title: Evaluation of Demographics and Social Life Events of Asian (Elephas maximus) and African Elephants (Loxodonta africana) in North American Zoos.
abstract: This study quantified social life events hypothesized to affect the welfare of zoo African and Asian elephants, focusing on animals that were part of a large multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional elephant welfare study in North America. Age was calculated based on recorded birth dates and an age-based account of life event data for each elephant was compiled. These event histories included facility transfers, births and deaths of offspring, and births and deaths of non-offspring herd mates. Each event was evaluated as a total number of events per elephant, lifetime rate of event exposure, and age at first event exposure. These were then compared across three categories: species (African vs. Asian); sex (male vs. female); and origin (imported vs. captive-born). Mean age distributions differed (p<0.05) between the categories: African elephants were 6 years younger than Asian elephants, males were 12 years younger than females, and captive-born elephants were 20 years younger than imported elephants. Overall, the number of transfers ranged from 0 to 10, with a 33% higher age-adjusted transfer rate for imported African than imported Asian elephants, and 37% lower rate for imported females than males (p<0.05). Other differences (p<0.05) included a 96% higher rate of offspring births for captive-born females than those imported from range countries, a 159% higher rate of birthing event exposures for captive-born males than for their imported counterparts, and Asian elephant females being 4 years younger than African females when they produced their first calf. In summarizing demographic and social life events of elephants in North American zoos, we found both qualitative and quantitative differences in the early lives of imported versus captive-born elephants that could have long-term welfare implications.
authors.affiliation: Center for Species Survival, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Front Royal, Virginia, United States of America.|Department of Environmental Science and Policy, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, United States of America.
authors.forename: Natalia A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Prado-Oviedo
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science and Center for Animal Welfare, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Mary K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Bonaparte-Saller
authors.affiliation: Department of Mathematics and Statistics, American University, 4400 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, District of Columbia, United States of America.
authors.forename: Elizabeth J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Malloy
authors.affiliation: AWARE Institute, Portland, Oregon, United States of America.
authors.forename: Cheryl L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Meehan
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science and Center for Animal Welfare, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Joy A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Mench
authors.affiliation: Independent Researcher, Portland, Oregon, United States of America.
authors.forename: Kathy
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Carlstead
authors.affiliation: Center for Species Survival, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Front Royal, Virginia, United States of America.
authors.forename: Janine L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Brown
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000827:Animal Welfare; D000818:Animals; D000836:Animals, Zoo; D004606:Elephants; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D009656:North America; D012098:Reproduction / Q000502:physiology*; D012737:Sex Factors; D012931:Social Environment