Animal Supply

Animals of all types, be these domestic or wild, native or exotic, were routinely required for spectacles and events in the Graeco-Roman world, most notably, perhaps, in the context of the amphitheatre games of Roman antiquity. Behind such events, however, lay networks involved in the capture, transport, and supply of these animals. The integration of ancient textual, iconographical, and archaeological (including zooarchaeological) evidence provides the requisite data to investigate these aspects. Available ancient textual and artistic evidence suggest that soldiers and professional hunters, assisted by civilians and natives as required or demanded, undertook many of these tasks. Guilds or professional organizations of wild beast hunters and merchants provided further administrative, technical, financial, and transport assistance. Equipment involved in capturing the animals varied depending upon factors such as the size, age, or ferocity of the animal, but included a range of nets, cages, and traps, among other methods. Extrapolation from more modern practices, however, suggests that baiting and ambushing, arguably somewhat less noble or brave tactics, likely characterized much of exotic animal capture in antiquity. Treatment for many of these animals, in transit to their final destination, was probably poor; large numbers certainly perished during transport or while in captivity. Available zooarchaeological evidence helps locate exotic animal bones across different contexts in the ancient Graeco-Roman world, including beasts presumably involved in amphitheatre games, but also provides tempering evidence to downplay the magnitude of numbers actually supplied to such events, as is attested in ancient textual and iconographical data.

Detection of Antibodies Against Tick-Borne Encephalitis Virus and Other Flaviviruses in a Zoological Collection in Slovenia

Monitoring infectious diseases is one of the most important pillars of preventative veterinary medicine in zoological collections. The zoo environment offers a great variety of different animal species living in proximity and in contact with small wild animals and vectors (e.g., ticks and mosquitos). In this context, tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), Usutu virus (USUV), and West Nile virus (WNV) causing vector-borne diseases are emerging pathogens that raise concern. The aim of the study was to detect antibodies to selected flaviviruses in various animal species in the Ljubljana Zoo, Slovenia. In total, 874 sera from 96 animal species were tested for antibodies to TBEV by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA); positive samples were confirmed by a virus neutralization test (VNT) using TBEV, WNV, and USUV antigens. Antibodies to TBEV were detected by ELISA in 3.9% (34/874) of zoo animals, with 4% (30/753) in mammals and 5% (4/86) in birds; the sera of reptiles (n = 34) and amphibians (n = 1) were negative. Antibodies to TBEV were confirmed by VNT in 11 mammals; one bird was positive for both WNV and USUV. The mixture of exotic animal species and their contact with wild animals and vectors such as ticks and mosquitos suggest that screening of infectious diseases in zoo animals might provide good insight into the epizootological situation of the area. This is the first survey of TBEV, WNV, and USUV in a zoological collection in Slovenia.

Haematological reference intervals in captive African Grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus)

The African Grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus) is one of the most popular avian pets in exotic animal practice. In this study, blood samples (n = 459) from healthy African Grey parrots (n = 239) were collected for haematological testing. Reference intervals were determined according to the guidelines of the American Society of Veterinary Clinical Pathology with the Reference Value Advisor (v2.1) freeware. The calculated reference intervals (RIs) were: packed cell volume 38–59%; haemoglobin 105–154 g/l; RBC 2.3–3.3 10⁶/µl; MCV 145.5–199.7 fl; MHC 38.3–55.6 pg; MCHC 232–313 g/l; WBC 2.7–12.6 10³/µl; heterophils 1.2–10.2 10³/µl; lymphocytes 0.8–4.3 10³/µl; monocytes 0.0–0.6 10³/µl; basophils 0.0–0.1 10³/µl; eosinophils 0.0–0.2 10³/µl. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study in psittacines to use such a high number of birds and samples to establish haematological species-specific RIs, providing a valuable tool to professionals dealing with the health of African Grey parrots.