San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Research
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12634/1
Research by staff2024-03-19T09:53:17ZReproductive life history of Thornicroft’s giraffe in Zambia: Giraffe reproduction in Zambia
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12634/994
Reproductive life history of Thornicroft’s giraffe in Zambia: Giraffe reproduction in Zambia
Bercovitch, Fred B.; Berry, Philip S.M.
Knowledge of the reproductive life history of giraffe in the wild is sparse. Giraffe have two fairly unusual reproductive patterns among large mammals: they can become pregnant while lactating, and calf mortality is extremely high. Longitudinal records are largely absent, so tracking reproductive parameters tends to combine information from captive and field studies. In this study, we examine longitudinal data obtained over a 33‐year period in one population of Thornicroft’s giraffe in order to chart their reproductive careers. We found that age at first parturition was 6.4 years, or slightly later than in captivity. Giraffe bred throughout the year, with cows producing offspring on average every 677.7 days. About half of the calves died before one year of age, but death of a calf did not reduce interbirth interval. We conclude that the lifetime reproductive success of giraffe is more dependent on longevity and calf survivorship than on reproductive rate.
2010-01-01T00:00:00ZEcological determinants of herd size in the Thornicroft’s giraffe of Zambia: Giraffe herd size in Zambia
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12634/995
Ecological determinants of herd size in the Thornicroft’s giraffe of Zambia: Giraffe herd size in Zambia
Bercovitch, Fred B.; Berry, Philip S.M.
Given that giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) live in an extremely flexible social system, and that breeding is nonseasonal, they are an ideal species for examining how ecological variables contribute to fluctuations in herd size. We present an analysis of 34 years of data on a population of Thornicroft’s giraffe (G. c. thornicrofti Lydekker 1911) that reveal how herd size changes with season and habitat....
2010-01-01T00:00:00ZAMPHIBIAN DISEASES-Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis in Adult Notophthalmus viridescens in North-Central Alabama, USA
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12634/997
AMPHIBIAN DISEASES-Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis in Adult Notophthalmus viridescens in North-Central Alabama, USA
Bakkegard, K. A.; Pessier, Allan P.
...We report on a haphazard collection of dead adult Notophthalmus viridescens discovered during a field zoology class trip conducted by KAB in Birmingham, Alabama....
2010-01-01T00:00:00ZGenetic aspects of equids with particular reference to their hybrids
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12634/996
Genetic aspects of equids with particular reference to their hybrids
Benirschke, Kurt; Ryder, Oliver A.
This paper gives a brief review of the cytogenetic knowlege of equine species, the chromosomal errors currently known to exist, and an account of the interspecific hybrids that have served man during the 4500 years of domestication of horse and donkey.
1985-01-01T00:00:00Z