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Seilern-Moy, Katharina. "Pathogenic characteristics of elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus infection in Asian elephants." Thesis, University of Surrey, 2017. http://epubs.surrey.ac.uk/814023/.
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Elephant endotheliotropic herpesviruses (EEHVs) are responsible for a highly fatal haemorrhagic disease (EEHV-HD), threatening the overall sustainability of the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) population. The viruses were first reported in tissue sections of a fatal case of an Asian elephant in 1988. In recent years, there has been a gradual increase in our understanding of the viruses highlighted by decoding their complete genome sequences. However, lack of an animal model and a cell culture system has restricted studies on the pathogenesis of the viruses, assessing control measures, and development of a vaccine. This project therefore aimed to achieve a better understanding of the viruses’ pathogenesis studying several EEHV surviving and fatal cases, and to advise accordingly on the control measures. The results revealed coincidence of highest blood viral load with clinical signs, viruses’ shedding in trunk secretion during convalescence, complementary haematological tests to aid detection and clinical prognosis of EEHV infections and the inadequacy of famciclovir treatment to alter EEHV infections. Analysis of tissues from fatal cases detected viruses’ co-infections (EEHV-1 and 4) and widespread organ distribution with liver, heart, mesenteric lymph node, thymus, and tongue having the highest viral load, thereby highlighting implications for EEHV diagnosis and future in vitro isolation. Further, this study isolated elephant endothelial cells and PBMCs and used these established elephant cells alongside common laboratory cell lines to assess their suitability for EEHV-1A isolation. Despite indication of limited increase in EEHV-1 DNA in PBMCs and mouse embryo fibroblast supernatants, conclusive in vitro virus replication could not be demonstrated. In conclusion, the outcomes of this PhD study further advance our knowledge on pathogenesis of EEHV strains and provide new insights on their control to minimise their respective impact on the Asian elephant population.
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Webber, Catherine Elizabeth. "A comparison of behavioural development of elephant calves in captivity and in the wild : implications for welfare." Thesis, University of Stirling, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1893/27503.
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Compromised welfare and wellbeing of elephants (Loxodonta africana and Elephas maximus) in captive facilities are significant and global problems. The period between birth and two years old is crucial for calf survival and social and environmental learning. Behaviour and developmental processes among captive elephant calves in these first years were compared with those seen in wild calves. Wild elephants calves develop within a complex, varied social context and provide one reference for normal patterns of development. Such comparisons enable insights into welfare at captive facilities. Eleven captive elephant calves born at three UK facilities were studied from birth to 18 months (AsianN=6; AfricanN=5). Older calves (AsianN=2; AfricanN=2) were also sampled up to 3.5 years; making a total of 15 calves studied from 2009 to 2014. Due to the small sample size, the 11 younger calves were also discussed as individual case studies. By 2017, only two of these case study calves were both alive and not orphaned. Three additional calves (AsianN=1; AfricanN=2) died on their day of birth and were not sampled. This small sample highlights the ongoing lack of self-sustaining populations of captive elephants. This thesis collated systematic behavioural observations on captive calves across 373 days (483.5hrs). Calf maintenance activities (feeding, resting, moving), associations with mother and others, interactions and calf play were compared with behavioural observations of wild AsianN=101 (74hrs, Uda Walawe, Sri Lanka) and wild AfricanN=130 (252hrs, Amboseli, Kenya) calves from ~birth to five yrs. Mothers’ (captive: AsianN=4; AfricanN=4; wild: AsianN=90; AfricanN=105) activities were also recorded to explore synchrony with calves. Captive calves raised by their mothers had similar activity budgets to those seen in the wild. Expected age-related declines in suckling were found in captivity. However, captive calves were more independent than wild calves for their age in distance from mother and spent significantly more time in play. A Decision Tree for whether to breed elephants in captivity was developed; benefits that a calf potentially brings to companions, e.g. multi-generational matrilineal groups, enabling social bonding and reducing abnormal behaviours, were considered against space required for families to grow and divide naturally over time, as well as ensuring that captive-bred males are socially sustained. It was recommended that facilities invest in future enclosure/housing designs which permit: free-access to other elephants; 24hr trickle feeding; juvenile males allowed to stay with their maternal group for longer, encouraging learning opportunities and further retaining age-structure/composition. Conversely, facilities unwilling to house a male or provide appropriate group size/composition are recommended to cease breeding.
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Bischof, Laura Louise. "DNA fingerprinting analysis of captive Asian elephants, Elephas maximas." PDXScholar, 1990. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/3966.
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This thesis examined the effectiveness of DNA fingerprinting analysis for paternity ascertainment and the establishment of relatedness of captive Asian elephants (Elephas maximas). Eighteen Asian elephants from three North .American zoos were examined. Thirteen of these elephants were wild caught. Relationships between these elephants and the remaining elephants born in captivity were known.
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Sripiboon, S. "Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus Infection in Captive Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus) in Thailand: Implications for Conservation and Health Management." Thesis, Sripiboon, S. (2017) Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus Infection in Captive Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus) in Thailand: Implications for Conservation and Health Management. PhD thesis, Murdoch University, 2017. https://researchrepository.murdoch.edu.au/id/eprint/36692/.
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Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus (EEHV) infection is of conservation concern to endangered Asian elephants (Elephas maximus), causing severe, acute, often fatal haemorrhagic disease in young elephants. This thesis investigates the epidemiological status of clinical and subclinical EEHV infection in Thailand, through a retrospective, a cross-sectional, and a longitudinal study in captive elephants. Novel diagnostic tools were developed and recommendations discussed, with a particular focus on practical recommendations to manage EEHV infection in Thailand, where logistical and management constraints can hamper disease diagnosis and timely treatment.
The retrospective study revealed at least 18 EEHV clinical cases in Thailand (2006–2014), with only two cases surviving following intensive treatment. Viral samples from each case were not identical based on multiple gene analysis; suggesting the disease is likely to be sporadic. The findings also suggest that EEHV1A and EEHV1B are likely endogenous pathogens in Asian elephants.
A novel SYBR green I-based real-time PCR assay was developed to identify subclinical infection, diagnose early infection, and monitor disease progression. This technique provided sufficient data, with appropriate detection limits to differentiate at least three types of EEHV (EEHV1A, 1B, and 4). Applying this technology to the cross-sectional study, conducted between 2013–2015, revealed a 5.5% prevalence of asymptomatic EEHV1 infection during this study period in captive Asian elephants in Thailand. Cross-sectional analysis did not find an association between EEHV infection and sex, location, or contact history with other EEHV-positive elephants; however, EEHV was more likely to be detected in juveniles than other age classes (OR = 4.46; 95%CI: 1.60–12.45; p = 0.05).
