title: Elephant Management in North American Zoos: Environmental Enrichment, Feeding, Exercise, and Training.
abstract: The management of African (Loxodonta africana) and Asian (Elephas maximus) elephants in zoos involves a range of practices including feeding, exercise, training, and environmental enrichment. These practices are necessary to meet the elephants' nutritional, healthcare, and husbandry needs. However, these practices are not standardized, resulting in likely variation among zoos as well as differences in the way they are applied to individual elephants within a zoo. To characterize elephant management in North America, we collected survey data from zoos accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, developed 26 variables, generated population level descriptive statistics, and analyzed them to identify differences attributable to sex and species. Sixty-seven zoos submitted surveys describing the management of 224 elephants and the training experiences of 227 elephants. Asian elephants spent more time managed (defined as interacting directly with staff) than Africans (mean time managed: Asians = 56.9%; Africans = 48.6%; p<0.001), and managed time increased by 20.2% for every year of age for both species. Enrichment, feeding, and exercise programs were evaluated using diversity indices, with mean scores across zoos in the midrange for these measures. There were an average of 7.2 feedings every 24-hour period, with only 1.2 occurring during the nighttime. Feeding schedules were predictable at 47.5% of zoos. We also calculated the relative use of rewarding and aversive techniques employed during training interactions. The population median was seven on a scale from one (representing only aversive stimuli) to nine (representing only rewarding stimuli). The results of our study provide essential information for understanding management variation that could be relevant to welfare. Furthermore, the variables we created have been used in subsequent elephant welfare analyses.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science and Center for Animal Welfare, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America.|AWARE Institute, Portland, Oregon, United States of America.
authors.forename: Brian J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Greco
authors.affiliation: AWARE Institute, Portland, Oregon, United States of America.
authors.forename: Cheryl L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Meehan
authors.affiliation: Chicago Zoological Society-Brookfield Zoo, Brookfield, Illinois, United States of America.
authors.forename: Lance J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.affiliation: Oregon Zoo, Portland, Oregon, United States of America.
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Shepherdson
authors.affiliation: Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, National Zoological Park, Front Royal, Virginia, United States of America.
authors.forename: Kari A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Morfeld
authors.affiliation: Busch Gardens, Tampa, Florida, United States of America.
authors.forename: Jeff
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Andrews
authors.affiliation: CBSG North America, Apple Valley, Maine, United States of America.
authors.forename: Anne M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Baker
authors.affiliation: Honolulu Zoo, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States of America.
authors.forename: Kathy
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Carlstead
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
mesh_terms: D000822:Animal Husbandry / Q000592:standards*; D000827:Animal Welfare / Q000592:standards*; D000818:Animals; D000836:Animals, Zoo; D004606:Elephants / Q000502:physiology*; D004777:Environment; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006799:Housing, Animal / Q000592:standards*; D008297:Male; D009656:North America; D010805:Physical Conditioning, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D012931:Social Environment