Yaws disease in a wild gorilla population and its impact on the reproductive status of males

Datos Bibliográficos

ID8317983
AutoresFlorence Levréro (0000-0002-6904-1375, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, autor de correspondencia), Sylvain Gatti (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique), Annie Gautier‐Hion, Nelly Ménard (0000-0003-4122-9330, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)
Año2007
Volumen132
Número4
Páginas568-575
Fecha de publicación2007-04-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaAmerican Journal of Physical Anthropology (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0002-9483 • E-ISSN: 1096-8644
EditorialWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/ajpa.20560
PMID17274014
OpenAlexW2017572004
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas6
Referencias citadas45

We evaluated the prevalence of skin lesions in a gorilla population in the Republic of Congo. The observed lesions were typical of yaws, a treponematosis described in gorillas and humans living in tropical regions. Among the 377 gorillas identified, 17% presented skin lesions, mainly on their faces. The worst cases presented physical handicaps because of the deep lesions. As in humans, lesions break out when individuals are young. Lesions were more prevalent among males than females above 8 years old. This sex‐bias prevalence could result from the behavioral characteristics of males through a greater exposure to wounds. Lesions were also more prevalent in unmated adult males (either solitaries or those living in nonbreeding groups) than in males leading breeding groups. In the case of the latter, nonaffected and affected leading males had a similar number of infants and juveniles. Still, none of the leading males ever presented serious handicaps because of the skin lesions. This suggests that adult females could favor males without lesions. Finally, lesions were more prevalent among immature animals in nonbreeding groups than in breeding groups, suggesting that either young animals with lesions disperse earlier from their natal groups, or that the disease spreads faster in nonbreeding groups. Our results provide some insights into the spread of a disease in a wild population. Further studies are required to determine if the vigor of males affects the development of the disease and if affected individuals experience social discrimination inducing a negative impact on population dynamics. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc

Biology · Disease · Gorilla · Pathology · Population · Animal Behavior and Reproduction · Demography · Medicine · Physiology · Primate Behavior and Ecology · Wildlife Ecology and Conservation