The study also monitored EEHV shedding patterns longitudinally in an EEHV-positive herd. Frequency of EEHV detection varied within and between individuals, but was significantly higher in elephants which had survived previous clinical EEHV infection (OR = 4.85; 95%CI: 0.88–26.74; p = 0.05). Concurrent monitoring of faecal corticosterone metabolites demonstrated that EEHV activated and reactivated spontaneously and shed sporadically, despite lack of obvious stress.
This thesis describes the first intensive EEHV study in an Asian elephant range country. The thesis assesses the novel real-time PCR protocol and current diagnostic tools, and recommends practical management and disease preparedness strategies to minimise the impacts of EEHV on wild and captive populations, both locally and internationally.
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Bigwood, Taryn. "Geomorphic impacts of Loxodonta Africana (African elephants) in Tembe Elephant Park." Diss., University of Pretoria, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/2263/30370.
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Humans are modifying animal populations, indirectly accelerating or reducing the geomorphic alterations caused by animals. Species have been monitored and studied with focus on domesticated animals but little research has been undertaken on wild animals. This study analyses the geomorphic impact of elephants on Tembe Elephant Park, so that the changes they cause to the landscape may be quantified. To conduct this research four sites were chosen: an area where elephants had been excluded for twenty-five years, where excluded for five years, where elephants exist at present and where elephants mud wallow. Three of the four study sites were classed as sand forest (twenty-five-years exclusion, five-years exclusion and where elephants exist) and were analysed and compared to determine the similarities and differences in climate, microclimate, vegetation and the soil’s physical and chemical properties. The wallow site was not compared to any other study site, but was observed and mapped to quantify the geomorphic impact of elephants wallowing. When the sand forest sites were compared the climate, vegetation type and soil were found to be similar. Where elephants were present: the vegetation was inconsistent in basil cover, canopy height, structure and class. Soils were more compacted with a low infiltration rate, higher temperature, lower soil moisture, higher pH and a lower electric conductivity and air relative humidity was the highest. Where elephants have been excluded for twenty-five years, the opposite trends arose from the data analysis. The vegetation was consistent in basil cover, canopy height, structure and class, and the soils were less compacted with a high infiltration rate, low temperature, higher soil moisture, lower pH and a higher electric conductivity. The microclimate showed a trend where the air relative humidity was the lowest. At the elephant wallow site data showed that the wallows were in general circular in shape, 52.5m3 of soil was removed per month for the last nine months and the surface area of the wallows increased by 165.5m2 per month for nine months from April to December 2008. All the results from this study show that the elephant activity in Tembe Elephant Park has geomorphic consequences. From the results, it is possible to conclude that the geomorphic impacts of elephants on Tembe Elephant Park are contributing to a nutrient cycle shift in the sand forest biome, as they change aspects of the vegetation, microclimate, soil and landscape, which are the foundation of the cycle.<br>Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2011.<br>Geography, Geoinformatics and Meteorology<br>MA<br>Unrestricted
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Guldemond, Robert Abraham Rene. "The influence of savannah elephants on vegetation a case study in the Tembe Elephant Park, South Africa /." Pretoria : [s.n.], 2006. http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-08242006-124305.
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Munishi, Linus Kasian. "The influence of genetic relatedness on sociality and demography of female African elephants." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1011612.
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Many elephant populations across Africa were or are being devastated by poaching and habitat loss, making population and range size for the species important issues of conservation concern in elephant ranging areas, including Tarangire National Park (TNP). Poaching and/or overhunting are known to have direct effects on the demography of elephant populations. The current understanding of the indirect effects of poaching on the sociality and demography of elephant populations is relatively poor, both at the group and an individual level. In this thesis the importance of genetic relatedness (as influenced by poaching) on sociality and demography of the female elephants was studied, using a combination of genetic, observation of behaviour and two decades of demography data collected from the northern subpopulation of TNP. I investigated and characterized the relatedness categories within elephant groups. Using a conceptual model for group size analysis in aggregation economies, I hypothesized that elephant populations subject to social disruptions due to poaching would exhibit characteristics of the free entry model, whereas more stable, closed populations would better fit the group-controlled model. I present a rare quantitative analysis of genetic relatedness and group size patterns among groups of adult female elephants in two wild populations: one in Tarangire National Park (TNP), Tanzania, and another in Addo Elephant National Park (AENP), South Africa. I demonstrate that the group size in African elephant populations is governed by genetic relatedness, and that poaching/overhunting has a significant influence upon the apparent group formation and size in elephants. I then focused on the effect of relatedness on agonistic interactions between adult females. I hypothesized that individual-based aggressive interactions among adult female African elephants would vary according to degree of kinship, with closely related dyads showing less aggression towards each other in resource-limited environments, thereby leading to indirect fitness benefits for individuals. As predicted, females did not show agonistic interactions to their close kin most often, and the frequency and intensity of aggressive interactions was inversely related to the degree of relatedness of the interactants. The effect of group relatedness and structure on reproductive success of individual female African elephant in TNP was also investigated. Adult female reproductive success was significantly influenced by within- group relatedness and structure. Higher reproductive success (with higher frequency of calf production and survival and more female calves produced) were more evident in the closely related groups than groups with low relatedness, suggesting that females from genetically disrupted groups are less likely to be reproductive than those in closely related groups. The possibility of negative effects of poaching on the subsequent generation of poached adult females and the alternative of a positive demographic response through reduced density was assessed by analysing the demographic patterns of the first generation (F1) females of prime-aged adult female African elephants in TNP using within- group relatedness and size. I also compared vital rate (age of first birth and interbirth interval) responses of first generation (F1) cows from Tarangire (poached) elephants with other females from poached (Northern Luangwa National Park, Zambia) and unpoached (Amboseli National Park, Kenya and Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa) populations. Group relatedness had no significant effect on sex ratio of the F1 cows‟ calves. There was a significant difference between the mean age of first birth and interbirth interval of F1 cows from the two (poached, Tarangire and unpoached, Amboseli National Park) elephant populations, suggesting that elephant populations reduced by poaching to low levels show an increase vigour through release from density constraints. Based on these results, the broader implications of secondary effects of poaching on elephant populations are critically evaluated. Also the importance of understanding the consequences of these effects is highlighted in light of other elephant conservation and management approaches. This understanding is useful in making conservation and management decisions for elephants and other biodiversity.
