Elephants under human care : the behaviour, ecology, and welfare of elephants in captivity

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Elephants Under Human Care Copyright Contents Dedication Quote Acknowledgements Preface Who is this book for? ‘Zoo elephant’ or ‘elephant living in a zoo’: a note on terminology 1 Elephants and their relationship with humans 1.1 Another book about elephants 1.2 What is an elephant? 1.2.1 Elephant taxonomy 1.3 Conservation status 1.3.1 The status of Asian elephants in the wild 1.3.2 The status of African elephants in the wild 1.4 The human use of elephants 1.4.1 Elephants in ancient times 1.4.2 Have elephants been domesticated? 1.4.3 Ceremonial and religious use of elephants; elephants as gifts 1.4.4 The use of elephants for transportation and as weapons of war 1.4.5 Elephants and forestry operations 1.4.6 Elephants as entertainers: circuses, sports and tourism 1.4.7 Elephants as ambassadors for conservation 1.5 The beginning of elephant research 1.5.1 Aristotle and elephants 1.5.2 Anatomical research 1.5.3 Anecdotes as a source of knowledge about elephants 1.5.4 Papers in academic journals 1.5.5 Early physiological research 1.6 Unacceptable elephant science 1.7 Captive elephants as proxies for wild elephants 2 Ethological data collection and elephant activity budgets 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Methodology 2.2.1 Identifying individuals 2.2.2 Studying elephants in zoos 2.2.3 Ethograms 2.2.4 Methodological difficulties 2.2.5 Data collection by caregivers 2.3 Activity budgets 2.3.1 Introduction 2.3.2 Feeding 2.3.3 Dusting 2.3.4 Walking 2.3.5 Resting, sleeping and nocturnal behaviour 2.4 The 24-hour needs of elephants in zoos 3 Elephant social structure, behaviour and complexity 3.1 Introduction 3.2 The structure of elephant societies 3.2.1 Elephant societies in the wild 3.2.2 Elephant societies in captivity 3.2.3 Social behaviour and breeding 3.3 Associations between individuals and friendships 3.4 Introductions into an elephant group 3.5 Protective formations 3.6 Dominance hierarchies 3.7 Aggression, appeasement and chastisement 3.8 Personality 4 Elephant reproductive biology 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Historical accounts of sexual behaviour 4.3 Courtship and mating behaviour 4.4 Chemical control of reproduction 4.4.1 Musth 4.4.2 Endocrine monitoring of females 4.5 Behavioural indicators of oestrus 4.6 Gestation, pregnancy management and birth 4.7 Parenting and calf development 4.7.1 Developmental milestones and birth statistics 4.7.2 Parenting and allomothering 4.7.3 The effect of a calf on social interactions in the herd 4.8 Early sexual behaviour 4.8.1 Early male sexual behaviour 4.8.2 Juvenile mounting 4.9 Reproductive challenges and solutions 4.9.1 Acyclicity and sperm quality 4.9.2 Obstetrics and birthing problems 4.9.3 New techniques in reproductive physiology 5 Elephant cognition, communication and tool use 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Cognition 5.2.1 Historical perspectives 5.2.2 Self-awareness: do elephants know they exist? 5.2.3 Discrimination between objects and between quantities 5.2.4 Insightful behaviour 5.2.5 Pointing 5.2.6 Memory 5.3 Communication 5.3.1 Introduction 5.3.2 Vocal communication 5.3.3 Human speech imitation 5.3.4 Chemical communication 5.3.5 Tactile and seismic communication 5.4 Visual acuity and visual discrimination 5.5 Tool use 5.6 Knowing when to cooperate 6 Elephant ecology and genetics 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Ecophysiology 6.2.1 Introduction 6.2.2 Acclimatisation to new environments 6.2.3 Thermoregulation 6.3 Feeding ecology and energetics 6.3.1 Food preferences 6.3.2 Feeding methods 6.3.3 Calculating food consumption 6.3.4 Digestibility 6.3.5 Food passage time 6.3.6 Defaecation 6.3.7 Food supplementation 6.4 Energetics 6.5 Exhibit design and enclosure use 6.5.1 Introduction 6.5.2 Enclosure use 6.5.3 Substrate and indoor versus outdoor preferences 6.5.4 Multispecies