Hile M E, Hintz H F, Erb H N
Department of Animal Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853, USA.
J Zoo Wildl Med. 1997 Dec;28(4):424-7.
Accurate estimates of body weight can be useful in the evaluations of feeding programs, nutritional status and general health, and in calculation of dose levels (such as for anesthesia)-thus providing a valuable tool for captive elephant management. We used body measurements of 75 Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) to predict body weight. Weight, heart girth, height at the withers, body length, and foot-pad circumference were measured. All possible linear regressions of weight on one, two, three, or four body measurements were calculated. The highest correlation with a single measurement was that between heart girth and weight (R2 = 0.90). The data were also divided into age groups (1-13, 18-28, 29-39, and 40-57 yr), and all possible linear regressions were calculated for each group (there were no elephants aged 14-17 yr). Adding body length or pad circumference to heart girth resulted in a slight increase in R2. We conclude that body weight in Asian elephants can be predicted from body measurements and that heart girth is the best predictor. A second body measurement might improve predictive accuracy for some age groups.
准确估计体重对于评估饲养计划、营养状况和总体健康状况，以及计算剂量水平（如麻醉剂量）可能很有用，从而为圈养大象的管理提供一个有价值的工具。我们利用75头亚洲象（印度象）的身体测量数据来预测体重。测量了体重、胸围、肩高、体长和脚垫周长。计算了体重与一项、两项、三项或四项身体测量值之间所有可能的线性回归。与单一测量值的最高相关性是胸围与体重之间的相关性（R2 = 0.90）。数据还被分为年龄组（1 - 13岁、18 - 28岁、29 - 39岁和40 - 57岁），并为每个年龄组计算了所有可能的线性回归（没有14 - 17岁的大象）。在胸围基础上增加体长或脚垫周长会使R2略有增加。我们得出结论，亚洲象的体重可以通过身体测量来预测，且胸围是最佳预测指标。对于某些年龄组，第二项身体测量可能会提高预测准确性。
