Behavioral and Reproductive Aspects of Captive Maxwell's Duiker (<em>Cephalophus mawellii</em>) Husbandry

<p>Female Maxwell's duikers (<em>Cephalophus maxwellii</em>) were studied at the Wildlife Survival Center on St. Catherine's Island, Georgia. The objectives were to quantify the effects of housing on activity budgets and progesterone cycling. Four animals were studied across two housing situations: housed individually versus housed in a grouped setting. Behavioral observations revealed no significant change in access to resources, rumination, or repetitive behaviors, once animals were housed together. Fecal samples were collected in order to determine levels of progesterone through radioimmunoassay (RIA). Fluctuations in progesterone levels revealed no clear estrous cycles. Animals showed less variability in progesterone levels and more concordance among animals once introduced into group housing. Identifying activity budgets and estrus in group- versus single-housed Maxwell's duikers will provide critical information in the captive husbandry techniques used to house this species.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis (open access)

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Department of Biology

Year dc:date.available

2002

Author dc:creator

• MacKinnon, Janet McNeill

Contributors dc:contributor

• Stephen P. Vives
• Bruce Schulte

• ETD
• Maxwell's duikers
• Cephalophus maxwellii
• St. Catherine's Island
• Housing
• Behavioral observations
• Progesterone levels
• Captive husbandry
• Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology
• Biology

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd_legacy/1004

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu:etd_legacy-1813