The interplay of the physical landscape and social dynamics in shaping movement of African savanna elephants (loxodonta africana)

Free ranging African savanna elephants (Loxodonta africana) are increasingly impacted by human-induced habitat loss and poaching for ivory. Because elephants live in tightly knit groups, this combination of threats not only reduces the size of their populations but also degrades their social interactions. Long-term relationships with socially competent individuals, such as experienced seniors, benefit the ability of other group members to access limiting resources and avoid danger. Understanding how anthropogenic pressure may affect persistence of elephant populations is important, because elephants are an economically important keystone species. This doctoral thesis characterizes how individual elephants influence the movement of their social partners, and how the social network properties of elephant groups related to information sharing may change when socially competent members are killed by poachers. To that end, two techniques commonly used to study movement of individuals in their habitat, and one used to study the consequences of repeated social interactions, are modified and extended to incorporate a number of the social processes typically found in groups of elephants. First, an established, choice-based statistical framework for movement analysis is modified and validated using synthetic and empirical data. It allows for simultaneous modeling of the effects of the habitat quality and social interactions on individual movement choices. Next, this new model is applied to a unique set of remotely sensed tracks from five male elephants navigating across the same habitat in southern Africa. A key result is that known dominance relationships observed at water points and other gathering places are determined to persist even when elephants are ranging more widely across the landscape. Lastly, an existing \u27social network and poaching\u27 simulation model is parameterized with data from wild elephants. It reveals debilitating effects of poaching on various network metrics thought to correlate with group communication efficiency. The modeling and simulation tools developed over the course of this doctoral research may be generalized to include the influence of \u27dynamic points\u27 other than social conspecifics, such as predators or poachers, on long-term movement patterns, and thus may provide a tool to both understand and mitigate human-wildlife conflict. In addition, they may aid hypothesis testing about disturbance of social dynamics in animal systems subject to exploitation by humans or lethal management

A comparison of methods of quantifying and assessing the behaviour and welfare of Bornean Orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus): a case study at Twycross Zoo

The maintenance of both the psychological and physiological health of captive animals is a key priority of modern zoos. Recognising that characteristics of the captive environment have the potential to decrease animal welfare, methods for quantifying and assessing welfare have been developed as part of the process for improving animal welfare. Traditionally, observations of animal behaviour and quantifying time budgets in relation to those of the animals’ wild counterparts have been utilised to assess animal welfare. Hormonal assays have also been implemented to quantify the physiological stress response of animals in captivity and identify the extent of stress being experienced. Each of these methods focuses on a different indicator of animal welfare, is quantified in different ways and provides a different perspective on the welfare of the animals. Given the limited time and financial budgets available to zoos and animal carers, identifying the most appropriate method of welfare assessment would be advantageous in helping to secure the best possible health of captive animals and to maximise their value in captivity. This thesis implemented both behavioural observations and hormonal assays to identify the strengths and weaknesses of each methodology, and make recommendations for future research. The study involved a group of four Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) housed at Twycross Zoo. Behavioural observations involved continuous group sampling and the development of an ethogram to record a comprehensive account of orangutan activity over the course of a 12 week enrichment programme. Simultaneous to these observations, faecal samples were collected from each orangutan and processed via Enzyme Immunoassay (EIA) to quantify levels of faecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fGCM) in each sample. While recognising the recent developments in ecological analytical methods, the capacity for extending network analysis beyond the application to social networks, and its use as a welfare assessment tool were explored. Behavioural and space-use networks were developed using data from a second study of the orangutans housed at Twycross Zoo. The flexibility of network analysis in visually representing different data types allowed for the intuitive representation of complex behavioural data. Further research investigated the use of network metrics in providing deeper insights into animal behaviour and space use patterns. In addition, bipartite networks were assessed for their potential to detect and show patterns in the relationships between two sets of behavioural data. Each of the methods used had a number of strengths and weaknesses, but importantly each contributed a different perspective in the assessment of behaviour patterns and welfare, suggesting that an integrated approach to behaviour studies utilising several methods would be ideal. Cost and logistic constraints make this unlikely in most cases. However, the thesis ends with a look to the future and the recognition that the current rapid development of technology for use in animal behaviour studies, coupled with equally rapid development of analytical techniques, may help to dramatically increase the amount of information gained from the average animal behaviour study in the future. Such improvements have never been more urgent, with the requirement for understanding animal behaviour in light of current extinction rates within the context of habitat destruction and climate change. It is hoped that this thesis will make a contribution to improving future animal behaviour and welfare studies by providing an assessment of both traditional methods of study as well as demonstrating the use and potential of new ways of applying network analysis within such studies

Life Sciences Program Tasks and Bibliography for FY 1996

This document includes information on all peer reviewed projects funded by the Office of Life and Microgravity Sciences and Applications, Life Sciences Division during fiscal year 1996. This document will be published annually and made available to scientists in the space life sciences field both as a hard copy and as an interactive Internet web page

Measuring Behavior 2018 Conference Proceedings

These proceedings contain the papers presented at Measuring Behavior 2018, the 11th International Conference on Methods and Techniques in Behavioral Research. The conference was organised by Manchester Metropolitan University, in collaboration with Noldus Information Technology. The conference was held during June 5th – 8th, 2018 in Manchester, UK. Building on the format that has emerged from previous meetings, we hosted a fascinating program about a wide variety of methodological aspects of the behavioral sciences. We had scientific presentations scheduled into seven general oral sessions and fifteen symposia, which covered a topical spread from rodent to human behavior. We had fourteen demonstrations, in which academics and companies demonstrated their latest prototypes. The scientific program also contained three workshops, one tutorial and a number of scientific discussion sessions. We also had scientific tours of our facilities at Manchester Metropolitan Univeristy, and the nearby British Cycling Velodrome. We hope this proceedings caters for many of your interests and we look forward to seeing and hearing more of your contributions

Life Sciences Program Tasks and Bibliography

This document includes information on all peer reviewed projects funded by the Office of Life and Microgravity Sciences and Applications, Life Sciences Division during fiscal year 1995. Additionally, this inaugural edition of the Task Book includes information for FY 1994 programs. This document will be published annually and made available to scientists in the space life sciences field both as a hard copy and as an interactive Internet web pag