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This case series describes hepatocellular neoplasms in 10 Nile lechwe (Kobus megaceros) at two separate zoological institutions in Florida. Histologically, the neoplasms were classified as hepatocellular carcinoma (n = 7), hepatocellular adenoma (n = 2), and hepatobiliary carcinoma (n = 1). Common clinical signs were nonspecific and included thin body condition (n =7), lethargy (n =6), lameness (n =3), and acute recumbency (n =5). Four males and six females were affected, and the mean age at death was 12.7 yr with a range of 4-18 yr. All cases were diagnosed postmortem, and metastasis to various sites, including lung, lymph nodes, and omentum, was found in 40% of cases (n = 4). A single case of hepatocellular carcinoma in a Nile lechwe was described in 2007; however, this is the first reported series of neoplasms in Reduncinae. The pathogenesis behind the development of hepatocellular neoplasms in Nile lechwe has not yet been identified.

Lechwe are specialised wetland antelope that can have a strict social hierarchy or perform lekking during breeding. The southern lechwe (Kobus leche) and the Nile lechwe (K. megaceros) are both found in zoos globally, but little research is available to support husbandry decisions. The aim of this research was to investigate current housing and husbandry used for these lechwe across North American and European zoos. A survey was distributed to holders in 2018 and information on 33 herds (18 Nile and 15 southern) was collected. The survey focussed on population demographics, enclosure size, biologically relevant exhibit features, mixed-species holdings, nutrition, use of environmental enrichment and performance of abnormal repetitive behaviours. Results showed that lechwe were housed in herds with similar sex ratios to wild counterparts but with a potential lack of opportunity to lek. Many zoos provided wetland, but this was rarely actively managed, and not all zoos provided cover for hiding and retreat. Current feeding practice differed significantly compared to available antelope husbandry guidelines. No consistency in amounts of pellet, forage or produce provided to lechwe across institutions was found. Abnormal repetitive behaviour was noted by several zoos, but no significant predictor of such behaviour could be identified. Despite some identifiable recognition of ecology informing lechwe management, it is important that evidence-based husbandry decisions are made based on a species&rsquo, evolutionary pathway and ecological needs and some fundamental features of lechwe husbandry do not always correlate with the adaptive traits of a specialised wetland ungulate.

Assessing human-induced threatening factors to wildlife is the basis in determining and proposing appropriate conservation measures. The present study was conducted to assess impacts of human activities on wildlife in Gambella National Park, Southwest of Ethiopia, from October 2015 to March 2016, focusing on the case of Nile Lechwe (Kobus megaceros). The data in this study were gathered using questionnaires with structured interview and focus group discussion. Data on the threatening factors were compared among villages using chi-square test in SPSS version 20 software. Out of the 384 respondents, 139(36.2), 51(13.2) 49(12.8), 43(11.2) and 41(10.7%) of them informed that agricultural investment, illegal hunting, overgrazing, rice cultivation in the area and habitat loss, respectively, were the most predominant human factors affecting Nile Lechwe. Thus suggests that agricultural expansion and illegal hunting are those human activities with the highest impact on the Nile Lechwe. Before designing and implementing any development investment particularly large scale agricultural expansions, the government and other stakeholders should give consideration and attention to the rapidly declining natural resource beside to the development. Therefore, designing appropriate eco-friendly management with options must be adopted to mediate the effects and minimize future impacts. Key words: Agriculture, anthropogenic disturbance, habitats, Nile Lechwe, Gambella National park, wildlife.

In July 2011, in a zoological garden in Rome, Italy, malignant catarrhal fever (MCF), a fatal, systemic disease of Artiodactyla, was suspected on the basis of neurological signs and gross lesions observed in a banteng, the first animal to die of this infection. An MCF type-specific PCR with subsequent sequencing of the PCR amplicon confirmed the aetiological agent as ovine herpesvirus-2 (OvHV-2). Biological samples were collected from the dead animals for gross, histological, bacteriological, virological and serological examinations. An epidemiological investigation was conducted to identify the source of the outbreak, as further deaths due to OvHV-2 still occurred after the removal of the acknowledged reservoirs, domestic sheep and goats. For this purpose, samples from other susceptible species and reservoir hosts were collected for virological and serological analysis. In conjunction, a retrospective sero-investigation was conducted on sera collected between 1999 and 2010 from some of the species involved in the present episode. In total, 11 animals belonging to four different species (banteng, Himalayan tahr, Nile lechwe and sika deer) died between July 2011 and October 2012. The severe gross and histological lesions were consistent with the disease, namely haemorrhages and congestion of several organs as well as lymphoid cell infiltrates and vasculitis of varying severity. The virological tests confirmed that all animals had died of sheep-associated MCF. The investigation indicated that the OvHV-2 infection could have been due to the arrival of sheep in the petting zoo, with cases commencing after first lambing and subsequent shedding of virus. This was also supported by the serological retrospective study that indicated limited previous MCF virus circulation. Further MCF cases that occurred even after the removal of the domestic sheep and goats were attributed to the mouflon. This episode confirms the importance of biosecurity measures in zoos, which house MCF susceptible species, especially those endangered.

