and a hormone assay, respectively. Moreover, ovaries and testicles were evaluated to determine the degree of maturation and thus the reproductive status of the birds. The results regarding fattening status and fatty acid profile confirmed that in January–February, thrushes change their diet, increasing their intake of oleic acid, likely to better cope with low temperatures and prepare for long-distance migration. In both male and female thrushes, the concentrations of sex hormones confirmed a phase of reproductive quiescence from December to February, which was also confirmed through histological examination of the gonads. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Behavioural Endocrinology: Applications for Wildlife Management)
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