Body condition in Svalbard reindeer and the use of blood parameters as indicators of condition and fitness
Body condition is an important determinant of ecological fitness but is difficult to measure in field studies of live animals. Live mass and subcutaneous fat are often used as proxies for body condition and related to fitness. We investigated the relationship between blood-chemistry parameters and l...
Published in: | Canadian Journal of Zoology |
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crcansciencepubl:10.1139/z03-152 2024-04-28T08:10:56+00:00 Body condition in Svalbard reindeer and the use of blood parameters as indicators of condition and fitness Milner, Jos M Stien, Audun Irvine, R Justin Albon, Steve D Langvatn, Rolf Ropstad, Erik 2003 http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/z03-152 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/z03-152 en eng Canadian Science Publishing http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining Canadian Journal of Zoology volume 81, issue 9, page 1566-1578 ISSN 0008-4301 1480-3283 Animal Science and Zoology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics journal-article 2003 crcansciencepubl https://doi.org/10.1139/z03-152 2024-04-02T06:55:54Z Body condition is an important determinant of ecological fitness but is difficult to measure in field studies of live animals. Live mass and subcutaneous fat are often used as proxies for body condition and related to fitness. We investigated the relationship between blood-chemistry parameters and live mass and back-fat thickness and assessed their usefulness as predictors of ecological fitness in a wild arctic ungulate population, Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus). Female reindeer were sampled in late winter between 1995 and 2002 and concentrations of blood parameters were related to subsequent survival and successful calving. There was marked annual variation in all blood parameters, live mass, and back-fat thickness, reflecting variation in weather and food availability. At the individual level, variation in blood-parameter concentrations was not closely related to variation in live mass or back-fat thickness, instead reflecting shorter term nutritional status. Blood parameters could therefore provide useful additional information, enhancing the predictive power of fitness models based on live mass. The urea:creatinine ratio significantly improved adult survival models, while β-hydroxybutyric acid and creatinine concentrations were significant predictors of calving success. The applications for blood parameters in ecological investigations look promising and should be tested more widely in other field studies. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Rangifer tarandus Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus Svalbard svalbard reindeer Canadian Science Publishing Canadian Journal of Zoology 81 9 1566 1578 |
institution |
Open Polar |
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Canadian Science Publishing |
op_collection_id |
crcansciencepubl |
language |
English |
topic |
Animal Science and Zoology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics |
spellingShingle |
Animal Science and Zoology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics Milner, Jos M Stien, Audun Irvine, R Justin Albon, Steve D Langvatn, Rolf Ropstad, Erik Body condition in Svalbard reindeer and the use of blood parameters as indicators of condition and fitness |
topic_facet |
Animal Science and Zoology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics |
description |
Body condition is an important determinant of ecological fitness but is difficult to measure in field studies of live animals. Live mass and subcutaneous fat are often used as proxies for body condition and related to fitness. We investigated the relationship between blood-chemistry parameters and live mass and back-fat thickness and assessed their usefulness as predictors of ecological fitness in a wild arctic ungulate population, Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus). Female reindeer were sampled in late winter between 1995 and 2002 and concentrations of blood parameters were related to subsequent survival and successful calving. There was marked annual variation in all blood parameters, live mass, and back-fat thickness, reflecting variation in weather and food availability. At the individual level, variation in blood-parameter concentrations was not closely related to variation in live mass or back-fat thickness, instead reflecting shorter term nutritional status. Blood parameters could therefore provide useful additional information, enhancing the predictive power of fitness models based on live mass. The urea:creatinine ratio significantly improved adult survival models, while β-hydroxybutyric acid and creatinine concentrations were significant predictors of calving success. The applications for blood parameters in ecological investigations look promising and should be tested more widely in other field studies. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Milner, Jos M Stien, Audun Irvine, R Justin Albon, Steve D Langvatn, Rolf Ropstad, Erik |
author_facet |
Milner, Jos M Stien, Audun Irvine, R Justin Albon, Steve D Langvatn, Rolf Ropstad, Erik |
author_sort |
Milner, Jos M |
title |
Body condition in Svalbard reindeer and the use of blood parameters as indicators of condition and fitness |
title_short |
Body condition in Svalbard reindeer and the use of blood parameters as indicators of condition and fitness |
title_full |
Body condition in Svalbard reindeer and the use of blood parameters as indicators of condition and fitness |
title_fullStr |
Body condition in Svalbard reindeer and the use of blood parameters as indicators of condition and fitness |
title_full_unstemmed |
Body condition in Svalbard reindeer and the use of blood parameters as indicators of condition and fitness |
title_sort |
body condition in svalbard reindeer and the use of blood parameters as indicators of condition and fitness |
publisher |
Canadian Science Publishing |
publishDate |
2003 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/z03-152 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/z03-152 |
genre |
Arctic Rangifer tarandus Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus Svalbard svalbard reindeer |
genre_facet |
Arctic Rangifer tarandus Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus Svalbard svalbard reindeer |
op_source |
Canadian Journal of Zoology volume 81, issue 9, page 1566-1578 ISSN 0008-4301 1480-3283 |
op_rights |
http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1139/z03-152 |
container_title |
Canadian Journal of Zoology |
container_volume |
81 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
1566 |
op_container_end_page |
1578 |
_version_ |
1797578592492716032 |