Research Report Evaluating the utility of using hair for non-invasive endocrine monitoring in the aarwolf (Proteles Cristatus)

Abstract

The main goal of this study is to determine the utility and the possibility of using hair samples for monitoring endocrine parameters in the aardwolf. The endocrine parameters used in this study contain the following hormones: androgens, progesterones and glucocorticoids. Hair of four different regions (neck, belly, left thigh and tail) of four different aardwolves are used for this study. The hair samples were extracted in ethanol and the final solution was pipetted into an EIA microplate. The concentrations found in the hair were compared with the concentrations obtained from faecal samples of the same aardwolves.