scholarly journals Influence of Farming Conditions on the Rumen of Red Deer (Cervus elaphus)

Animals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 601
Author(s):  
Federico Mason ◽  
Bartosz Fotschki ◽  
Alessia Di Rosso ◽  
Anna Korzekwa

The red deer is an intermediate feeder, showing a marked degree of forage selectivity, with seasonal morphological adaptations due to changes in food quality and availability. In captivity, deer have a limited choice of habitat and food, and we hypothesize that this condition affects the rumen environment. Rumen samples were collected from 20 farmed and 11 wild red deer in autumn 2018 in Poland, and analyzed for chemical composition, food residues, microbial population, and rumen papillation. Farmed deer had the highest Campylobacter spp., and total anaerobic bacteria, but lower Clostridium spp. Moreover, they showed a decrease in Diplodininae protozoa, and the presence of holotrichs that were absent in the wild animals. The rumen digesta of farmed animals had lower dry matter and acid detergent fiber than the wild ones. The analysis of food residues underlined the poor variety of the diet for animals in the farm. This apparently affected the papillation of the rumen, with animals of the farm having the shortest papillae of the Atrium ruminis. Overall, results suggest that red deer kept in farms, with a diet based mainly on grass, tree leaves, and some concentrate supplements, undergo a small modification of the rumen compared to the wild conspecifics.

Genetics ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 162 (4) ◽  
pp. 1863-1873 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Slate ◽  
P M Visscher ◽  
S MacGregor ◽  
D Stevens ◽  
M L Tate ◽  
...  

Abstract Recent empirical evidence indicates that although fitness and fitness components tend to have low heritability in natural populations, they may nonetheless have relatively large components of additive genetic variance. The molecular basis of additive genetic variation has been investigated in model organisms but never in the wild. In this article we describe an attempt to map quantitative trait loci (QTL) for birth weight (a trait positively associated with overall fitness) in an unmanipulated, wild population of red deer (Cervus elaphus). Two approaches were used: interval mapping by linear regression within half-sib families and a variance components analysis of a six-generation pedigree of >350 animals. Evidence for segregating QTL was found on three linkage groups, one of which was significant at the genome-wide suggestive linkage threshold. To our knowledge this is the first time that a QTL for any trait has been mapped in a wild mammal population. It is hoped that this study will stimulate further investigations of the genetic architecture of fitness traits in the wild.


1987 ◽  
Vol 73 (1) ◽  
pp. 238-243
Author(s):  
Patrick F. Houlihan

The evidence for deer (Cervidae) in ancient Egypt is reviewed briefly. The question of whether deer ever existed in the wild as an element of the Egyptian fauna, or were only known from rare exotic imports, cannot be conclusively answered yet. It is quite likely, however, based upon the records of the Egyptians themselves, that deer were native, whether naturally occurring or introduced. While the identification of the species depicted as the Persian Fallow Deer (Dama dama mesopotamica) is probably correct, the Barbary Red Deer (Cervus elaphus) remains a possibility.


Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 36
Author(s):  
María Sánchez ◽  
Félix Valcárcel ◽  
Julia González ◽  
Marta G. González ◽  
Raquel Martín-Hernández ◽  
...  

(1) Background: Q fever is a worldwide zoonosis caused by Coxiella burnetii that have cases reported in humans and animals almost everywhere. The aim of this study was to describe the seasonality of Coxiella burnetii in the wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) and the tick Hyalomma lusitanicum in a meso-Mediterranean ecosystem. (2) Methods: two populations of wild rabbits that differ in whether or not they share habitat with ungulates, mainly red deer (Cervus elaphus) were sampled for a year to collect ticks, blood and vaginal or anal swabs. Presence of C. burnetii DNA in swabs and the tick H. lusitanicum was determined by PCR and serum antibodies by ELISA. (3) Results: C. burnetii DNA was detected in 47.2% of 583 rabbits, in 65.5% of sera, and in more than half of the H. lusitanicum. There were small variations according to sex and age of the rabbits but significant according to the habitat (4) Conclusions: The results indicate that C. burnetii circulates freely between wild rabbits and H. lusitanicum and the sylvatic cycle in meso-Mediterranean environments relies in the presence of wild rabbits and H. lusitanicum above all if sharing habitat with red deer.


