Wh. Moger et al., Elevated urinary cortisol in a timber wolf (Canis lupus): a result of social behaviour or adrenal pathology?, CAN J ZOOL, 76(10), 1998, pp. 1957-1959
Citations number
10
Categorie Soggetti
Animal Sciences
Journal title
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF ZOOLOGY-REVUE CANADIENNE DE ZOOLOGIE
In a previously published report, a male timber wolf (Canis lupus) was iden
tified as having significantly elevated urinary cortisol to creatinine rati
os relative to other males in the pack. This second-ranking animal, whose s
ocial status was being challenged, was involved in far more aggressive inte
ractions than any other pack member. The wolf died 3 years later from gastr
ic and splenic torsion. Necropsy revealed a unilateral adrenal tumour ident
ified by histology and electron microscopy to be a cortical adenoma. This f
inding is based on the presence of abundant lipid and no evidence of neuros
ecretory granules. Whether the increased cortisol levels in this wolf were
the result of social stress, as originally suggested, the tumour, or both i
s uncertain.