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Červená B, Prokopová T, Cameira RM, Pafčo B, Samaš P, Romportl D, Uwamahoro C, Noheri JB, Ntwari AE, Bahizi M, Nzayisenga G, Nziza J, Gilardi K, Eckardt W, Ndagijimana F, Mudakikwa A, Muvunyi R, Uwingeli P, Cranfield M, Šlapeta J, Petrželková KJ, Modrý D. Anoplocephalid tapeworms in mountain gorillas ( Gorilla beringei beringei) inhabiting the Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda. Parasitology 2024; 151:135-150. [PMID: 38017606 PMCID: PMC10941052 DOI: 10.1017/s0031182023001178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2023] [Revised: 11/15/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023]
Abstract
Cestodes of the family Anoplocephalidae parasitize a wide range of usually herbivorous hosts including e.g. rodents, ungulates, primates, elephants and hyraxes. While in some hosts, the epidemiology of the infection is well studied, information is lacking in others. In this study of mountain gorillas in the Virunga Massif, an extensive sample set comprising adult cestodes collected via necropsies, proglottids shed in feces, and finally, fecal samples from both night nests and identified individuals were analysed. Anoplocephala gorillae was the dominant cestode species detected in night nest samples and individually known gorillas, of which only 1 individual hosted a Bertiella sp. It was shown that the 2 species can be distinguished through microscopy based on egg morphology and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays for diagnostics of both species were provided. Sequences of mitochondrial (cox 1) and nuclear (ITS1, 18S rDNA, 28S rDNA) markers were used to evaluate the phylogenetic position of the 2 cestodes detected in mountain gorillas. Both types of fecal samples, from night nests and from identified individuals, provided comparable information about the prevalence of anoplocephalid cestodes, although the analysis of samples collected from identified gorilla individuals showed significant intra-individual fluctuation of A. gorillae egg shedding within a short period. Therefore, multiple samples should be examined to obtain reliable data for wildlife health management programmes, especially when application of anthelmintic treatment is considered. However, while A. gorillae is apparently a common symbiont of mountain gorillas, it does not seem to impair the health of its host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbora Červená
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, University of Veterinary Sciences Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Tereza Prokopová
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, University of Veterinary Sciences Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Rita Maria Cameira
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, University of Veterinary Sciences Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Barbora Pafčo
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Peter Samaš
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Dušan Romportl
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Physical Geography and Geoecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Jan Šlapeta
- Sydney School of Veterinary Science, Faculty of Science, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Klára Judita Petrželková
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
- Liberec Zoo, Liberec, Czech Republic
| | - David Modrý
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources/CINeZ, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
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Petrželková K, Samaš P, Romportl D, Uwamahoro C, Červená B, Pafčo B, Prokopová T, Cameira R, Granjon A, Shapiro A, Bahizi M, Nziza J, Noheri J, Syaluha E, Eckardt W, Ndagijimana F, Šlapeta J, Modrý D, Gilardi K, Muvunyi R, Uwingeli P, Mudakikwa A, Mapilanga J, Kalonji A, Hickey J, Cranfield M. Ecological drivers of helminth infection patterns in the Virunga Massif mountain gorilla population. Int J Parasitol Parasites Wildl 2022; 17:174-184. [PMID: 35145846 PMCID: PMC8802862 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijppaw.2022.01.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2021] [Revised: 01/07/2022] [Accepted: 01/17/2022] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
The Virunga Massif mountain gorilla population has been periodically monitored since the early 1970s, with gradually increasing effort. The population declined drastically in the 1970s, but the numbers stabilized in the 1980s. Since then, the population has been steadily increasing within their limited habitat fragment that is surrounded by a dense human population. We examined fecal samples collected during the Virunga 2015-2016 surveys in monitored and unmonitored gorilla groups and quantified strongylid and tapeworm infections using egg counts per gram to determine environmental and host factors that shape these helminth infections. We showed that higher strongylid infections were present in gorilla groups with smaller size of the 500-m buffered minimum-convex polygon (MCP) of detected nest sites per gorilla group, but in higher gorilla densities and inhabiting vegetation types occurring at higher elevations with higher precipitation and lower temperatures. On the contrary, the impact of monitoring (habituation) was minor, detected in tapeworms and only when in the interaction with environmental variables and MCP area. Our results suggest that the Virunga mountain gorilla population may be partially regulated by strongylid nematodes at higher gorilla densities. New health challenges are probably emerging among mountain gorillas because of the success of conservation efforts, as manifested by significant increases in gorilla numbers in recent decades, but few possibilities for the population expansion due to limited amounts of habitat.
