Yaws disease in a wild gorilla population and its impact on the reproductive status of males

Abstract

We evaluated the prevalence of skin lesions in a gorilla population in the Republic of Congo. The observed lesions were typical of yaws, a treponematosis described in gorillas and humans living in tropical regions. Among the 377 gorillas identified, 17% presented skin lesions, mainly on their faces. The worst cases presented physical handicaps because of the deep lesions. As in humans, lesions break out when individuals are young. Lesions were more prevalent among males than females above 8 years old. This sex-bias prevalence could result from the behavioral characteristics of males through a greater exposure to wounds. Lesions were also more prevalent in unmated adult males (either solitaries or those living in nonbreeding groups) than in males leading breeding groups. In the case of the latter, nonaffected and affected leading males had a similar number of infants and juveniles. Still, none of the leading males ever presented serious handicaps because of the skin lesions. This suggests that adult females could favor males without lesions. Finally, lesions were more prevalent among immature animals in nonbreeding groups than in breeding groups, suggesting that either young animals with lesions disperse earlier from their natal groups, or that the disease spreads faster in nonbreeding groups. Our results provide some insights into the spread of a disease in a wild population. Further studies are required to determine if the vigor of males affects the development of the disease and if affected individuals experience social discrimination inducing a negative impact on population dynamics.