Investigating the impacts of captive origin, time and vegetation on the daily activity of African lion prides

Dunston, Emma J.; Abell, Jackie; Doyle, Rebecca; Kirk, Jacqui; Hilley, Victoria B.; Forsyth, Andrew D.; Jenkins, Emma; Mcallister, Dominique; Freire, Rafael

doi:10.1007/s10164-017-0508-x

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…When comparing the inactive behaviour of the lion cubs in this study with other available literature, it is clear that even this relatively well understood and common behavioural category within ethological studies is unable to be compared due to limited relevant literature and/or an inconsistency in methodology. Dunston et al ( 2017 ) conducted the first study to compare activity budgets between captive-origin and wild prides under the same methodology and determined that wild cubs rested less (on average 42%) than their captive counterparts (an average of 52%). Even under such a study of matching methodology it should be noted that the captive lions were observed more as a group than their wild counterparts and that this would affect interaction-type behaviours recorded.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Behaviour and welfare of African lion (Panthera leo) cubs used in contact wildlife tourism

Wilson

Phillips²

2023

Anim. welf.

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Lion (Panthera leo) cubs are used in wildlife interaction tourism but the effects on cub welfare are unknown. We assessed the behaviour of three cohorts of lion cubs, twelve animals in total, at three different interaction facilities, using continuous and scan-sampling methodologies for the entire duration of cub utilisation for human interactions. Cubs spent most time inactive (62%), particularly sleeping (38%), but also spent a substantial amount of time playing (13%) and being alert (12%). A generalised linear mixed model revealed that cub behaviour was similar in two facilities but different from cubs in the third. In these two similar facilities, as human interactions increased, the time spent resting, sleeping and playing with other cubs decreased, and alert behaviour, grooming of humans and flight responses increased. In the third facility, cubs had an abnormal activity budget, with high levels of inactivity (80%) accompanied by a lack of response to human interactions. We conclude that in some facilities normal cub behaviour cannot be achieved and may be compromised by a high frequency of human interactions, which therefore needs to be controlled to limit adverse effects on cub behaviour.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Behaviour and welfare of African lion (Panthera leo) cubs used in contact wildlife tourism

Wilson

Phillips²

2023

Anim. welf.

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The Ultimate Benefits of Learning

Baker

Melfi²

2019

Zoo Animal Learning and Training

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Do Contraceptive Rods Affect the Behaviour of African Lions (Panthera leo) in Captivity?

Jansen

Thodberg

2020

J. Zoo Biol.

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Surplus animals in zoos and wildlife parks are handled differently across Europe. Some zoos use the “Breed and Cull”-method where animals are allowed to reproduce, and surplus animals culled when the mature. Other zoos sterilize the animals or inject them with contraceptive rods to prevent reproduction. Naturally secreted hormones affect both behaviour and morphology, but the effect of the injected hormones has not been studied in lions. The aim of this observational study was to compare the behaviour in captive groups of female lions, that had either been injected with contraceptive rods or not. The study was made in eight different zoos in Denmark, Germany, Belgium and The Netherlands. We found no significant differences in the behaviour of the two groups (with and without rods), indicating that there was no effect of contraceptive rods. However, the small sample size, and unbalanced factors such as pride composition, age and weather could have blurred our results. In order to address the challenge of surplus animals, we suggest, future studies with a more optimal experimental design and larger sample sizes and the inclusion of physiological measurement in addition to quantitative behavioural recordings.

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Investigating the impacts of captive origin, time and vegetation on the daily activity of African lion prides

Cited by 3 publications

References 26 publications

Behaviour and welfare of African lion (Panthera leo) cubs used in contact wildlife tourism

Behaviour and welfare of African lion (Panthera leo) cubs used in contact wildlife tourism

The Ultimate Benefits of Learning

Do Contraceptive Rods Affect the Behaviour of African Lions (Panthera leo) in Captivity?

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