News and Briefs Gajah 46 (2017) 48-72 Recent Publications on Asian Elephants Compiled by Jennifer Pastorini Anthropologisches Institut, Universität Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland Centre for Conservation and Research, Tissamaharama, Sri Lanka E-mail: [email protected] If you need additional information on any of the common leopards were strongly positively articles, please feel free to contact me. You can related with landscape heterogeneity, and also let me know about new (2017) publications negatively related to the proportion of bush and on Asian elephants. grassland. Attacks by one-horned rhinoceros were positively signifcantly related to the distance K.P. Acharya, P.K. Paudel, S.R. Jnawali, P.R. to water sources, and proportion of bush and Neupane & M. Köhl grassland in the landscape. Attacks by elephants Can forest fragmentation and confguration were strongly and positively associated with the work as indicators of human–wildlife confict? forest fragmentation (landscape shape index, Evidences from human death and injury by which increases as patches in the landscapes wildlife attacks in Nepal becomes disaggregated). These results suggest Ecological Indicators 80 (2017) 74-83 that forest fragmentation is inevitably a critical Abstract. Fragmented forests and heterogeneous driver of human–wildlife conficts, although the landscapes are likely to have less natural vegetation extent of effects varies depending on species and smaller core areas, a low degree of landscape specifc habitat requirements. © 2017 Reprinted connectivity, high prevalence of anthropogenic with permission from Elsevier. edges, and high landscape heterogeneity, which may alter—at varying degrees—behavior of M. Ackermann, J.M. Hatt, N. Schetle & H. wildlife species such as attacks on humans. We Steinmetz evaluated whether or not forest fragmentation Identifcation of shedders of elephant (e.g. shape, size and distribution of forest patches endotheliotropic herpesviruses among Asian measured as landscape shape index, effective elephants (Elephas maximus) in Switzerland mesh size, and landscape heterogeneity), habitats PLoS One 12 (2017) e0176891 (proportion of bush and grassland, distance Abstract. Elephants, particularly Asian (Elephas to water sources), and human disturbances maximus), are threatened by lethal elephant (human population density) have a signifcant hemorrhagic disease (EHD) due to elephant relationship with frequencies of human deaths endotheliotropic herpesviruses (EEHV). At and injuries by Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris least fve of seven known EEHV types have tigris), common leopard (Panthera pardus), been associated to EHD, with types 1, 4, and one-horned rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) 5 predominantly affecting Asian elephants. In and Asiatic elephant (Elephas maximus). Data Switzerland, at least three Asian elephants have on human injury and death were obtained from been lost due to EHD but nothing is known a national survey over fve years (2010–2014). about the present EEHV1 circulation. Moreover, The relationship between wildlife attacks and the prevalence of other EEHV types has never landscape attributes were investigated using a been assessed. Intermittent shedding of EEHV zero-infated Poisson regression model. Attacks can be monitored through collecting trunk by tigers were signifcantly and positively secretions and analyzing them by PCR methods associated with forest fragmentation (effective that discriminate the different EEHV types. To mesh size which is high in a landscape consisting identify EEHV shedders, seven of eight Asian of disconnected small patches). Attacks by elephants in a Swiss zoo were trained to provide 48 trunk wash samples. These were collected at signifcantly higher compared to areas with no intervals over a period of four months and clinical signs. It was also found that pre-clinical tested by PCR for presence of EEHV1 through areas showed a signifcantly higher temperature 6. Moreover, the quality of each sample was compared with that of the clinical and non- assessed by testing for the elephant TNF- clinical areas. Receiver operating characteristic alpha gene. Overall, 57% of the samples were (ROC) test results showed an area under curve valid with fve of seven participating elephants (AUC) of 0.91 with sensitivity values of 89.2% identifed as EEHV shedders. Two of those shed and a specifcity of 83.4%. In addition, positive virus only once, whereas the other three, all predictive value and negative predictive value closely related among each other, shed virus on received were: NPPV = 99.4%, PPV = 19.3%. multiple occasions. One of the frequent shedders It was concluded that thermography can be an had been in very close contact to all of the three effective diagnostic tool for