Respiratory Disease Risk of Zoo-Housed Bonobos Is Associated with Sex and Betweenness Centrality in the Proximity Network
Infectious diseases can be considered a threat to animal welfare and are commonly spread through both direct and indirect social interactions with conspecifics. This is especially true for species with complex social lives, like primates. While several studies have investigated the impact of sociali...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-12-01
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| Series: | Animals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/12/3597 |
| _version_ | 1797506930800852992 |
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| author | Jonas R. R. Torfs Marcel Eens Daan W. Laméris Nicky Staes |
| author_facet | Jonas R. R. Torfs Marcel Eens Daan W. Laméris Nicky Staes |
| author_sort | Jonas R. R. Torfs |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Infectious diseases can be considered a threat to animal welfare and are commonly spread through both direct and indirect social interactions with conspecifics. This is especially true for species with complex social lives, like primates. While several studies have investigated the impact of sociality on disease risk in primates, only a handful have focused on respiratory disease, despite it being a major cause of morbidity and mortality in both wild and captive populations and thus an important threat to primate welfare. Therefore, we examined the role of social-network position on the occurrence of respiratory disease symptoms during one winter season in a relatively large group of 20 zoo-housed bonobos with managed fission-fusion dynamics. We found that within the proximity network, symptoms were more likely to occur in individuals with higher betweenness centrality, which are individuals that form bridges between different parts of the network. Symptoms were also more likely to occur in males than in females, independent of their social-network position. Taken together, these results highlight a combined role of close proximity and sex in increased risk of attracting respiratory disease, two factors that can be taken into account for further welfare management of the species. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T04:39:25Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-47dd1b797da0452baace79a5b99c5547 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T04:39:25Z |
| publishDate | 2021-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-47dd1b797da0452baace79a5b99c55472023-11-23T03:29:30ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152021-12-011112359710.3390/ani11123597Respiratory Disease Risk of Zoo-Housed Bonobos Is Associated with Sex and Betweenness Centrality in the Proximity NetworkJonas R. R. Torfs0Marcel Eens1Daan W. Laméris2Nicky Staes3Behavioral Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, BelgiumBehavioral Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, BelgiumBehavioral Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, BelgiumBehavioral Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, BelgiumInfectious diseases can be considered a threat to animal welfare and are commonly spread through both direct and indirect social interactions with conspecifics. This is especially true for species with complex social lives, like primates. While several studies have investigated the impact of sociality on disease risk in primates, only a handful have focused on respiratory disease, despite it being a major cause of morbidity and mortality in both wild and captive populations and thus an important threat to primate welfare. Therefore, we examined the role of social-network position on the occurrence of respiratory disease symptoms during one winter season in a relatively large group of 20 zoo-housed bonobos with managed fission-fusion dynamics. We found that within the proximity network, symptoms were more likely to occur in individuals with higher betweenness centrality, which are individuals that form bridges between different parts of the network. Symptoms were also more likely to occur in males than in females, independent of their social-network position. Taken together, these results highlight a combined role of close proximity and sex in increased risk of attracting respiratory disease, two factors that can be taken into account for further welfare management of the species.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/12/3597social-network analysissocial positiondiseasewelfarecaptivity |
| spellingShingle | Jonas R. R. Torfs Marcel Eens Daan W. Laméris Nicky Staes Respiratory Disease Risk of Zoo-Housed Bonobos Is Associated with Sex and Betweenness Centrality in the Proximity Network Animals social-network analysis social position disease welfare captivity |
| title | Respiratory Disease Risk of Zoo-Housed Bonobos Is Associated with Sex and Betweenness Centrality in the Proximity Network |
| title_full | Respiratory Disease Risk of Zoo-Housed Bonobos Is Associated with Sex and Betweenness Centrality in the Proximity Network |
| title_fullStr | Respiratory Disease Risk of Zoo-Housed Bonobos Is Associated with Sex and Betweenness Centrality in the Proximity Network |
| title_full_unstemmed | Respiratory Disease Risk of Zoo-Housed Bonobos Is Associated with Sex and Betweenness Centrality in the Proximity Network |
| title_short | Respiratory Disease Risk of Zoo-Housed Bonobos Is Associated with Sex and Betweenness Centrality in the Proximity Network |
| title_sort | respiratory disease risk of zoo housed bonobos is associated with sex and betweenness centrality in the proximity network |
| topic | social-network analysis social position disease welfare captivity |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/12/3597 |
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