Stalin Vedamanickam
India
Research Article
Assessment of Faecal Cortisol Levels in Free-Ranging Nilgiri Tahrs (Nilgiritragus hylocrius) in Correlation with Meteorological Parameters: A Non-Invasive Study
Author(s): Boon Allwin, Nishit S Gokarn, Serma S Pandian, Stalin Vedamanickam, Sathish Gopal, Manoj K and Bharath Jothi SBoon Allwin, Nishit S Gokarn, Serma S Pandian, Stalin Vedamanickam, Sathish Gopal, Manoj K and Bharath Jothi S
The faecal glucocorticoid metabolites of a free-ranging small Nilgiri tahr population of Western Ghats, Tamil Nadu was studied to investigate contributing confounding influences of season, ambient temperature, rainfall and water level on the annual secretion pattern. The was done for a period of one year Oct 2013-Sep 2014. Individuals may cope with environmental challenges through the secretion of stress hormones (glucocorticoids) which allows the integration of environmental change as essential life events such as predator stress, food and water availability, resting cover, influence of tourists and life history events such as birth, death, maintenance of an essential population size by means of an adaptive feedback mechanism. Adaptation and eventually acclimatization to cyclic day-to-day activities, short-term environmental stressors or long-term ecological pressures have been obser.. View More»
