Development of a body condition scoring index for female African elephants validated by ultrasound measurements of subcutaneous fat
Obesity-related health and reproductive problems may be contributing to non-sustainability of zoo African elephant (Loxodonta africana) populations. However, a major constraint in screening for obesity in elephants is lack of a practical method to accurately assess body fat. Body condition scoring (...
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| description | Obesity-related health and reproductive problems may be contributing to non-sustainability of zoo African elephant (Loxodonta africana) populations. However, a major constraint in screening for obesity in elephants is lack of a practical method to accurately assess body fat. Body condition scoring (BCS) is the assessment of subcutaneous fat stores based on visual evaluation and provides an immediate appraisal of the degree of obesity of an individual. The objective of this study was to develop a visual BCS index for female African elephants and validate it using ultrasound measures of subcutaneous fat. To develop the index, standardized photographs were collected from zoo (n = 50) and free-ranging (n = 57) female African elephants for identifying key body regions and skeletal features, which were then used to visually determine body fat deposition patterns. This information was used to develop a visual BCS method consisting of a list of body regions and the physical criteria for assigning an overall score on a 5-point scale, with 1 representing the lowest and 5 representing the highest levels of body fat. Results showed that as BCS increased, ultrasound measures of subcutaneous fat thickness also increased (P |
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However, a major constraint in screening for obesity in elephants is lack of a practical method to accurately assess body fat. Body condition scoring (BCS) is the assessment of subcutaneous fat stores based on visual evaluation and provides an immediate appraisal of the degree of obesity of an individual. The objective of this study was to develop a visual BCS index for female African elephants and validate it using ultrasound measures of subcutaneous fat. To develop the index, standardized photographs were collected from zoo (n = 50) and free-ranging (n = 57) female African elephants for identifying key body regions and skeletal features, which were then used to visually determine body fat deposition patterns. This information was used to develop a visual BCS method consisting of a list of body regions and the physical criteria for assigning an overall score on a 5-point scale, with 1 representing the lowest and 5 representing the highest levels of body fat. Results showed that as BCS increased, ultrasound measures of subcutaneous fat thickness also increased (P<0.01), indicating the scores closely coincide with physical measures of fat reserves. The BCS index proved to be reliable and repeatable based on high intra- and inter-assessor agreement across three assessors. In comparing photographs of wild vs. captive African elephants, the median BCS in the free-ranging individuals (BCS = 3, range 1-5) was lower (P<0.001) than that of the zoo population (BCS = 4, range 2-5). In sum, we have developed the first validated BCS index for African elephants. This tool can be used to examine which factors impact body condition in zoo and free-ranging elephants, providing valuable information on how it affects health and reproductive potential of individual elephants.</description><identifier>ISSN: 1932-6203</identifier><identifier>EISSN: 1932-6203</identifier><identifier>DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0093802</identifier><identifier>PMID: 24718304</identifier><language>eng</language><publisher>United States: Public Library of Science</publisher><subject>African elephant ; Alces alces ; Animal behavior ; Animals ; Aquariums ; Arthritis ; Biology and Life Sciences ; Body Composition ; Body fat ; Care and treatment ; Conservation biology ; Diagnosis ; Elephants ; Elephants - anatomy & histology ; Female ; Health aspects ; Infertility ; Insulin resistance ; Loxodonta africana ; Measurement techniques ; Metabolism ; Methods ; National parks ; Obesity ; Population ; Rangifer tarandus caribou ; Reproducibility of Results ; Reproductive system ; Risk factors ; Statistics, Nonparametric ; Subcutaneous Fat - diagnostic imaging ; Sustainability ; Ultrasonic imaging ; Ultrasonics - methods ; Ultrasonography ; Ultrasound ; Veterinary medicine ; Wildlife conservation ; Zoos</subject><ispartof>PloS one, 2014-04, Vol.9 (4), p.e93802-e93802</ispartof><rights>COPYRIGHT 2014 Public Library of Science</rights><rights>2014. This is an open-access article, free of all copyright, and may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for any lawful purpose. The work is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.