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Age Determination of Eland Taurotragus Oryx (Pallas, 1766) in the Natal Highveld

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Age Determination of Eland Taurotragus Oryx (Pallas, 1766) in the Natal Highveld Age determination of eland Taurotragus oryx (pallas, 1766) in the Natal Highveld R.C.V. Jeffery and J. Hanks Department of Biological Sciences, University of Natal, Durban Techniques for the age determination of highveld eland in In order to satisfy the most demanding requirements of Natal were investigated. Tooth eruption and replacement se· management and research, it is necessary to establish quence, and growth in horn length, were suitable criteria for techniques for age determination which are both rapid to the age determination of young eland with deciduous denti­ tion. The most accurate technique for the age determination use and reliable. Numerous techniques are available and of post mortem adult eland was based on counts of cemen­ the majority are reviewed by Morris (1972). The purpose tum annuli from molar teeth. Animals without distinctive of the present study is to provide a choice of techniques cementum annuli may be assigned ages from measurements for the age determination of the common eland (Tauro­ of M3 crown height. The ages of live restrained eland could be tragus oryx oryx) in the Natal Highveld. For the practical derived from measurements of 11 occlusal width or 11 crown height. Horn morphology was adequate for age and sex use of field workers , techniques based on destructive classification of free-ranging eland up to adult status. sampling are distinguished from those which can be used S. Afr. J. Zool. 1981, 16: 113-122 for live sampling. The study examines age determination from tooth eruption and replacement sequence, in­ Tegnieke vir die ouderdombepaling van elande van die Natalse crementallines of tooth cementum, tooth wear, and horn ho!!veld is ondersoek. Die deurbraak en volgorde van tand­ . growth and morphology. ) vervanging en toename in horinglengte was geskikte 0 1 maatstawwe vir ouderdombepaling van jong elande met 0 Methods 2 tydelike gebit. Die akkuraatste tegniek vir nadoodse ouder­ d dombepaling in volwasse elande was gebaseer op tellings van The principal site for data collection was Coleford e t sementbande van molaartande. Die ouderdomme van diere Nature Reserve in the foothills of the Natal Drakensberg a d sonder herkenbare sementbande kon bepaal word op grond ( Mountains (29°27'E; 29° 58'S). The majority of man­ van afmetings van M3 kroonhoogte. Die ouderdomme van r e lewendige elande onder bedwang kon afgelei word van dibles and all skulls were found and collected in the h s , Drakensberg reserves of Natal including Giant's Castle i afmetings van die bytwydte of kroonhoogte van 11 Horingmor­ l b fologie was voldoende vir ouderdom- en geslagbepaling van Game Reserve and Loteni Nature Reserve. All these areas u vry elande tot op die volwasse stadium. P constitute the Natal Highveld. e S.-Afr. Tydskr. Dlerk. 1981, 16: 113-122 Three sources of material were available for this study. h t y (i) Live known-age eland. The incisiform teeth of 21 b female eland at Coleford Nature Reserve were examined. d e t Horn measurements and photographs were collected n a from 40 female eland and 12 male eland at Coleford. r g Measurements were taken from the captive eland by dri­ e c ving the herd into a crush and physically restraining in­ n e dividual animals in a weigh bridge (Jeffery 1978). c i l (ii) Post mortem known-age eland. The mandibles of 15 r e d known-age eland (10 females: 5 males) which had died in n captivity at Coleford were collected for dental examina­ u y tions. a w (iii) Post mortem unknown-age eland. A collection of e t a 42 found mandibles (17 females : 13 males : 22 of G unknown sex) was available for dental studies. The skulls t e of 13 adult males were used to supplement the study of n i R.C. V. Jeffery· b horn growth and morphology. Only four of these skulls a Present address: The Wildlife Conservation Society of Zambia, S had mandibles attached allowing examination of the P.O. Box 302SS, Lusaka, Zambia y b maxillary teeth only in the remaining nine skulls. J. Huks d Department of Biological Sciences, University of Natal, e c Durban 4001, South Africa Tooth eruption and replacement sequence u ·To whom correspondence should be addressed d o The dentition of eland was examined from the post r p Received 1 April 1980; accepted S December 1980 mortem samples and the eruption and replacement se- e R 114 S.·Afr. Tydskr. Dierk. 