Establishing a Long-term Veterinary Project for Free-Ranging Chimpanzees in Tanzania
Magdalena Lukasik, MDV Jane Goodall Institute, Gombe Stream Research Center, P.O. Box 185 Kigoma Generally speaking, Pan troglodytes is not an endangered species. Not as the whole species. There are still many—probably too many, chimpanzees in captivity. But situation is very different when it comes to the free-ranging communities. The range of problems jeopardising their existence is wide: bush-meat trade in Central and Western Africa, deforestation all around their natural habitat, finally: antropozoonotic diseases, which so easily cross the inter-species barrier between human researchers, tourists and local inhabitants to the apes in forest. There are no records of chimpanzee hunting in Tanzania, but two latter factors combined caused the death of about 25% population of chimpanzees in the Gombe National Park in Tanzania in the last decade. Reports from the Mahale Mountains National Park also indicate recent noticeable decrease in the ape population. Due to scale of the problem and variety of factors involved, it seems inevitable that people involved in various fields of research, conservation and education join their forces to stop this process. Because diseases, especially the anthropozoonoses, are responsible for the death of many of these animals (in Gombe at least 16 chimpanzees died due to antropozoonotic illnesses in only last 6 years), it seems important that the team includes also the veterinary component. There are wildlife veterinarians working in Tanzania, who can be invited to collaboration, but in case of great apes some specific knowledge and skills are required comparing to working with other African wildlife. There are three facts to explain such an opinion. First, unlike most other wildlife veterinarians, an ape doctor works on foot, following his patients around thick forest, carrying all equipment, for many hours in a row. Second, dealing with the animals of such complex behaviour and social life, it is very important to spend lot of time learning to understand their reactions to different situations, including the health disorders. In order to gather this knowledge veterinarian has to spend reasonable time just following his targets and watching them carefully for many hours. Also, especially when darting wild chimpanzees is very difficult, non-invasive sampling is a main part of practice. Again, this requires long-term, regular follows. Third reason is due to genetical closeness of apes and humans, which means that doctor and patient can possibly share almost all pathogens, which therefore creates considerable risk for both of them. Also, because apes are closer related to people than other animals, working with them often requires close collaboration with human doctors and laboratories rather than these of veterinary medicine. The possible solution for the problem is to establish the project specialised in working with wild chimpanzees, following the example of Morris Animal Foundation Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project working in Virunga National Park in Rwanda, Uganda and Congo-Zaire. The attempts to establish similar Project for free-ranging chimpanzees have started in Tanzania in October 2001, when the Chimpanzee Health Project has been established within Gombe Stream Research Center JGI in Gombe National Park. After one year of this study, which was the pilot one, conducted without any veterinary facility yet present, lots of valuable information about such project requirements and possibilities were gathered. The Project work consisted of four main parts:
As indicated by the pilot study, if there is an ongoing research project at the site, this part of work can and preferably should be done in collaboration with researchers and their assistants. The credits of such collaboration are substantial and mutual. Due to the risk of antropozoonotic diseases it is highly advisable to decrease number of people in contact with chimpanzees. Involving researchers in basic veterinary monitoring and sampling seems the best policy allowing to obtain more thorough data without presence of additional veterinary assistants in forest. Also, because of their everyday presence around animals and good knowledge of chimpanzee behaviour, researchers of diet and range are able to notice many abnormalities sooner than veterinarian, who lacks this experience. So not only they can be help with the data and sample collection, but also may serve as the teachers for the veterinary team. If the simple Health Monitoring Sheets are used, the basic information can be recorded on every day base and the data compared within the long period of time. These sheets should be easy to understand by the non-vet assistants and ideally always carried by them during the forest work. On the other hand, involving veterinarian in behavioural research often helps explain certain abnormalities of behaviour connected with a disease. Also post mortem findings can help understand some unusual behaviour and a vet, following the pattern of injuries and autopsy finding can help understand some facts of predatory and intra- and intercommunity aggression. In addition a material collected for veterinary purpose can be simultaneously used for other research purposes, for example urine collection for regular pregnancy testing or fecal sampling for the paternity study. Apart from the data collected during observation, in order to obtain the clear picture of community health status, regular, everyday sample collection should also be conducted. Non-invasive sampling is, due to the risk and difficulty involved in darting of free-raging chimpanzees, the method of choice for gathering the biological material from this species. Unlike the sampling involving anaesthesia, it provides the regular, even everyday source of material.
Due to the rapid evolution of laboratory techniques it is also the potential basis for wide variety of different tests.
Simultaneously to being the important source of diagnostic material, autopsy work with chimpanzees creates, much bigger than in case of other species, risk for the humans involved. It is extremely important to provide the safe conditions for this work, including the separate post mortem room and limiting number of people who have the contact with potentially highly infectious material.
Because of many pathogens shared by different primates, and even non-primate species in forest, it is important that any animal found dead in a forest should be carefully examined and samples collected for the future laboratory testing. In case when disease makes an animal very weak or unconscious, it is often possible to dart, or inject directly with the therapeutic drug (antibiotic, steroid, etc) without administration of anaesthetic. Unlike in the work with gorillas, in veterinary of free-ranging chimpanzees bases mainly on the oral medicine administration, which is easier, less risky and usually not less effective. Still this method can be used only in habituated animals and in case when they are still strong enough to be interested in food bites. While the single case of disease in habituated chimpanzee is considerably easy to treat, it becomes much more difficult in a situation of general outbreak. It is extremely hard to monitor and administrate medicine to a big number of free-ranging animals and there is a big risk of loosing many—sometimes up to 50% of community members. Therefore it is essential to prevent such outbreaks through the policy of rules for all the people in contact with chimpanzees.
This policy includes the vaccination programs, hygiene control and education and the rules for researchers, tourists and all the people living in the forest.
(Ott-Joslin, Zoo and wild animal medicine, Jones et al. 1984, Speare 97, Brack 87).
As the forest animals frequently visit camp, it is extremely important that the area is clean, houses well-protected and number of human inhabitants decreased only to the necessary minimum. All residents of Park should be regularly examined in the local hospital. Examination should include the fecal and blood test in each case and additional diagnostic method suggested during the general clinical check up. Also the general vaccination program should be carefully considered.
It is also essential that during their work in forest researchers and tourist guides follow the list of rules describing quarantine, distances and time spent with animals. Only the good will and close collaboration between TANAPA and researchers can make the situation better.
Conclusions After 14 Months of Project Work
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