Fecal cortisol metabolites (FCMs) are widely used to track stress responses in wildlife and captive species. Rules of thumb suggest that samples should be collected as soon as possible after defecation, to avoid decay of FCMs. To date, however, only a few studies investigated the stability of defecated FCMs over time, and most of them were conducted in controlled laboratory conditions. Here, we investigated the stability of FC...

Measuring fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fGCMs) is a widely used, non-invasive method for studies of stress in vertebrates. To study physiological responses in wild Arctic foxes ( Vulpes lagopus ) to perceived stressors such as fluctuating food availability, occurrence of competitors and predators and disturbance from human activities, a species-specific physiological validation of a method to evaluate adrenocortical activi...

Anthropogenic disturbances, such as habitat modifications and machines, are associated with increased levels of faecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fGCMs) in mammals, an indicator of a stress response. One human-caused process provoking incisive habitat alterations is harvesting arable crops. We investigated the effect of cereal harvest on fGCM concentrations in European hares ( Lepus europaeus ) in arable landscapes in lower A...