Animal-friendly behavioral testing in field studies: examples from ground squirrels

Abstract

Field studies of behavior provide insight into the expression of behavior in its natural ecological context and can serve as an important complement to behavioral studies conducted in the lab under controlled conditions. In addition to naturalistic observations, behavioral testing can be an important component of field studies of behavior. This mini review evaluates a sample of behavioral testing methods in field studies to identify ways in which behavioral testing can be animal-friendly and generate ethologically relevant data. Specific examples, primarily from studies of ground squirrels, are presented to illustrate ways in which principles of animal-friendly behavioral testing can be applied to and guide testing methods. Tests conducted with animals in their natural habitat and that elicit naturally occurring behavioral responses can minimize stress and disturbance for animals, as well as disruption of the larger ecosystem, and can have high ethological validity. When animals are trapped or handled as part of a study, behavioral testing can be incorporated into handling procedures to reduce overall disturbance. When behavior is evaluated in a testing arena, the arena can be designed to resemble natural conditions to increase the ethological relevance of the test. Efforts to minimize time spent in testing arenas can also reduce disturbance to animals. Adapting a behavioral test to a species or habitat conditions can facilitate reduced disruption to subjects and increased ethological relevance of the test.

Disruption of social play influences development of caution in juvenile ground squirrels

“…Field studies of play behavior allow for evaluation of play in the context in which it evolved and under conditions in which it is naturally expressed, but tend to be observational or correlational (Palagi, 2018;Nunes, 2023). Here we conducted a simple manipulation of play behavior in the field that did not appear to be overly disruptive for the squirrels.…”

“…To evaluate caution in response to an intruder in the natal area, we conducted behavioral tests toward the beginning of the play period within 1-3 days after individuals first appeared above ground, and again toward the end of the play period within 12-14 days after first emergence from the natal burrow. Behavioral tests were a modified version of flight-initiation distance tests (Runyan and Blumstein, 2004;Nunes, 2023), which measure the distance at which an individual first flees from an approaching human (Ydenberg and Dill, 1986;Blumstein, 2003). Flight is an antipredatory behavior, and flight-initiation distance is commonly used to measure responses along the caution-boldness continuum (Cooper, 2009;Petelle et al, 2013).…”