Ectoparasites of Columbina passerina insularis (Columbiformes) in the National Zoological Park, Havana, Cuba

Ectoparasites of 18 free-living Cuban Ground Doves, Columbina passerina insularis (Columbiformes: Columbidae), captured in the National Zoological Park, Havana, Cuba, were identified. The collected ectoparasites included two species of lice (Phthiraptera: Ischnocera): Columbicola passerinae (77.1%), and Physconelloides eurysema (50%), as well as four species of feather mites (Astigmata: Falculiferidae): Pterophagus lomatus (83.3%), Byersalges talpacoti (50%), Byersalges phyllophorus (72.2%), and Hyperaspidacarus tridentatus (27.7%). Pterophagus lomatus, B. phyllophorus, and H. tridentatus represent new records for Cuba.

Species Assemblage of Birds’ Community in Protected Areas of Delhi-NCR

Green spaces in cities especially in the capital city of India provide necessary recreational, social and psychological benefits to stressing residents of the city. Cities and towns depict the extreme human-modified environments with only remnants of the original habitats present. Study undertaken to know the abundance, diversity and species richness of avian fauna in urban protected landscapes of Delhi, NCR. In the following paper, the methods include data is extracted from e-Bird of past 40 years to illustrate the changing trend of bird species from 1980-2019 from 7 greenspaces of Delhi-NCR which are Aravalli Biodiversity Park, Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary, Deer Park, Dheerpur Wetland, National Zoological Park, Northern Ridge, Okhla Bird Sanctuary, Sanjay Van, Yamuna Biodiversity Park and analysed as box plots using PAST. The result showed a varied trend from 1980-2019, which included the usage of e-Bird by the period. The result indicated that the recent decade is well updated with data on e-Bird, hence several birds’ individual is maximumly observed from 2011-2019. The study has shown the wavy trend from 1980-2019 in species composition in the capital city of India. This also suggest that people have started recording observation on a single platform and shown interest in last decade. This study will lead to taking the necessary step to maintain the avian biodiversity in the green spaces of the capital city- Delhi-NCR.

NOVEL ANIMAL WELL BEING CENTRIC ZOO LAYOUT MODEL AND ITS APPLICATION AT DHAULADHAR NATURE PARK (A SMALL ZOOLOGICAL PARK)

Zoological parks are the ex-situ conservation facilities to complement and strengthen the national efforts in conservation and strengthen the rich biodiversity of the country, particularly the fauna.[1]The architectural design or the map of the zoo depicting location and dimensions of the office,exhibit area, indoor holding area, visitor paths etc are some of the major components of Master (Layout) Plan of the Zoo. Central Zoo Authority is the competent authority to approve the Master (Layout) Plan of the recognized zoological parks recognized by CZA. This Master (Layout) Plan model design takes into account of 3 key parameters that one should keep in mind while designing the zoo: Animal welfare (i.e., making animal housing facility as comfortable as possible), seamless visitor experience and smooth working of zoo management personnel.

I Wanna Draw Like You: Inter- and Intra-Individual Differences in Orang-Utan Drawings

This study analyses 749 drawings by five female Bornean orang-utans (Pongo pygmaeus) at Tama Zoological Park in Japan. We searched for differences between individuals but also tried to identify possible temporal changes among the drawings of one individual, Molly, who drew almost 1300 drawings from 2006 to 2011. An analysis of the drawings was carried out after collecting quantitative and qualitative variables. Our findings reveal evidence of differences in the drawing style of the five individuals as well as creative changes in Molly’s drawing style throughout her lifetime. Individuals differed in terms of the colours used, the space they filled, and the shapes (fan patterns, circles, or loops) they drew. Molly drew less and less as she grew older, and we found a significant difference between drawings produced in winter, when orang-utans were kept inside and had less activity, and those produced during other seasons. Our results suggest that the drawing behaviour of these five orang-utans is not random and that differences among individuals might reflect differences of styles, states of mind, and motivation to draw.

I Wanna Draw Like You: Inter- and Intra-Individual Differences in Orang-utan Drawings

This study analyses 749 drawings of five female Bornean orang-utans (Pongo pygmaeus) at Tama Zoological Park in Japan. We searched for differences between individuals but also tried to identify possible temporal changes among the drawings of one individual, Molly, who drew almost 1,300 drawings from 2006 to 2016. An analysis of the drawings was carried out after collecting quantitative and qualitative variables. Our findings reveal evidence of differences in the drawing style of the five individuals as well as creative changes in Molly’s drawing style throughout her lifetime. Individuals differed in terms of the colours used, the space they filled but also the shapes (fan patterns, circles or loops) they drew. Molly drew less and less as she grew older, and we found a significant difference between drawings produced in winter, when orang-utans were kept inside and had less activity, and those produced during other seasons. Our results suggest that the drawing behaviour of these five orang-utans is not random and that differences among individuals might reflect differences of styles, states of mind but also motivation to draw.

Measuring biodiversity from DNA in the air

Impacts of the biodiversity crisis far exceed our ability to monitor changes in terrestrial ecosystems. Environmental DNA has revolutionized aquatic biomonitoring, permitting remote population and diversity assessments. Here we demonstrate that DNA from terrestrial animals can now be collected from the air under natural conditions, a ground-breaking advance for terrestrial biomonitoring. Using air samples from a zoological park, where species are spatially confined and unique compared to native fauna, we show that DNA in air can be used to identify the captive species and their potential interactions with local taxa. Air samples contained DNA from 25 species of mammal and bird including 17 known (and distinct) terrestrial zoo species. We also identified food items from air sampled in enclosures and detected four taxa native to the local area, including the Eurasian hedgehog, endangered in the UK, and the muntjac deer, a locally established invasive species. Our data provide evidence that airDNA is concentrated around recently inhabited areas (e.g., indoor enclosures) but that there is dispersal away from the source suggesting an ecology to airDNA movement which highlights the potential for airDNA sampling at distance. Our data clearly demonstrate the profound potential of air as a source of DNA for global terrestrial biomonitoring and ecological analysis.