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Objective evaluation of a behavioral enrichment device for captive chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes )
Author(s) -
Bloomstrand M.,
Riddle K.,
Alford P.,
Maple T. L.
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
zoo biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.5
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1098-2361
pISSN - 0733-3188
DOI - 10.1002/zoo.1430050307
Subject(s) - troglodytes , biology , agonistic behaviour , environmental enrichment , zoology , national park , ecology , developmental psychology , psychology , aggression , endocrinology
A quantitative evaluation was made of a food puzzle designed to be a behavioral enrichment device for captive chimpanzees. Subjects were two social groups of chimpanzees housed in semifree‐ranging conditions at the University of Texas Science Park in Bastrop. Subjects used the device for a mean of 91.6 minutes after it was filled with peanuts. Group levels of agonistic interactions, displays, coprophagy, regurgitation, excessive grooming, and consumption of wood were not significantly altered by the use of the peanut box. However, the data indicate that some of these categories of behavior were significantly increased or decreased in individual animals. Although the food puzzle box appears to be a promising behavioral enrichment tool, the necessity of recognizing individual differences in response to environmental manipulations must be emphasized.