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Glaeser, Sharon Stuart. "Analysis and Classification of Sounds Produced by Asian Elephants (Elephas Maximus)." PDXScholar, 2009. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/4066.
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Relatively little is known about the vocal repertoire of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus), and a categorization of basic call types and modifications of these call types by quantitative acoustic parameters is needed to examine acoustic variability within and among call types, to examine individuality, to determine communicative function of calls via playback, to compare species and populations, and to develop rigorous call recognition algorithms for monitoring populations.
This study defines an acoustic repertoire of Asian elephants based on acoustic parameters, compares repertoire usage among groups and individuals, and validates structural distinction among call types through comparison of manual and automated classification methods. Recordings were made of captive elephants at the Oregon Zoo in Portland, OR, USA, and of domesticated elephants in Thailand. Acoustic and behavioral data were collected in a variety of social contexts and environmental noise conditions. Calls were classified using perceptual aural cues plus visual inspection of spectrograms, then acoustic features were measured, then automated classification was run. The final repertoire was defined by six basic call types (Bark, Roar, Rumble, Bark, Squeal, Squeal, and Trumpet), five call combinations and modifications with these basic calls forming their constituent parts (Roar-Rumble, Squeal-Squeak, Squeak train, Squeak-Bark, and Trumpet-Roar), and the Blow. Given the consistency of classifications results for calls from geographically and socially disparate subject groups, it seems possible that automated call detection algorithms could be developed for acoustic monitoring of Asian elephants.
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De, Beer Yolandi-Mari. "Determinants and consequences of elephant spatial use in Southern Africa's arid savannas." Pretoria : [s.n.], 2008. http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-08122008-141848.
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Flower, Emily K. "Elephants in tourism venues: Exploring elephant welfare and interactions with tourists in Thailand." Thesis, Griffith University, 2022. http://hdl.handle.net/10072/416282.
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Internationally, the interest and participation in animal-based tourism is increasing. Extensive research on welfare issues has been conducted in various industries involving animals; however, the number of studies concerning animal welfare in tourism are considerably less. Beyond the zoo setting, research into the welfare standards at captive wildlife tourism attractions, such as elephant tourism venues (ETVs), are further limited. The welfare standards at ETVs particularly warrant attention due to the mistreatment of elephants that is common in the industry and because of the high popularity of these venues. In south-east Asia, Thailand has one of the largest numbers of ETVs and, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, experienced significant growth in international tourism likely due to the numerous opportunities for close interactions with elephants, which is a significant motivation for many tourists.
Interest in animal welfare in wildlife tourism is becoming increasingly important beyond scientific and academic discussions, particularly as tourists are increasingly observant and critical of captive animals’ health and well-being. Tourists’ opinions and preferences may also have significant influence over the way venue operators manage their animals and represent their business, as consumer satisfaction and preference can be integral in influencing and solidifying change in user-driven industries such as tourism.
Key gaps in knowledge exist in the above areas in relation to the elephant tourism industry in Thailand. The first stage in addressing these gaps involved assessing the welfare standards of 12 ETVs in Chapter 2 using information available online which allowed me to gain insights into the material available to prospective travellers, how they may use this information to choose a venue to visit, and, consequently, how their experience at the venue may not match their expectations. Based on these results, the ETVs were ranked from highest to lowest welfare standards.
Next, I undertook a systematic quantitative literature review in Chapter 3 to gather and explore which indicators of welfare in captive Asian elephants have been investigated in recent years. This review further identified knowledge gaps, presented suggestions for future research, and explored in-depth the studies during the data synthesis. Twenty-three indicators of welfare were identified in this review, and others were notably absent from current research. Nine environmental, eight physical, four physio-psychological, and two behavioural welfare indicators were identified. Most research between 2015 and 2020 focussed on the diet of captive elephants and cases of elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus, followed by research into the provision of elephant health care and the duration of work for elephants involved in tourism activities. Chiang Mai, Thailand was identified as an appropriate region to first establish proper management guidelines and find solutions for these issues, becoming an example for other Asian elephant range countries to follow.
Many recent studies have assessed captive elephant welfare, involving invasive, time-intensive procedures, such as the collection of blood samples or urine/faeces for glucocorticoid metabolite analysis. However, few studies have proposed a method for assessing captive elephant welfare, and for those which have, their methods were either developed for use in zoos, or focussed on a single aspect or type of welfare indicator. Using the knowledge gained in Chapter 3, Chapter 4 developed the Rapid Elephant Welfare Assessment Method (REWAM) which involved the creation of specific welfare criteria to better represent the conditions found in elephant tourism venues. The REWAM is a new method for evaluating captive elephant welfare in tourism venues by exploring the relationships between living conditions (the factors contributing to welfare) and welfare indicators (the results or products of the living conditions). The REWAM differs from other welfare assessment methods as it is observation-based and does not require the collection of physical samples or laboratory analysis. This reduces cost and time spent in-field and does not require contact with the animal.
Chapter 5 applied the REWAM in a case study at 12 ETVs in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and aimed to explore the relationships between living conditions and welfare indicators, and to rank the ETVs assessed in this study based on their overall scores. The three highest-ranking ETVs offered observation only activities or elephant walks and activities such as feeding and bathing. Areas requiring significant improvement, and which therefore should be the focus of future research, include enclosure size, stimulation of natural behaviours and provision of a social environment, and the presence (and, therefore, the cause) of stereotypic behaviour.
Due to the increased demand and interest for animals in tourism, further research is required regarding animal welfare considerations by tourists. Chapter 6 found that participant age was the clearest indicator for the type of venue participants were likely to visit and that home location and welfare standards at venues had the greatest effect on attitudes post-visit. Results suggest elephant welfare can be an important factor for some tourists; therefore, efforts should be made to increase public awareness of the issues within elephant tourism venues which could lead to positive attitude and behaviour change.
