TAPIR FIELD VETERINARY MANUAL - Tapir Specialist Group

1. Veterinary Medicine in Tapir Conservation
Animal populations of many wild species are declining at an alarming rate. In some cases a
species has disappeared without the scientific community being able to adequately learn about
their basic natural history, ecology, physiology or behavior. Several species have had their
conservation efforts severely threatened by the occurrence of disease epidemics, such as the
black footed ferret, the Serengeti lion, and several Central America amphibians.
In some cases the diseases that affect wild animals have not been defined. Such is the case for
the tapirs. It is still, as yet, unknown if disease (and which diseases) play a major role in tapir
population dynamics. Little is known about the biology and medicine of tapirs. Most of the
information available is condensed into few references and sporadic case reports.
Unfortunately, the term “free-ranging” hardly exists anymore, especially for tapirs that, in most
countries, only remain in protected areas. These areas limit the natural movement of animals,
which can increase the prevalence of diseases. In addition, the restriction of tapir population
sizes (some threatened by extinction) in isolated reserves, often surrounded by domestic animals,
makes them susceptible to outside health menaces. It is important to involve disease specialists
that are equipped to foresee the health-related problems of such interactions. Veterinarians are
trained in epidemiology and animal health and thus are the best qualified professionals to tackle
such problems. Many diseases can be introduced by human activities, as a result of the growth of
communities with consequent habitat loss and changes in land use, a situation that can force
restricted tapir populations to have contact with domestic animals, chemistry, physic and noise
pollution, and multiple stressor and pathogenic agents. In order to foresee and perhaps prevent
such situations, baseline information must be gathered on these populations. Such information
may include:
a) Health menaces to which such a population is susceptible.
b) The types of etiologic agents that normally cause clinical disease.
c) What role diseases normally play in population dynamics?
d) What, if any, domestic animal diseases can affect tapirs.
e) Evaluate if tapirs could be reservoir for domestic animal diseases.
f) Methods for predicting, preventing and/or controlling such diseases if necessary.
The different uses of habitats and ecotourism offer the potential for expanding conservation
efforts; however, often their effects on free-ranging wildlife are overlooked. Field projects have
transformed into multidisciplinary projects as a necessity to meet the demands for maximizing the
amount of information gathered through any one event. It is assumed that the veterinarian who
will participate in such projects has experience with field methods for capture, immobilization and
disease investigation. The relationship between the field researcher and the veterinarian should
be established prior at the start of the project. This will allow the veterinarian to research the
needs of the project given the specific genus, the conditions for chemical immobilization, the size
of the population, the regional differences in disease, and the diseases that affect local livestock.