early diagnosis of EHD victims. Therefore, we speculate that this infammatory processes and useful for regular particular animal may represent the virus source and continuous monitoring of zoo elephants in all three cases. However, when subtyping was in general. Early detection of infammatory conducted, the presently circulating virus was processes using this technique makes it identifed as EEHV1B, while the virus subtype possible to prevent unnecessary stress that often causing EHD had been 1A in all three cases. In accompanies veterinary examinations and to addition to four animals excreting EEHV1, a accelerate recovery. recently introduced animal was observed to shed EEHV3/4. We suggest that the policy of trunk N.N. Barman, B. Choudhury, V. Kumar, M. washing to identify and characterize EEHV- Koul, S.M. Gogoi, E. Khatoon, A. Chakroborty, shedders is to be endorsed in zoos with ongoing P. Basumatary, B. Barua, T. Rahman, S.K. Das & or planned elephant breeding programs. © 2017 S. Kumar The Authors. Incidence of elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus in Asian elephants in India N. Avni-Magen, S. Zaken, E. Kaufman & G. Veterinary Microbiology 208 (2017) 159-163 Kelmer Abstract. Elephant endotheliotropic herpes- Use of infrared thermography in early viruses (EEHVs) are the cause of acute diagnosis of pathologies in Asian elephants hemorrhagic disease in endangered Asian and (Elephas maximus) African elephants. In the present study, we report Israel J. of Veterinary Medicine 72 (2017) 22-27 the incidence of EEHV infection and associated Abstract. Thermography is an imaging technique mortality in the captive elephant of Assam, India. using a specialized heat sensitive infrared Our result showed the gross morphology and camera, mapping body surface temperature histopathological changes of EEHV infection in changes, which may indicate infammatory, the elephant. Moreover, the phylogenetic analysis vascular or neurological disorders. Thermal of the polymerase, helicase, and GPCR genes images were collected over three months from the infected tissue samples suggested the from four Asian elephants at the Tisch Family presence of EEHV1A virus. © 2017 Reprinted Zoological Gardens in Jerusalem in which 935 with permission from Elsevier. body regions were identifed with possible infammatory pathologies. Suspected thermal T. Bhagwat, A. Hess, N. Horning, T. Khaing, areas were divided into three groups according Z.M. Thein, K.M. Aung, K.H. Aung, P. Phyo, to the appearance of infammatory processes Y.L. Tun, A.H. Oo, A. Neil, W.M. Thu, M. in a clinical examination: negative, positive Songer, K.L. Connette, A. Bernd, Q. Huang, G. and a pre-infammatory group, which showed Connette & P. Leimgruber a thermal change while imaging, with clinical Losing a jewel—Rapid declines in Myanmar’s signs appearing only later on. An analysis of the intact forests from 2002-2014 documented regions it was found that in areas PLoS ONE 12 (2017) e0176364 with a clinical signs delta temperatures were Abstract. New and rapid political and economic 49 changes in Myanmar are increasing the pressures study, EEHVs were examined in whole-blood on the country’s forests. Yet, little is known about samples derived from 56 captive Asian elephants the past and current condition of these forests from eight provinces in Thailand by nested and how fast they are declining. We mapped PCR using primers specifc to the viral DNA forest cover in Myanmar through a consortium polymerase gene in an attempt to monitor EEHV of international organizations and environmental elephant cases. After EEHV testing, one sample non-governmental groups, using freely available (1.78%) was positive and found to be closely public domain data and open source software related to EEHV4 with 99% amino acid identity. tools. We used Landsat satellite imagery to This sample was from a three-year-old female assess the condition and spatial distribution of Asian elephant with no clinical signs. These data Myanmar’s intact and degraded forests with suggest that asymptomatic EEHV4 infection can special focus on changes in intact forest between occur in Asian elephants. 2002 and 2014. We found that forests cover 42,365,729 ha or 63% of Myanmar, making it C. Boehlke, S. Pötschke, V. Behringer, C. Hannig one of the most forested countries in the region. & O. Zierau However, severe logging, expanding plantations, Does diet infuence salivary enzyme activities and degradation pose increasing threats. Only in elephant species? 38% of the country’s forests can be considered Journal of Comparative Physiology B 187 (2017) intact with canopy cover >80%. Between 2002 213-226 and 2014, intact forests declined at a rate of 0.94% Abstract. Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) annually, totaling more than 2 million ha forest and African