Chapter 7 found that tourists visited riding and non-riding ETVs for similar reasons, primarily due to recommendations from friends and reviews, and because the venue had a good reputation. Tourist preference for higher welfare standards was observed at venues where participants directly observed poor treatment of the elephants. Tourist satisfaction may be impacted by higher elephant welfare standards; therefore, tourists have the ability to influence the elephant tourism industry by demanding better living conditions for elephants and only financially supporting ETVs with higher welfare standards.
Finally, the welfare standards at 12 ETVs were assessed in Chapter 8 using the REWAM developed in Chapter 4. Based on these results, the ETVs were ranked from highest to lowest welfare standards. The rankings from Chapters 2 and 8 were compared and, consequently, the data collection methods were compared. This highlighted the differences between the perceived versus actual welfare standards at each ETV which misleads consumers and can lead to low tourist satisfaction. Overall, the findings of this research further our understanding regarding the complex issues within the elephant tourism industry and provide important theoretical and practical implications to improve the welfare of captive elephants living in tourism venues.<br>Thesis (PhD Doctorate)<br>Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)<br>School of Environment and Sc<br>Full Text
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Lessing, Joan Susanna. "Elephant feeding behaviour and forage offtake implications in the Addo Elephant National Park." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/542.
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Elephants, as megaherbivores and keystone species have major impacts, both positive and negative, on ecosystems such as the Subtropical Thicket of the Eastern Cape. The feeding behaviour of elephants was quantified so as to firstly determine the preferred feeding heights of elephants, and secondly to determine if feeding behaviour and impact varies with size and sex. The preferred feeding height was determined with experimental feeding trials. Feeding height, pluck size, foraging rate and the proportion of plant material discarded were used to test for differences between elephants of different sizes and sexes in the Addo Elephant National Park. The influence of plant growth form on sex-specific feeding was also considered. Elephants preferred to feed at the lowest heights. The preferred feeding height was not related to body size. A wide range of feeding heights was recorded including and extending beyond, both the preferred and maximum feeding height of co-existing indigenous browsers. There was no difference in feeding height between the sizes and sexes. In free ranging conditions, all elephants fed at levels above the preferred foraging height when browsing. There was no difference in feeding behaviour between the different sized elephants, or between males and females. Adult elephants however exhibited larger ranges of feeding heights, pluck sizes, foraging rates and intake rates, including the maximum and minimum values. Growth form influenced the feeding of male and female elephants differently. Elephant feeding behaviour appears to limit opportunities for resource partitioning by way of feeding height segregation. Elephants are also capable of dominating the browse resources available to co-existing browsers by removing large amounts of forage at lower heights. The extent of elephant impact seems to be comparable between sizes and sexes, although adults and especially larger males are often able to use foraging opportunities that other elephants can not effectively utilize. Findings suggest that the feeding heights of elephants are determined by forage availability and reflect the diet in terms of browse or grass. The findings can be used, together with browse inventory methods, to determine browse resources available to elephants, and can also be used to develop monitoring tools to assess the impacts of elephants on plants.
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Stead, Sarah Kofie. "The assessment of stress in captive juvenile African elephants (Loxodonta Africana)." Pretoria : [s.n.], 2008. http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-11092005-142633/.
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Rizvanovic, Alisa. "Olfactory discrimination performance and longterm odor memory in Asian elephants (Elephas maximus)." Thesis, Linköpings universitet, Institutionen för fysik, kemi och biologi, 2012. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-78026.
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Behavioral evidence suggests that Asian elephants strongly rely on their sense of smell in a variety of contexts including foraging and social communication. Using a food-rewarded two-alternative operant conditioning procedure, three female Asian elephants were tested on their olfactory discrimination ability with 1-aliphatic alcohols, n-aldehydes, 2-ketones, n-carboxylic acids and with a set of twelve enantiomeric odor pairs. When presented with pairs of structurally related aliphatic odorants, the discrimination performance of the elephants increased with decreasing structural similarity of the odorants. Nevertheless, the animals successfully discriminated between all aliphatic odorants even when these only differed by one carbon atom. The elephants were also able to discriminate between all twelve enantiomeric odor pairs tested. Additionally, the elephants showed an excellent long-term odor memory and remembered the reward value of previously learned odor pairs after three weeks and one year of recess. Compared to other species tested previously on the same sets of odorants, the Asian elephants performed at least as good as mice and clearly better than human subjects, South African fur seals, squirrel monkeys, pigtail macaques, and honeybees. Taken together, these results support the notion that the sense of smell may play an important role in regulating the behavior of Asian elephants.
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Harrison, Stephanie. "We need more elephants." [Gainesville, Fla.] : University of Florida, 2003. http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/UFE0000801.
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Landman, Marietjie. "Megaherbivores in succulent thicket: resource use and implications." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1007956.
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This study aims to develop a predictive understanding of the resource use, impacts and interactions of elephant Loxodonta africana and black rhinoceros Diceros bicornis in the succulent thickets of the Eastern Cape, South Africa. While these megaherbivores typically dominate the biomass, elephant are more abundant, such that their impacts off-set that of all other herbivores. Consequently, this thesis has three main foci: first, developing a mechanistic understanding of the influences of elephant; second, developing predictive insights into elephant impacts on plant communities; finally, an understanding of the knockon-effects of the impacts for coexisting rhinoceros. Thus, by documenting the diet and dietary preferences of elephant, I firstly show that only about 18 percent of the species previously thought vulnerable to herbivory, occur in the diet. This refutes the generally held belief that elephant herbivory is the primary driver of decline among plants, and emphasizes the likely contribution of other mechanisms (e.g. trampling, knock-on-effects, etc.). Thus, the accurate prediction of the impacts caused by elephant requires an understanding of previously marginalized mechanisms. From here, I quantify >50 years of impacts on the thicket shrub community and test their spatial and temporal extent near water. I confirm the vulnerability of thicket to transformation (particularly near water) as the accumulated influences of elephant reduce community composition and structure, and predict that these impacts will eventually bring about landscape-level degradation and a significant loss of biodiversity. Importantly, results show an uneven distribution of effects between elements of this community: from community composition and structure, to the structure of individual canopy species and ecological functioning. While these findings confound our interpretation of the extent of the impacts, it demonstrates the importance of explicitly recognizing biodiversity and heterogeneity for the conservation management of elephant. Finally, I test the consequences of the impacts for coexisting rhinoceros. While I show that this causes rhinoceros to change their foraging strategies in the presence of elephant at high densities, I also show that elephant may facilitate access to food for rhinoceros at reduced densities. These findings indicate the importance of elephant in driving the structure and composition of the thicket shrub community and the consequences of this for coexisting large herbivores. Thus, developing a predictive understanding of the spatial and temporal variations of elephant impacts between elements of biodiversity and the mechanisms driving these changes are key to their management. This implies that the effective conservation management of elephant can only be achieved through the careful, scientific design of monitoring programmes.
