Cleveland Metroparks Zoo

Abstract Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in humans in late 2019 and spread rapidly to become a global pandemic. A zoonotic spillover event from animal to human was identified as the presumed origin. Subsequently, reports began emerging regarding spillback events resulting in SARS-CoV-2 infections in multiple animal species. These events highlighted critical links between animal and human health while also raising concerns about the development of new reservoir hosts and potential viral mutations that could alter virulence and transmission or evade immune responses. Characterizing susceptibility, prevalence, and transmission between animal species became a priority to help protect animal and human health. In this study, we coalesced a large team of investigators and community partners to surveil for SARS-CoV-2 in domestic and free-ranging animals around Ohio between May 2020 and August 2021. We focused on species with known or predicted susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection, highly congregated or medically compromised animals (e.g. shelters, barns, veterinary hospitals), and animals that had frequent contact with humans (e.g. pets, agricultural animals, zoo animals, or animals in wildlife hospitals). This included free-ranging deer (n=76), mink (n=57), multiple species of bats (n=65), and other wildlife in addition to domestic cats (n=275) and pigs (n= 184). In total, we tested 800 animals (34 species) via rRT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 RNA. SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA was not detected in any of the tested animals despite a major peak in human SARS-CoV-2 cases that occurred in Ohio subsequent to the peak of animal samplings. Importantly, due to lack of validated tests for animals, we did not test for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in this study, which limited our ability to assess exposure. While the results of this study were negative, the surveillance effort was critical and remains key to understanding, predicting, and preventing re-emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in humans or animals.

This study used the transtheoretical model of behavior change to categorize participants into stages of change groups regarding eleven conservation behaviors. Three main stages of change were identified: precontemplation, contemplation, and action. Participants from different stage placements were interviewed to explore barriers and motivations towards doing different conservation behaviors. Individuals in different stages identified different motivations and barriers that were important to doing (or not doing) an action. Lack of time was the most common barrier for precontemplators, while the most common barrier for contemplators and actors was being unaware of a behavior. Precontemplators and contemplators were most commonly motivated by a behavior being easy, while actors were most commonly motivated by getting reminders about the behavior. This suggests that educational programs designed to promote conservation behaviors should include multiple motivators and reduce as many types of barriers as possible to reach the greatest number of people.

Habitat loss and degradation, restricted ranges, prey exploitation, and poaching are important factors for the decline of several wild carnivore populations and additional stress from infectious agents is an increasing concern. Given the rapid growth of human populations in some regions like Costa Rica, pathogens introduced, sustained, and transmitted by domestic carnivores may be particularly important. To better understand the significance of domestic carnivore pathogens for wildlife, we determine the prevalence of infection and possible mechanisms for contact between the two groups. The demographics, role in the household, and pathogens of pet dogs and cats was studied during three annual spay/neuter clinics in San Luis, Costa Rica. Most dogs were owned primarily as pets and guard animals, but ~10% were used for hunting. Cats were owned primarily as pets and for pest control. Both roamed freely outdoors. We detected high prevalences of some pathogens (e.g., carnivore protoparvovirus 1 and Toxoplasma gondii). Some pathogens are known to persist in the environment, which increases the probability of exposure to wild carnivores. This study demonstrated that domestic pets in San Luis, home to a number of protected and endangered wildlife species, are infected with pathogens to which these wild species are potentially susceptible. Additionally, results from our questionnaire support the potential for domestic and wild animal contact, which may result in disease spillover.

The future of primates depends on conservationists in primate range countries having the education and opportunities needed to facilitate conservation efforts. However, most primates are found in countries where conservation is underfunded. Rwanda is home to 14 primate species, with three being listed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. Their remaining native habitats are scarce, highly fragmented, and surrounded by high human densities. Lacking education opportunities and the loss of qualified individuals following decades of political instability created a need for well-trained conservationists to tackle conservation challenges in Rwanda. The Memoirs Program, a science capacity-building partnership between Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund (DFGF), University of Rwanda (UR), the Rwanda Development Board, and Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, aims to train the next generation of Rwandan conservationists. Annually, the Memoirs Program provides 10-12 top students from the UR Conservation Biology undergraduate program the opportunity to conduct senior research projects (Memoirs) at DFGF addressing conservation issues in and around Rwanda's protected areas. Students receive one-on-one supervision by DFGF scientists and affiliates to supplement UR mentorship, along with targeted teaching modules that reinforce and complement UR curricula. In continuation of the Memoirs Program, participants are offered professional development, employment opportunities, and support to publish their research in peer-reviewed journals. Since inception of the Program in 2003, 123 students have participated with 83% being employed or pursuing higher education degrees in conservation-related fields in Rwanda and the region. Pre- and post-training comparison of oral presentation skills, one of the teaching modules, involving 22 students demonstrated increased post-training performance. The Memoirs Program represents an effective partnership between the government, an international conservation non-governmental organization, and a public higher-learning institution in a developing country to support high-performing students to become tomorrow's conservation leaders. This model could be replicated within Rwanda and in other regions of the world.

