TY - JOUR AU - Hindelang, Mary AU - Peterson, Rolf O. PY - 2000/01/01 Y2 - 2024/03/28 TI - SKELETAL INTEGRITY IN MOOSE AT ISLE ROYALE NATIONAL PARK: BONE MINERAL DENSITY AND OSTEOPATHOLOGY RELATED TO SENESCENCE JF - Alces: A Journal Devoted to the Biology and Management of Moose JA - Alces VL - 36 IS - SE - Articles DO - UR - https://www.alcesjournal.org/index.php/alces/article/view/625 SP - 61-68 AB - <p>We analyzed the relationships between skeletal condition and senescence using bones of moose (<em>Alces alces</em>) collected at Isle Royale National Park between 1958-1995. We found a significant decline in bone mineral density (BMD) in the cancellous bone of the metatarsus in male and female moose with age, and a significant relationship between low BMD in the long bones and osteoporotic skull lesions, indicating a pervasive loss of bone mass. Furthermore, we found an increase in the prevalence of osteoarthritis, periodontal disease, and osteoporosis after 7 years of age when decline in age-specific survival accelerates. Males experience and earlier decline in survival and an earlier increase in osteopathologies. From an evolutionary perspective, bone status at the time of death may be a consequence of behavioral and physiological strategies that maximize fitness during the prime reproductive years.</p> ER -