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Hending D, Randrianarison H, Andriamavosoloarisoa NNM, Ranohatra-Hending C, McCabe G, Cotton S, Holderied M. Forest fragmentation and edge effects impact body condition, fur condition and ectoparasite prevalence in a nocturnal lemur community. CONSERVATION PHYSIOLOGY 2024; 12:coae042. [PMID: 38957844 PMCID: PMC11217907 DOI: 10.1093/conphys/coae042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2024] [Revised: 05/10/2024] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/04/2024]
Abstract
Forest fragmentation and edge effects are two major threats to primate populations. Primates inhabiting fragmented landscapes must survive in a more degraded environment, often with lower food availability compared to continuous forests. Such conditions can have deleterious effects on animal physiological health, yet some primates thrive in these habitats. Here, we assessed how forest fragmentation and associated edge effects impact three different components of physiological health in a nocturnal primate community in the Sahamalaza-Iles Radama National Park, northwest Madagascar. Over two periods, 6 March 2019-30 October 2019 and 10 January 2022-17 May 2022, we collected data on body condition, fur condition scores and ectoparasite prevalence for 125 Mirza zaza, 51 Lepilemur sahamalaza, 27 Cheirogaleus medius and 22 Microcebus sambiranensis individuals, and we compared these metrics between core and edge areas of continuous forest and fragmented forest. Body condition scores for all species varied between areas, with a positive response to fragmentation and edge effects observed for M. zaza and L. sahamalaza and a negative response for C. medius and M. sambiranensis. Fur condition scores and ectoparasite prevalence were less variable, although M. zaza and L. sahamalaza had a significantly negative response to fragmentation and edge effects for these two variables. Interestingly, the impacts of fragmentation and edge effects on physiological health were variable-specific. Our results suggest that lemur physiological responses to fragmentation and edge effects are species-specific, and body condition, fur condition and ectoparasite prevalence are impacted in different ways between species. As other ecological factors, including food availability and inter/intraspecific competition, likely also influence physiological health, additional work is required to determine why certain aspects of lemur physiology are affected by environmental stressors while others remain unaffected. Although many nocturnal lemurs demonstrate resilience to fragmented and degraded habitats, urgent conservation action is needed to safeguard the survival of their forest habitats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Hending
- Department of Biology, University of Oxford, 11A Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3SZ, UK
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TH, UK
- Institute of Conservation Science & Learning, Bristol Zoological Society, Clifton, Bristol BS8 3HA, UK
| | | | | | - Christina Ranohatra-Hending
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TH, UK
- Institute of Conservation Science & Learning, Bristol Zoological Society, Clifton, Bristol BS8 3HA, UK
| | - Grainne McCabe
- Institute of Conservation Science & Learning, Bristol Zoological Society, Clifton, Bristol BS8 3HA, UK
- Wilder Institute, Calgary Zoo, 1300 Zoo Road NE, Calgary, AB T2E 7V6, Canada
| | - Sam Cotton
- Institute of Conservation Science & Learning, Bristol Zoological Society, Clifton, Bristol BS8 3HA, UK
| | - Marc Holderied
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TH, UK
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Bethge J, Fietz J, Razafimampiandra JC, Ruthsatz K, Dausmann KH. Season and reproductive activity influence cortisol levels in the Malagasy primate Lepilemur edwardsi. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOGY. PART A, ECOLOGICAL AND INTEGRATIVE PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 337:994-1001. [PMID: 36123775 DOI: 10.1002/jez.2658] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2022] [Revised: 07/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/29/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Throughout the year, wild animals are exposed to a variety of challenges such as changing environmental conditions and reproductive activity. These challenges may affect their stress hormone levels for varying durations and in varying intensities and impacts. Measurements of the glucocorticoid hormone cortisol in the hair of mammals are considered a good biomarker for measuring physiological stress and are increasingly used to evaluate stress hormone levels of wild animals. Here, we examined the influence of season, reproductive activity, sex, as well as body condition on hair cortisol concentrations (HCC) in Lepilemur edwardsi, a small Malagasy primate species. L. edwardsi lives in the seasonal dry forests of western Madagascar, which are characterized by a strongly changing resource availability throughout the year. We hypothesized that these seasonal changes of resource availability and additionally the reproductive cycle of this species would influence HCC of L. edwardsi. Results revealed that hair cortisol concentration of females did not change seasonally or with the reproductive cycle. However, we found a significant increase of hair cortisol levels in males from the early wet season during the early dry season (mating season). This increase is presumably due to changed behavior during the mating season, as sportive lemurs travel more and show aggressive behavior during this time of the year. This behavior is energy-costly and stressful, and presumably leads to elevated HCC. As elevated cortisol levels may impair immune function, L. edwardsi males might also be more susceptible to parasites and diseases, which is unfavorable in particular during a period of low resource availability (dry season).
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Affiliation(s)
- Janina Bethge
- Institute of Cell and Systems Biology of Animals, Functional Ecology, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Joanna Fietz
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Biology, Universität Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Jean Claude Razafimampiandra
- Mention Zoologie et Biodiversité Animale, Faculté des Sciences, Université d'Antananarivo, Antananarivo, Madagascar
| | - Katharina Ruthsatz
- TU Braunschweig, Zoological Institute, Evolutionsbiologie, Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Kathrin H Dausmann
- Institute of Cell and Systems Biology of Animals, Functional Ecology, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
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