Effects of Failure on California Sea Lion (Zalophus californianus) Gameplay Strategies and Interest in a Cognitive Task: Implications for Cognitive Enrichment in Pinnipeds
Cognitive enrichment for professionally managed species has become more prevalent in recent years in both zoological and research settings and has been encouraged as a means of welfare enhancement. However, the task’s difficulty must be specifically tailored as it can impact the successful nature of the sessions, as tasks that are too simple or difficult […]
The status and value of replications in animal behavior science
Replications are widely considered an essential tool to evaluate scientific claims. However, many fields have recently reported that replication rates are low and – when they are conducted – many findings do not successfully replicate. These circumstances have led to widespread debates about the value of replications for research quality, credibility of research findings, and […]
Synergy between behavioural research on beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) conducted in zoological and wild settings
Behavioural observations of captive beluga whales have complemented and extended much of what has been learnt about this species in the wild. Aquarium-based research has provided finer-scale specificity for many topics, including the seasonal breeding pattern that is characteristic of this species, as well as socio-sexual behaviour that appears to be an important part of […]
Bottlenose Dolphins Produce Underwater Bubbles Linked to Cognitive Task Engagement but Not Success
Captive mammals respond emotionally toward cognitive challenges, but research has precluded marine mammals. A potential indicator of emotion in toothed cetaceans is a large singular bubble (‘burst’) emitted from the blowhole, previously linked to surprise and excitement. Our study analysed bursts from a published study on dolphin cognitive enrichment. Bursts were only produced by task-engaged […]
High-Tech and Tactile: Cognitive Enrichment for Zoo-Housed Gorillas
The field of environmental enrichment for zoo animals, particularly great apes, has been revived by technological advancements such as touchscreen interfaces and motion sensors. However, direct animal-computer interaction (ACI) is impractical or undesirable for many zoos. We developed a modular cuboid puzzle maze for the troop of six Western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) at […]
Environmental enrichment for the captive spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus)
As part a series of investigations of environmental enrichment methods for zoo animals, two spectacled bears (Tremarctos ornatus) were observed for 40 h, documenting use of cage space and behaviors, using a detailed ethogram. Baseline data showed concentration of activity into limited areas of the enclosure and expression of a relatively restricted subset of the […]
Animal minds, cognitive ethology, and ethics
Our goal in this paper is to provide enough of an account of the origins of cognitive ethology and the controversy surrounding it to help ethicists to gauge for themselves how to balance skepticism and credulity about animal minds when communicating with scientists.We believe that ethicists’ argumentswould benefit from better understanding of the historical roots […]
Cognitive ethology, take three: Fascinating and frustrating questions about animal minds
Review of Animal Minds: Beyond Cognition to Consciousness by Donald R. Griffin
Cognitive ethology and the treatment of non-human animals: How matters of mind inform matters of welfare
Anthropocentric claims about the ways in which non-human animals (hereafter animals) interact in their social and non-social worlds are often used to influence decisions on how animals can or should be used by humans in various sorts of activities. Thus, the treatment of individuals is often tightly linked to how they are perceived with respect […]
Size matters: Impact of item size and quantity on array choice by chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)
The authors previously reported that chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes ) showed a striking bias to select the larger of 2 candy arrays, despite a reversed reward contingency in which the animals received the smaller, nonselected array as a reward, except when Arabic numerals were used as stimuli. A perceptual or incentive-based interference occurred that was […]