Role of Personality in Behavioral Responses to New Environments in Captive Asiatic Lions<i> (Panthera leo persica)</i>

Pastorino, Giovanni Quintavalle; Viau, Anna; Curone, Giulio; Pearce-Kelly, Paul; Faustini, M.; Vigo, D.; Mazzola, Silvia; Preziosi, Richard F.

doi:10.1155/2017/6585380

Cited by 13 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…Focal animal behavioural observations using continuous sampling were completed to record the state and event behaviours for each animal [15]. Each 80 minute observation period was divided such that 10 minutes were spent observing each animal [29].…”

Section: External Enclosuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At a later stage of the study, each video shot was analyzed in order to recheck the correct succession of the events during the behavioral observation. The behaviors were recorded based on a standardized lions ethogram [15], which was adapted for this project based on behaviors observed during a preliminary pilot study (Table 2). To create activity budgets, similar behaviors were put into classes (Table 3), based on groups in similar research [15].…”

Section: External Enclosuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The spread of participation index (SPI) was calculated to determine evenness of enclosure use. SPI was developed as previously described [15] to allow for zones of unequal areas. Possible SPI values range from 0 (even use of the enclosure) to 1 (uneven use of the enclosure).…”

Section: Enclosure Usage and Spread Of Participation Index (Spi)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In order to evaluate the strength of relationships between individuals, we calculated the Association index values (AI) for each relationship, as used by Schaller [30] and described elsewere [15]. This data considers the time that each animal spends in proximity of another tiger (i.e., at body-length or nearer).…”

Section: Association Indexmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Methods recently formalized and adapted [8] have allowed the demonstration that personality can be detected across a wide spectrum of animal species [9,10]. One reliable method to evaluate personality is behavioral coding, where objective data is collected during behavioral observations, either under normal circumstances or in response to specific tests [4,11,12,13,14,15].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Personality and Sociality in Captive Tigers (Panthera tigris)

Pastorino

Paini

Williams

et al. 2017

ARRB

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Aims:In this study we assessed the personality and sociality of eight zoo tigers. Place and Duration of the Study: This study was conducted over five months at Le Cornelle Faunistic Park (Valbrembo, BG, Italy). Methodology: A multifaceted approach of observer ratings (rating method) and keeper questionnaires (coding method) was used to produce personality profiles for each tiger. Focal animal behavioural observations allowed the production of time budgets and enclosure usage for each animal. Sociality was measured through Association Index, both for intraspecific (tiger-tiger) ARRB, 21(2): 1-17, 2017; Article no.ARRB.38122 2 and interspecific (keeper-tiger) dyads. Keeper Association Index and eventual tiger affiliative behavior towards keepers was measured during indoor interactions in the morning and in the evening at lock up and feeding times. Results: All the results outlined a distinct personality in each animal, different levels of intraspecific sociality and affiliative behavior towards each keeper. Conclusions: We advocate that this deeper understanding of each animal's personality and behavior can offer practical help to zoological institutions to facilitate daily husbandry, animal welfare, tailor training or enrichment and ultimately increase reproductive success. Original Research Article

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Section: External Enclosuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: External Enclosuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Enclosure Usage and Spread Of Participation Index (Spi)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Association Indexmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Personality and Sociality in Captive Tigers (Panthera tigris)

Pastorino

Paini

Williams

et al. 2017

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Effects of a combined enrichment intervention on the behavioural and physiological welfare of captive Asiatic lions (Panthera leo persica)

Goswami

Patel

Kadivar³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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The endangered Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica) is currently distributed as a single wild population of 670 individuals and ~400 captive animals globally. Although the captive lions are major hope for the species long-term conservation through repatriation, their welfare status and management practises need research attention. To this end, we tested the efficacy of feeding, sensory and manipulable enrichment interventions on the welfare of Asiatic lions at the conservation breeding centre of Sakkarbaug Zoological Garden, Gujarat. We adopted a holistic approach by measuring physiological and behavioural responses of 35 captive Asiatic lions, divided into control (n=16) and test (n=19) groups. The test subjects approached feeding devices first and manipulable devices for a longer duration. Manipulable devices were used homogenously with two significant time peaks, but sensory devices were used sporadically throughout the day with no discernible peak usage. The control subjects remained unchanged in all welfare parameters compared to their pre-treatment levels. However, post-enrichment behavioural assessments showed higher behaviour diversity (95% increase from the baseline period), reduced enclosure zone bias (40.25% reduction) and aberrant repetitive behaviours (80.68%) in test samples. Similarly, faecal corticosterone measures showed lower stress levels in test samples (58% decrease), confirming significant improvement in all welfare indices than control groups. These results have universal applicability to assess welfare indices of other captive species in Indian zoos. We hope that the results will encourage zoo managers and regulatory agencies to improve animal welfare practices.

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Personality matters: exploring the relationship between personality and stress physiology in captive African lions

Vaz¹,

Bartley²,

Hunt³

2022

BMC Zool

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Background Considering animals as individuals and not as species is becoming increasingly essential to animal welfare management in captive settings. Recent studies on big cat personalities and coping strategies suggest personality can help big cats cope in their surroundings. Yet a large portion of the published literature focuses on understanding either the personality or stress physiology of big cats. Our research shows how integrating an improved understanding of the personality of big cats with stress physiology may enhance welfare, especially for endangered species like African lions. By using a wild cat personality checklist, this study compared the key personality dimensions of 22 African lions with its faecal glucocorticoids and assessed factors influencing their personality and stress physiology. Results We found two reliable personality dimensions for African lions (dominance and agreeableness) and identified key factors (sex, age and location) that may influence their personality. Further, on testing if these factors influenced the stress physiology through variations in glucocorticoid levels, there was no significant difference. However, there was a strong negative association between agreeableness and glucocorticoid levels. These results suggest that the behavioural traits loading positively and higher for agreeableness are associated with lower glucocorticoid stress levels, which may assist a lion to cope with stressors in its surroundings. Conclusions Our findings highlight this integrated approach of linking personality and stress physiology of big cats can be beneficial for caretakers. For example, during stressful veterinary procedures or in reintroduction programs, recognizing the personality of lions can help in designing or providing them with resources that will alleviate stress. Thus, there is a need for more interdisciplinary approaches that will contribute towards enhancing the individual and overall welfare of big cats.

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Role of Personality in Behavioral Responses to New Environments in Captive Asiatic Lions (Panthera leo persica)

Cited by 13 publications

References 28 publications

Personality and Sociality in Captive Tigers (Panthera tigris)

Personality and Sociality in Captive Tigers (Panthera tigris)

Effects of a combined enrichment intervention on the behavioural and physiological welfare of captive Asiatic lions (Panthera leo persica)

Personality matters: exploring the relationship between personality and stress physiology in captive African lions

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