Endocrinology research focuses on the effects of hormones on animal behavior and well-being, emphasizing stress and reproductive studies. Endocrinology is a useful tool for better understanding an animal's biology as well as improving captive management.
Noninvasive methods, such as the analysis of fecal or urinary hormones, provide insight into an animal's hormonal activity. Specifically, endocrinology studies can examine well-being (how an animal is coping with its environment), reproductive status (pregnancy and cyclicity) and stress associated with social status (the interaction between dominant and submissive members of a group).
This technique can also be applied to field research to explore stress and reproduction in a noninvasive manner. Overall, endocrinology can help us better understand the biology of animals living in the wild and further our knowledge on how to improve the captive management of these species.
Endocrinology Investigations of the Stress Response
We are currently investigating the impact of switching the apes between enclosures to determine whether it is enriching or just stressful. Fecal samples are being collected along with behavioral observations to assess the impact of enclosure changing. Additionally, we are utilizing fecal hormone analysis to investigate how maternal stress affects maternal behavior and the health and development of offspring in the wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) of Gombe National Park, Tanzania.
Reproductive Aging
Zoo scientists are currently investigating reproductive aging in zoo gorillas. The focus of the research is to determine whether or not aging gorillas undergo menopause—a complete cessation of reproductive cycling. While generally viewed as a strictly human phenomenon, menopause might be expected to occur in other long-lived species. Current research activities include tracking the reproductive cycles of geriatric female gorillas, measuring hormone-mediated, age-related, physiological changes, such as bone density, cardiovascular health and uterine pathology, and expanding research to other primate species.
