Play and Emotion

The most important feature in interpreting observed emotions in both humans and animals is the context in which the assumed emotion occurs. The same can be said for play. Wrestling between two individuals can be interpreted as either aggressive or playful depending on the amount of self-handicapping, mutual pauses, and damaging fighting tactics that occur during the wrestling bout. Play and emotion are intimately intertwined, and this relationship provides an invaluable context in which to study emotions. In this chapter, we discuss the inherent difficulties in the investigation of play and emotion. We also consider the roles of solitary and social play behavior in individuals’ acquisition of both physical and mental skills, including the manner in which play may facilitate the manipulation of one’s own emotions in pretense and the ability to correctly interpret and respond to a play partner’s emotions

Variations in Interspecific Behavior Throughout the Estrous Cycle of a Killer Whale (\u3ci\u3eOrcinus orca\u3c/i\u3e)

The article presents a study which investigates the interspecific behavior variations of killer whale throughout the estrous cycle. It notes that blood serum progesterone concentrations and real-time B-mode ultrasound scans were analyzed while behavioral events in the five estrous cycle were recorded in the study. It states that the study found that rate and duration of female killer whale\u27s pair swimming decrease when her progesterone concentrations were low

Personality Assessment in African Elephants (\u3ci\u3eLoxodonta africana\u3c/i\u3e): Comparing the Temporal Stability of Ethological Coding Versus Trait Rating

The consistency of personality assessment was addressed in this study of 12 zoological African elephants living at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido, CA, USA during the 2010 and 2011 summer seasons. Using 480 h of observational behavior data, three personality traits were determined based on behavior events, with the most significant correlations (two-tailed rs \u3e 0.77, P \u3c 0.005) being playful, curious, and sociable. During both summers, the animal care staff rated all elephants across 25 adjective items. Four rating-based personality traits were then clustered based on items with the most significant correlations (one-tailed rs \u3e 0.72, P \u3c 0.005): playful, observant, shy and confident. All seven personality traits correlated significantly (P \u3c 0.05) from 2010 to 2011 for each individual elephant, demonstrating temporal stability. Additionally, the coded playful trait was correlated significantly (P \u3c 0.01) to the rated trait playful, demonstrating construct validity and cross-method consistency. These results suggest that humans have the ability to discriminate zoo elephant personalities reliably and accurately. This, therefore, suggests that rating of zoo elephant personalities by caretakers with extensive knowledge of the species’ behavioral repertoire may be a valid proxy for long-term behavioral monitoring. Personality assessments may allow animal caretakers to identify appropriate roles for certain individuals (i.e., social compatibility, operant training, and transport to another facility), aid the individualization of environmental enrichment, and provide vital predictors of coping ability (i.e., stress response/resiliency)

Diurnal and Nocturnal Activity Budgets of Zoo Elephants In an Outdoor Facility

The present study examined the activity budgets of 15 African elephants (1 bull, 6 cows, 2 male juveniles, 2 female juveniles, and 4 male calves) living at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park during the summers of 2010 and 2011. Onsite behavioral data (n = 600 hr) were collected for approximately 12 weeks from 0400 to 0830 and 1100 to 2400 during the 2010 and 2011 summer season. Foraging was the most common behavior state during the day followed by resting, and walking. During the evening hours, the elephants spent majority of their time foraging, resting, and sleeping. The average rate of self-maintenance behavior events (dust, wallow, etc.) increased from 0600 to 0700, 1100 to 1500, and from 1700 to 1900. Positive social behavior events (touch other, play, etc.) remained high from 0500 to 2300, with peaks at 0600, 1300, 1500, and 1900. Negative social events occurred at low rates throughout the day and night, with peaks at 0600, 1900, and 2200. The majority of positive behavior events during the daylight and nighttime hours involved the mother-calf pairs. Furthermore, the calves and juveniles initiated approximately 60% of all social events during the daytime and 57% of all social interactions at night. The results of this study demonstrate the differences between diurnal and nocturnal activity budgets of a multi-age and sex elephant herd in a zoological facility, which highlights the importance of managing elephants to meet their 24 hr behavioral needs. Zoo Biol. 33:403–410, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals Inc