DOI: 10.1007/s10764-005-2934-9 Noninvasive Monitoring of the Health of Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii

We assessed the health status of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schwein-furthii) of the Kanyawara group in the Kibale National Park in Western Uganda via noninvasive methods. We conducted visual veterinary inspection, parasitological and urine analysis in association with behavioral observa-tions, causing minimal disturbance or stress to individually recognized chim-panzees. We applied multiple parasitological techniques to 252 stool samples to compare their efficacy in detecting parasitic infection and to increase the power of detecting a wide range of parasites at a more sensitive level. We examined 76 urine samples via a quick detection method to evaluate multi-ple parameters of urine that indicate organ dysfunction. Results of the dif-ferent analyses are mutually supportive and provided useful information for monitoring bodily condition and diseases. The multifaceted health evaluatio