Ape behavior in two alternating environments: comparing exhibit and short‐term holding areas

Abstract

In many facilities, primates are voluntarily transferred between different enclosures on a daily basis to facilitate animal husbandry and exhibit maintenance. This procedure is particularly relevant in the management of great apes living in zoos, where the requirements of functional management must be balanced with the desire to maintain enriching and naturalistic exhibit enclosures that benefit ape residents and attract the visiting public. In these settings, examinations of ape behavior and welfare typically focus exclusively on activity in the primary exhibit area. However, physical, social and sensory experiences unique to each area may shape different patterns of behavior. In the current study, zoo-living chimpanzees and gorillas were moved each day from exhibit areas to off-exhibit holding areas for a short duration as a part of regular management procedures. Behavioral data indicated species-specific reactions to the holding area, including increased aggression and self-directed behavior by chimpanzees and increased activity and prosocial behavior among gorilla subjects. Both species showed more feeding-foraging behavior while in the exhibit enclosure. Results suggest that holding areas may not meet all behavior needs of captive great apes and demonstrate the importance of including all components of the captive enclosure in comprehensive analyses of great ape behavior and welfare.

Social network changes during space restriction in zoo chimpanzees

“…Thus, social groups may be particularly vulnerable to fragmentation during periods of space restriction when social tension may be high. Space restriction often occurs in a captive environment to facilitate routine husbandry and can have important welfare consequences among primates (e.g., Ross et al 2010; Pearson et al 2015). Studies have begun to apply network analyses to detect social instabilities and manage social groupings to minimize stress (McCowan et al 2008; Makagon et al 2012; Rose and Croft 2015).…”

Brief Report: Chimpanzee Social Responsiveness Scale (CSRS) Detects Individual Variation in Social Responsiveness for Captive Chimpanzees

“…The raters were asked not to discuss any of their ratings with any other individuals and to direct all questions to the study investigator. For the chimpanzees studied in 2011, we asked caretakers to consider each chimpanzee’s behavior both when on and off public view and to provide an overall rating to the best of their ability (Ross et al 2010 ). Because chimpanzee groups are sometimes temporarily placed in smaller subgroups, we asked caretakers to base their ratings for each chimpanzee when that individual is in their ‘normal’ social arrangement.…”

Transfer and Acclimatization Effects on the Behavior of Two Species of African Great Ape (Pan troglodytes and Gorilla gorilla gorilla) Moved to a Novel and Naturalistic Zoo Environment

“…or were somehow associated with a reduction in space. Increased social density may account for an increase in ape activity, as was evident in studying these apes during daily, short-term alternations between off-exhibit holding areas and much larger exhibit spaces (Ross et al 2010) and other studies of social density effects (Nieuwenhuijsen and de Waal, 1982). Nonetheless, these relationships remain poorly understood, even in more controlled experimental settings (Novak et al 1994).…”