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African Buffalo (african + buffalo)
Selected AbstractsSeasonal variation in forages utilized by the African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) in the succulent thicket of South AfricaAFRICAN JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2010Thulani Tshabalala Abstract The succulent thicket of the Eastern Cape, South Africa, is characterized by densely wooded vegetation that is dominated by succulents with little understory of ephemeral and weakly perennial grasses and forbs. Studies have developed around the question: how do bulk grazers such as the African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) survive in the succulent thicket? In this study, the diet of the African buffalo at the Great Fish River Reserve (GFRR) was studied in two seasons (wet and dry). The diet profile was assessed from faecal matter, using the micro-histological analysis method. During the wet season, grass species contributed 72% to the diet while 28% was contributed by browse species. In the dry season there was a significant increase in the intake of browse by 5% (,2 = 19.94, df = 11, P < 0.05). There were species that were neglected in the wet season but became principal dietary items in the dry season, these included Setaria neglecta, Cymbopogon plurinodis, Capparis sepiaria and Portulacaria afra. Diet quality, as estimated from faecal samples, suggested that the buffalo were nutritionally stable; however, the presence of sarcoptic mange in the buffalo suggests nutritional stress. Résumé Le fourré de plantes succulentes de l'Eastern Cape, en Afrique du Sud, se caractérise par une végétation boisée dense dominée par des succulentes avec un peu de sous-bois d'herbes éphémères ou faiblement pérennes. Des études se sont développées au départ de cette question: comment des gros ruminants comme le buffle (Syncerus caffer) peuvent-ils survivre dans le fourré de succulentes ? Dans cette étude, nous avons étudié pendant deux saisons (des pluies et sèche) le régime alimentaire du buffle de la Great Fish River Reserve (GFRR). On a évalué le profil du régime à partir de la matière fécale, en utilisant la méthode de l'analyse micro-histologique. Pendant la saison des pluies, les monocotylédones composaient 72% du régime et les 28% restants étaient composés d'espèces de brout. En saison sèche, il y avait une augmentation significative (5%) des espèces de brout (X²= 19,94, d.f = 11, P < 0,05). Il y avait des espèces qui étaient négligées en saison des pluies mais qui devenaient des éléments principaux du régime en saison sèche. Parmi ceux-ci, citons Setaria neglecta, Cymbopogon plurinodis, Capparis sepiaria et Portulacaria afra. La qualité du régime alimentaire, estimée d'après les matières fécales, suggère que les buffles sont stables au point de vue nutritionnel; toutefois, la présence de gale sarcoptique chez les buffles suggère un stress alimentaire. [source] A reliable body condition scoring technique for estimating condition in African buffaloAFRICAN JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY, Issue 4 2009Vanessa O. Ezenwa Abstract Evaluating animal body condition is a necessary component of many ecological studies. Although many methods for assessing animal body condition have been developed, relatively few can be used for estimating condition on live animals. Noninvasive body condition scoring techniques have been developed for assessing condition in livestock and more recently such techniques have been applied to wild ungulates. In this study, we examined the reliability of a body condition scoring technique for assessing condition in African buffalo (Syncerus caffer caffer). We compared a body condition score (BCS) based on visual assessment and manual palpation of an animal's body to two standard metrics of condition widely used in mammals: kidney fat index (KFI) and haematocrit (HCT). Across all buffalo, BCS was significantly and positively correlated with both KFI and HCT. For HCT, this pattern was observed among adults, juveniles, males and females; and in the wet season but not in the dry season. For KFI, BCS was significantly and positively correlated with KFI among adults, juveniles and males, but not in females. Overall, our results suggest that the BCS technique can serve as a useful method for estimating body condition in buffalo. Résumé L'évaluation de la condition corporelle d'un animal est une composante nécessaire de nombreuses études écologiques. Bien que l'on ait mis au point de nombreuses méthodes pour réaliser cette évaluation, relativement peu peuvent servir à estimer la condition d'animaux vivants. Des techniques noninvasives ont été développées pour évaluer la condition physique chez le bétail et, plus récemment, de telles techniques ont aussi été appliquées aux animaux sauvages. Dans cette étude, nous avons examiné la fiabilité d'une technique d'évaluation de la condition physique conçue pour étudier celle du buffle africain (Syncerus caffer caffer). Nous avons comparé un indice de condition corporelle (Body condition score , BCS) basé sur une évaluation visuelle et la palpation manuelle du corps d'un animal à deux indicateurs standards de condition largement utilisés chez les mammifères: l'indice graisseux des reins (Kidney fat index , KFI) et l'hématocrite (HTC). Chez tous les buffles, le BCS était significativement et positivement lié avec le KFI et le HTC. Pour le HTC, ce schéma tenait pour les adultes et les juvéniles, mâles et femelles; et en saison des pluies mais pas en saison sèche. En ce qui concerne le KFI, le BCS lui était significativement et positivement lié chez les adultes, les juvéniles et les mâles, mais pas les femelles. En général, nos résultats suggèrent que la technique de BCS peut être une méthode utile pour évaluer la condition corporelle des buffles. [source] Population biology of African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) at Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park, South AfricaAFRICAN JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY, Issue 3 2007Anna E. Jolles First page of article [source] The Facial Integument of Centrosaurine Ceratopsids: Morphological and Histological Correlates of Novel Skin StructuresTHE ANATOMICAL RECORD : ADVANCES IN INTEGRATIVE ANATOMY AND EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY, Issue 9 2009Tobin L. Hieronymus Abstract The horned dinosaur Pachyhinosaurus possesses rugose bony bosses across the skull roof in lieu of the projecting bony horn cores seen in most ceratopsians. This elaboration of typical ceratopsian ornaments provides an opportunity to test hypotheses of ceratopsian facial skin morphology and function. We analyze bone morphology and histology associated with several classes of skin features in extant amniotes using a classification tree analysis. We isolate key osteological and histological correlates for unpreserved skin structures, including both a pattern of pitting and resorption characteristic of muskox (Ovibos) frontal horn boss, and a pattern of metaplastic ossification characteristic of rhinoceros nasal horn boss. We also describe correlates for other skin features, such as epidermal scales and horn sheaths. Dermatocranial elements from centrosaurine ceratopsians are then examined for the same osteological and histological correlates. From this comparison we propose that the rugose bosses that replace horn cores in many centrosaurine dinosaurs, most notably Achelousaurus and Pachyrhinosaurus, were covered by a thick pad of cornified skin derived from the caudodorsal side of the primitive horn sheath comparable to the horny boss of extant muskoxen (Ovibos). We examine extant taxa with skin morphologies similar to Pachyrhinosaurus for consistent adaptive relationships between structure and behavior. We determine that high-energy headbutting is consistently associated with the acquisition of thick cornified pads, seen in muskoxen as well as helmeted hornbills [Buceros (=Rhinoplax) vigil] and African buffalo (Syncerus). The association of the bony ornaments of Pachyrhinosaurus with risky agonistic behaviors casts doubt on the role of species recognition as a primary selection pressure driving the diversity of all ceratopsian horns. We conclude that social selection (a broad form of intraspecific competition) is a more appropriate explanation for the diversity of centrosaurine ceratopsian ornaments in the Late Cretaceous. Anat Rec, 292:1370,1396, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] | ||||||||||