scholarly journals Evaluating the Influence of Conspecifics on a Male Giant Anteater's (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) Pacing Behavior

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 556-566
Author(s):  
Adrienne E. Eyer ◽  
Lance J. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Treatment Phase ◽  
Stereotypic Behavior ◽  
Randomization Tests ◽  
Bout Duration ◽  
Sense Of Smell ◽  
Opposite Quadrant ◽  
Instantaneous Sampling ◽  
Potential Measure ◽  
Professional Care

Stereotypic behavior has been studied in various species, but little information exists on stereotypies in giant anteaters (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) under professional care. Giant anteaters are known for their solitary nature and well-developed sense of smell. This study examined the effect of conspecifics who were housed off-exhibit on a male giant anteater’s rate of pacing and pacing intensity when he was on-exhibit. Instantaneous sampling was used to determine the percentage of time pacing, the number of pacing bouts and pacing bout duration. Randomization tests determined that the reduction in the male giant anteater’s rate of pacing significantly decreased after conspecifics were relocated to a different building. Pacing bout duration, a potential measure of intensity, also significantly decreased during the treatment phase. In addition, the giant anteater changed his pacing location after the removal of conspecifics. He transitioned from pacing near the conspecifics’ off-exhibit location during the baseline to the opposite quadrant of the exhibit after their departure. These results suggest that keeping a male giant anteater in proximity to conspecifics without the ability to interact with them had an impact on his behavior. Better understanding the motivations for stereotypic behaviors of giant anteaters will better inform housing decisions made by zoo professionals.

scholarly journals Relationships between animal management and habitat characteristics with two potential indicators of welfare for bottlenose dolphins under professional care

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (8) ◽  
pp. e0252861
Author(s):  
Lance J. Miller ◽  
Lisa K. Lauderdale ◽  
Jill D. Mellen ◽  
Michael T. Walsh ◽  
Douglas A. Granger
Keyword(s):  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Environmental Enrichment ◽  
Inverse Relationship ◽  
Bottlenose Dolphins ◽  
Habitat Characteristics ◽  
Stereotypic Behavior ◽  
Behavioral Diversity ◽  
Animal Management ◽  
Professional Care ◽  
Management Factors

Accredited zoos and aquariums continually strive to ensure high levels of animal welfare for the animals under their professional care. Best management practices include conducting research to better understand factors that lead to optimal welfare and then turning findings into practice. The current study is part of the larger Cetacean Welfare Study or more formally, “Towards understanding the welfare of cetaceans in zoos and aquariums.” Facilities participating in the study were accredited by the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums and/or the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Animal management factors and habitat characteristics were examined in relation to two potential indicators of welfare for common (Tursiops truncatus) and Indo-Pacific (Tursiops aduncus) bottlenose dolphins. Specifically, we examined environmental enrichment, animal training, and habitat characteristics that were significantly related to behavioral diversity and route tracing, a form of stereotypic behavior. Behavior was recorded from 47 animals at 25 facilities around the world. Overall, the rate of route tracing behavior observed during the study was very low and few animal management factors or habitat characteristics were found to be related to this behavior. One factor, enrichment diversity, had a significant positive relationship with route tracing and an inverse relationship with behavioral diversity. This finding may be a product of a response mounted by animal care specialists to the behavior as opposed to a cause. Animals that engaged in this behavior were likely provided more diverse enrichment in attempts to ameliorate the stereotypic behavior. However, multiple factors were found to significantly relate to behavioral diversity, a potential positive indicator of welfare for bottlenose dolphins. Dolphins that were trained on a predictable schedule had higher behavioral diversity than those on a semi-predictable schedule. There was a positive significant relationship between behavioral diversity and the number of habitats to which an animal had access, and a significant inverse relationship with the maximum depth of the habitat. Finally, animals that were split into groups and reunited or rotated between subgroups had higher behavioral diversity than animals managed in the same group. Information gained from the current study suggested that animal management techniques may be more important in ensuring good welfare for bottlenose dolphins than focusing on habitat size.

