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Mesa-Cruz JB, Brown JL, Kelly MJ. Effects of natural environmental conditions on faecal glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations in jaguars (Panthera onca) in Belize. Conserv Physiol. 2014;2(1):cou039doi: 10.1093/conphys/cou039.
Mesa-Cruz, J. B., Brown, J. L., & Kelly, M. J. (2014). Effects of natural environmental conditions on faecal glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations in jaguars (Panthera onca) in Belize. Conservation physiology, 2(1), cou039. https://doi.org/10.1093/conphys/cou039
Mesa-Cruz, J Bernardo, et al. "Effects of natural environmental conditions on faecal glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations in jaguars (Panthera onca) in Belize." Conservation physiology vol. 2,1 (2014): cou039. doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/conphys/cou039
Mesa-Cruz JB, Brown JL, Kelly MJ. Effects of natural environmental conditions on faecal glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations in jaguars (Panthera onca) in Belize. Conserv Physiol. 2014 Sep 09;2(1):cou039. doi: 10.1093/conphys/cou039. eCollection 2014. PMID: 27293660; PMCID: PMC4732494.
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Conserv Physiol. 2014 Sep 09;2(1):cou039. doi: 10.1093/conphys/cou039. eCollection 2014.

Effects of natural environmental conditions on faecal glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations in jaguars (Panthera onca) in Belize.

Conservation physiology

J Bernardo Mesa-Cruz, Janine L Brown, Marcella J Kelly

Affiliations

  1. Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Polytechnic and State University, Cheatham Hall, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA; Center for Species Survival, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, 1500 Remount Road, Front Royal, VA 22630, USA.
  2. Center for Species Survival, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, 1500 Remount Road, Front Royal, VA 22630, USA.
  3. Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Polytechnic and State University, Cheatham Hall, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA.

PMID: 27293660 PMCID: PMC4732494 DOI: 10.1093/conphys/cou039

Abstract

In situ studies that rely on non-invasive faecal hormone monitoring are subject to problems due to potential changes in hormone concentrations in samples exposed to field conditions. In this study, we conducted an environmental validation for measurement of faecal glucocorticoid metabolites (FGMs) in jaguars (Panthera onca). We collected fresh faeces (e.g. no older than 8 h) from jaguars (six males and four females), housed at the Belize Zoo, and exposed them randomly to two environmental conditions: shade and sun. A control (first sub-sample) was immediately frozen, after which sub-samples were frozen daily over a 5 day period in both the dry and wet seasons. We quantified FGMs using a cortisol enzyme immunoassay (EIA) and a corticosterone radioimmunoassay (RIA), both capable of identifying relevant metabolites. Results indicated that FGMs assessed with the cortisol EIA were stable for 5 days during the dry season but for <1 day during the wet season, while FGMs assessed with the corticosterone RIA were stable for 5 days during both the dry and wet seasons. Exposure of jaguar faeces to sun or shade had no effect on FGM concentrations, despite significant differences in weather parameters. Analysis of faecal morphology proved unreliable in identifying faecal age. We conclude that the corticosterone RIA is suitable for assessing FGMs in free-ranging Belizean jaguars by surveying the same transects every 3-4 days in both seasons. The cortisol EIA can be used during the dry season, but there are possible shifts in metabolite immunoactivity in wet conditions. Assessment of adrenal activity in jaguars ranging areas of varying human disturbance is a timely application of this methodology in Belize.

Keywords: Faecal glucocorticoid metabolites; Panthera onca; hormone degradation; immunoassay validation; jaguar; non-invasive monitoring

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