Abstract: Melengestrol acetate (MGA) is the most widely used contraceptive in zoo felids, but the mechanism of contraception and the pathologic effects have not been investigated. For this study, the effects of MGA on folliculogenesis were assessed, and the association of MGA with ovarian lesions was evaluated. Comparisons were made among the histopathologic findings in the ovaries from 88 captive wild felids (representing 15 species) divided into three groups: 37 currently contracepted with MGA, eight previously exposed to MGA, and 43 never contracepted. Ninety-one percent of the felids evaluated had tertiary follicles, and no differences were noted between contracepted and uncontracepted cats. Some MGA-contracepted cats also had corpora lutea indicating recent ovulation. These results indicate that folliculogenesis is not suppressed by current doses of MGA and ovulation occurred in some cats. Therefore, the contraceptive actions of MGA do not occur by suppressing folliculogenesis, and MGA-contracepted felids likely have endogenous estrogens that may confound progestin effects on the uterus. Cystic rete ovarii was the most common pathologic finding, but they were not more prevalent in MGA-contracepted cats. These findings indicate that MGA is not associated with ovarian disease, including ovarian cancer, in contrast to the uterine lesions noted in MGA-treated cats.

Abstract: The snow leopard (Uncia uncial Schreber, 1776) is the most poorly studied species of the cat family in the world and, in particular, in Russia, where the northern periphery of the species area (no more than 3% of it) is located in the Altai-Hangai-Sayan range [1]. It is generally known that the existing data on the Russian part of the snow leopard population have never been a result of targeted studies; at best, they have been based on recording the traces of the snow leopard vital activity [2]. This is explained by the snow leopard's elusive behavior, inaccessibility of its habitats for humans, and its naturally small total numbers in the entire species area. All published data on the population status of the snow leopard in Russia, from the first descriptions of the species [3-6] to the latest studies [7, 8] are subjective, often speculative, and are not confirmed by
quantitative estimates. It is obvious, however, that every accurate observation of this animal is of particular interest [9]. The purpose of our study was to determine the structure and size of the population group presumably inhabiting the Western Sayan mountain ridge at the northern boundary of the species area

Abstract: Many mammalian herbivores show a temporal diet variation between graminoid-dominated and browse dominated diets. We determined the causes of such a diet shift and its implications for conservation of a medium sized ungulate-the bharal Pseudois nayaur. Past studies show that the bharal diet is dominated by graminoids (>80%) during summer, but the contribution of graminoids declines to about 50% in winter. We tested the predictions generated by two alternative hypotheses explaining the decline: low graminoid availability during winter causes bharal to include browse in their diet; bharal include browse, with relatively higher nutritional quality, in their diet to compensate for the poor quality of graminoids during winter. We measured winter graminoid availability in areas with no livestock grazing, areas with relatively moderate livestock grazing, and those with intense livestock grazing pressures. The chemical composition of plants contributing to the bharal diet was analysed. The bharal diet was quantiWed through signs of feeding on vegetation at feeding locations. Population structures of bharal populations were recorded using a total count method. Graminoid availability was highest in areas without livestock grazing, followed by areas with moderate and intense livestock grazing. The bharal diet was dominated by graminoids (73%) in areas with highest graminoid availability. Graminoid contribution to the bharal diet declined monotonically (50, 36%) with a decline in graminoid availability. Bharal young to female ratio was 3 times higher in areas with high graminoid availability than areas with low graminoid availability. The composition of the bharal winter diet was governed predominantly by the availability of graminoids in the rangelands. Our results suggest that bharal include more browse in their diet during winter due to competition from livestock for graminoids. Since livestock grazing reduces graminoid availability, creation of livestock-free areas is necessary for the conservation of grazing species such as the bharal and its predators including the endangered snow leopard in the Trans-Himalaya.