The Effect of Altering Routine Husbandry Factors on Sleep Duration and Memory Consolidation in the Horse
Sleep is a critically important behaviour for all mammals due to its fundamental role within homeostatic/circadian systems and memory consolidation. As a large and vigilant prey species that is highly sensitive to stimuli at night, the horse sleeps less than other mammalian species. For this reason, the domestic environment has the potential to greatly affect […]
Total Eclipse of the Zoo: Animal Behavior during a Total Solar Eclipse
The infrequency of a total solar eclipse renders the event novel to those animals that experience its effects and, consequently, may induce anomalous behavioral responses. However, historical information on the responses of animals to eclipses is scant and often conflicting. In this study, we qualitatively document the responses of 17 vertebrate taxa (including mammals, birds, […]
Effects of blue- and red-enriched light on attention and sleep in typically developing adolescents
Differential effects of blue- and red-enriched light on attention and sleep have been primarily described in adults. In our cross-over study in typically developing adolescents (11–17 years old), we found attention enhancing effects of blue- compared to red-enriched light in the morning (high intensity of ca. 1000 lx, short duration: <1 h) in two of three attention tasks: […]
Improving Leg Health in Broiler Chickens: A Systematic Review of the Effect of Environmental Enrichment
Leg problems are highly prevalent in modern broiler production and provision of environmental enrichment could be a strategy to improve leg health. Different types of environmental enrichment have undergone evaluation. Our objective was to conduct a systematic review of the effect of environmental enrichment on leg health in broiler chickens. The evaluation of leg health […]
Plasma corticosterone increases during migratory restlessness in the captive white-crowned sparrow Zonotrichia leucophrys gambelli
Plasma corticosterone increases during the period of spring migration in a variety of bird species. Long-distance migrants show elevations in corticosterone specifically in association with the stage of flight, suggesting that corticosterone may support flight-related processes, for example, locomotor activity and/or energy mobilization. The pattern of corticosterone secretion as it relates to migratory flight has […]
A note on light preference in layer pullets reared in incandescent or natural light
The effect of early exposure of pullets to natural light may have an effect on the later preference for light type and on the behaviour of birds after being transferred to laying facilities. Our aim was to study the light-type preference of 14-week pullets reared in either incandescent or natural light. From day-old, a total […]
Light, Vision and the Welfare of Poultry
The visual system of domestic poultry evolved in natural light environments, which differ in many respects from the artificial light provided in poultry houses. Current lighting systems are designed mainly around human vision and poultry production, ignoring the requirements of poultry vision and the fimctional development of visual abilities during rearing. A poor correlation between […]
Understanding avian vision: The key to using light in bird management
Vision is a primary and highly developed sensory pathway in birds. Light, both diffuse and wavelength-specifc (e.g., as produced by lasers) has recently been demonstrated as a potential means of effecting changes in timing and consistency of flock response to an approaching vehicle (simulating an aircraft) and as an avian dirsal method. However, in experiments […]
The impact of chronic environmental stressors on growing pigs, Sus scrofa (Part 1): stress physiology, production and play behaviour
Commercially farmed animals are frequently housed in conditions that impose a number of concurrent environmental stressors. For pigs housed indoors, elevated levels of mechanical noise, atmospheric ammonia and low light intensities are commonplace. This experiment examined the effects on growing pigs of chronic exposure to combinations of commercially relevant levels of these potential stressors. Four-week-old […]
Natural incubation patterns and the effects of exposing eggs to light at various times during incubation on post-hatch fear and stress responses in broiler (meat) chickens
Although environmental conditions during incubation can affect poultry welfare, one factor often overlooked in the commercial incubation of eggs is light. Light stimulation during embryonic development is now known to affect the physiology and behavior of broiler (meat) chickens post-hatch, but little is known about the pattern of exposure needed to produce these effects. We […]