Testing use of the first multi-partner cognitive enrichment devices by a group of male bottlenose dolphins

Mátrai, Eszter; Kwok, Shaw Ting; Boos, Michael; Pogány, Ákos

doi:10.1007/s10071-022-01605-9

Cited by 6 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 66 publications

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“…The most recent addition to this literature is the suggestion that beyond complexity, environmental elements that provide cognitive challenges can further enhance animal welfare [128,129,143]. While there have been a few studies so far exploring the welfare effects of cognitive challenge with dolphins [153,155,156], further research is warranted to determine the characteristics that make effective cognitive challenges, and to explore positive welfare benefits that might encourage more widespread adoption of such experiences into standard zoological practice.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are Dolphins Kept in Impoverished Environments?

Jaakkola

2023

Animals

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Numerous studies have demonstrated the negative effects of impoverished environments versus the positive effects of enriched environments on animals’ cognitive and neural functioning. Recently, a hypothesis was raised suggesting that conditions for dolphins in zoological facilities may be inherently impoverished, and thus lead to neural and cognitive deficits. This review directly examines that hypothesis in light of the existing scientific literature relevant to dolphin welfare in zoological facilities. Specifically, it examines how dolphins are housed in modern zoological facilities, where the characteristics of such housing fall on the continuum of impoverished-to-enriched environments, and the extent to which dolphins show behavioral evidence characteristic of living in impoverished environments. The results of this analysis show that contrary to the original hypothesis, modern zoological facilities do not inherently, or even typically, house dolphins in impoverished conditions. However, it also notes that there is variation in animal welfare across different zoological facilities, and that “not impoverished” would be a particularly low bar to set as an animal welfare standard. To optimize cognitive well-being, strategies for providing additional cognitive challenges for dolphins in zoological facilities are suggested.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are Dolphins Kept in Impoverished Environments?

Jaakkola

2023

Animals

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“…For example, Yamanashi et al (2016) provided cognitively challenging feeders to zoo-housed chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) that were inspired by studies of wild chimpanzee foraging cognition (e.g., Yamakoshi and Sugiyama 1995;Matsuzawa et al 2011). Matrai et al (2020) evaluated whether a task originally designed to test cooperative problem-solving in Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus; Kuczaj et al 2015) was enriching for the genus, and this was followed by another enrichment evaluation of modified tasks with more complex shapes and cooperative partners (Matrai et al 2022). In farms, operant conditioning has been used as a form of cognitive challenge for pigs and goats (e.g., Ernst et al 2005;Kalbe and Puppe 2010;Zebunke et al 2013).…”

Section: The Motivementioning

confidence: 99%

“…As discussed previously, a ready-made pure cognitive task apparatus can be used as a form of CE (e.g., dolphins; Matrai et al 2020Matrai et al , 2022. This approach is appealing, because the laborious task design was already taken care of in the course of pure research.…”

Section: Experimental Expertisementioning

confidence: 99%

Bridging pure cognitive research and cognitive enrichment

Clark

2022

Anim Cogn

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Cognitive enrichment is a growing subset of environmental enrichment for captive animals. However, it has been difficult for practitioners to design, implement, and evaluate relevant and appropriate cognitive challenges. Even though pure comparative cognition researchers focus on fundamental evolutionary questions, their knowledge and expertise can also shape the future of cognitive enrichment. This paper describes the motive, means, and opportunity to do so. Taxon-specific summaries of animal cognition (including inter-individual variation in skill and effects of motivation), and experimental designs (including the task itself, training, and reward) need to be accessible to practitioners in applied settings, such as farms, zoos, and sanctuaries. Furthermore, I invite pure researchers to directly evaluate their cognitive research program as enrichment and thus bridge the disciplines of animal cognition and welfare.

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Cooperation increases bottlenose dolphins’ (Tursiops truncatus) social affiliation

Bigiani¹,

Pilenga²

2023

Anim Cogn

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Testing use of the first multi-partner cognitive enrichment devices by a group of male bottlenose dolphins

Cited by 6 publications

References 66 publications

Are Dolphins Kept in Impoverished Environments?

Are Dolphins Kept in Impoverished Environments?

Bridging pure cognitive research and cognitive enrichment

Cooperation increases bottlenose dolphins’ (Tursiops truncatus) social affiliation

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