exhibits 6.5.5 Rotational exhibits 6.5.6 Elephants as agents of landscape change in zoos 6.6 Population ecology 6.6.1 Introduction 6.6.2 Age determination from teeth 6.6.3 Longevity and life expectancy in zoos 6.6.4 Birth rates and calf survival 6.6.5 Sexual maturity and mean calving interval 6.6.6 Reproductive performance of Asian camp elephants 6.6.7 Reproductive cessation and the ‘mother hypothesis’ 6.6.8 Sustainability of zoo populations 6.6.9 Importation of elephants from range states 6.7 Genetics 6.7.1 Introduction 6.7.2 Interspecific hybridisation 6.7.3 Intraspecific hybridisation 6.7.4 Genetic diversity 7 Elephant welfare 7.1 Historical perspectives 7.2 Measuring elephant welfare 7.2.1 What is welfare? 7.2.2 How can welfare be measured? 7.2.3 Population-level welfare indices 7.2.4 Body weight and condition scoring 7.2.5 The welfare of elephants working in tourism 7.2.6 Stress and distress 7.2.7 Behaviour as a welfare indicator 7.2.8 Stereotypic behaviours 7.3 Environmental enrichment 7.3.1 Defining environmental enrichment 7.3.2 Food and foraging as enrichment 7.3.3 Substratum and trees as enrichment 7.3.4 Water as enrichment 7.3.5 Sleep, rest and enrichment 7.3.6 Sound, music and art as enrichment 7.3.7 Interactive toys 7.3.8 Improving elephant welfare through breeding 7.3.9 Social contact: the ultimate in enrichment 7.4 Training 7.5 Locomotion and gait 7.6 Obesity 7.7 Disease 7.7.1 Introduction 7.7.2 Histology 7.7.3 Foot health 7.7.4 Tuberculosis 7.7.5 Elephant endotheliotropic herpesviruses 8 Housing and handling elephants 8.1 Introduction 8.2 Wild elephant decline and the establishment of ex situ breeding programmes 8.3 Elephant enclosures 8.3.1 Housing and containment 8.3.2 Early elephant houses 8.3.3 Enclosure size and substratum 8.3.4 New enclosures 8.4 The cost of keeping elephants under good welfare conditions 8.5 Elephants and their caretakers 8.5.1 Keeper–elephant bonds 8.5.2 Traditional elephant expertise versus zoo husbandry 8.5.3 Keeper and mahout deaths 8.5.4 Free versus protected contact 8.6 Transportation 9 Ethics, pressure groups and the law 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Is it ethical to keep elephants in captivity? 9.3 Pressure groups 9.4 Law 9.4.1 Introduction 9.4.2 Ivory in human ownership 9.4.3 The UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the IUCN 9.4.4 Elephants, zoos and the law 9.4.5 The law and elephants in private ownership 9.4.6 Elephants, entertainment and the law 9.4.7 Legal personhood and habeas corpus 9.4.8 Elephant cruelty and cruel methods 9.4.9 Zoos and the wildlife trade 9.4.10 A right to companionship and retirement 9.4.11 Financial support for in situ conservation 10 The conservation value of captive elephants 10.1 Introduction 10.2 The popularity of elephants in zoos 10.3 Zoo elephants as insurance populations 10.3.1 Introduction 10.3.2 The Species Survival Plan in North America 10.3.3 The European Endangered species Programme 10.3.4 Are zoo elephant populations sustainable? 10.4 Scientific research 10.5 The development of technologies relevant to field conservation 10.6 Educational function 10.7 Professional training of local conservationists and associated technology transfer 10.8 Fundraising for in situ conservation 10.9 Do zoo and conservation authorities support captive breeding in zoos? 10.10 Captive breeding in range states 10.11 ‘Domestication’ of African elephants 10.12 Conclusion 11 The future of elephants in captivity 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Elephant ranching 11.3 Rewilding – shades of Jurassic Park 11.4 Release to the wild 11.5 Welfare concerns 11.6 Sanctuaries 11.7 A repository of useful genes 11.8 Cloning 11.9 Elephants as therapy 11.10 Climate change 11.11 A role for zoos? 11.12 Consumptive use or intensive protection zones? 11.13 The court of public opinion 11.14 Predictions Postscript Appendix Glossary References WARNING!!! DUMMY ENTRY Legislation, case law and other legal documents cited Suggested Further Reading Index