Capture Myopathy in Bongo Antelope During Capture and Chemical Immobilization
Capture myopathy is a life-threatening condition that can occur in animals when muscle damage results from extreme exertion or prolonged struggle. It is often identified as exertional myopathy, overstraining disease and exertional rhabdomyolysis.1 Capture myopathy is known to occur as a result of capture, transport or chemical immobilization, but it is also occasionally the result of other causes of stress, such as prey animals attempting to avoid or struggling with predator animals.2 Capture myopathy is of concern in cases when it is a cause of death in wild animals that are handled by humans.
Capture myopathy can occur in any animal, though it is believed that some species may be more predisposed to it than others.3 It has been most widely studied in ungulates and birds, although it can affect any captured wildlife species including amphibians and fish. Capture myopathy has also been observed in coyotes, badgers, primates, and many other species.2 Ungulates in North America that have been reported with this condition have included white-tailed deer, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, pronghorn antelope, bison, moose, and elk.2,3
Bongo Antelope: Background
Antelope are a diverse group of ruminants primarily associated with the family Bovidae. The bongo is a large, forest-living antelope that is usually found in the lowland forests from Sierra Leone in West Africa through Central Africa, and as far as southern Sudan in east Africa. Small populations also live in the highland forests of Kenya.
Bongo have a striking reddish-brown coat with a dozen or so vertical white stripes and a thin mane running along their back; their legs have black and white bands and they have a long, tufted tail. There are two sub-species of bongo: the Mountain bongo (or Eastern bongo) and the Lowland bongo (or Western bongo). Bongo are nocturnal, shy and elusive. All bongo are considered endangered species.
Capture Myopathy in Bongo
Various medical, management and conservation procedures often call for wildlife managers, researchers and veterinarians to chemically immobilize bongo. Capture myopathy is one of the most common and serious post-sedation and post-anesthesia complications in bongo.
Capture myopathy can occur naturally when bongo are attempting to avoid predation, but it can easily occur as a result of these animals being captured and/or immobilized with or without chemical means. Like other animals, bongo are adapted to escape from predators, but they are not adapted to struggle for long periods of time in human-constructed restraints.3When animals overexert themselves (e.g., struggling in a trap) to the extent that physiological imbalances develop and result in severe muscle damage, capture myopathy results.2 High environmental temperatures and repeated chemical immobilization can increase the risk of bongo suffering from capture myopathy.4
Clinical signs of capture myopathy in bongo can vary depending on the cause of exertion.2 The method of capture and restraint can also be a factor in these occurrences. The available literature states that capture myopathy may result in sudden death, or that clinical signs may develop hours, days, or up to two months following capture.4 The clinical signs during early onset include elevated respiratory rate, heart rate, and body temperature.1,3 Body temperature increases during exertion, with higher temperatures being associated with death due to capture myopathy. The increase in body temperature can be above 42°C.4 Muscle spasms, stiffness and lameness are also clear signs of capture myopathy. An animal may become recumbent and stumble. Dark red-colored urine is an indication that the animal's muscles are breaking down and that its kidneys have been severely affected.2-4 Death of the animal usually follows. If the animal survives the acute stage of the condition, scarring of heart and skeletal muscle tissue may permanently debilitate the animal.4 Light-colored skeletal and cardiac muscle seen upon necropsy is indicative of capture myopathy being the cause of death.
Source/Credit: Oxford University Press
Preventing Capture Myopathy in Antelope
There is no treatment for capture myopathy; prevention is the best method of avoiding this condition. An anesthetic protocol consisting of properly-formulated anesthetic agents can aid significantly in preventing capture myopathy in bongo. The remote delivery of anesthetic agents is a superior methodology to trapping these animals prior to any procedures being performed.
Appropriate anesthetic protocols may vary depending on conditions, so adequate preparation is essential in determining the ideal capture method. It has been reported that using a combination of Xylazine HCL and Ketamine HCL can decrease the chance of capture myopathy, but this is by no means a guarantee of avoiding capture myopathy in any antelope.3Bongo should only be captured when necessary, and the negative effects that capture may have on an animal's health should always be considered before beginning a capture or initiating an anesthetic event.5 Capture methods that minimize animal stress, struggling and handling time should always be utilized.
1Friend, M., Thomas, N. J. Field Manual of Wildlife Diseases. In: Field Manual of Wildlife Diseases, United States Geological Survey, 361-368.
2Williams, E. S., Thorne, E. T. 1996. Exertional Myopathy (Capture Myopathy). Noninfectious Diseases of Wildlife, Second Edition, 181-193 Iowa State University Press, Ames, Iowa, USA.
3Blumstein, D., et. al. The evolution of capture myopathy in hooved mammals: a model for human stress cardiomyopathy?Evolution, medicine, and public health vol. 2015,1 195-203. 21 Jul. 2015,
4Kohn, Tertius. (2013). Capture myopathy mystery.
5Businga NK, Langenberg J, Carlson L. Successful treatment of capture myopathy in three wild greater sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis tabida). J Avian Med Surg. 2007 Dec;21(4):294-8. doi: 10.1647/2005-013R1.1. PMID: 18351009.
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