Fatty acid status of free-ranging and captive black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis): correlation to the use of grain-based products
Citation
Clauss M, Dierenfeld ES, Bigley KE, Wang Y, Ghebremesket K, Hatt JM, Flach EJ, Behlert O, Castell JC, Streich WJ, Bauer JE. 2005. Fatty acid status of free-ranging and captive black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis): correlation to the use of grain-based products. In Graffam W, Hellinga D, Maslanka M, Ward A, Eds. Proceedings of the Sixth Conference on Zoo and Wildlife Nutrition, AZA Nutrition Advisory Group, Omaha, NE.
Abstract
It has been suspected that the fatty acid (FA) status of captive black rhinoceroses (Diceros bicornis) differs drastically from their free-ranging conspecifics, due to the difference in FA pattern between the natural forage and the captive diet. Natural forage of black rhinoceros, and temperate browse, contains a n-6/n-3 FA ratio (expressed as % of total FA) of 0.1-0.3. In contrast, zoo diets, assuming a hay:concentrate ratio of 61:28, have a n-6/n-3 ratio of 1.2. Therefore, significant differences in FA body composition between free-ranging and captive black rhinoceroses can be suspected.
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