Abstract:
The non-invasive monitoring of physiological stress can provide conservation and wildlife
managers with an invaluable tool for assessing animal welfare and psychological health of
captive and free-ranging populations. A significant decrease in free-ranging primate populations
globally and an increase in captive-housed primates have led to a need to monitor the stress and
general welfare of these animals. We examined the suitability of three enzyme immunoassays
(EIAs) for monitoring stress-related physiological responses in the samango monkey,
Cercopithecus albogularis erythrarchus. We conducted an adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)
challenge on a male and female at the National Zoological Garden, Pretoria, South Africa.
Individual faecal samples were collected 8 days pre- and post-ACTH administration and
subsequently analysed for faecal glucocorticoid metabolite (fGCM) concentrations. During the
study, biological stressors occurred for both the male and female. Two of the three EIAs tested
(11-oxoetiocholanolone I and II) were able to reliably monitor fGCM alterations throughout the
study period in both sexes. The 11-oxoetiocholanolone I EIA, however, had the lowest mean
deviation from the calculated baseline value and was thus chosen as the preferred assay. Both
the physiological activation of the stress response and the biological response to a stressor could
be monitored with the chosen assay. The successful establishment of a reliable, non-invasive
method for monitoring adrenocortical activity in C. albogularis erythrarchus will now allow
conservationists, scientific researchers and wildlife managers to evaluate the level of stress
experienced, and general welfare, by animals in captivity as well as free-ranging populations.