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Affiliation(s)
- K.J. Petrželková
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Biology Centre, Institute of Parasitology, Czech Academy of Sciences, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
- Liberec Zoo, Liberec, Czech Republic
| | - P. Samaš
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - D. Romportl
- Department of Physical Geography and Geoecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | | | - B. Červená
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - B. Pafčo
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - T. Prokopová
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - R. Cameira
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - A.C. Granjon
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - A. Shapiro
- Here + There Mapping Solutions, Berlin, Germany
| | - M. Bahizi
- Gorilla Doctors (MGVP, Inc.), Davis, CA, USA
| | - J. Nziza
- Gorilla Doctors (MGVP, Inc.), Davis, CA, USA
| | - J.B. Noheri
- Gorilla Doctors (MGVP, Inc.), Davis, CA, USA
| | | | - W. Eckardt
- Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, Musanze, Rwanda
| | | | - J. Šlapeta
- Sydney School of Veterinary Science, Faculty of Science, The University of Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia
| | - D. Modrý
- Biology Centre, Institute of Parasitology, Czech Academy of Sciences, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
- Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Veterinary Sciences/CINeZ, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - K. Gilardi
- Gorilla Doctors (MGVP, Inc.), Davis, CA, USA
- School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
| | - R. Muvunyi
- Rwanda Development Board, Kigali, Rwanda
| | | | | | - J. Mapilanga
- Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature, Kinshasa, Congo
| | - A. Kalonji
- Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature, Parc National de Kahuzi Biega, Bukavu, Congo
| | - J.R. Hickey
- International Gorilla Conservation Programme, Kigali, Rwanda
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3
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Gilardi K, Uwingeli P. Keep mountain gorillas free from pandemic virus. Nature 2022; 602:211. [PMID: 35136221 DOI: 10.1038/d41586-022-00331-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Moore JF, Uzabaho E, Musana A, Uwingeli P, Hines JE, Nichols JD. What is the effect of poaching activity on wildlife species? Ecol Appl 2021; 31:e02397. [PMID: 34212448 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2397] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2020] [Revised: 02/22/2021] [Accepted: 03/03/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Poaching is a pervasive threat to wildlife, yet quantifying the direct effect of poaching on wildlife is rarely possible because both wildlife and threat data are infrequently collected concurrently. In this study, we used poaching data collected through the Management Information System (MIST) and wildlife camera trap data collected by the Tropical Ecology Assessment and Monitoring (TEAM) network from 2014 to 2017 in Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda. We implemented co-occurrence multi-season occupancy models that accounted for imperfect detection to investigate the effect of poaching on initial occupancy, colonization, and extinction of five mammal species. Specifically, we focused on two species of conservation concern (mountain gorilla [Gorilla beringei beringei] and golden monkey [Cercopithecus mitis kandti]), and three species targeted by poachers (black-fronted duiker [Cephalophus nigrifrons], bushbuck [Tragelaphus scriptus], and African buffalo [Syncerus caffer]). We found that the probability of local extinction was highest in sites with poaching activity for golden monkey and bushbuck. In addition, the probability of initial occupancy for golden monkey was highest in sites without poaching activity. We only found weak evidence of effects of poaching on parameters governing the occupancy dynamics of the other species. All species showed evidence of poaching presence affecting the probability of detection of the wildlife species. This is the first study to our knowledge to combine direct threat observations from ranger-based monitoring data with camera trap wildlife observations to quantify the effect of poaching on wildlife. Given the widespread collection of ranger-based monitoring and camera trap data, our approach is broadly applicable to numerous protected areas and has the potential to significantly improve conservation management. Specifically, the relationship between poaching activity and wildlife population dynamics can be combined with information on the relationship between ranger patrols and poaching activity to develop models useful for making wise decisions about ranger patrol deployment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer F Moore
- Department of Wildlife Conservation and Ecology, University of Florida, 110 Newins-Ziegler Hall, Gainesville, Florida, 32611, USA
| | - Eustrate Uzabaho
- International Gorilla Conservation Programme, Seventh Day Adventist North Conference Building, Muhoza Sector, Musanze, Northern Province, Rwanda
| | - Abel Musana
- Rwanda Development Board, Volcanoes National Park, Kinigi Sector, Musanze, Northern Province, Rwanda
| | - Prosper Uwingeli
