Abstract:
Hormone laboratories located “on-site” where field studies are being conducted have a number of advantages.
On-site laboratories allow hormone analyses to proceed in near-real-time, minimize logistics of sample permits/
shipping, contribute to in-country capacity-building, and (our focus here) facilitate cross-site collaboration
through shared methods and a shared laboratory. Here we provide proof-of-concept that an on-site hormone
laboratory (the Taboga Field Laboratory, located in the Taboga Forest Reserve, Costa Rica) can successfully run
endocrine analyses in a remote location. Using fecal samples from wild white-faced capuchins (Cebus imitator)
from three Costa Rican forests, we validate the extraction and analysis of four steroid hormones (glucocorticoids,
testosterone, estradiol, progesterone) across six assays (DetectX® and ISWE, all from Arbor Assays). Additionally,
as the first collaboration across three long-term, wild capuchin field sites (Lomas Barbudal, Santa Rosa, Taboga)
involving local Costa Rican collaborators, this laboratory can serve as a future hub for collaborative exchange.
