Monitoring_Lynx-lynx-carpathicus

4. Posudzovanie zdravotného stavu a genetika / Health screening and genetics________________________________________________________________________________________period, while the rectum contained hedgehogspines (Erinaceus sp.; Fig. 3), thus indicating thatthe animal had fed on unusual prey. At necropsythe heart of this lynx seemed smaller and weighedmuch less than those of lynx in Switzerland in thesame sex-age category and body condition.BRZOTIN2013 was a juvenile female found dead. Itwas emaciated and severely affected by sarcopticmange (Sarcoptes scabiei) which can be consideredto be the cause of death. It displayed severe skinlesions typical for this disease (Fig. 4).PRESOV2013 was a juvenile (with milk teeth) founddead in the forest. Its body condition was good butit was in an early stage of sarcoptic mange. Itpresented several serious hemorrhages in variousareas of the body and had skin erosions on thehead, indicating that it died of a blunt trauma. Inaddition, it presented a malformation of the lefteye (Fig. 5), which was held closed by a membranewhile the eyeball was fused with the surroundingtissues, rendering it blind on this side. The cause isunclear but may have had a congenital origin.ORAVA2013.1 was a male cub found along with itsbrother in a school on 11.10.2013. Both werecaught but whereas its sibling was taken to therescue station this animal was left overnight in thefield in a box with a camera trap to see if its motherreturned. It was moved to the rescue station thenext day and fed but died the following night. Itwas emaciated and had foreign material (plastic) inits stomach (Fig. 6). A few round worms, commonin free-ranging lynx, and a tapeworm were foundin the gastro-intestinal tract. The direct cause ofdeath could not be definitively determined as theadvanced stage of decay limited the examination.However, the case history and post-mortemfindings suggest it was an orphan which had beenseparated from its mother for a prolonged periodand was starving. Capture stress and hypothermiamay have contributed to the death process.ConclusionsThe workshop provided an opportunity to teachbasic theory and to perform practical exercises aswell as to secure a multitude of samples for furtherinvestigation. Documents with detailed reports oneach necropsied lynx (findings, photographs,morphological data, sampling list), protocols,datasheet templates and two lectures (see CDROM) can serve as examples for future cases andto unify procedures in Slovakia and Switzerland.Among the stored samples there is material forfuture parasitological, virological and histologicalexaminations which may further elucidate healthstatus. Heart samples represent precious materialfor comparison with Swiss lynx samples. WhetherKAMENICA2013’s heart was abnormally small orthe hearts of Swiss lynx are abnormally largecannot be determined at this stage, especiallyhaving only a single adult lynx from Slovakia forcomparison. Since adult males from the Swiss Alpsoften present microscopic heart lesions and/orheart murmurs at clinical examination, it may bethat their hearts are enlarged. To answer thisquestion it is imperative to collect more data fromSlovakia. For this as well as for overall healthmonitoring of lynx in the Western Carpathians, itwould be worthwhile to collect and examine atleast some of the vehicle-killed lynx. Road kills arevaluable material for comparison purposes, asthese animals are often healthy prior to death.Conducting detailed necropsies allowed us tocollect a wealth of information, even from a smallnumber of animals. Among the four lynx examined,one had sustained an illegal gunshot wound, twohad sarcoptic mange, one died of a blunt traumaand had a malformation of possible congenitalorigin, and one was likely an orphan. In addition, aninteresting observation was made on the heart ofan adult male. Furthermore, we were informed ofa malformation diagnosed in ORAVA2013.1’sbrother, ORAVA2013.2, following its death on9.9.2014 during an unsuccessful attempt to releaseit back into the wild (M. Belák pers. comm.).The data gathered provide evidence thatinfectious diseases such as sarcoptic mange,malformations in young animals and poaching aredefinitely issues currently faced by the WesternCarpathian lynx population. This underlines theimportance of implementing a well-organized lynxhealth surveillance programme in Slovakia.________________________________________________________________________________________Monitoring Lynx lynx carpathicus, Rigg & Kubala (2015) 71