Foraging-Based Enrichment Promotes More Varied Behaviour in Captive Australian Fur Seals (Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus)

Abstract

During wild foraging, Australian fur seals (Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus) encounter many different types of prey in a wide range of scenarios, yet in captive environments they are typically provided with a narrower range of opportunities to display their full repertoire of behaviours. This study aimed to quantitatively explore the effect of foraging-based enrichment on the behaviour and activity patterns displayed by two captive Australian fur seals at Melbourne Zoo, Australia. Food was presented as a scatter in open water, in a free-floating ball device, or in a static box device, with each treatment separated by control trials with no enrichment. Both subjects spent more time interacting with the ball and static box devices than the scatter feed. The total time spent pattern swimming was reduced in the enrichment treatments compared to the controls, while the time spent performing random swimming behaviours increased. There was also a significant increase in the total number of bouts of behaviour performed in all three enrichment treatments compared to controls. Each enrichment method also promoted a different suit of foraging behaviours. Hence, rather than choosing one method, the most effective way to increase the diversity of foraging behaviours, while also increasing variation in general activity patterns, is to provide seals with a wide range of foraging scenarios where food is encountered in different ways.

Feeding Enrichment in a Captive Pack of European Wolves (Canis Lupus Lupus): Assessing the Effects on Welfare and on a Zoo’s Recreational, Educational and Conservational Role

“…A major limitation of this study is the small size of the sample, which prevents us from drawing any conclusion at the species level. Studies that investigate enrichment programs in zoo animals are often performed on small samples [18,34,51,52,53] and in specific environments that are likely not representative of the entire zoo population. Being opportunistic, our study presents these limitations.…”

On the utility of accelerometers to predict stroke rate using captive fur seals and sea lions

“…Video footage allowing us to directly count stroke rate was pseudo-randomly collected from 10 animals at RF2, RF3 and RF4 while participating in other experiments ( Ladds et al, 2016 ). Underwater swimming at RF2 and RF3 was recorded with a GoPro (GoPro Hero3 Black edition, 1080p/Wide/60 fps) mounted inside PVC pipes, each with a viewing window cut-out (see Hocking et al, 2015 for a figure of the set up). For sea lions at RF4, the GoPro was mounted on their harness and oriented towards the pectoral flipper.…”

Considering Generalizability: A Lesson from Auditory Enrichment Research on Zoo Animals

“…Fortunately, stereotypy can be prevented or reversed with appropriate environmental modification (Meehan et al, 2004). For example, forage-based enrichment, such as hiding or scattering food, can reduce or eliminate stereotypical behavior and promote behavioral diversity in a range of taxa (e.g., felids: Bashaw et al, 2003;Burgener et al, 2008;bears: Carlstead et al, 1991;pinnipeds: Fernandez & Timberlake, 2019;Hocking et al, 2015;primates: Baker, 1997;Bayne et al, 1991;mustelids: Malmkvist et al, 2013;aves: Meehan et al, 2003), and is now commonly used in captive facilities.…”