Sealed with a Kiss...

Dublin Zoo is pioneering the use of ‘Living Needles’ a major new technique in which a blood-sucking insect is used to test the health and well-being of its animals.

The South American Kissing Bugs voracious appetite offers keepers and vets a stress free means of gaining samples of blood without the use of needles and syringes.

Insects are introduced to the skin of the animal
where they spend up to half an hour gorging on its
blood. This is in turn extracted from the bug using a syringe so the blood can be tested in the lab. The method is painless to the animal and also leaves the insect unharmed.

The team in Dublin are being taught how to use the technique by Andre Stadler the curator of Wuppertal Zoo in Germany where the idea was first conceived.

The eyes of the world are watching Dublin Zoo’s efforts with one of its animals in particular. Yasmine the Asian elephant was pregnant when she arrived from Rotterdam Zoo over a year ago. She is now a few months away from the delivery of her second calf after a 22 month pregnancy.

It is difficult to take blood from an elephant using a needle, particularly at this stage of gestation. Her keepers don’t want her getting upset or stressed, yet it is imperative that they monitor her hormone levels regularly as a sudden drop in progesterone will indicate the onset of labour.

During a short trip to Dublin Andre Stadler, Curator of Wuppertal Zoo said: “In Germany, we use the bugs to test many species where blood sample collection is often not possible without anaesthesia. However we have never used them to test hormone levels in pregnant elephant’s before and we are watching Dublin’s efforts with excitement and great interest.”

So far the bugs have successfully collected several samples from Yasmin. Her keepers are confident that they can continue with this technique to ensure the well-being of mother and calf.

Because the blood is collected without stress to the animals it provides a sample of excellent quality, free of contaminating stress hormone. The Zoo therefore intends to use the method on many species throughout the collection including giraffe, zebra, rhino and tapir.