Is painting by elephants in zoos as enriching as we are led to believe?

Abstract

The relationship between the activity of painting and performance of stereotyped and other stress-related behaviour was investigated in four captive Asian elephants at Melbourne Zoo, Australia. The activity involved the elephant being instructed to paint on a canvas by its keeper in front of an audience. Painting by elephants in zoos is commonly believed to be a form of enrichment, but this assumption had not been based on any systematic research. If an activity is enriching we would expect stress-related behaviour to be reduced but we found no evidence of the elephants anticipating the painting activity and no effect on the performance of stereotyped or other stress-related behaviour either before or after the painting session. This indicates that the activity does not fulfil one of the main aims of enrichment. However, if an elephant was not selected to paint on a given day this was associated with higher levels of non-interactive behaviour, a possible indicator of stress. Behavioural observations associated with ear, eye and trunk positions during the painting session showed that the elephant’s attentiveness to the painting activity or to the keeper giving instruction varied between individuals. Apart from positive reinforcement from the keeper, the results indicated that elephants gain little enrichment from the activity of painting. Hence, the benefits of this activity appear to be limited to the aesthetic appeal of these paintings to the people viewing them.

Applied behavior analysis and the zoo: Forthman and Ogden (1992) thirty years later

“…Cheyenne Mountain Zoo personnel trained giraffes ( Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata ) to participate in radiographs and hoof care (Dadone et al, 2016 ). Researchers have also examined the potential enriching or behavioral welfare effects of training Asian elephants ( Elephas maximus ) to paint (English et al, 2014 ), as well as training rhesus macaques ( Macaca mulatta ) to present various body parts or emit simple responses on cue (e.g., sit or stand; Baker et al, 2010 ). Finally, Zoo Atlanta researchers documented the changes in both trainer and elephant ( Loxodonta africana africana ) behaviors (e.g., frequency of trainer‐delivered cues; latency of elephant compliance) during a transition to protected contact (i.e., no human enters the elephant's habitat), positive reinforcement‐based management system (Wilson et al, 2015 ).…”

Animals Make Music: A Look at Non-Human Musical Expression

“…In contrast, there are elephants that are trained to play musical instruments [43] or draw pictures under the guidance of trainers. A study of four captive Asian elephants at the Melbourne Zoo, Australia, examined painting by elephants in zoos [53], which is believed to be a form of enrichment. However, the results indicated that the elephants gained little enrichment from the activity of painting.…”

Проблематика Авторського Права На Об’єкти, Створені Тваринами

“…Хоча людина реально не створювала твір, вона визнається автором просто через свій правовий та біологічний статус. Аналогічні приклади є щодо картин, створених кроликами 22 , дельфінами 23 , білугами 24 , слонами 25 , ослами 26 та іншими тваринами.…”