@article {95763, title = {Diet Drives Differences in Reproductive Synchrony in Two Sympatric Mountain Ungulates in the Himalaya}, journal = {FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION}, volume = {9}, year = {2021}, month = {06/2021}, abstract = {

Ungulates in higher latitudes and altitudes experience sharp seasonal changes in forage abundance and quality. In response, ungulates show varying degrees of synchrony in reproduction. Diet type has been hypothesized to be a determinant of differences in reproductive synchrony. Analyses at global scales using proxies of plant phenology such as climate, latitude and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) have found no evidence in support because such proxies do not capture differences in phenology among plant taxa at local scales. We compared seasonal variations in diet quality with reproductive synchrony in the Himalayan musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster), a browser, and the Himalayan goral (Naemorhedus goral), a grazer, in mid-altitude Himalaya. We also compared seasonal variations in physiological stress using fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (FGM). We identified different stages of female reproductive cycle using fecal concentrations of metabolites of estradiol, pregnanediol-3-glucuronide (PdG) and testosterone and used fecal crude protein (CP) as an indicator of diet quality. In musk deer, fecal estradiol and PdG concentrations showed a dispersed estrous and parturition, respectively. Goral had a more synchronized estrous and parturition. Estrous cycles in both species occurred when diet quality was poor, but parturition occurred when diet quality was high. Greater seasonality in reproduction in goral is driven by sharp phenological changes in graminoids on which it feeds, compared to slow changes in browse on which musk deer feeds. Thus, we show that diet type drives the differences in reproductive synchrony in these two sympatric species. Spring and summer with highest diet quality were times of highest stress in both the ungulates. We hypothesize predation pressure from feral dogs and resource competition with livestock as plausible explanations for this, which need to be tested in future. Our findings also highlight the need for studying relationships among plant phenology, diet type and reproductive biology of ungulates at local scales if we are to understand species responses to global phenomena such as climate change.

}, doi = {10.3389/fevo.2021.647465}, author = {Srivastava, Tanushree and Kumar, Ajith and Kumar, Vinod and Umapathy, Govindhaswamy} } @article {97221, title = {Seasonal forage and diet quality in two subtropical ungulates in the Himalaya}, journal = {European Journal Of Wildlife Research}, volume = {67}, year = {2021}, month = {08/2021}, abstract = {

Drastic seasonal changes in higher latitudes and altitudes impact the phenology of plant growth forms differently and thus diet of ungulates feeding on them. We examined how fecal nitrogen (N), an indicator of diet quality, varied with season against the background variation in forage biomass and N in habitats of two sympatric ungulates in subtropical Himalaya. We conducted this study in Kyongnosla Alpine Sanctuary, Sikkim, where the Himalayan goral Naemorhedus goral occurred from 3000 to 3600 m and Himalayan musk deer Moschus chrysogaster from 3300 to 4200 m. We measured biomass and N content of forbs and graminoids and browse in their habitats and proportions of monocots and dicots and N content in their fecal pellets. Seasonal variation in biomass, primarily determined by forbs, was similar in goral and musk deer habitats. Goral had a graminoid-dominated diet switching to dicots in autumn and winter. Musk deer had a dicot-dominated diet in all seasons. Fecal N in both the ungulates was higher than forage N in all seasons except spring when the latter was greater. Forage and fecal N declined sharply from spring as seasons progressed. Fecal N in goral was considerably lower than in musk deer in all seasons, probably below maintenance levels in autumn and winter. As evident from peaks and duration of high diet quality, goral is likely a capital breeder and musk deer an income breeder. Results suggest that linkages between diet and reproductive seasonality in ungulates will have important implications in face of climate change.

}, doi = {10.1007/s10344-021-01518-x}, author = {Srivastava, Tanushree and Kumar, Ajith} } @article {1031, title = {Non-invasive assessment of fecal progestagens and pregnancy detection in Himalayan musk deer (Moschus~chrysogaster).}, journal = {Theriogenology}, volume = {85}, year = {2016}, month = {2016 Jan 15}, pages = {216-23}, abstract = {

The Himalayan musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster), an endangered species, is facing threat of extinction globally due to severe hunting for its musk, and efforts are under way in India to breed them in captivity. However, no information is available on the reproductive cycles of the species. In this study, we aimed to standardize an enzyme immunoassay (EIA) procedure for monitoring pregnancy using fecal samples. We collected fecal samples for 12\ months from five captive females maintained at the Musk Deer Research Centre, Bageshwar, Uttarakhand, India. Three of these females were observed mating and gave birth, whereas two were seen mating but did not give birth. The gestation periods for the three females were 183, 185, and 199\ days, respectively. High-pressure liquid chromatography revealed the presence of immunoreactive pregnanediol-3-glucuronide (PdG), progesterone, and 5α-pregnan-3α-ol-20-one (5-alpha-pregnane) metabolites in the fecal samples. We used EIAs against progesterone, PdG, and 5-alpha-pregnane to monitor pregnancy. We found PdG EIA to be a highly accurate and sensitive assay compared with the other two assays in detecting pregnancy. We conclude that PdG EIA can be used to diagnose and monitor pregnancy in Himalayan musk deer using fecal steroid analysis, at an early stage of 3\ months after mating. This study would help in conservation breeding of musk deer in captivity and in monitoring the reproductive status of the species in the wild.

}, issn = {1879-3231}, doi = {10.1016/j.theriogenology.2015.09.009}, author = {Mithileshwari, Chandrasekhar and Srivastava, Tanushree and Kumar, Vinod and Kumar, Ajith and Umapathy, Govindhaswamy} }