Assessing the prevalence and characteristics of hair-plucking behaviour in captive western lowland gorillas <i>(Gorilla gorilla gorilla)</i>

Less, E; Kuhar, Christopher W.; Lukas, Kristen E.

doi:10.7120/09627286.22.2.175

Cited by 15 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…While this claim is speculative, it would help explain the prevalence of this behavior. This notion is also consistent with the result from Less et al []: early exposure to the behavior may facilitate its development. Hopper et al [] recently proposed social transmission as an explanation for widespread coprophagy among captive chimpanzees.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…Lutz et al [] highlight a sex difference observed in their study; the behavior was predominately female‐biased. Less et al [] conducted a survey of hair plucking among western lowland gorillas housed at Association of Zoos and Aquaria (AZA) institutions across the United States. Their large sample included 36 institutions and 240 gorillas.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While hair plucking occurred in 15% of gorillas surveyed in the Less et al [] study, hair plucking in bonobos is believed to be much more prevalent within the captive population. Brand and Marchant [] studied hair plucking among the bonobos housed at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Hair plucking, stress, and urinary cortisol among captive bonobos (Pan paniscus)

et al. 2016

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Hair plucking has been observed in many captive primate species, including the great apes; however, the etiology of this behavioral pattern is poorly understood. While this behavior has not been reported in wild apes, an ethologically identical behavior in humans, known as trichotillomania, is linked to chronic psychosocial stress and is a predominantly female disorder. This study examines hair plucking (defined here as a rapid jerking away of the hair shaft and follicle by the hand or mouth, often accompanied by inspection and consumption of the hair shaft and follicle) in a captive group of bonobos (N = 13) at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Columbus, Ohio. Plucking data were collected using behavior and all-occurrence sampling; 1,450 social and self-directed grooming bouts were recorded during 128 hr of observation. Twenty-one percent of all grooming bouts involved at least one instance of plucking. Urine samples (N = 55) were collected and analyzed for the stress hormone cortisol. Analyses of urinary cortisol levels showed a significant positive correlation between mean cortisol and self-directed plucking for females (r = 0.88, P < 0.05) but not for males (r = -0.73, P = 0.09). These results demonstrate an association between relative self-directed hair plucking and cortisol among female bonobos. This is the first study to investigate the relationship between hair plucking and cortisol among apes. Overall, these data add to our knowledge of a contemporary issue in captive ape management. Zoo Biol. 35:415-422, 2016. © Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Hair plucking, stress, and urinary cortisol among captive bonobos (Pan paniscus)

et al. 2016

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“…The most prevalent behavior after coprophagy was hair plucking (32%) which has been recognized as a relatively common abnormal behavior in many primate species (Nash et al, 1999; Lutz, Well & Novak, 2003; Less, Kuhar & Lukas, 2013; Brand & Marchant, 2015). However, the relationship between this behavior and psychological wellbeing is still unclear, as heredity and social learning may influence the expression of hair plucking (Nash et al, 1999; Hook et al, 2002; Less, Kuhar & Lukas, 2013). When examining the factors that influence the expression of these abnormal behaviors, we find some substantive differences from those factors influencing the expression of coprophagy.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterizing abnormal behavior in a large population of zoo-housed chimpanzees: prevalence and potential influencing factors

Jacobson

Ross

Bloomsmith³

2016

PeerJ

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Abnormal behaviors in captive animals are generally defined as behaviors that are atypical for the species and are often considered to be indicators of poor welfare. Although some abnormal behaviors have been empirically linked to conditions related to elevated stress and compromised welfare in primates, others have little or no evidence on which to base such a relationship. The objective of this study was to investigate a recent claim that abnormal behavior is endemic in the captive population by surveying a broad sample of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), while also considering factors associated with the origins of these behaviors. We surveyed animal care staff from 26 accredited zoos to assess the prevalence of abnormal behavior in a large sample of chimpanzees in the United States for which we had information on origin and rearing history. Our results demonstrated that 64% of this sample was reported to engage in some form of abnormal behavior in the past two years and 48% of chimpanzees engaged in abnormal behavior other than coprophagy. Logistic regression models were used to analyze the historical variables that best predicted the occurrence of all abnormal behavior, any abnormal behavior that was not coprophagy, and coprophagy. Rearing had opposing effects on the occurrence of coprophagy and the other abnormal behaviors such that mother-reared individuals were more likely to perform coprophagy, whereas non-mother-reared individuals were more likely to perform other abnormal behaviors. These results support the assertion that coprophagy may be classified separately when assessing abnormal behavior and the welfare of captive chimpanzees. This robust evaluation of the prevalence of abnormal behavior in our sample from the U.S. zoo population also demonstrates the importance of considering the contribution of historical variables to present behavior, in order to better understand the causes of these behaviors and any potential relationship to psychological wellbeing.

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“…The AZA published a review of 17 institutions finding that 69% of the surveyed population of captive western lowland gorillas engaged in ARB [Mason et al, 2007]. For example, hairplucking and regurgitation and reingestion are particularly frequent among captive gorillas [Akers and Schildkraut, 1985;Gould and Bres, 1986;Less et al, 2013). Enrichment is effective for western lowland gorillas, as Rooney and Sleeman [1998] found using nonintrusive, inexpensive, and easily managed behavioral enrichment devices.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An investigation of the auditory perception of western lowland gorillas in an enrichment study

Brooker

2016

Zoo Biology

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Previous research has highlighted the varied effects of auditory enrichment on different captive animals. This study investigated how manipulating musical components can influence the behavior of a group of captive western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) at Bristol Zoo. The gorillas were observed during exposure to classical music, rock-and-roll music, and rainforest sounds. The two music conditions were modified to create five further conditions: unmanipulated, decreased pitch, increased pitch, decreased tempo, and increased tempo. We compared the prevalence of activity, anxiety, and social behaviors between the standard conditions. We also compared the prevalence of each of these behaviors across the manipulated conditions of each type of music independently and collectively. Control observations with no sound exposure were regularly scheduled between the observations of the 12 auditory conditions. The results suggest that naturalistic rainforest sounds had no influence on the anxiety of captive gorillas, contrary to past research. The tempo of music appears to be significantly associated with activity levels among this group, and social behavior may be affected by pitch. Low tempo music also may be effective at reducing anxiety behavior in captive gorillas. Regulated auditory enrichment may provide effective means of calming gorillas, or for facilitating active behavior. Zoo Biol. 35:398-408, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Assessing the prevalence and characteristics of hair-plucking behaviour in captive western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla)

Cited by 15 publications

References 22 publications

Hair plucking, stress, and urinary cortisol among captive bonobos (Pan paniscus)

Hair plucking, stress, and urinary cortisol among captive bonobos (Pan paniscus)

Characterizing abnormal behavior in a large population of zoo-housed chimpanzees: prevalence and potential influencing factors

An investigation of the auditory perception of western lowland gorillas in an enrichment study

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