The Greater Bermuda land snail Poecilozonites bermudensis was once thought to be extinct in the wild, however, recent captive population increases have allowed reintroductions to take place. Post-release monitoring of reintroduced individuals is a fundamental...
The ethics of animal training procedures have seen dramatic changes in the last few decades, with a movement toward reward-based training methods. These reward-based training practices have also been directly impacted by the behavioral and...
Zoos are valuable resources for research, allowing scientists to observe rare and elusive species. Animal-attached loggers (biologgers) offer profound insight into animal behaviour. Their use in zoos has great yet largely untapped potential to collect...
This study prioritised positive affective states while modifying the feeding management of five giraffes at Zoo Planckendael and monitored the impact on indicators of both negative and positive welfare. Observations were conducted day and night...
Current frameworks for designing and evaluating good enclosures and “enrichments” typically focus on animals’ active interactions with these features. This has undoubtedly improved the welfare of zoo-housed animals over the last 30 years or more...
In primates, as well as in other mammals, play fighting (PF) is a complex form of playful activity that is structurally similar to real fighting (RF) and may also be used in a competitive way...
Environmental enrichment (EE) is commonly provided to animals managed under human care, being beneficial to behavioral diversity and improving animal welfare. Use of EE appears to be particularly beneficial to individual wild animals spending a...
To robustly study zoo animal cognition and provide effective enrichment, we must provide animals with carefully designed apparatus made from appropriate (safe, attractive, practical) materials. However, all too often, this design phase is overlooked or...
Stereotypic pacing in zoo-housed carnivores has been intensively researched for decades, revealing that it is a subtly complex behavior with a highly variable etiology. While pacing can be an indicator of poor welfare, it can...
The effect of basking light provision on sun beetle enclosure use.