</rights><rights>2014</rights><lds50>peer_reviewed</lds50><oa>free_for_read</oa><woscitedreferencessubscribed>false</woscitedreferencessubscribed><citedby>FETCH-LOGICAL-c758t-f26bd3519bd53a2a661897d96f45e760f4b1cf3fe4f9b43edfdfe6b2be07c1123</citedby><cites>FETCH-LOGICAL-c758t-f26bd3519bd53a2a661897d96f45e760f4b1cf3fe4f9b43edfdfe6b2be07c1123</cites></display><links><openurl>$$Topenurl_article</openurl><openurlfulltext>$$Topenurlfull_article</openurlfulltext><thumbnail>$$Tsyndetics_thumb_exl</thumbnail><linktopdf>$$Uhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3981750/pdf/$$EPDF$$P50$$Gpubmedcentral$$Hfree_for_read</linktopdf><linktohtml>$$Uhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3981750/$$EHTML$$P50$$Gpubmedcentral$$Hfree_for_read</linktohtml><link.rule.ids>230,314,723,776,780,860,881,2096,2915,23845,27901,27902,53766,53768,79569,79570</link.rule.ids><backlink>$$Uhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24718304$$D View this record in MEDLINE/PubMed$$Hfree_for_read</backlink></links><search><creatorcontrib>Morfeld, Kari A</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Lehnhardt, John</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Alligood, Christina</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Bolling, Jeff</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Brown, Janine L</creatorcontrib><title>Development of a body condition scoring index for female African elephants validated by ultrasound measurements of subcutaneous fat</title><title>PloS one</title><addtitle>PLoS One</addtitle><description>Obesity-related health and reproductive problems may be contributing to non-sustainability of zoo African elephant (Loxodonta africana) populations. However, a major constraint in screening for obesity in elephants is lack of a practical method to accurately assess body fat. Body condition scoring (BCS) is the assessment of subcutaneous fat stores based on visual evaluation and provides an immediate appraisal of the degree of obesity of an individual. The objective of this study was to develop a visual BCS index for female African elephants and validate it using ultrasound measures of subcutaneous fat. To develop the index, standardized photographs were collected from zoo (n = 50) and free-ranging (n = 57) female African elephants for identifying key body regions and skeletal features, which were then used to visually determine body fat deposition patterns. This information was used to develop a visual BCS method consisting of a list of body regions and the physical criteria for assigning an overall score on a 5-point scale, with 1 representing the lowest and 5 representing the highest levels of body fat. Results showed that as BCS increased, ultrasound measures of subcutaneous fat thickness also increased (P<0.01), indicating the scores closely coincide with physical measures of fat reserves. The BCS index proved to be reliable and repeatable based on high intra- and inter-assessor agreement across three assessors. In comparing photographs of wild vs. captive African elephants, the median BCS in the free-ranging individuals (BCS = 3, range 1-5) was lower (P<0.001) than that of the zoo population (BCS = 4, range 2-5). In sum, we have developed the first validated BCS index for African elephants. This tool can be used to examine which factors impact body condition in zoo and free-ranging elephants, providing valuable information on how it affects health and reproductive potential of individual elephants.