- Rwanda Development Board, Volcanoes National Park, Kinigi Sector, Musanze, Northern Province, Rwanda
| | - James E Hines
- U.S. Geological Survey, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, Maryland, 20708, USA
| | - James D Nichols
- U.S. Geological Survey, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, Maryland, 20708, USA
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Petrželková KJ, Uwamahoro C, Pafčo B, Červená B, Samaš P, Mudakikwa A, Muvunyi R, Uwingeli P, Gilardi K, Nziza J, Noheri JB, Eckardt W, Ndagijimana F, Ssebide B, Okwirokello R, Nizeyimana F, Syaluha EK, Nzayisenga G, Flores Girón L, Bahizi M, Ntwari AE, Lukusa JP, Tumushime JC, Mangura D, Mapilanga J, Kalonji A, Aruho R, Stryková A, Tehlarová Z, Cameira R, Lowenstine L, Šlapeta J, Romportl D, Ferrari N, Cranfield M, Modrý D. Heterogeneity in patterns of helminth infections across populations of mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei). Sci Rep 2021; 11:10869. [PMID: 34035316 PMCID: PMC8149636 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-89283-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2020] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Conservation efforts have led to the recovery of the endangered mountain gorilla populations. Due to their limited potential for spatial expansion, population densities increased, which may alter the epidemiology of infectious diseases. Recently, clinical gastrointestinal illnesses linked to helminth infections have been recorded in both gorilla populations. To understand drivers and patterns of helminth infections we quantified strongylid and tapeworm infections across both Virunga Massif and Bwindi populations using fecal egg counts. We assessed the impact of age, sex, group size, season and spatial differences used as a proxy, which reflects observed variation in the occurrence of gastrointestinal problems, vegetation types, gorilla subpopulation growth and associated social structure on helminth infections. We revealed striking geographic differences in strongylid infections with higher egg counts mostly in areas with high occurrences of gastrointestinal disease. Increased helminth egg counts were also associated with decreasing group size in some areas. Observed spatial differences may reflect mutual effects of variations in subpopulation growth rates, gorilla social structure, and vegetation associated with altitude across mountain gorilla habitat. Helminth infection intensities in Virunga gorillas were lowest in the youngest and the oldest animals. Elucidating parasite infection patterns of endangered species with low genetic diversity is crucial for their conservation management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Klara J. Petrželková
- grid.418095.10000 0001 1015 3316Institute of Vertebrate Biology, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic ,grid.418338.50000 0001 2255 8513Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic ,Liberec Zoo, Liberec, Czech Republic
| | | | - Barbora Pafčo
- grid.418095.10000 0001 1015 3316Institute of Vertebrate Biology, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Barbora Červená
- grid.418095.10000 0001 1015 3316Institute of Vertebrate Biology, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic ,Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary Sciences Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Peter Samaš
- grid.418095.10000 0001 1015 3316Institute of Vertebrate Biology, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Antoine Mudakikwa
- grid.508147.f0000 0000 9490 3868Rwanda Development Board, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Richard Muvunyi
- grid.508147.f0000 0000 9490 3868Rwanda Development Board, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Prosper Uwingeli
- grid.508147.f0000 0000 9490 3868Rwanda Development Board, Kigali, Rwanda
| | | | - Julius Nziza
- grid.508041.8Gorilla Doctors (MGVP, Inc.), Davis, CA USA
| | | | | | | | - Benard Ssebide
- grid.508041.8Gorilla Doctors (MGVP, Inc.), Davis, CA USA
| | | | | | | | | | - Luis Flores Girón
- Centre de Recherche en Sciences Naturelles de Lwiro, Lwiro, Democratic Republic of Congo ,Lwiro Primate Rehabilitation Center, Democratic Republic of Congo and Ivan Carter Wildlife Conservation Alliance, Orlando, FL USA
| | - Méthode Bahizi
- grid.508041.8Gorilla Doctors (MGVP, Inc.), Davis, CA USA
| | | | | | | | - Damien Mangura
- grid.508041.8Gorilla Doctors (MGVP, Inc.), Davis, CA USA
| | - Jeff Mapilanga
- Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo
| | - Arthur Kalonji
- Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature, Parc National de Kahuzi Biega, Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo
| | - Robert Aruho
- grid.463699.7Uganda Wildlife Authority, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Anna Stryková
- Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary Sciences Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Zuzana Tehlarová
- grid.418095.10000 0001 1015 3316Institute of Vertebrate Biology, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Rita Cameira
- grid.418095.10000 0001 1015 3316Institute of Vertebrate Biology, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic ,Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary Sciences Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Linda Lowenstine
- grid.27860.3b0000 0004 1936 9684School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, CA USA
