Behavior in Zoo-Housed Captive Ring-Tailed (Lemur catta) and Red Ruffed (Varecia rubra) Lemurs at Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle, WA
Document Type
Poster
Campus where you would like to present
Ellensburg
Event Website
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source
Start Date
18-5-2020
Abstract
Literature on zoo visitors’ effects on animal behavior has yielded conflicting findings regarding the potential detrimental impact, with some studies positing that noise levels, rather than visitor numbers, are stressful to captive mammals. The current study observed behavior of red ruffed lemurs (n = 3) and ringtailed lemurs (n = 5) living in adjacent outdoor habitats at the Woodland Park Zoo, from July to October, 2019. For both lemur groups, vigilance to external sources, including overhead flight paths and construction noises, occupied the largest proportion of activity budgets after resting behaviors. Red ruffed lemurs spent a smaller proportion of their activity budgets on vigilance compared to ring-tailed lemurs; a surprising finding given research showing that vigilance is higher in smaller groups. The high levels of vigilance suggest that the zoo enclosures, which include waterfalls designed to mitigate the impact of external sounds, are not fully ameliorating potentially stressful environmental stimuli.
Recommended Citation
Belcher, Rhiannon; Huckell, Selene; Hernandez, Daniel Camacho; and Stanton, Cetacea, "Behavior in Zoo-Housed Captive Ring-Tailed (Lemur catta) and Red Ruffed (Varecia rubra) Lemurs at Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle, WA" (2020). Symposium Of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE). 107.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source/2020/COTS/107
Department/Program
Psychology
Additional Mentoring Department
https://cwu.studentopportunitycenter.com/2020/04/behavior-in-zoo-housed-captive-ring-tailed-lemur-catta-and-red-ruffed-varecia-rubra-lemurs-at-woodland-park-zoo-seattle-wa/
Behavior in Zoo-Housed Captive Ring-Tailed (Lemur catta) and Red Ruffed (Varecia rubra) Lemurs at Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle, WA
Ellensburg
Literature on zoo visitors’ effects on animal behavior has yielded conflicting findings regarding the potential detrimental impact, with some studies positing that noise levels, rather than visitor numbers, are stressful to captive mammals. The current study observed behavior of red ruffed lemurs (n = 3) and ringtailed lemurs (n = 5) living in adjacent outdoor habitats at the Woodland Park Zoo, from July to October, 2019. For both lemur groups, vigilance to external sources, including overhead flight paths and construction noises, occupied the largest proportion of activity budgets after resting behaviors. Red ruffed lemurs spent a smaller proportion of their activity budgets on vigilance compared to ring-tailed lemurs; a surprising finding given research showing that vigilance is higher in smaller groups. The high levels of vigilance suggest that the zoo enclosures, which include waterfalls designed to mitigate the impact of external sounds, are not fully ameliorating potentially stressful environmental stimuli.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source/2020/COTS/107
Faculty Mentor(s)
Kara Gabriel