Stress Monitoring in Wild Mammals
February 10th, 2010 | 
Author: By: Jean Vore, Study Sponsorship Coordinator
As a kid growing up in Canada in the 1960s and learning about animal extinctions around the world, I remember thinking that at least nothing would ever happen to our beloved Canadian bear populations. Canada has plenty of room and few people, so what could possibly go wrong?
Unfortunately, the world is a much smaller place than I thought it was at the age of 8-and Canada’s polar and grizzly bear populations are suffering. I love Dr. Janz’s study because (1) it takes place in Canada; (2) it’s noninvasive to the species being studied; and (3) most importantly, it will benefit many large carnivores that live in the Northern Hemisphere of the world. Sometimes we forget about the animals that don’t live with us or around us, and it’s easy to forget that they are trying to eke out lives for themselves on this very busy planet. I’m happy that Morris Animal Foundation is funding research that will help bears and other carnivores enjoy longer, healthier lives.
About the Study:
Stress Monitoring in Wild Mammals
Lead Researcher: David M. Janz, BSc, PhD
Human activities can negatively affect wildlife populations and, in some cases, can cause long-term stress and health problems in individual animals. Scientists from the University of Saskatchewan have developed and validated a sensitive and reliable technique to measure cortisol, a primary stress hormone, in hair collected from grizzly and polar bears. Unlike traditional measurement of cortisol in body fluids such as blood, saliva, urine or fecal matter-which indicates short-term, beneficial stress-hair cortisol concentration indicates long-term stress that is linked to impaired health.
Preliminary hair analysis for grizzly bears found that cortisol concentration varies with hair type (guard hair vs. undercoat) and body region. Further tests have ruled out other potential influences, including age and gender of the bear, environmental exposure to rain or snow and prolonged laboratory storage of the hair samples. Scientists are currently completing similar cortisol concentration analyses in polar bear hair samples.
In the next phase of the study, scientists will validate hair cortisol concentration as a biomarker of long-term stress in grizzly and polar bears. A major part of this phase will be statistical analysis of hair cortisol data in relationship to other measures of animal health and to landscape changes in geographic areas. This ongoing work has important implications for developing and applying hair cortisol concentration as a tool for conservation managers that would allow noninvasive monitoring of long-term stress in bears and other wildlife.
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About Morris Animal Foundation:<br />
Morris Animal Foundation (MAF), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit established in 1948, is dedicated to funding <a href="http://www.morrisanimalfoundation.org/about-maf">animal health research</a> that protects, treats and cures companion animals, horses and wildlife. MAF has its headquarters in Denver. Charity Navigator ranks MAF as a four-star charity, the highest rating. MAF is a BBB Wise Giving Alliance Charity Seal Holder. For more information, call 800.243.2345 or visit MorrisAnimalFoundation.org.</p>
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