| | - Jan Šlapeta
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSydney School of Veterinary Science, Faculty of Science, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Dušan Romportl
- grid.4491.80000 0004 1937 116XDepartment of Physical Geography and Geoecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Nicola Ferrari
- grid.4708.b0000 0004 1757 2822Department of Veterinary Medicine, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy ,grid.4708.b0000 0004 1757 2822Research Center Epidemiology and Molecular Surveillance of Infections ‘‘EpiSoMI’’, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | | | - David Modrý
- grid.418338.50000 0001 2255 8513Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic ,Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary Sciences Brno, Brno, Czech Republic ,grid.10267.320000 0001 2194 0956Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
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Robbins AM, Gray M, Breuer T, Manguette M, Stokes EJ, Uwingeli P, Mburanumwe I, Kagoda E, Robbins MM. Mothers may shape the variations in social organization among gorillas. R Soc Open Sci 2016; 3:160533. [PMID: 27853570 PMCID: PMC5098995 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.160533] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2016] [Accepted: 09/16/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
When mothers continue to support their offspring beyond infancy, they can influence the fitness of those offspring, the strength of social relationships within their groups, and the life-history traits of their species. Using up to 30 years of demographic data from 58 groups of gorillas in two study sites, this study extends such findings by showing that mothers may also contribute to differences in social organization between closely related species. Female mountain gorillas remained with their sons for significantly longer than western gorillas, which may explain why male philopatry and multimale groups are more common among mountain gorillas. The presence of the putative father and other familiar males did not vary significantly between species, and we found only limited support for the socio-ecological theory that the distribution of adult males is influenced by the distribution of females. Within each gorilla species, variations in those distributions may also reflect the different stages in the typical life cycle of a group. Collectively, our results highlight the potentially far-reaching consequences of maternal support that extends beyond infancy, and they illustrate the opportunity to incorporate additional factors into phylogenetic analyses of variations in social organization, including studies of human evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew M. Robbins
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Maryke Gray
- Formerly with the International Gorilla Conservation Programme, PO Box 931, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Thomas Breuer
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY 10460, USA
- Mbeli Bai Study, Wildlife Conservation Society—Congo Program, BP 14537 Brazzaville, Republic of Congo
| | - Marie Manguette
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Mbeli Bai Study, Wildlife Conservation Society—Congo Program, BP 14537 Brazzaville, Republic of Congo
| | - Emma J. Stokes
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY 10460, USA
| | - Prosper Uwingeli
- Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda Development Board, PO Box 6239, Gishushu, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Innocent Mburanumwe
- Parc National des Virunga-sud, Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature, c/o IGCP-DRC, B.P. 137 Gisenyi, Rwanda
| | - Edwin Kagoda
- Formerly with the Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, Uganda Wildlife Authority, PO Box 3530, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Martha M. Robbins
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
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Robbins AM, Gray M, Uwingeli P, Mburanumwe I, Kagoda E, Robbins MM. Variance in the reproductive success of dominant male mountain gorillas. Primates 2014; 55:489-99. [DOI: 10.1007/s10329-014-0426-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2013] [Accepted: 04/19/2014] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Robbins AM, Gray M, Basabose A, Uwingeli P, Mburanumwe I, Kagoda E, Robbins MM. Impact of male infanticide on the social structure of mountain gorillas. PLoS One 2013; 8:e78256. [PMID: 24223143 PMCID: PMC3819382 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0078256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2013] [Accepted: 09/11/2013] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Infanticide can be a major influence upon the social structure of species in which females maintain long-term associations with males. Previous studies have suggested that female mountain gorillas benefit from residing in multimale groups because infanticide occurs when one-male groups disintegrate after the dominant male dies. Here we measure the impact of infanticide on the reproductive success of female mountain gorillas, and we examine whether their dispersal patterns reflect a strategy to avoid infanticide. Using more than 40 years of data from up to 70% of the entire population, we found that only 1.7% of the infants that were born in the