</description><subject>African elephant</subject><subject>Alces alces</subject><subject>Animal behavior</subject><subject>Animals</subject><subject>Aquariums</subject><subject>Arthritis</subject><subject>Biology and Life Sciences</subject><subject>Body Composition</subject><subject>Body fat</subject><subject>Care and treatment</subject><subject>Conservation biology</subject><subject>Diagnosis</subject><subject>Elephants</subject><subject>Elephants - anatomy & histology</subject><subject>Female</subject><subject>Health aspects</subject><subject>Infertility</subject><subject>Insulin resistance</subject><subject>Loxodonta africana</subject><subject>Measurement techniques</subject><subject>Metabolism</subject><subject>Methods</subject><subject>National parks</subject><subject>Obesity</subject><subject>Population</subject><subject>Rangifer tarandus caribou</subject><subject>Reproducibility of Results</subject><subject>Reproductive system</subject><subject>Risk factors</subject><subject>Statistics, Nonparametric</subject><subject>Subcutaneous Fat - diagnostic imaging</subject><subject>Sustainability</subject><subject>Ultrasonic imaging</subject><subject>Ultrasonics - methods</subject><subject>Ultrasonography</subject><subject>Ultrasound</subject><subject>Veterinary medicine</subject><subject>Wildlife conservation</subject><subject>Zoos</subject><issn>1932-6203</issn><issn>1932-6203</issn><fulltext>true</fulltext><rsrctype>article</rsrctype><creationdate>2014</creationdate><recordtype>article</recordtype><sourceid>EIF</sourceid><sourceid>BENPR</sourceid><sourceid>DOA</sourceid><recordid>eNqNk11rHCEUhofS0qRp_0FphUJpL3aro-PM3BSW9CsQCPTrVhw97hoc3aoTstf9453pbkKm5KJ4oehz3leP5xTFc4KXhNbk3WUYopduuQ0elhi3tMHlg-KYtLRc8BLTh3fWR8WTlC4xrmjD-ePiqGQ1aShmx8XvD3AFLmx78BkFgyTqgt4hFby22QaPkgrR-jWyXsM1MiEiA710gFYmWiU9AgfbjfQ5oSvprJYZNOp2aHA5yhQGr1EPMg0RJos0eaShU0OWHsKQkJH5afHISJfg2WE-KX58-vj99Mvi_OLz2enqfKHqqskLU_JO04q0na6oLCXnpGlr3XLDKqg5NqwjylADzLQdo6CNNsC7sgNcK0JKelK83OtuXUjikL8kSEUYJZxxPhJne0IHeSm20fYy7kSQVvzdCHEtZMxWORANMwZTBl1LMCsJaTBtOqZlWaqag5nc3h_chq4HrcbXR-lmovMTbzdiHa4EbRtSV3gUeHMQiOHXACmL3iYFzu0zN9274ozwmo7oq3_Q-193oNbj_wnrTRh91SQqVrSuqrEiqklreQ81Dg29HesCjB33ZwFvZwEjk-E6r-WQkjj79vX_2Yufc_b1HXYD0uVNCm6YyjLNQbYHVQwpRTC3SSZYTL1ykw0x9Yo49MoY9uLuB90G3TQH_QMdBREh</recordid><startdate>20140401</startdate><enddate>20140401</enddate><creator>Morfeld, Kari A</creator><creator>Lehnhardt, John</creator><creator>Alligood, Christina</creator><creator>Bolling, Jeff</creator><creator>Brown, Janine L</creator><general>Public Library of Science</general><general>Public Library of Science (PLoS)</general><scope>CGR</scope><scope>CUY</scope><scope>CVF</scope><scope>ECM</scope><scope>EIF</scope><scope>NPM</scope><scope>AAYXX</scope><scope>CITATION</scope><scope>IOV</scope><scope>ISR</scope><scope>3V.</scope><scope>7QG</scope><scope>7QL</scope><scope>7QO</scope><scope>7RV</scope><scope>7SN</scope><scope>7SS</scope><scope>7T5</scope><scope>7TG</scope><scope>7TM</scope><scope>7U9</scope><scope>7X2</scope><scope>7X7</scope><scope>7XB</scope><scope>88E</scope><scope>8AO</scope><scope>8C1</scope><scope>8FD</scope><scope>8FE</scope><scope>8FG</scope><scope>8FH</scope><scope>8FI</scope><scope>8FJ</scope><scope>8FK</scope><scope>ABJCF</scope><scope>ABUWG</scope><scope>AEUYN</scope><scope>AFKRA</scope><scope>ARAPS</scope><scope>ATCPS</scope><scope>AZQEC</scope><scope>BBNVY</scope><scope>BENPR</scope><scope>BGLVJ</scope><scope>BHPHI</scope><scope>C1K</scope><scope>CCPQU</scope><scope>D1I</scope><scope>DWQXO</scope><scope>FR3</scope><scope>FYUFA</scope><scope>GHDGH</scope><scope>GNUQQ</scope><scope>H94</scope><scope>HCIFZ</scope><scope>K9.</scope><scope>KB.</scope><scope>KB0</scope><scope>KL.</scope><scope>L6V</scope><scope>LK8</scope><scope>M0K</scope><scope>M0S</scope><scope>M1P</scope><scope>M7N</scope><scope>M7P</scope><scope>M7S</scope><scope>NAPCQ</scope><scope>P5Z</scope><scope>P62</scope><scope>P64</scope><scope>PATMY</scope><scope>PDBOC</scope><scope>PHGZM</scope><scope>PHGZT</scope><scope>PIMPY</scope><scope>PJZUB</scope><scope>PKEHL</scope><scope>PPXIY</scope><scope>PQEST</scope><scope>PQGLB</scope><scope>PQQKQ</scope><scope>PQUKI</scope><scope>PRINS</scope><scope>PTHSS</scope><scope>PYCSY</scope><scope>RC3</scope><scope>7X8</scope><scope>5PM</scope><scope>DOA</scope></search><sort><creationdate>20140401</creationdate><title>Development of a body condition scoring index for female African elephants validated by ultrasound measurements of subcutaneous fat</title><author>Morfeld, Kari A ; Lehnhardt, John ; Alligood, Christina ; Bolling, Jeff ; Brown, Janine L</author></sort><facets><frbrtype>5</frbrtype><frbrgroupid>cdi_FETCH-LOGICAL-c758t-f26bd3519bd53a2a661897d96f45e760f4b1cf3fe4f9b43edfdfe6b2be07c1123</frbrgroupid><rsrctype>articles</rsrctype><prefilter>articles</prefilter><language>eng</language><creationdate>2014</creationdate><topic>African