This study focused on our teaching efforts in regard to preparing preservice teachers to one day teach children about ecological concepts that many find scary or disgusting. Specifically, we examined the attitudes these preservice teachers had towards certain invertebrates. These attitudes were compared to their self-efficacy towards teaching about them. A multiple case study design was used, involving both qualitative and quantitative data. Participants were categorized as having positive, neutral, or negative attitudes towards the invertebrates and activities. Self-efficacy for participants’ perceived ability to teach these concepts were categorized as high, medium, or low. Correlations were run to examine relationships between variables of attitudes and self-efficacy. Participants demonstrated more negative than positive reactions towards the invertebrates. Positive correlations between attitudes towards invertebrates and their self-efficacy towards teaching about them were found. This indicates that if we want future teachers to be comfortable teaching about the scary and disgusting aspects of an ecosystem, we need to find ways to help them improve their attitudes towards those aspects of the outdoors.

Cardiac disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality for adult gorillas. Previous research indicates a sex-based difference with predominantly males demonstrating evidence of left ventricular hypertrophy. To evaluate these findings, we analyzed serum markers with cardiac measures in a large sample of gorillas. The study sample included 44 male and 25 female gorillas housed at American Association of Zoo and Aquariums (AZA)-accredited zoos. Serum samples were collected from fasted gorillas during routine veterinary health exams and analyzed to measure leptin, adiponectin, IGF-1, insulin, ferritin, glucose, triglycerides, and cholesterol. Cardiac ultrasonography via transthoracic echocardiogram was performed simultaneously. Three echocardiographic parameters were chosen to assess cardiac disease according to parameters established for captive lowland gorillas: left ventricular internal diameter, inter-ventricular septum thickness, and left ventricular posterior wall thickness. Our data revealed that high leptin, low adiponectin, and lowered cholesterol were significantly and positively correlated with measures of heart thickness and age in males but not in females. Lowered cholesterol in this population would be categorized as elevated in humans. High leptin and low adiponectin are indicative of increased adiposity and suggests a potential parallel with human obesity and cardiovascular disease in males. Interestingly, while females exhibited increased adiposity with age, they did not progress to cardiac disease.

Humans can profoundly shape animal community dynamics, but such effects have rarely been evaluated for terrestrial carnivores. Humans affect carnivores in both spatial and temporal dimensions via the chance of human encounter and alteration of the landscape through urban development. We investigated three hypotheses regarding how humans mediate the sympatry of larger, dominant carnivores with their smaller, subordinate counterparts. We tested these hypotheses by examining the spatio-temporal dynamics of a dominant carnivore (coyote Canis latrans) and its subordinate competitor (red fox Vulpes vulpes) across an extensive urban park system. We found that dominant and subordinate carnivores exhibited strong and often opposing spatio-temporal responses to the probability of human encounter and urban development. Spatially, coyotes visited more highly developed sites less frequently while red foxes exhibited an opposing response. Temporally, both species avoided humans via nocturnal activity. Spatio-temporally, red foxes avoided coyotes at all sites and avoided humans at highly developed sites, whereas coyotes showed a positive association with humans at such sites. Our analysis indicates that areas with higher urban development might act as spatial refugia for some subordinate carnivores against interference from larger, dominant carnivores (a “human shield” effect). Our findings also reveal that broad-scale spatial avoidance is likely a crucial component of coexistence between larger, dominant carnivores and humans, whereas finer-scale spatio-temporal avoidance is likely a key feature of coexistence between humans and smaller, subordinate carnivores. Overall, our study underscores the complex and pervasive nature of human influence over the sympatry of competing carnivores inhabiting urban systems.