study had died from infanticide during group disintegrations. The rarity of such infanticide mainly reflects a low mortality rate of dominant males in one-male groups, and it does not dispel previous observations that infanticide occurs during group disintegrations. After including infanticide from causes other than group disintegrations, infanticide victims represented up to 5.5% of the offspring born during the study, and they accounted for up to 21% of infant mortality. The overall rates of infanticide were 2-3 times higher in one-male groups than multimale groups, but those differences were not statistically significant. Infant mortality, the length of interbirth intervals, and the age of first reproduction were not significantly different between one-male versus multimale groups, so we found no significant fitness benefits for females to prefer multimale groups. In addition, we found limited evidence that female dispersal patterns reflect a preference for multimale groups. If the strength of selection is modest for females to avoid group disintegrations, than any preference for multimale groups may be slow to evolve. Alternatively, variability in male strength might give some one-male groups a lower infanticide risk than some multimale groups, which could explain why both types of groups remain common.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew M. Robbins
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Maryke Gray
- The International Gorilla Conservation Programme, Kigali, Kigali Province, Rwanda
| | - Augustin Basabose
- The International Gorilla Conservation Programme, Kigali, Kigali Province, Rwanda
| | - Prosper Uwingeli
- Parc National des Volcans, Rwanda Development Board, Kigali, Kigali Province, Rwanda
| | - Innocent Mburanumwe
- Parc National des Virunga-sud, Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature, c/o International Gorilla Conservation Programme, Gisenyi, Western Province, Rwanda
| | - Edwin Kagoda
- Bwindi Mgahinga Conservation Area, Uganda Wildlife Authority, Kampala, Kampala District, Uganda
| | - Martha M. Robbins
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
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9
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Robbins MM, Gray M, Fawcett KA, Nutter FB, Uwingeli P, Mburanumwe I, Kagoda E, Basabose A, Stoinski TS, Cranfield MR, Byamukama J, Spelman LH, Robbins AM. Extreme conservation leads to recovery of the Virunga mountain gorillas. PLoS One 2011; 6:e19788. [PMID: 21687709 PMCID: PMC3110611 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0019788] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2010] [Accepted: 04/15/2011] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
As wildlife populations are declining, conservationists are under increasing pressure to measure the effectiveness of different management strategies. Conventional conservation measures such as law enforcement and community development projects are typically designed to minimize negative human influences upon a species and its ecosystem. In contrast, we define “extreme” conservation as efforts targeted to deliberately increase positive human influences, including veterinary care and close monitoring of individual animals. Here we compare the impact of both conservation approaches upon the population growth rate of the critically endangered Virunga mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei), which increased by 50% since their nadir in 1981, from approximately 250 to nearly 400 gorillas. Using demographic data from 1967–2008, we show an annual decline of 0.7%±0.059% for unhabituated gorillas that received intensive levels of conventional conservation approaches, versus an increase 4.1%±0.088% for habituated gorillas that also received extreme conservation measures. Each group of habituated gorillas is now continuously guarded by a separate team of field staff during daylight hours and receives veterinary treatment for snares, respiratory disease, and other life-threatening conditions. These results suggest that conventional conservation efforts prevented a severe decline of the overall population, but additional extreme measures were needed to achieve positive growth. Demographic stochasticity and socioecological factors had minimal impact on variability in the growth rates. Veterinary interventions could account for up to 40% of the difference in growth rates between habituated versus unhabituated gorillas, with the remaining difference likely arising from greater protection against poachers. Thus, by increasing protection and facilitating veterinary treatment, the daily monitoring of each habituated group contributed to most of the difference in growth rates. Our results argue for wider consideration of extreme measures and offer a startling view of the enormous resources that may be needed to conserve some endangered species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martha M Robbins
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany.
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Gray M, McNeilage A, Fawcett K, Robbins MM, Ssebide B, Mbula D, Uwingeli P. Censusing the mountain gorillas in the Virunga Volcanoes: complete sweep method versus monitoring. Afr J Ecol 2009. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2028.2009.01142.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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