An Initial Investigation of Suicide Attempt Disclosures Among US Veterans

Crisis ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Brooke A. Ammerman ◽  
Sarah P. Carter ◽  
Heather M. Gebhardt ◽  
Jonathan Buchholz ◽  
Mark A. Reger
Keyword(s):  
Suicide Attempt ◽  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Psychiatric Treatment ◽  
Small Sample Size ◽  
Romantic Partners ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Professional Care ◽  
Patient Disclosure ◽  
Previous Suicide Attempt

Abstract. Background: Patient disclosure of prior suicidal behaviors is critical for effectively managing suicide risk; however, many attempts go undisclosed. Aims: The current study explored how responses following a suicide attempt disclosure may relate to help-seeking outcomes. Method: Participants included 37 veterans with a previous suicide attempt receiving inpatient psychiatric treatment. Veterans reported on their most and least helpful experiences disclosing their suicide attempt to others. Results: Veterans disclosed their suicide attempt to approximately eight individuals. Mental health professionals were the most cited recipient of their most helpful disclosure; romantic partners were the most common recipient of their least helpful disclosures. Positive reactions within the context of the least helpful disclosure experience were positively associated with a sense of connection with the disclosure recipient. Positive reactions within the most helpful disclosure experience were positively associated with the likelihood of future disclosure. No reactions were associated with having sought professional care or likelihood of seeking professional care. Limitations: The results are considered preliminary due to the small sample size. Conclusion: Findings suggest that while positive reactions may influence suicide attempt disclosure experiences broadly, additional research is needed to clarify factors that drive the decision to disclose a suicide attempt to a professional.

Self-Reported Sense of Smell Predicts Disgust Sensitivity and Disgust Reactivity

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 191-195
Author(s):  
Nicholas J. Kelley ◽  
Adrienne L. Crowell
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Individual Difference ◽  
Olfactory Stimulus ◽  
Disgust Sensitivity ◽  
Sense Of Smell ◽  
Olfactory Ability ◽  
Good Proxy ◽  
Insight Into

Abstract. Two studies tested the hypothesis that self-reported sense of smell (i.e., metacognitive insight into one’s olfactory ability) predicts disgust sensitivity and disgust reactivity. Consistent with our predictions two studies demonstrated that disgust correlates with self-reported sense of smell. Studies 1 and 2 demonstrated, from an individual difference perspective, that trait-like differences in disgust relate to self-reported sense of smell. Physical forms of disgust (i.e., sexual and pathogen disgust) drove this association. However, the association between self-reported sense of smell and disgust sensitivity is small, suggesting that it is likely not a good proxy for disgust sensitivity. The results of Study 2 extended this finding by demonstrating that individual differences in self-reported sense of smell influence how individuals react to a disgusting olfactory stimulus. Those who reported having a better sense of smell (or better insight into their olfactory ability) found a disgusting smell significantly more noxious as compared to participants reporting having a poor sense of smell (or poor insight into their olfactory ability). The current findings suggest that a one-item measure of self-reported sense of smell may be an effective tool in disgust research.

Randomization Tests: Panacea or Merely Significant?

1982 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-114
Author(s):  
Karen Banks Carsrud
Keyword(s):  
Randomization Tests

A Pleasing Odour for Yahweh

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-24
Author(s):  
Anne Katrine De Hemmer Gudme
Keyword(s):  
Hebrew Bible ◽  
Sacred Space ◽  
Ancient World ◽  
Hellenistic Period ◽  
The Sun ◽  
The West ◽  
Sense Of Smell ◽  
The Temple ◽  
Crucial Part

This article investigates the importance of smell in the sacrificial cults of the ancient Mediterranean, using the Yahweh temple on Mount Gerizim and the Hebrew Bible as a case-study. The material shows that smell was an important factor in delineating sacred space in the ancient world and that the sense of smell was a crucial part of the conceptualization of the meeting between the human and the divine.  In the Hebrew Bible, the temple cult is pervaded by smell. There is the sacred oil laced with spices and aromatics with which the sanctuary and the priests are anointed. There is the fragrant and luxurious incense, which is burnt every day in front of Yahweh and finally there are the sacrifices and offerings that are burnt on the altar as ‘gifts of fire’ and as ‘pleasing odors’ to Yahweh. The gifts that are given to Yahweh are explicitly described as pleasing to the deity’s sense of smell. On Mount Gerizim, which is close to present-day Nablus on the west bank, there once stood a temple dedicated to the god Yahweh, whom we also know from the Hebrew Bible. The temple was in use from the Persian to the Hellenistic period (ca. 450 – 110 BCE) and during this time thousands of animals (mostly goats, sheep, pigeons and cows) were slaughtered and burnt on the altar as gifts to Yahweh. The worshippers who came to the sanctuary – and we know some of them by name because they left inscriptions commemorating their visit to the temple – would have experienced an overwhelming combination of smells: the smell of spicy herbs baked by the sun that is carried by the wind, the smell of humans standing close together and the smell of animals, of dung and blood, and behind it all as a backdrop of scent the constant smell of the sacrificial smoke that rises to the sky.

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