No abstract

The introduction of elephants into new groups is necessary for breeding programmes. However, behavioural studies on the reactions of these animals at first encounters are missing. In the present study, female African elephants (Loxodonta africana) living in zoos were observed during unifications with unfamiliar elephants (introduction of two to one females and one to two females; n = 6) and reunifications with related elephants (two mother–daughter-pairs; n = 4) that were separated for 2 and 12 years, respectively. First encounters of the elephants were observed and recorded by scan sampling. The parameters measured were (a) signs of the characteristic Greeting Ceremony, (b) distance to the fence separating the elephants during first contact, and (c) time until trunks touched for the first time. The data were statistically analysed with SPSS. The results showed that related elephants performed a full Greeting Ceremony on reunifications. Unrelated elephants only expressed a minor greeting. During first encounters, related elephants predominantly showed affiliative behaviour (p = 0.001), whilst unrelated elephants expressed more agonistic behaviour (p = 0.001). The distance to the fence was significantly smaller for related elephants than for unrelated elephants (p = 0.038). first contact of trunks occurred on average after 3.00 s. in related elephants and 1026.25 s. in unrelated elephants. These findings indicate that related elephants recognise their kin after up to 12 years of separation, meet them with a full Greeting Ceremony during reunification, and seek contact to the related elephant, while unrelated elephants are hesitant during unifications with unfamiliar elephants and express more agonistic behaviour. The results testify that zoo elephants show the same species-specific social behaviour as their conspecifics in the wild. It also confirms the cognitive abilities of elephants and the significance of matrilines for breeding programmes.

Food consumption recording is a social need because the consumption is an indicator of the nutrition status that means the health status, of the population, and an economic factor. Food consumption trends in the nineties are characterized by a steep fall of most kinds of foods, mainly from animal sources. It is not necessary to adjust this fact with respect to recent data of the time series. Four commodities show a positive increase. The trend of food consumption is bound up with more slowly increasing incomes of the population than was the increase in food prices after their liberalization. The consequences of consumption trends do not imply any deterioration of nutrition status because nutrition requirements have been met except calcium and vitamin A supply due to a decrease in milk consumption, and except vitamin C, still a deficient element although its supply has substantially increased. A systematic attention should be focused on the population nutrition through nutrition and food policies.

The article deals with cyclical abrasive wear of the surface of forming tools. At this stage the research focused on the genesis of stress in the contact between a deformed material and a tool in the cold bulk forming process. The experiments were conducted in the simple configuration of the upsetting test. The article presents the results of abrasive wear by a combination of materials of examined samples and upsetting plates. The abrasive wear in the used material specimens was analysed comparatively in the form of the wear factor by the finite element method. Two intersecting phenomenological fields represent the output for the examined material combinations. Firstly, it is a formulation of the dependencies of the maximum depth increase of the surface wear. The argument is the number of exposure cycles. At the same time, the topology of degradations and the resulting roughness in the space of the exposed surface were examined.