| Invasiveness of sampling | Low [82,83] | Low | Low [71,84] | Low [71,85] |
| Risk of contamination from external sources | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Training required for sampling procedure | No [57] | No [40] | No | No |
| Sampling procedure may confound results | No | No | No | No |
| Possibility of repeated sampling | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Ethical and legal licenses required | Yes | Yes [40] | No | Yes [85] |
| Biosecurity concerns | Low | Low [86] | Low | Low |
| Results depend on time of sampling | No [87] | No [40] | No | No |
| Results depend on sampling location | Yes [57] | Yes | No | No |
| Steroid medications may confound results | No | No | No | No |
| Sampling requires live animals | No | No [86] | No | No |
| Sample preparation is laborious and time consuming | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Storage conditions | Room temperature [87] | Room temperature [40] | Room temperature [84] | Refrigerator, freezer [85] |
| Time range represented by biomarker measurement | Week, month, year | Week, month, year | Week, month, year | Week, month, year |
| Biomarker forms represented | Unbound [88] | Unbound [88] | Unbound [88] | Unbound [88] |
| Stress type | Chronic [82,83] | Chronic [67,86] | Chronic [71,84] | Chronic [71,85] |
| Analytical cost | Relatively inexpensive [72] | Relatively inexpensive [40] | Relatively inexpensive | Relatively expensive |