elephant</topic><topic>Alces alces</topic><topic>Animal behavior</topic><topic>Animals</topic><topic>Aquariums</topic><topic>Arthritis</topic><topic>Biology and Life Sciences</topic><topic>Body Composition</topic><topic>Body fat</topic><topic>Care and treatment</topic><topic>Conservation biology</topic><topic>Diagnosis</topic><topic>Elephants</topic><topic>Elephants - anatomy & histology</topic><topic>Female</topic><topic>Health aspects</topic><topic>Infertility</topic><topic>Insulin resistance</topic><topic>Loxodonta africana</topic><topic>Measurement techniques</topic><topic>Metabolism</topic><topic>Methods</topic><topic>National parks</topic><topic>Obesity</topic><topic>Population</topic><topic>Rangifer tarandus caribou</topic><topic>Reproducibility of Results</topic><topic>Reproductive system</topic><topic>Risk factors</topic><topic>Statistics, Nonparametric</topic><topic>Subcutaneous Fat - diagnostic imaging</topic><topic>Sustainability</topic><topic>Ultrasonic imaging</topic><topic>Ultrasonics - methods</topic><topic>Ultrasonography</topic><topic>Ultrasound</topic><topic>Veterinary medicine</topic><topic>Wildlife conservation</topic><topic>Zoos</topic><toplevel>peer_reviewed</toplevel><toplevel>online_resources</toplevel><creatorcontrib>Morfeld, Kari A</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Lehnhardt, John</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Alligood, Christina</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Bolling, Jeff</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Brown, Janine L</creatorcontrib><collection>Medline</collection><collection>MEDLINE</collection><collection>MEDLINE (Ovid)</collection><collection>MEDLINE</collection><collection>MEDLINE</collection><collection>PubMed</collection><collection>CrossRef</collection><collection>Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints</collection><collection>Gale In Context: Science</collection><collection>ProQuest Central (Corporate)</collection><collection>Animal Behavior Abstracts</collection><collection>Bacteriology Abstracts (Microbiology B)</collection><collection>Biotechnology Research Abstracts</collection><collection>Nursing & Allied Health Database</collection><collection>Ecology Abstracts</collection><collection>Entomology Abstracts (Full archive)</collection><collection>Immunology Abstracts</collection><collection>Meteorological & Geoastrophysical Abstracts</collection><collection>Nucleic Acids Abstracts</collection><collection>Virology and AIDS Abstracts</collection><collection>Agricultural Science Collection</collection><collection>Health & Medical Collection</collection><collection>ProQuest Central (purchase pre-March 2016)</collection><collection>Medical Database (Alumni Edition)</collection><collection>ProQuest Pharma Collection</collection><collection>Public Health Database</collection><collection>Technology Research Database</collection><collection>ProQuest SciTech Collection</collection><collection>ProQuest Technology Collection</collection><collection>ProQuest Natural Science Collection</collection><collection>Hospital Premium Collection</collection><collection>Hospital Premium Collection (Alumni Edition)</collection><collection>ProQuest Central (Alumni) (purchase pre-March 2016)</collection><collection>Materials Science & Engineering Collection</collection><collection>ProQuest Central (Alumni Edition)</collection><collection>ProQuest One Sustainability</collection><collection>ProQuest Central UK/Ireland</collection><collection>Advanced Technologies & Aerospace Collection</collection><collection>Agricultural & Environmental Science Collection</collection><collection>ProQuest Central Essentials</collection><collection>Biological Science Collection</collection><collection>ProQuest Central</collection><collection>Technology Collection</collection><collection>Natural Science Collection</collection><collection>Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management</collection><collection>ProQuest One Community College</collection><collection>ProQuest Materials Science Collection</collection><collection>ProQuest Central Korea</collection><collection>Engineering Research Database</collection><collection>Health Research Premium Collection</collection><collection>Health