Establishment and Application of a Fecal Glucocorticoid Metabolite Assay for 4.1 Magellanic Penguins (Spheniscus Magellanicus) for the Assessment of Adrenal Activity in Conjunction with Behavioral Observations to Understand the Potential Impact Associated with Variables of Behind the Scenes Tours at a Zoological Facility
Open accessAbstract
An excrement glucocorticoid metabolite (GCM) assay was established for penguins and was applied as a tool, in conjunction with behavioral observations, to evaluate individual birds responses to participation in a behind the scenes tour program involving potential tactile interactions with zoo guests. An adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) challenge was used to validate a corticosterone assay for measuring GCM in Magellanic penguin excrement, as well as to develop individual GCM profiles consisting of maximum values, baseline, and percent change for each bird. The GCM assay was used in conjunction with behavioral and environmental data collected during behind the scenes tours as a means to quantify potential stress. Excrement samples and tour observations were collected daily from each bird for one week during which it participated, with a second bird, in tours with zoo guests twice daily. Excrement samples were also collected from each bird daily during one week in which it participated in no tours. Results indicate that both endocrine and behavioral responses to tours, and associated tour environment components, are variable among the individual birds. While three of the birds did not have significant changes in GCM values (F1,48 = 2.05, p = 0.16) on days they participated in tours, two birds did show increased GCM levels (F1,35 = 4.60, p = 0.04) on days that they participated in tours. These same two birds also showed a lower maximum response to ACTH challenge (= 1,205ng/g…
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Our results differed from the one previous study that investigated penguin behavioral responses to an ambassador program in which Magellanic penguins showed an increase in negative or aggressive behaviors during guest encounter programs.
“Our results differed from the one previous study that investigated penguin behavioral responses to an ambassador program in which Magellanic penguins showed an increase in negative or aggressive behaviors during guest encounter programs [13].”
From Evaluating the Behavior and Temperament of African Penguins in a Non-Contact Animal Encounter Program (2019) · cites this paper as [13]
In a study of Magellanic penguins, two penguins exhibited increased fecal glucocorticoid metabolite levels on days with tours, while three did not.
“Two penguins exhibited increased FGM levels on days with tours, while three did not.”
From Evaluating the Behavior and Temperament of African Penguins in a Non-Contact Animal Encounter Program (2019) · cites this paper as [13]
Additional factors may contribute to the different responses to ambassador programs reported here and by Hartell-DeNardo.
“However, given that both Magellanic and African penguins have been shown to desensitize similarly to human presence in the wild [41,42], additional factors may contribute to the different responses to ambassador programs reported here and by Hartell-DeNardo [13].”
From Evaluating the Behavior and Temperament of African Penguins in a Non-Contact Animal Encounter Program (2019) · cites this paper as [13]
Responses to ambassador programs may vary by individual.
“This suggests that responses to ambassador programs may vary by individual and that individual control over the level of participation may be a key component to the welfare response.”
From Evaluating the Behavior and Temperament of African Penguins in a Non-Contact Animal Encounter Program (2019) · cites this paper as [13]
All five Magellanic penguins exhibited an increase in negative behaviors (nipping, biting) during involuntary situations, such as when guided into a different location by caretakers.
“All five birds exhibited an increase in negative behaviors (nipping, biting), during involuntary situations, such as when guided into a different location by caretakers.”
From Evaluating the Behavior and Temperament of African Penguins in a Non-Contact Animal Encounter Program (2019) · cites this paper as [13]
Penguins show individual variation in their response to ambassador programs specifically.
“To build off recent work demonstrating that penguins show individual variation in personality generally [25,26], and in their response to ambassador programs specifically [13], we also considered what individual traits correlated with the birds’ participation in the encounters (if any).”
From Evaluating the Behavior and Temperament of African Penguins in a Non-Contact Animal Encounter Program (2019) · cites this paper as [13]
Individual control over the level of participation may be a key component to the welfare response to ambassador programs.
“This suggests that responses to ambassador programs may vary by individual and that individual control over the level of participation may be a key component to the welfare response.”
From Evaluating the Behavior and Temperament of African Penguins in a Non-Contact Animal Encounter Program (2019) · cites this paper as [13]
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Saiyed, S. T., Hopper, L. M., & Cronin, K. A. (2019) · Animals · doi:10.3390/ani9060326 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
- Authors
- Hartell-DeNardo, J.
- Venue
- George Mason University
- Publisher
- George Mason University
- Published
- 2015-03-24
- OpenAlex
- W2261197219
- Cited by
- 1
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2019: 1
- Type
- dissertation
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- doi.org
- Locations
- George Mason University
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Animal Behavior and Welfare Studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Avian ecology and behavior
- Keywords
- fecal glucocorticoid metabolites, Magellanic penguin, Spheniscus magellanicus, zoo animal welfare, stress measurement, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, chronic stress, ACTH challenge, corticosterone, individual differences in stress response, captive birds
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