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Nasseri, Nabil A. "The relationship of herpetofaunal community composition to an elephant (Loxodonta africana) modified savanna woodland of northern Tanzania, and bioassays with African elephants." Click here to access thesis, 2009. http://www.georgiasouthern.edu/etd/archive/spring2009/nabil_a_nasseri/Nasseri-Nabil-200901-ms.pdf.
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Thesis (M.S.)--Georgia Southern University, 2009.<br>"A thesis submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Georgia Southern University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Science." Directed by Bruce A. Schulte. ETD. Includes bibliographical references (p. 25-45, 64-87) and appendices.
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Engvall, Cecilia. "Zoogeomorphical Impacts by Elephants in Private Game Res. : With the case study of Knysna Elephant Park." Thesis, Uppsala universitet, Kulturgeografiska institutionen, 2013. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-207927.
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Lee, Tamara Ann. "Determinants of protected area boundary crossings by savannah elephants, Loxodonta africana." Diss., University of Pretoria, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/2263/28764.
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When elephants leave primary protected areas (PPAs), such as national parks and game reserves, they may come into conflict with people residing on the adjoining land. In this study, I attempted to determine why African savannah elephants leave the PPAs in which they were collared. To accomplish this, I used telemetry locations of collared elephants in PPAs throughout southern Africa and investigated whether a range of intrinsic and extrinsic variables could explain why elephants crossed the boundaries of the PPAs. Adjoining many of the PPAs were secondary protected areas (SPAs), which consisted of community conservancies, and collectively with the PPAs formed clusters of protected areas. Most (45 of 49) elephants roamed beyond the PPAs but they remained within the clusters of protected areas. The elephants utilised both the PPAs and the SPAs and appeared to not feel threatened when using the SPAs. The reasons for elephants leaving PPAs varied both seasonally and between the sexes. The females roamed beyond the PPAs more during the wet season than the dry season, whereas, for males there was no seasonal difference. During the wet season, female and male habitat selection was similar within and beyond the PPAs. During the dry season, more females and males beyond the PPAs selected for areas close to people, which could be indicative of water. The proportion of male and female home ranges beyond PPAs did not increase with increasing density of elephant populations within the PPAs, nor did the proportion of female home ranges beyond PPAs increase with increasing population growth rate of elephant populations within the PPAs. Therefore, high numbers of elephants within the PPAs did not drive elephants beyond the boundaries. Contrastingly, the proportion of male home ranges beyond the PPAs did increase with increasing population growth rate. However, the results were inconclusive due to small sample size. This study confirms that elephants are utilising the SPAs as well as the PPAs. Therefore, the importance of including the SPAs in conservation actions for elephants cannot be over-emphasized.<br>Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2013.<br>Zoology and Entomology<br>unrestricted
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Holmgren, Mary. "A method to evaluate environmental enrichments for Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in zoos." Thesis, Linköping University, The Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology, 2007. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-11902.
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<p>Environmental enrichment (EE) is used to improve the life of captive animals by giving them more opportunities to express species-specific behaviours. Zoo elephants are one of the species that is in great need of EE because their environment is often barren. Before making EE permanent, however, it is wise to test first if it works as intended, to save time and money. Maximum price paid is one measure that can be used to assess if an animal has any interest in a resource at all. Food is often used as a comparator against EEs in these kinds of studies. The aim was to investigate if the maximum price paid concept could be used to measure the value of EEs for the two female Asian elephants at Kolmården and to find an operant test suitable for them for the experimental trials. Three series of food trials were done with each elephant, where they had to lift weights by pulling a rope with their mouth to get access to 5kg hay. The elephants paid a maximum price of 372 and 227kg, respectively. However, the maximum price the elephants paid for access to the hay was not stable across the three series of trials. Hence it is recommended that the comparator trials are repeated close in time to the EEs to be tested. The readiness by which these elephants performed the task makes it worthwhile to further pursue this approach as one of the means to improve the well-being of zoo elephants.</p>
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Arvidsson, Josefin. "Development and application of an olfactory discrimination paradigm for Asian elephants (Elephas maximus)." Thesis, Linköpings universitet, Institutionen för fysik, kemi och biologi, 2011. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-70373.
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The sense of smell plays an important role in regulating the behavior of Asian elephants but until now, no behavioral test to systematically assess the olfactory capabilities of this species existed. Using a voluntary, food-rewarded two-alternative operant conditioning procedure, three female Asian elephants were successfully taught to discriminate between rewarded and unrewarded odors and also succeeded in intramodal stimulus transfer tasks in which either the rewarded odor, or the unrewarded odor, or both odors were exchanged simultaneously for new odors. The animals readily mastered the initial task within only 120 stimulus contacts, demonstrating rapid olfactory learning and performing at least as good as rodents and dogs and even better than other species, including nonhuman primates, tested in similar studies before. When presented with pairs of structurally related odorants, the discrimination performance of the elephants decreased with increasing structural similarity of the odorants, but the animals still significantly discriminated between aliphatic acetic esters even when they only differed by one carbon chain length. The elephants also demonstrated an excellent long-term odor memory and successfully remembered the reward value of previously learned odor stimuli after two, four, eight and even 16 weeks of recess in testing. The paradigm developed and applied in the present study proved to be useful to assess the olfactory capabilities in Asian elephants.
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Olsson, Linnea. "Human-elephant conflicts : A qualitative case study of farmers’ attitudes toward elephants in Babati, Tanzania." Thesis, Södertörns högskola, Institutionen för naturvetenskap, miljö och teknik, 2014. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:sh:diva-24091.
