The Benefits of Increased Space and Habitat Complexity for the Welfare of Zoo-Housed King Penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus)

Abstract

Zoos and aquariums accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums embrace animal welfare as a foundational principle of habitat design. Modern habitats are designed to provide animals with choices and agency over their environment, and to encourage species-appropriate behavior and space use. In 2016, the Detroit Zoological Society opened the Polk Penguin Conservation Center, a 3065.80 m2 facility that features a naturalistic design. The building was designed to optimize animal welfare by incorporating various substrates, nesting sites, and a 1234 kL pool with elements of underwater complexity. The facility houses a mixed-species group of penguins that were previously housed in a smaller habitat that opened in 1968. Between 2015 and 2022, we opportunistically monitored the behavior of ten king penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) as they moved back and forth between the two buildings while additional modifications were made to the new habitat. We collected 695 h of behavioral observations and 10,416 h of data from flipper-mounted time–depth recorders. We found that the king penguins spent less time engaged in aggression and more time engaged in swimming and positive social behaviors in the redesigned space. They also spent less time in proximity to other species of penguins and more time alone. These behavioral trends suggest that increased space and environmental complexity had positive welfare benefits for these penguins.

Never be mute about bird welfare: Swanning around with environmental enrichment

“…Enclosure size and pool space may be a limiting factor on the amount of time spent swimming and any social dynamic may impact on how individual birds can use a pool. As has been noted in captive penguins (Sphenisciformes), changes to a birds' overall enclosure to increase the naturalism of an enclosure increases time spent in water and time spent on positive social behaviors(Fuller et al, 2023). Therefore, an extension of such a project should follow individual swans when housed in enclosures of a different size to be able to fully determine the effect of enclosure size on bird activity.…”