Research Premium Collection (Alumni)</collection><collection>ProQuest Central Student</collection><collection>AIDS and Cancer Research Abstracts</collection><collection>SciTech Premium Collection</collection><collection>ProQuest Health & Medical Complete (Alumni)</collection><collection>Materials Science Database</collection><collection>Nursing & Allied Health Database (Alumni Edition)</collection><collection>Meteorological & Geoastrophysical Abstracts - 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Academic</collection><collection>PubMed Central (Full Participant titles)</collection><collection>DOAJ Directory of Open Access Journals</collection><jtitle>PloS one</jtitle></facets><delivery><delcategory>Remote Search Resource</delcategory><fulltext>fulltext</fulltext></delivery><addata><au>Morfeld, Kari A</au><au>Lehnhardt, John</au><au>Alligood, Christina</au><au>Bolling, Jeff</au><au>Brown, Janine L</au><format>journal</format><genre>article</genre><ristype>JOUR</ristype><atitle>Development of a body condition scoring index for female African elephants validated by ultrasound measurements of subcutaneous fat</atitle><jtitle>PloS one</jtitle><addtitle>PLoS One</addtitle><date>2014-04-01</date><risdate>2014</risdate><volume>9</volume><issue>4</issue><spage>e93802</spage><epage>e93802</epage><pages>e93802-e93802</pages><issn>1932-6203</issn><eissn>1932-6203</eissn><abstract>Obesity-related health and reproductive problems may be contributing to non-sustainability of zoo African elephant (Loxodonta africana) populations. However, a major constraint in screening for obesity in elephants is lack of a practical method to accurately assess body fat. Body condition scoring (BCS) is the assessment of subcutaneous fat stores based on visual evaluation and provides an immediate appraisal of the degree of obesity of an individual. The objective of this study was to develop a visual BCS index for female African elephants and validate it using ultrasound measures of subcutaneous fat. To develop the index, standardized photographs were collected from zoo (n = 50) and free-ranging (n = 57) female African elephants for identifying key body regions and skeletal features, which were then used to visually determine body fat deposition patterns. This information was used to develop a visual BCS method consisting of a list of body regions and the physical criteria for assigning an overall score on a 5-point scale, with 1 representing the lowest and 5 representing the highest levels of body fat. Results showed that as BCS increased, ultrasound measures of subcutaneous fat thickness also increased (P<0.01), indicating the scores closely coincide with physical measures of fat reserves. The BCS index proved to be reliable and repeatable based on high intra- and inter-assessor agreement across three assessors. In comparing photographs of wild vs. captive African elephants, the median BCS in the free-ranging individuals (BCS = 3, range 1-5) was lower (P<0.001) than that of the zoo population (BCS = 4, range 2-5). In sum, we have developed the first validated BCS index for African elephants. This tool can be used to examine which factors impact body condition in zoo and free-ranging elephants, providing valuable information on how it affects health and reproductive potential of individual elephants.</abstract><cop>United States</cop><pub>Public Library of Science</pub><pmid>24718304</pmid><doi>10.1371/journal.pone.0093802</doi><oa>free_for_read</oa></addata></record> |
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| subjects | African elephant Alces alces Animal behavior Animals Aquariums Arthritis Biology and Life Sciences Body Composition Body fat Care and treatment Conservation biology Diagnosis Elephants Elephants - anatomy & histology Female Health aspects Infertility Insulin resistance Loxodonta africana Measurement techniques Metabolism Methods National parks Obesity Population Rangifer tarandus caribou Reproducibility of Results Reproductive system Risk factors Statistics, Nonparametric Subcutaneous Fat - diagnostic imaging Sustainability Ultrasonic imaging Ultrasonics - methods Ultrasonography Ultrasound Veterinary medicine Wildlife conservation Zoos |
| title | Development of a body condition scoring index for female African elephants validated by ultrasound measurements of subcutaneous fat |
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