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It is widely recognized that human-wildlife conflicts can reduce farmers’ support for long-term species conservation. The subject of human-elephant conflicts is highly relevant in villages around Babati District in North Central Tanzania because of the closeness to Tarangire National Park. The purpose of this study is therefore to examine local farmers’ attitudes toward elephants and the attitudes’ effects on conservation efforts. Primary data was collected through a qualitative approach of semi-structured interviews with twelve farmers in four villages around Babati, with Wildlife Officer Nashon Macokesha at Babati District Council and with Allan Carlson, Nature Conservation Expert at WWF. A thematic analysis was done to make comparisons between the answers from farmers, Macokesha and Carlson. The Theory of Planned Behavior and the Value-Belief-Norm theory were also used to analyze the underlying factors of the farmers’ attitudes. The results of this study show that around half of the farmers have positive attitudes toward elephants, while the other half think negatively of them. Elephants were identified as the most problematic species and crop-raiding as the most problematic type of human-elephant conflict. The problems that farmers experience do to crop-raiding and other types of human-elephant conflicts include the direct effects of lost livelihood and income and indirect effects like health impacts and security issues. The result also indicates that factors affecting farmers’ attitudes toward elephants include: 1) the proportion of available land affected by elephants, 2) the closeness of farmers’ fields to Tarangire National Park, 3) the lack of compensation, 4) the ability to affect the decision-making concerning the human-elephant conflicts and 5) the information about and knowledge of elephants and their importance. The underlying cause of the human-elephant conflicts is identified to be the spatial overlap of the two species. To prevent human-elephant encounters in the first place, thereby reducing the risk of human-elephants conflicts, better land use planning can be used to avoid settlement and cultivation close to protected areas. Buffer zones can be established around national parks and reserves to reduce the overlap between humans and wildlife. Mitigation through preventive and deterrent methods like lighting fires, making noises, using chili-dung or chili-grease to scare elephants off farmers’ fields can also be used. Another alternative is to switch from growing high-risk crops that elephants prefer to crops like chili or sesame which rarely gets eaten by elephants.<br>Att konflikter mellan människor och djurliv kan minska bönders stöd för artbevarande åtgärder är välkänt bland forskare. Konflikter mellan människor och elefanter är vitt förekommande i byar i Babati-distriktet i norra Tanzania på grund av närheten till nationalparken Tarangire. Syftet med denna studie är därför att undersöka bönders attityder till elefanter och attitydernas effekter för bevarandeåtgärder. Primärdata samlades in genom ett kvalitativt upplägg med semistrukturerade intervjuer med tolv bönder i fyra byar i Babati, med Wildlife Officer Nashon Macokesha på Babati District Council samt med Allan Carlson, naturvårdsexpert på WWF. En tematisk analys utfördes för att jämföra svaren mellan bönderna, Macokesha och Carlson och the Theory of Planned Behavior samt the Value-Belief-Norm theory användes för att analysera de underliggande orsakerna bakom böndernas attityder. Resultatet från denna studie visar att ungefär hälften av bönderna har positiva attityder till elefanter, medan den andra hälften har negativa åsikter om dem. Elefanter identifierades som den mest problematiska arten för bönderna och förstörandet av grödor som den mest problematiska typen av konflikt mellan människor och elefanter. Problemen som bönderna upplever till följd av dessa konflikter inkluderar direkta effekter som förlorad inkomst och försämrade försörjningsmöjligheter, men också indirekta effekter som hälso- och säkerhetsproblem. Faktorer som enligt resultaten i denna studie kan påverka böndernas attityder till elefanter innefattar: 1) andelen tillgänglig mark som påverkas av elefanter, 2) närheten från böndernas mark till nationalparken Tarangire, 3) bristen på kompensation, 4) möjligheten att påverka beslutsprocessen gällande konflikten mellan människor och elefanter samt 5) information och kunskap om elefanter och deras betydelse. Den underliggande orsaken till konflikterna mellan människor och elefanter identifieras vara överlappet i användningsområden mellan de båda arterna. För att förhindra möten mellan människor och elefanter, och därmed minska risken för konflikter, behövs bättre markanvändningsplanering så att bosättning och jordbruk undviks i närheten av skyddade områden. Buffertzoner kan också anläggas runt nationalparker och reservat för att minska överlappet mellan människor och djur. Avskräckande åtgärder, som att tända eldar, göra oväsen, tända chilibriketter eller sätta upp chili-rep, för att hålla elefanter borta från böndernas åkrar kan också användas. Ett annat alternativ är att bönderna byter från att odla högriskgrödor som elefanter föredrar till att odla grödor som chili eller sesam, vilka sällan eller aldrig äts av elefanter.
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Karimi, Rebekah R. Schulte Bruce A. "An assessment of perceived crop damage in a Tanzanian village impacted by human-elephant conflict and an investigation of deterrent properties of African elephant (Loxodonta africana) exudates using bioassays." Diss., Statesboro, Ga.: Georgia Southern University, 2009. http://www.georgiasouthern.edu/etd/archive/fall2009/lyndsay_a_itoh/Itoh_Lyndsay_A_200908_MS.pdf.
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"A thesis submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Georgia Southern University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Science." Title from PDF of title page (Georgia Southern University, viewed on June 19, 2010). Bruce A. Schulte, major professor; Lissa M. Leege, J. Michelle Cawthorn, committee members. Electronic version approved: December 2009. Includes bibliographical references (p.76-78).
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Fontes, Sónia Alexandra de Jesus. "Reproductive management in captive elephants." Master's thesis, Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10400.5/14044.
