Season-dependent impact of forage quality on stress in Alpine chamois

Chronically heightened stress levels in wildlife species may have detrimental effects on individual life history traits, for example through the increased likelihood of disease, parasitic infections, and overall reduced fitness. Understanding the drivers of stress may thus have great potential for informing wildlife conservation. Although the role of climate and individual status is well studied in stress ecology, the impact of related stressors such as dietary quality is of increasing interest to wildlife research and conservation. In this study, fecal cortisol metabolites (FCMs) in Alpine chamois Rupicapra r. rupicapra, used as bioindicators of stress, and their relationship with forage quality – measured as the percentage of fecal crude protein (CP) – were investigated. Data collection took place in 2011 and 2012 in the Gran Paradiso National Park (Western Italian Alps), on 22 individually marked adult males. The relationship between FCMs and CPs was analyzed through linear models an..., ,