Invisible Invertebrates: The Welfare of Invertebrates in Public Aquaria
Awareness of welfare issues within animal collections is increasing as information becomes more accessible for staff and the public. A knowledge gap remains when considering the welfare of invertebrates, particularly when housed in public aquaria. TripAdvisor comments were analyzed for 485 worldwide aquariums. The public focused on anthropogenic features or charismatic organisms within collections. Invertebrate […]
Assessing the Welfare of Captive Group-Housed Cockroaches, Gromphadorhina oblongonota
The welfare of invertebrates under human care is of growing concern, particularly with the increasing interest in insect farming as an environmentally sustainable means of producing food. Additionally, individual welfare monitoring systems can be time-consuming and impractical for larger groups, particularly when individual animals are difficult to identify. It is, therefore, imperative to develop a […]
Does Handling for Public Talks in Zoos Affect the Behaviour of Captive Mexican Red-Kneed Spiders Brachypelma hamorii?
Zoos include invertebrates in visitor interaction sessions to educate and spread conservation messages to the public. Yet, the welfare implications of these encounters on invertebrates are unstudied. Empirical studies reveal negative effects of handling on vertebrate species, thus providing reason to investigate impacts on invertebrates. Mexican red-kneed spiders Brachypelma hamorii are regularly handled by keepers […]
Effects of handling and short-term captivity: a multi-behaviour approach using red sea urchins, Mesocentrotus franciscanus
Understanding the effects of captivity-induced stress on wild-caught animals after their release back into the wild is critical for the long-term success of relocation and reintroduction programs. To date, most of the research on captivity stress has focused on vertebrates, with far less attention paid to invertebrates. Here, we examine the effect of short-term captivity […]
Animal Suffering: An Invertebrate Perspective
Consideration of the welfare of other animals often is anthropocentric, focusing usually on mammals similar to humans. This article argues the necessity of evaluating the extension of such consideration more widely to invertebrates. Although unlike humans, some groups such as cephalopod molluscs probably have the potential for pain and suffering. In addition, a morality of […]
Nociception or pain in a decapod crustacean?
Nociception is the ability to perceive a noxious stimulus and react in a reflexive manner and occurs across a wide range of taxa. However, the ability to experience the associated aversive sensation and feeling, known as pain, is not widely accepted to occur in nonvertebrates. We examined the responses of a decapod crustacean, the prawn, […]
An Investigation Into the Chemical Composition of Alternative Invertebrate Prey
The aim of this study was to determine the chemical composition of eight invertebrate species and evaluate their suitability as alternative prey. The species selected were rusty red cockroaches (Blatta lateralis), six-spotted cockroaches (Eublaberus distanti), Madagascar hissing cockroaches (Gromphadorhina portentosa), fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster), false katydids (Microcentrum rhombifolium), beetles of the mealworm (Tenebrio molitor), and […]
Differences in carotenoid accumulation among three feeder-cricket species: implications for carotenoid delivery to captive insectivores
There are a limited number of feeder-invertebrates available to feed captive insectivores, and many are deficient in certain nutrients. Gut-loading is used to increase the diversity of nutrients present in the captive insectivore diet; however, little is known about delivery of carotenoids via gut-loading. Carotenoids may influence health and reproduction due to their roles in […]
Preference assessments in the zoo: Keeper and staff predictions of enrichment preferences across species
Environmental enrichment is widely used in the management of zoo animals, and is an essential strategy for increasing the behavioral welfare of these populations. It may be difficult, however, to identify potentially effective enrichment strategies that are also cost-effective and readily available. An animal’s preference for a potential enrichment item may be a reliable predictor […]
Feeding live invertebrate prey in zoos and aquaria: Are there welfare concerns?
Invertebrates constitute more than 90% of all species on earth, however, as a rule, humans do not regard invertebrates as creatures that can suffer and they are generally seen as creatures that should be eliminated. As a result, the importance of their welfare may be grossly unappreciated. For instance, the feeding of live food is […]