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Dissertação de Mestrado Integrado em Medicina Veterinária<br>Elephants have been widely used by Humans for several centuries: for meat, as warriors through several kingdoms, for their heavy work power, for public entertainment, and for their unique tusks, leading them to be poached for the ivory trade. Nowadays we face the reality of a decreasing number of elephants in most of their range countries, leading them to be considered endangered (Asian) or vulnerable (African) to extinction. Being charismatic mega-vertebrates, made them one of the most desired wildlife to keep and show in zoological collections. Interdiction to the importation of wildlife was an important step, but with no more importation of individuals from the wild, the need to preserve the captive population became mandatory, and the zoological institutions make great efforts to maintain these animals in their collection and extend the conservation of these species. The inability to produce sufficient captive offspring and the continuous declining number in their natural habitat has urged research on elephant reproduction physiology. Asian and African elephants reproduce well in the wild but due to historically poor reproductive performance under human care, most captive populations face the possibility of local extinction. Besides logistical issues, elephant breeding in captivity faces management problems due to diseases, like ovarian and uterine pathologies and bull infertility. Therefore, it is important to understand the anatomy, physiology and all associated pathologies which can lead to reproduction failure, and for the future management of captive elephant populations is fundamental to ensure that professional decisions are made. Recent advances in endocrine monitoring and ultrasound imaging techniques allow researchers to understand the complex mechanisms that control reproduction in elephants, unique in several features. In this thesis, I reviewed all relevant studies from 2000 to nowadays, with special emphasis to the African elephant. Reproductive breeding management considerations to the captive population of the Lisbon Zoo were derived. Finally, four clinical cases in elephant reproduction that were followed and assisted by the author are analysed and discussed.<br>RESUMO - Maneio reprodutivo de elefantes em cativeiro - Por muitos séculos, os elefantes têm sido utilizados pelo Homem: como produto de caça, soldados de guerra de diversos reinos, pela sua capacidade de trabalho pesado e pelas suas presas, levando a que sejam abatidos para o mercado de marfim. Atualmente, na maior parte da sua distribuição, o número de elefantes continua a decrescer o que levou à sua corrente classificação em “Vulnerável” (Africano) e em “Ameaça de Extinção” (Asiático). Devido ao carisma destes mega vertebrados, os elefantes são um dos mais desejados animais para manter e exibir em Zoos. A interdição à importação de mais indivíduos do meio selvagem foi um passo importante para a conservação destas espécies, mas tornou a manutenção das populações cativas existentes uma prioridade e grandes esforços foram tomados pelas instituições de cativeiro. Um ponto fulcral tem sido o estudo da fisiologia reprodutiva dos elefantes, para que seja atingido um número de descendentes suficientes para manter estas populações. Tanto os elefantes asiáticos (Elephas maximus) como os elefantes africanos (Loxodonta africana) conseguem reproduzir-se com sucesso no meio selvagem mas, devido a uma história de baixa performance reprodutiva sob cuidados humanos, muitas das populações cativas correm o risco de extinção local. Para além de problemas logísticos, a reprodução de elefantes em cativeiro debate-se com questões de maneio devido a enfermidades, como patologias ováricas e uterinas e infertilidade no macho. Compreender e tornar disponível as novas descobertas no ramo da anatomia, fisiologia e as mais comuns patologias associadas a falha reprodutiva tornou-se então uma prioridade para garantir que decisões ponderadas possam ser tomadas no maneio de elefantes cativos. Avanços recentes em monitorização hormonal e em técnicas de ultrasom permitiu aos investigadores perceber os mecanismos complexos que controlam a reprodução nos elefantes, que apresentam variadas características únicas. Posto isso, nesta tese, foram recolhidos e compilados todos os resultados relevantes publicados desde o ano 2000, com especial ênfase em dados relativos ao elefante africano. Considerações sobre o maneio reprodutivo da população de elefantes Africanos existente no Jardim Zoológico de Lisboa são também abordadas. Por fim, quatro casos clínicos, auxiliados e seguidos pelo autor são analisados e debatidos.<br>N/A
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Visser, Vernon. "Keystone megaherbivore hypothesis - white elephants?" Bachelor's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/26690.
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Esikuri, Enos E. "Spatio-Temporal Effects of Land Use Changes in A Savanna Wildlife Area of Kenya." Diss., Virginia Tech, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/30639.
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Land use changes have been shown to have significant effects on wildlife species. Sixty three percent of the national Parks and Reserves in Kenya are located in the savannas. Because of the seasonality associated with savanna ecosystems, 75% of the wildlife species and numbers in Kenya occur in savanna nonpark areas. Therefore, conservation of wildlife in Kenya has to address the changes that are taking place in savanna areas outside parks. I studied land use changes and their effects on elephant habitat quality in Amboseli Basin, Kenya. I used visual interpretation to analyze land use changes from satellite images for 1975, 1988, and 1993. I determined that during the evaluation period, conversion of areas to agricultural land has been unidirectional. The hectarage under cultivation was 2,937, 10,950, and 24,476 for 1975, 1988, and 1993 respectively. Trend analysis seems to suggest that during the evaluation period, conversion of areas to agricultural land has followed an exponential function (R² = 0.99) in Amboseli Basin. The area under cultivation was 6.9% of the total area studied. This is small but significant considering that agricultural land was almost exclusively located in areas that form the dry season fall back areas. Such areas are important for the survival of elephants and other species during critical periods.
I developed a dry season habitat suitability index (HSI) model for the African elephant based on the density of acacia trees (# of trees > 5 cm dbh/ha) and distance (km) to natural sources of water in the basin. The amount of good quality habitat (i.e., HSI > 0.6) declined from 74,666 ha in 1975 to 54,890 ha in 1988, to 23,208 ha in 1993. This is a drop of 51,890 ha (65.5%) of good quality habitat in the basin. On the other hand, low quality habitat (HSI < 0.2) increased by 272% between 1975 and 1993. The weighted HSI values in the basin showed a decline, as did the habitat units for the 3 evaluation years. The weighted HSI declined by 0.13 between 1975 and 1993, while the total habitat units (ha) declined by 40,567 ha during the 18 year period. It appears that elephant habitat quality has steadily declined in the Amboseli Basin during the period considered in this study.
The use of nonpark areas by elephants leads to direct interaction and conflicts with humans. Between June 1996 and July 1997, I recorded a total of 489 elephant damage incidents while the Amboseli National Park authorities recorded 143. The damage types were crops, livestock deaths, and human deaths and injuries. The majority of the damage cases involved crop depredation. The Amboseli National Park authorities significantly under-reported the number of elephant damage incidents in the basin (P < 0.0001).<br>Ph. D.
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Wong, E. P. "Non-invasive monitoring of stress in wild Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in Peninsular Malaysia." Thesis, University of Nottingham, 2018. http://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/47810/.