2012 ◽  
Vol 52 (8) ◽  
pp. 756 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Azorit ◽  
J. M. Castro ◽  
R. Carrasco ◽  
S. Tellado ◽  
R. Orpez ◽  
...  

A cortisol metabolite, 11-ketoetiocholanolone (11-k), is widely used in monitoring stress in several vertebrates, and can be detected by immunoassay. However, these assays have certain limitations with respect to specificity. Also, differences in the excretion of faecal glucocorticoid metabolites (FGM) among species and even between sexes make validation necessary in each case. Therefore, our aims were, first, to develop and validate a high-pressure liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC–MS/MS) methodology for monitoring 11-k in faeces of Iberian red deer (Cervus elaphus hispanicus), and second, to investigate the capability of our method to determine variations of this FGM in a longitudinal study. Third, and finally, we assessed the correspondence between faecal 11-k concentrations and plasma cortisol. An adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) test was performed on six red deer stags translocated and kept in captivity for a week and faecal samples were collected twice a day. One single blood and faecal sample from another seven stags was also collected after 2 weeks in captivity. The results of the longitudinal study showed a first peak in 11-k 36 h after the ACTH test and handling, and a second peak at 120 h of being kept indoors. Maximum concentrations of 11-k ranged from 22.71 to 375.68 ng/g. In the second stag group, 11-k concentrations of 25.09 ± 20.53 ng/g had a correlation of r2 = 0.88 with the concentration of plasma cortisol, which was 54.6 ± 55.1 ng/mL. This technique is capable of detecting changes in the concentrations of faecal 11-k. The values determined have a good correlation with the cortisol concentration in blood, and we also detected differences in different individuals’ responses to the same stressors.


Oryx ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 488-494 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Kidjo ◽  
Gérard Feracci ◽  
Eric Bideau ◽  
Georges Gonzalez ◽  
César Mattéi ◽  
...  

AbstractThe Endangered Corsican red deer Cervus elaphus corsicanus was extirpated from Corsica in the early 1970s, at which time the Sardinian population fell to <250 individuals. The Sardinian authorities agreed to protect this subspecies and to secure its reintroduction in Corsica, a natural choice, considering ethological and historical descriptions. Since the beginning of 1985, when the first deer destined for captive breeding and eventual reintroduction arrived in Corsica, the population increased from 13 Sardinian founders to 106 captive animals under constant monitoring in three enclosures (Quenza, Casabianda and Ania di Fium'Orbu). The sites of Quenza, Chisà and Santo Pietro di Venaco were selected by the Regional Nature Park of Corsica for the reintroduction into the wild that began in 1998. Currently the size of the whole Corsican population is c. 250 individuals. These deer are still closely monitored and studied, both in enclosures and in the wild, to secure the long-term conservation of this subspecies. The Corsican and Sardinian populations together now total slightly >1,000, and the subspecies could therefore be downgraded to Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List.


2021 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daiane A.R. Lima ◽  
Rudielle A. Rodrigues ◽  
Rodrigo N. Etges ◽  
Flábio R. Araújo

