Page 115 - Zoo Animal Learning and Training

5.4 Adult Life 87

VetBooks.ir 5.4 Adult Life has been studied in primates, birds, and fish
(e.g. Crockford et al. 2007; Oliveira et al.
1998; Peake 2005), and the ability of an ani-
5.4.1 Being Social
mal to learn its relative position within a
Learning to be social encompasses how and group has been studied in primates
when to interact with conspecifics and (Tomasello and Call 1997). Furthermore,
understanding social cues and rules. In a zoo being able to use what has been learned to
setting, social group membership can change exploit others in a social group, known as
regularly with births, deaths, and between‐ ‘Machiavellian intelligence’ (Gavrilets and
zoo transfers, thus requiring animals to learn Vose 2006; Whiten and Byrne 1997), is seen
how to regularly recognise individuals and as the highest level of social intelligence. In
establish and maintain social bonds. The captive settings, primates have learned to
myriad of ways that animals learn to recog- deceive their groupmates and hide knowl-
nise group members is beyond the scope of edge from others in elaborately competitive
this chapter, but briefly this can be via scent, strategies (Byrne and Whiten 1989). The
sound and vision (Shettleworth 2010). Scent‐ ‘social politics’ of zoo chimpanzees was pop-
based learning can be difficult in zoo exhibits ularised by de Waal and de Waal (2007), but
where hygiene standards are paramount; fre- is not only confined to great apes; there is
quent cleaning with disinfectant could mark also perhaps some evidence for Machiavellian
or remove natural scents (Clark and King intelligence in fish (Bshary 2011).
2008). Songbirds are amongst the best‐stud- Zoo exhibits that house more than one spe-
ied vocal learners, with research showing cies, referred to as ‘mixed‐species exhibits’
that individuals need to hear themselves sing are commonplace in modern zoos, allowing
to develop song normally (Brainard and species with the same ecological niche or
Doupe 2000). Elephants are also vocal learn- from the same geographical area to be housed
ers; Poole et al. (2005) showed that captive together (Clark and Melfi 2012; see
African elephants (Loxodonta africana) can Figure 5.3). These exhibits provide an addi-
modify their vocalisations in response to tional layer of social opportunity and learning
vocalisations they have previously heard. In the meaning of both homo‐ and heterospe-
the zoo, anthropogenic noise coming from cific cues. Different species can sometimes
visitors and amplified sound systems could learn from each other; Krebs (1973) found
disrupt the learning and maintenance of that two species of chickadees (Parus spp.)
animal song and other vocalisations. learned from one another about the location
Anthropogenic sound measurement and and nature of potential feeding locations
analysis in relation to zoo animal well‐being when they were housed together in a large,
is in its infancy, but we can expect to see mixed species aviary. Heterospecific social
more of this research emerging in the next learning (i.e. social learning from one species
few years (Orban et al. 2017). A number of to another) was observed in a mixed‐species
mammals and birds are also capable of visu- zoo exhibit of tufted capuchins (Sapajus sp.)
ally discriminating between familiar and and common squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciu-
unfamiliar individuals, and in some species reus); capuchins were influenced by squirrel
this is based on facial patterns (e.g. Brown monkeys when foraging for food in mixed
and Dooling 1992; Kendrick et al. 1995; species groups (Messer 2013).
Rosenfeld and Van Hoesen 1979). Recent For many species in a zoo setting, being
research also suggests that cichlid fish are social also encompasses interactions and
capable of conspecific face recognition relationships with caregivers, known more
(Hotta et al. 2017; Satoh et al. 2016). formally as ‘human–animal interactions’ and
The ability of an animal to be a bystander ‘human–animal relationships’ (Hosey and
and ‘eavesdrop’ on the social status of others Melfi 2014; see Chapter 9 and Figure 5.4).