INTERNATIONAL VETERINARY EXPERIENCE SCHOLARSHIP

Submitted by Juliette Nye, The Ohio State University 

My experience in Madagascar started as soon as I got off the plane. Once arriving in Antananarivo and meeting up with Dr. Randy Junge from Columbus Zoo and Dr. Andrea Baden from Hunter College, we all settled in for a good nights sleep before taking a 12 hour van ride to run and find Ranomafana National Park the next day. The van ride allowed us to travel through beautiful scenery and many small towns throughout the countryside of Madagascar. It was amazing to see all of the different landscapes, ranging from populated cityscapes to desert-like areas to dense rainforest. I quickly learned about the significant degree of poverty that the people of Madagascar experience, easy to see through just brief moments spent driving through each of the small towns. Madagascar is considered one of the ten most impoverished countries in the world, creatining a stark contrast to the landscape seen in the United States.

Once we arrived in Ranomafana National Park, we unloaded all of our gear at Centre ValBio, our “home away from home” in Madagascar where we sorted through our research materials and prepared ourselves for the trip to Mangevo, the research site where there is a long-standing study on a large group of Black and White Ruffed Lemurs (Varecia variegata), a lemur species classified as critically endangered by the IUCN. But before the hike to Mangevo, we had other important business to attend to: there were two small, malnourished lemurs being housed at Centre ValBio that were victims of the pet trade and part of a recent confiscation. The team and I got to evaluate these little lemurs with general physical exams, in which I was able to assist with examination, blood draws, and giving subcutaneous fluids. I learned that lemurs (like many animals) tend to get cold while sedated or under anesthesia, so while they were waking up we had to hold them inside of our jackets to keep them warm! What a shame!

The next day, we hiked about 19 miles from Ranomafana town into the National Park center to get to the Mangevo campsite. We thankfully had porters to help us carry our heavy equipment (generator, research equipment, centrifuge, etc.) to the campsite, since the hike was already very difficult with just my water bottles and snacks! I thought it was incredible that the porters carrying our heavy research equipment and and the majority of our belongings (in sandals or barefoot, no less) were able to get to Mangevo campsite and back to Ranomafana town in about half the time it took for us to go one-way! It started raining as soon as we began the hike, which ranged from climbing (mostly up) huge hills, to walking next to (and often through!) rice paddies, to traversing rivers and streams on planks of wood. Often, the rice paddy and river water went up to my hips since it was so deep! Needless to say, I was entirely soaked from head to toe! I had been training for this hike for about 4 months by joining a local hiking club, but my training did not hold up well on the Madagascar jungle paths and the hike proved very difficult, both physically and mentally (especially when going uphill!). Once we reached the campsite after about 7 hours of hiking (I lost track), we were greeted with a cup of tea and a campfire. And then we had to pitch our tents!

While at Mangevo campsite, each day the field team would go out to track various Black and White Ruffed Lemurs and bring them back to us, the research team, to evaluate each lemur. I was absolutely amazed by the skill of the field site team in tracking, darting, and capturing lemurs from 40 feet up in very dense rainforest. I saw the incredible teamwork amongst the field team members to coordinate finding the lemurs and ultimately catching them in an enormous net all together, a testament to their dedication to working with this group of lemurs. While working with the lemurs, I was able to practice my physical exam, venipuncture skills and field anesthesia/ sedation monitoring skills, while also learning more in-depth about sedation protocols for darting. We performed a PCV/TP on each of the lemurs (if the generator running the centrifuge decided to work that day!). As part of my personal portion of the project, I used nasopharyngeal swabs to sample each of the lemurs for SARS-CoV-2 antigen.

It was amazing to work with lemurs, a species I have studied since my Masters degree coursework, in their natural habitat and experience such a remote part of the world as part of this program. Throughout my time at Mangevo, we often discussed the fragile ecosystems of Madagascar and the threats lemurs face, including habitat fragmentation, human encroachment, and the threat of constant predatory fossa (for prey) and humans (for bushmeat or for the pet trade). This trip allowed me to improve global health by better understanding the multifactorial causes of lemur population  decline, while also allowing me to assist with research on the potential threat of SARS- CoV-2 in remote lemur populations. Because this virus has yet to be detected in lemurs  (though they are primates) and due to their imperiled conservation status, it was important to assess each animal for viral infection as part of yearly stabbing efforts to answer the question if lemurs can become infected with SARS-CoV-2. Not only did this research component contribute to the body of knowledge surrounding SARS-CoV-2 infection in remote populations of non-human primates and lemur conservation, it also contributes to global health through its implications of human-wildlife interaction and potential interspecific disease transmission, and most of all, the interconnectedness of humans and wildlife. I recently was able to present my research results at the Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine (where I am now a veterinary student) Research Day, showing no active infection of SARS-CoV-2 in any of the 14 lemurs sampled. However, this still does not mean that lemurs cannot contract SARS-CoV-2 virus! I am hoping to continue this project in the future by testing the lemur blood samples we collected (that we couldn’t bring back to the United States in August 2023 due to permitting restrictions) for SARS-CoV-2 antibody to see if any of the lemurs in the study population had ever been exposed or been sick with the virus.

This travel improved my cultural competency by being able to work directly with Malagasy conservationists like Zo, an incoming Doctoral student at the University of Antananarivo who wants to further lemur conservation. He was so incredibly knowledgeable about the natural history of a myriad of lemur species, and his passion for lemur conservation was clearly demonstrated by his positive, helpful attitude, kindness, and of course the fact that he has worked with a variety of lemur research efforts. His willingness to teach what he knew about lemurs and share his lemur anecdotes, and also his willingness to have intercultural exchange conversations, was one of the highlights of this trip. Additionally, I was able to chat with many members of the Malagasy field site team and learn some of their techniques for tracking and then darting lemurs, as well as learning more about their daily lives as members of the research site field team, both when Dr. Baden (the study manager) is present and when she is away. One of my favorite memories was playing “Spot It!,” a game that doesn’t require speaking nor requires everyone to speak the same language, around the campfire with Zo and some of the other Malagasy field team members.

I am very passionnate about learning about exploring and trying to better understand the natural world. By participating in the Ranomafana Ruffed Lemur Project (as we dubbed it together as a team at the end of our field season), I was able to work with a species both closely related to humans and at critical risk of extinction, a privilege I do not take lightly. I am so thankful that I was able to have this unforgettable experience. I have the utmost admiration for the Malagasy field team, Dr. Junge, and Dr. Baden. Their dedication to conservation of the Black and White Ruffed Lemur and furthering lemur health is truly extraordinary. I am also eternally grateful to Tufts and the Glidden family for the funding to allow me to have this life-changing experience to solidify my love for zoological and conservation medicine, field work, and working outside of my comfort zone.