Field immobilization of captive antelope may be required for medical examination, blood sample collection, and animal identification. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a combination of butorphanol, detomidine, and midazolam (BDM) and its partial reversibility in Nile lechwe antelope (Kobus megaceros). Nine captive lechwes, weighing 28-64 kg, were immobilized, in February 2011, with butorphanol 0.20 ± 0.05 (mean ± SD) mg/kg, detomidine 0.20 ± 0.05 mg/kg, and midazolam 0.31 ± 0.08 mg/kg administered intramuscularly (IM) with a blowpipe. Physiologic parameters and depth of anesthesia were recorded when the animals became recumbent at 19.55 ± 8.36 min after darting (T0) and after 10 (T10), 20 (T20), and 30 (T30) min. An arterial blood sample was collected at T20. At the end of the procedures, immobilization was partially reversed with atipamezole 0.25 mg/kg IM. Quality of induction, immobilization, and recovery was scored. The BDM combination induced immobilization and lateral recumbency in 13.44 ± 5.61 min. Median induction score (scored 1 [excellent] to 4 [poor]) was 1 (range 1-2). Heart rate varied 40-104 beats/min, respiratory rate 16-108 breaths/min, and rectal temperature 36.5-40.3 C. Hyperthermia was observed and rapidly treated in three animals that demonstrated insufficient immobilization after darting. Arterial blood gas analyses revealed a mean pH of 7.43 ± 0.07, partial arterial pressure of CO(2) of 44.1 ± 6.0 mmHg, partial arterial pressure of O(2) of 74.0 ± 13.5 mmHg, and an arterial O(2) saturation of 94.77 ± 3.96%. Recovery was smooth and animals were walking in 13.44 ± 7.85 min. Median recovery score (1 = excellent to 4 = poor) was 1 (range 1-2). The BDM was effective in immobilizing captive healthy lechwes with minimal cardiorespiratory changes.

Reproductive effort should negatively correlate with reproductive value, yielding a pattern of increased effort with age. According to the terminal investment hypothesis, females near the end of their reproductive life span should devote more resources to reproduction than those near the start of their reproductive careers. We tested predictions of the terminal investment hypothesis by evaluating 38 years of reproductive life-history data collected from Nile lechwe (Kobus megaceros), an ungulate species living at San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park. The maximum reproductive success of Nile lechwe matched predictions of models of lifetime reproductive effort, with the relative mass of newborn calves providing an accurate indicator of the costs of reproduction. Newborn mass was significantly correlated with maternal age, and neonatal males tended to be heavier than neonatal females. Older dams were more likely to produce sons than daughters, dams that produced sons were more likely to die than were da...

Between 1998 and 2000, 103 individuals of 19 species of the order Artiodactyla at Whipsnade Wild Animal Park were tested for evidence of infection with gamma herpesviruses in order to distinguish between species which are susceptible to malignant catarrhal fever (MCF), caused by alcelaphine herpesvirus-1 (AlHV-1) of wildebeest (Connochaetes sp.) or ovine herpesvirus-2 (OvHV-2) of domestic sheep, and species which carry related viruses sub-clinically. Gamma herpesvirus DNA was detected in the known, or suspected, carrier species: roan antelope (Hippotragus equinus), scimitar-horned oryx (Oryx dammah), gemsbok (Oryx gazella), musk ox (Ovibos muschatus) and mouflon (Ovis musimon). In six other species: lowland anoa (Bubalus depressicornis) yak (Bos grunniens), sitatunga (Tragelaphus spekei), greater kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros), waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus) and Nile lechwe (Kobus megaceros), DNA was present in some newborn calves and over 30% of adults, strongly suggesting a carrier state. In contrast five Père David's deer (Elaphurus davidianus) and two swamp deer (Cervus duvauceli) died of MCF during the study. A virus isolated from scimitar-horned oryx calves produced cytopathic effects in scimitar-horned oryx kidney cell-culture and caused MCF in a rabbit.

The evolutionary relationships within the bovid tribe Reduncini were investigated by comparing complete nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene (1140 bp) among 11 extant taxa. With a few exceptions, the molecular data are in agreement with previous morphologically-based studies. Based on our cytochrome b data, the kob and puku are only 0.3% divergent, suggesting that the species level status of the puku is questionable. Bootstrap analyses and the likelihood ratio test support a sister relationship of the waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus) to the kob (K. kob) and puku (K. vardoni) clade rather than a possible sister relationship with the lechwe (K. leche) and Nile lechwe (K. megaceros) clade suggested by morphological investigations. We also investigated the affinity of the vaal rhebuck (Pelea capreolus) to the reduncines. Our data do not resolve the placement of the vaal rhebuck among the reduncines. The data support the currently designated subspecies of the waterbuck (K. e. ellipsiprymnus and K.e. defassa) and the lechwe (K.l. leche, K.l. kafuensis and K.l. smithemani), the descriptions of which have been based essentially on morphology and geographic distribution. We detected nuclear homologs of mitochondrial genes and suggest that critical sequence analysis is of importance to avoid erroneous interpretations of mitochondrial phylogenies.