1981, J6(2) Quence classified by age. Twenty mandibles with incom­ counted. The correlations between age and the numbers plete adult dentition were available, of which seven were of annuli counted in the permanent first, second and of known ages. Six mandibles of unknown ages had third molars were calculated for the known-age teeth sec­ known dates of death enabling approximate ages to be tions. assigned to them assuming that they were born during the Using the larger sample size of results from the un­ September calving peak of wild eland in Natal (Staint­ known-age teeth, the mean difference between numbers harpe 1972). of annuli counted in the first and second molars and the mean difference between numbers in the first and third Cementum annuli molars were calculated. Having initially derived an Varying rates of accretion and calcification of cementoid estimate of the number of annuli layed down per year, tissue around the roots 0 f ungulate teeth are responsible the mean numbers of annuli deposited between eruptions for the alternating dark and light lines known as cemen­ of the first and second molars and between eruptions of tum annuli which may be seen in sections cut through the the first and third molars could be converted to intervals tooth cementum (Morris ibid.). These correspond to the in years. Mean eruprion intervals were finally used as cor­ translucent and opaque layers described by Douglas rection factors to compute cementum ages from the num­ (1969). ber of annuli counted in the second and third molars Except when teeth were missing or worn out, all fuUy from each jaw. No correction factor was required for erupted first, second and third permanent mandibular computing cementum ages from the number of annuli in molars were extracted from post mortem samples and ex­ the first molars since these teeth begin to erupt at birth amined. These included teeth from eight known-age man­ (Figure I). A similar method was used by Simpson & dibles and 29 mandibles of unknown ages. The perma­ Elder (1969) for the age determination of greater kudu nent first molars from the maxillae of nine skulls of (Trage/aphus strepsiceros) except that cementum annuli unknown ages were also examined. The sexes were not were counted from Cl' PM. and M). differentiated for cementum annuli counts. Teeth were sectioned dorsa-ventrally along either their longitudinal Tooth attrition or transverse axes using a O,5-mm diamond blade lapida­ I] crown height from the anterior enamel-dentine inter­ ry saw. The facial sections chosen for counting were face to the crown of the tooth and I) occlusal width smoothed with progressively finer-grained Corumdum (Figure 2) were measured from 21 live known-age females powder as described by Attwell (1977). The cementum at Cole ford . The teeth were measured to the nearest lines were counted through a binocular microscope with 0,1 mm with vernier calipers. Both first incisors from . ) reflected light (Mitchell 1967), never using more than 25x each eland were measured and the mean values used to 0 1 magnification. The total number of dark and light annuli compute their correlations with absolute age. Measure­ 0 2 which could be distinguished as separate lines were ment of I[ crown height from young live eland was prone d e counted in the cementum pad arch. Indistinct or branch­ to error in locating the enamel-dentine border. This was t a ed lines not conforming to the overall pattern of annula­ because the gum-line in such eland had not receded d ( tions were considered to be the 'supplementary streaks' enough to expose the interface. In young eland therefore, r e (1967) h descri bed by Klevezal & Kleinenberg and were not it was assumed that the gum-tine approximated the posi- s i l b u P e h t y b d e t n a r g e c n e c i l r e d n u y a w e t a G t e n i b a S y b d e c u d o r p fia. I Radiograph of the mandible of a fom day old male eland showing thaI M [ begins erupting at birth. e R S. Afr. J. Zool. 1981, 16(2) 115 a x c __+c""----'E---~'---d b Fig. 2 Anterior of II, showing the measurement of crown height (a- -b) and occlusal width (c--d). y tion of the enamel-dentine interface. The alternative, a Fig. 3 M3 of eland from buccal aspect, showing measurement of M3 consistent measurement between gum-line and 11 crown crown height (x- -y). was rejected because recession of the gums was often con­ siderable (as much as 5 mm in older eland). Measurement of 11 occlusal width was not prone to such problems of horn was the basal circumference at the most proximal definition. plane which was at right angles to the long axis of the The same measurements were collected post mortem horn, measured to the nearest 1,0 mm. The same method is described by Rowland Ward (Best ibid.). Both horns . from one male known-age jaw and seven jaws of un­ ) 0 known ages.
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