Effects of crowd size on exhibit use by and behavior of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and Western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) at a zoo

Bonnie, Kristin E.; Ang, Mabel Y.L.; Ross, Stephen R.

doi:10.1016/j.applanim.2016.03.003

Cited by 36 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Chimpanzees interacted with humans primarily to obtain food.[107]NumberBehaviourThere was no effect of crowd size on chimpanzees’ use of the areas of their exhibit closest to zoo visitors. In addition, they were observed in this area at a rate equal to or greater than expected by random movements at all three levels of crowd size analyzed.[154]NumberBehaviour (birth timing)An analysis of the timing of 231 live chimpanzee births in accredited North American zoos found no weekend (high visitor numbers) or weekday (low visitor numbers) effect on number of births.[155]Colombian spider monkeyNumberUrinary cortisolAn increase in visitor numbers was associated with an increase in urinary cortisol concentration.[13]Cotton top tamarinOn display vs. off displayBehaviourThe animals on display to the public exhibited less social behaviour than those not displayed to the public.[91]Diana monkeyNumberBehaviourHigher visitor numbers were associated with less time spent grooming and sleeping/resting and more time spent playing and feeding/chewing.[109]Diana Monkey, ringtail lemur, cotton-top tamarinPresence vs. absenceBehaviourWhen visitors were present, aggression levels increased, and time spent engaged in grooming and other affiliative behaviours decreased.[75]Height of visitors *BehaviourWhen visitors were asked to crouch, grooming behaviour increased and agonistic behaviour decreased.Golden-bellied mangabeyNumber *Behaviour…”

Section: Table A1mentioning

confidence: 83%

The Visitor Effect on Zoo Animals: Implications and Opportunities for Zoo Animal Welfare

Sherwen

Hemsworth

2019

Animals

193

204

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Achieving and maintaining high standards of animal welfare is critical to the success of a modern zoo. Research has shown that an animal’s welfare is highly dependent on how various individual animal factors (e.g., species traits, genetics, temperament and previous experience) interact with environmental features (e.g., social grouping, enclosure design and sensory environment). One prominent feature of the zoo environment is the presence of visitors. Visitor contact can be unpredictable and intense, particularly in terms of auditory and visual interaction. Depending on an animal’s perception of this interaction, visitors can have either negative, neutral or positive impacts on zoo animal behaviour and welfare. This paper reviews the literature on the implications and potential opportunities of human-zoo animal interactions on animal behaviour and welfare, with the aim of stimulating interest, understanding and exploration of this important subject. The literature to date presents a mixed range of findings on the topic. It is possible this variation in the responses of zoo animals to visitors may be due to species-specific differences, the nature and intensity of the visitor interactions, enclosure design, and individual animal characteristics. Analysing these studies and better understanding animal preferences and motivations can provide insight into what animals find negatively and positively reinforcing in terms of visitor contact in a specific zoo setting. This understanding can then be applied to either safeguard welfare in cases where visitors can have a negative impact, or, conversely, it can be applied to highlight opportunities to encourage animal-visitor interaction in situations where animals experience positive emotions associated with visitor interaction.

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Section: Table A1mentioning

confidence: 83%

The Visitor Effect on Zoo Animals: Implications and Opportunities for Zoo Animal Welfare

Sherwen

Hemsworth

2019

Animals

193

204

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“…An effective exhibit design can help protect the animals from potential negative consequences of large numbers of visitors [ 16 , 31 ]. In some exhibits, animals rotate on and off exhibit; it is possible that having restricted access to on-exhibit areas (which are often outdoors) could impact the animal’s behavior, as could being off exhibit where zoo visitors are not present.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Stoinski et al [ 30 ] documented that overall gorilla behavior did not appear to be impacted by visitor abundance, but differences existed in the responses by individual gorillas. However, a study of chimpanzees ( Pan troglogytes ) and gorillas found that overall the animals’ behaviors and exhibit use did not vary with the number of visitors [ 31 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Widespread Behavioral Responses by Mammals and Fish to Zoo Visitors Highlight Differences between Individual Animals

Boyle

Berry

Cayton

et al. 2020

Animals

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The impact that humans have on zoo animals can vary based on the species of animal, exhibit design, and individual differences in behavioral responses. We independently analyzed data from 10 never-published studies that examined the impact of zoo visitors on zoo animal behavior. Of the 16 species studied, 90.9% of the mammal species and 60.0% of the fish species demonstrated a change in at least one behavior based on zoo visitor abundance or visitor behavior (e.g., noise, solicitation of interactions from zoo animals). In addition, behavioral changes associated with zoo visitors were present in animals housed in exhibits where there was direct contact with zoo visitors, as well as in exhibits where there was indirect contact and no direct contact. Individuals often varied in their behavioral responses, and some individuals appeared to seek out interactions with visitors. Our findings demonstrate that short-term research projects can provide valuable insight into individual animal-level and species-level responses to visitor abundance and visitor behavior in the zoo setting. We recommend that behavioral assessments focus on the analysis of behaviors of individual animals whenever possible, and we recommend that exhibits provide areas that allow for animals to retreat from the public view.

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“…With this aim, we investigated potential impacts of the visiting public on chimpanzees at Chimp Haven. Using a similar study conducted at Lincoln Park Zoo (Bonnie, Ang, & Ross, ) as a model, we collected focal follow observations of 50 chimpanzees, living in four groups at Chimp Haven over the course of a year, both during scheduled public programs, such as CDD, small educational chats, and donor tours, as well as during times when public programs were not occurring (Hansen et al, in review). Over 1 year, we recorded 180 hr of data, of which 9.1% were during public programs when unfamiliar people viewed the chimpanzees.…”

Section: Collaborative Projectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A unique zoo‐sanctuary collaboration for chimpanzees

Ross

Hansen

Hopper

et al. 2019

American J Primatol

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Effects of crowd size on exhibit use by and behavior of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and Western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) at a zoo

Cited by 36 publications

References 27 publications

The Visitor Effect on Zoo Animals: Implications and Opportunities for Zoo Animal Welfare

The Visitor Effect on Zoo Animals: Implications and Opportunities for Zoo Animal Welfare

Widespread Behavioral Responses by Mammals and Fish to Zoo Visitors Highlight Differences between Individual Animals

A unique zoo‐sanctuary collaboration for chimpanzees

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