Effects of age at pairing on reproduction in captive California condors (Gymnogyps californianus)
Abstract 10.1002/zoo.1430130103.abs The lack of breeding behavior seen in some pairs of adult California condors, Gymnogyps californianus, is of great concern for the captive breeding program. One possible cause for absent or delayed breeding in what are otherwise seemingly compatible animals is inbreeding avoidance behavior. To examine this possibility, housing and reproduction records were examined […]
Use of surrogate parental models and age periods in a successful release of hand-reared sandhill cranes
Abstract 10.1002/zoo.1430080408.abs Ten sandhill crane chicks were reared in isolation from humans to prepare them for an experimental wild release. They were imprinted on realistic models using crane brooding calls and were fed by crane-like puppets. Six of the chicks were simultaneously imprinted on a human in a crane costume. The other four chicks were […]
The development of behaviour- trends since Tinbergen (1963)
Niko Tinbergen (1963) put behavioural development on the map as one of the four main problems in behavioural biology. Developmental research at the time was still in the grip of the nature/nurture debate. In his discussion, Tinbergen advocated an interactionist approach to development, which has been the main point of view in developmental research since […]
Gangs of piglets: Welfare and growth of imprinted and guided weaners
Weaning stress accompanied by outburst of aggression is a critical point in pig production as it compromises piglets’ welfare and leads to poor growth rate and health problems. Therefore, a weaning methods to smoothen the lactation–weaning transition are of great importance. In the present study a simple practical approach based on the imprinting phenomenon to […]