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Stress in wild Greater Rhea populations Rhea americana: effects of agricultural activities on seasonal excreted glucocorticoid metabolite levels

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Abstract

In recent years, wild populations of Greater Rhea (Rhea americana) have declined drastically, due mainly to the conversion of grassland into cropland as a result of intensive, specialized agricultural practices. In this study we test the potential stressful effects of agricultural activities on this ratite by assessing their adrenocortical response. Specifically, we compared fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (FGM) levels of rheas living in two areas under very different land use: grasslands mainly used for cattle grazing and agro-ecosystems intensively used for crop production. Groups of rheas were observed during 45–50 min from a distance of approximately 1 km to avoid any potential disturbance. Therefore, no matching of each fecal sample with a particular sex or individual within the group was possible. Radioimmunoassay of fecal samples from 269 individuals indicated no significant differences in mean concentrations of FGM from the two habitats sampled. In the agro-ecosystem we found no overall effect of agricultural practices on the birds' FGM levels. However, during the dry season FGM concentrations were significantly higher, which may represent a stress response to the low availability of food in the post-harvesting season. In contrast, no increase in FGM levels was registered during the dry season in the grassland, where food was available throughout the year. In this environment the highest increases in FGM levels coincided with the reproductive period, likely due to the frequent agonist encounters between males at this time of the year. Our findings, therefore, suggest that the agricultural practices have to be viewed as chronic environmental stressors for Greater Rhea populations living under such conditions. The present results support earlier research showing detrimental impacts of agricultural activities on this species, which inhabits the most productive regions of South America.

Zusammenfassung

Stress in freilebenden Nandupopulationen Rhea americana: Effekte landwirtschaftlicher Aktivitäten auf saisonale Glukokortikoidmetabolitspiegel im Kot

In den letzten Jahren haben freilebende Populationen des Nandus (Rhea americana) drastisch abgenommen, hauptsächlich wegen der Umwandlung von Grünland in Ackerland infolge intensiver, spezialisierter landwirtschaftlicher Methoden. In dieser Studie testen wir mögliche Stresseffekte landwirtschaftlicher Aktivitäten auf diesen Laufvogel, indem wir seine adrenokortikale Antwort abschätzen. Wir haben die Spiegel von Glukokortikoidmetaboliten (FGM) im Kot von Nandus verglichen, die in zwei Gebieten mit sehr unterschiedlicher Landnutzung leben: Grünland, auf dem hauptsächlich Rinder grasen, und Agrarökosysteme, die intensiv für den Pflanzenbau genutzt werden. Die Nandugruppen wurden 45-50 min lang aus einer Entfernung von etwa 1 km beobachtet, um jegliche potenzielle Störung zu vermeiden. Daher war es nicht möglich, Kotproben einem bestimmten Geschlecht oder Individuum innerhalb der Gruppe zuzuordnen. Radioimmunassays der Kotproben von 269 Individuen zeigten keine signifikanten Unterschiede in der mittleren FGM-Konzentration zwischen den beiden untersuchten Habitaten. Im Agrarökosystem fanden wir keinen Gesamteffekt landwirtschaftlicher Methoden auf die FGM-Spiegel der Vögel. Während der Trockenzeit waren die FGM-Konzentrationen jedoch signifikant höher, was eine Stressantwort auf die geringe Nahrungsverfügbarkeit in der Zeit nach der Ernte widerspiegeln könnte. Im Gegensatz dazu wurde im Grünland, wo Nahrung das ganze Jahr über verfügbar war, kein Anstieg der FGM-Spiegel festgestellt. Hier fiel der stärkste Anstieg der FGM-Spiegel mit der Fortpflanzungsperiode zusammen, wahrscheinlich weil es zu dieser Zeit häufig zu aggressiven Begegnungen zwischen Männchen kommt. Unsere Befunde deuten daher darauf hin, dass landwirtschaftliche Methoden als chronische Umweltstressfaktoren für Nandupopulationen, die unter solchen Bedingungen leben, betrachtet werden müssen. Die vorliegenden Ergebnisse stützen frühere Forschungsergebnisse, die schädliche Auswirkungen landwirtschaftlicher Aktivitäten auf diese Vogelart zeigten, welche die produktivsten Regionen Südamerikas bewohnt.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the owners of El Águila, La Colina, El Refugio, El Cerro, and El Cerrito ranches for allowing us to work on their properties and particularly Osvaldo Serra for their invaluable help. Funding was provided through grants to M.B.M from the Secretaría de Ciencia y Técnica of the Universidad Nacional de Cordoba (SECyT-UNC) and the Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (FONCyT). A. Lèche is a Postdoctoral fellow from the Fundación Bunge y Born. J.L.N., R.H.M., and M.B.M. are researchers of Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Zoología Aplicada (CZA), Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Rondeau 798, X5000AVP, Córdoba, Argentina

    A. Lèche

  2. Cátedra de Ecología, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina

    G. Bazzano

  3. Laboratorio de Análisis Clínicos Especializados (LACE), Córdoba, Argentina

    C. Hansen

  4. Instituto de Diversidad y Ecología Animal (IDEA-CONICET-UNC) and Centro de Zoología Aplicada (CZA), Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina

    J. L. Navarro & M. B. Martella

  5. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas y Tecnológicas (IIByT-CONICET-UNC), Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de los Alimentos (ICTA) and Cátedra de Química Biológica, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina

    R. H. Marin

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  1. A. Lèche
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  2. G. Bazzano
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  3. C. Hansen
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  4. J. L. Navarro
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Correspondence to A. Lèche.

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Communicated by L. Fusani.

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Lèche, A., Bazzano, G., Hansen, C. et al. Stress in wild Greater Rhea populations Rhea americana: effects of agricultural activities on seasonal excreted glucocorticoid metabolite levels. J Ornithol 155, 919–926 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-014-1074-4

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