The Nile lechwe Kobus megaceros population at Rome Zoo originates from 1.1 wild-caught animals which arrived in 1959. The ‘harem’ mating system, where the ♀♀ only mate with the dominant J, is typical of this species and because the population has not been genetically managed, the animals have been inbreeding continuously. This study examines the effects of inbreeding depression, particularly in relation to neonate mortality, on this population.

The somatotropic axis, which includes growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I, and IGF binding proteins (IGFBP), is involved in the regulation of growth and metabolism. Measures of the somatotropic axis can be predictive of nutritional status and growth rate that can be utilized to identify nutritional status of individual animals. Before the somatotropic axis can be a predictive tool, concentrations of hormones of the somatotropic axis need to be established in healthy individuals. To begin to establish these data, we quantified IGF-I, IGFBP-2, and IGFBP-3 in males and females of eight threatened hoofstock species at various ages. Opportunistic blood samples were collected from Bos javanicus (Java banteng), Tragelaphus eurycerus isaaci (bongo), Gazella dama ruficollis (addra gazelle), Taurotragus derbianus gigas (giant eland), Kobus megaceros (Nile lechwe), Hippotragus equines cottoni (roan antelope), Ceratotherium simum simum (white rhinoceros), and Elephas maximus (Asian elephant). Serum IGF-I and IGFBPs were determined by radioimmunoassay and ligand blot, respectively. Generally, IGF-I and IGFBP-3 were greater in males, and IGFBP-2 was greater in females. In banteng (P = 0.08) and male Nile lechwe (P

A 14-yr-old male Nile lechwe (Kobus megaceros) from the Jackson Zoo (Mississippi, USA) had chronic weight loss that was associated with elevated serum alkaline phosphatase levels. Approximately 4 yr after the first clinical signs of weight loss, the animal fractured its left rear femur and was subsequently euthanized; on the same day necropsy was performed. The liver was grossly enlarged and contained a smooth-surfaced nodular mass that occupied the majority of the right lobe of the liver. The mass had a liver-like appearance exhibiting a tan-red coloration but having a soft consistency. A single, approximately 0.6 cm, round, slightly elevated discrete red nodule was present in the left anterior lung. Microscopically, the hepatic mass and pulmonary nodule diffusely consisted of irregular cords of cells exhibiting hepatoid features, but containing no evidence of normal portal bile duct or portal triad development. To our knowledge, this is the first report in the scientific literature of a naturally occurring case of hepatocellular carcinoma in a Nile lechwe or in any antelope species.

Captive ungulates were studied to determine behavioral responses to the presence of a zoo keeper within or in front of the exhibit, with and without zoo visitors present. The 4 species groups were: (small) Zulu suni (Neotragus moschatus), dorcas gazelle ( Gazella dorcas), slender-horned gazelle ( Gazella leptoceros); (medium size ) yellow-backed duiker (Cepha/ophus sylvicultor), impala (Aepyceros melampus ), mhorr gazelle ( Gazella dama mhorr ); (large) Arabian oryx ( Oryx leucoryx ), Nile lechwe (Kobus megaceros), lowland nyala (Tragelaphus angasi); (very large) bongo (Tragelaphus euryceros ), greater kudu ( Tragelaphus strepsiceros ), sable antelope ( Hippotragus niger). Significant differences occurred between species for nearly all behavior patterns observed. A significantly greater frequency of vigilance and approach behavior was directed toward the keeper while within the exhibit than when the keeper stood in front of it. A significantly lower frequency of eating or drinking and a significantly higher frequency of vocalizing occurred when the keeper was inside the exhibit. Significant differences occurred across size categories in the frequency of approaching the keeper and physically contacting the keeper. The most frequently scored behavior was visual orientation. Significant differences in the frequency of visual orientation directed toward the zoo keeper existed across size categories, with an increase in vigilance with increasing body size. Likewise, a statistically higher frequency of vigilance was directed toward the keeper when the zoo was closed to the public. When data regarding male and female focal animals were analyzed separately, however, interesting sex differences in vigilance became apparent. Abstracts bovids and domestics Highlights for Arabian oryx: courtship, care sessions and agonistic behaviors bovids and domestics Highlights for Arabian oryx: courtship, care sessions and agonistic behavior Elizabeth Cary Mungall Department of Biology, Texas Woman "s University, Denton, TX 76204 (U.S.A.)

Skin biopsy of a male from San Diego Zoo furnished the top karyotype, these cells are frozen. The female comes from the Catskill Game Farm, New York. Pairing of chromosomes is arbitrary; sex chromosomes are selected by morphology. An extensive Robertsonian mechanism appears operative in this subfamily as in other bovidae.