ABSTRACT: Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium bovis, affecting domestic animals, wild animals and humans. In captivity, for wild animals, bTB represents a risk to animal keepers and zoo visitors, in addition to the possibility of spreading the infection to domestic animals or through the trade of infected wild animals. Sambar (Cervus unicolor), red deer (Cervus elaphus) and fallow deer (Dama dama) from a safari park in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, showed a clinical condition of dyspnea and weight loss. Some animals died and showed lesions suggestive of tuberculosis (LST), which were confirmed by histopathology. After the interdiction of the safari park by the state veterinary authorities, 281 deer were euthanized with the authorization of the “Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis” (IBAMA). Retropharyngeal and submandibular lymph nodes and viscera were collected from 21 animals, which were grown in Stonebrink medium for up to 90 days. After DNA extraction from the bacterial colonies, PCR was performed for targets flanking the region of differentiation 4 (RD4). Of the 21 samples, 14 (66.7%) presented LST with a granulomatous appearance, a whitish coloration, and caseous or calcified consistency, and seven samples (33.3%), showed no lesions. In the culture of 14 samples with LST, 13 (92.8%) presented bacterial growth compatible with M. bovis. In the cultivation of the seven samples without LST, four (57.1%) presented colonies compatible with M. bovis. PCR and DNA sequencing of the PCR amplicons detected as positive all the 17 (100%) bacteriological cultures suggestive of M. bovis, thus confirming the outbreak of bTB in deer. Decisions about positive tested and suspicious animals should be taken based on the evaluation of the risk of transmission to the rest of the zoological animals, animal welfare, conservation considerations and, the zoonotic potential of this pathogen.


2014 ◽  
Vol 60 (No. 7) ◽  
pp. 272-280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z. Macháček ◽  
S. Dvořák ◽  
M. Ježek ◽  
D. Zahradník

The behaviour of sika and red deer during the rutting season is highly variable in relation to vocalization, habitat preference during the rut, and onset and termination of rutting. The red deer is a native species in Central Europe, but the areas where it lives in sympatry with the introduced sika deer have been increasing in the last three decades. Such situation can be found in the Doupovsk&eacute; hory Mts., where sika deer has been intensively spreading. Hybridization between the two species and changes in behaviour are the most important problems. In this study we prove the shift in the rutting period shown by both species. To evaluate the shift in the rutting season, we used a very extensive long-term data set on deer shot within the Military Training Area. These changes occur very slowly, however, and are very difficult to monitor and evaluate in the wild. Based on our results, the timing of the rutting season has converged at the mean rate of 0.62 day per year (rutting season starts later in the red deer and earlier in the sika deer). &nbsp;


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pekka K. Vallittu ◽  
Juha Varrela ◽  
Jukka Salo ◽  
Li Rengui ◽  
Ling Shanshan ◽  
...  

AbstractHere, we present new evidence that evolutionary adaptation of the Ailuripodinae lineage to bamboo diet has taken place by morphological adaptations in the masticatory system. The giant panda in the wild and in captivity removes without an exception the outer skin of all bamboo shoots, rich in abrasive and toxic compounds, by the highly adapted premolars P3 and P4. The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) allows sidewise movement of the jaw and the premolars can, in a cusp-to-cusp position, remove the poorly digestible outer skin of the bamboo before crushing the bamboo with molars. Based on the evidence presented here, we suggest that adaptation of TMJ to lateral movement for enabling cusp-to-cusp contact of premolars is the crucial evolutionary factor as which we consider the key to understand the Ailuropodinae lineage adaptive pathway to utilize the bamboo resource.


1993 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 253-260 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Semiadi ◽  
P. D. Muir ◽  
T. N. Barry ◽  
C. J. Veltman ◽  
J. Hodgson

Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 2151
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Tajchman ◽  
Aleksandra Ukalska-Jaruga ◽  
Marek Bogdaszewski ◽  
Monika Pecio ◽  
Katarzyna Dziki-Michalska

The aim of the study was to determine the concentrations of toxic elements accumulated in the bone marrow and bones (Cervus elaphus). The studies were carried out on two groups of young stags: farmed (n = 6) and wild (n = 9). Their body weights were measured and bone and bone marrow samples were collected. The concentrations of toxic elements were analyzed using the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry technique. The mean aluminum content in the bone marrow and bones of the farmed animals was significantly higher than in the wild group (p < 0.05). The mean concentration of arsenic, barium and lead in the bones of the wild red deer was significantly higher than in the bones of the farmed animals (p < 0.05), while the cadmium concentration in the bones of the farmed red deer exceeded the value determined in the wild animals. A significant difference was found between the mean concentrations of aluminum, arsenic, barium, lead, vanadium and nickel in the bone marrow and bones of both red deer groups (p < 0.05). Although the study involved animals living in an uncontaminated area, the concentrations of some heavy metals were higher than values reported from industrial regions.


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