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Translocation of wild Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) is used extensively to mitigate human-elephant conflict (HEC) in Peninsular Malaysia since 1974. Very little is known about the fate of translocated elephants after relocation due to challenges in observing elephants in the dense rainforest. Advances in wildlife endocrinology suggest that faecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fGCM) can be used to study adrenal activity remotely, to assess the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis response towards stressors. The aim is to assess the impact of translocation on wild Asian elephants in Peninsular Malaysia using faecal endocrinology and GPS technology. The specific objectives are: (i) adapting hormone sampling methods for use under tropical field conditions, (ii) comparing fGCM concentrations between translocated and local resident elephants using enzyme immunoassay, and (iii) quantifying gastrointestinal parasite eggs and microflora ciliates in faecal samples to detect signs of immunosuppression. We found that Asian elephant’s fGCM (80 dungpiles, 685 subsamples) are stable up to eight hours in the field. From the monitoring of wild elephants at the release sites, between two months up to a year, translocated elephants (N=5) had lower fGCM concentrations in comparison to local resident elephants (N=4; Linear Mixed Models: t=-2.77, df=7.09, P=0.027). There were no differences in gastrointestinal parasite egg counts (P > 0.05) or microflora ciliate counts (P > 0.05) between translocated and local resident elephants. In conclusion, translocation does affect elephant physiology but this is in the opposite direction from that expected – a prolonged decrease rather than increase of adrenal activity. It is unknown if these conditions could cause immunosuppression, but it could adversely affect stress response and health of the elephant (e.g. adrenal insufficiency, chronic fatigue or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). When assessing HEC mitigation, conservation authorities and other stakeholders need to consider that translocation may not be the best solution for HEC, as it will have long-term consequences on elephants’ health.
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Knott, Edward Joseph. "The effect of elephants (Loxodonta africana, Blumenbach, 1797) on Xeric Succulent Thicket." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005359.
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This study looks at the impact of elephant feeding on the Xeric Succulent Thicket component of Eastern Cape Subtropical Thicket (ECST) in Addo Elephant National Park (AENP). Observations of elephant feeding were carried out and vegetation transects were surveyed for impact of elephant feeding. The results indicated that the Nyati elephants spent the majority of their time grazing (nearly 90%), particularly the cow-young herds, and especially when the herd gathered in larger numbers. Browsing events were concentrated on Acacia karroo (81%) and there was no significant difference between the sexes in their preference for this species. Despite being subjected to most of the browsing, the majority of A. karroo trees were undamaged and the effect of elephants was generally light. It appears unlikely that, three years after re-introduction to Nyati, the elephants have had an effect on community structure of the vegetation. Surveys were conducted on stands of the alien invasive weed prickly pear Opuntia ficus-indica, and it was recorded that elephants in Nyati have had a dramatic effect on prickly pear, utilising all adult plants assessed and destroying 70% of them. This level of destruction in such a short period of time suggests that prickly pear is a highly favoured species. The results from the present study suggest that elephants can play a role in the control of prickly pear. Results are discussed in terms of elephants as both megaherbivores and keystone species, and as agents of intermediate disturbance.
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Sjöberg, Johanna. "The Effect of Extra Food Stimulation on Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus) Kept at Kolmården Zoo." Thesis, Linköpings universitet, Institutionen för fysik, kemi och biologi, 2011. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-69943.
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Stereotypic behaviors in all animals are more often than not associated with poor welfare. Limited access to perform species specific behaviors is often a reason for the development of stereotypies. Elephants with their great intelligence and need of social contact, coupled with a destructive a behavior are especially difficult to house in captivity. To decrease the occurrence of stereotypic behaviors in elephants, environmental enrichment in form of food enrichment is a good option, since elephants have a great need of foraging. The aim of this study was to investigate if an extra supply of food enrichment could decrease the presence of stereotypic behaviors at night in three Asian elephants at Kolmården zoo. Already existing hay nets attached to wires in the roof were used and connected to a timer. The hay nets were lowered to vision trunk reach between 6:00 am and 6:30 am during five days and the frequencies of selected behaviors were compared with the frequencies of the same behaviors during five preceding baseline nights. The animals were filmed using mounted cameras with IR lights. There was a significant decrease of stereotypic behavior for one of the elephants, but all three showed an increase in foraging whereof the increases were significant for two of them. One of the elephants showed no stereotypic behaviors at all during the study. To keep in mind is that the elephants have different backgrounds and experiences which might have influenced the results.
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LaDue, Chase Andrew. "Chemical Signaling in Asian Elephants (Elephas Maximus): Concentration Effects with Applications for Management and Conservation." TopSCHOLAR®, 2016. http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1622.
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Asian elephants utilize two chemical signals that have been described to function in reproduction: (1) (Z)-7-dodecenyl acetate (Z7-12:Ac) is released by females near ovulation, and (2) frontalin is released by males around the time of musth. Signaling theory posits that the concentration at which either compound is emitted should have implications for the response of the receiver, varying with factors such as sex and reproductive experience. Here, the objectives were to: (1) investigate the effect of concentration on receiver chemosensory behavior in an effort to identify detection thresholds and concentrations of maximum response for reproductively experienced or inexperienced male and female Asian elephants, and (2) characterize the broader behavioral impacts of each of these compounds in an effort for application as environmental enrichment in captive settings. Concentrations from 0.0 mM to 2.0 mM of both frontalin and Z7-12:Ac were bioassayed simultaneously with captive elephants housed at facilities across North America in two experiments: one that tested mid-range concentrations and a second that tested low and high concentrations. There was a general increase in chemosensory response with increasing concentration of both compounds regardless of sex or reproductive experience. Females exhibited a lower detection threshold for frontalin, and the opposite was true for males with Z7-12:Ac. Reproductive experience also influenced thresholds: inexperienced males had a higher threshold than experienced males for frontalin (the same was true for females), and experienced males were able to detect Z7-12:Ac samples as low as 10–7 mM. Aside from inexperienced males, all elephants responded maximally to the 1.0 mM samples of both compounds. Elephants exposed to mid-range concentrations of either compound showed no notable changes in behavior after application of the signals, although inexperienced males spent less time inactive and more time walking after frontalin bioassays, and inexperienced females foraged more after exposure to Z7-12:Ac. Interpreted together, this suggests that the concentration at which either compound is emitted has strong implications for chemosensory response based on the identity of the receiver in Asian elephants, although it is unclear whether these compounds have other behavioral effects that can be targeted for a goal-oriented olfactory enrichment program.
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Kagwa, Simon Kasaine. "Spatial Distribution of Human Elephant Conflict (HEC) and Characterization of Crop-Raiding Elephants in Kasigau Region, Kenya." TopSCHOLAR®, 2011. http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1083.
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Human-elephant conflict (HEC) is complex and a serious elephant conservation concern across Africa and Asia where elephants are found. HEC occurs whenever people and elephants share common interests. For HEC to be ameliorated and elephant conservation to be successful locally and regionally, the distribution and implications of HEC should be understood. The purpose of this study was to determine the spatial distribution of HECs and characterize elephant herds in terms of herd size responsible for crop-raiding in Kasigau. The study was generally guided by two working a priori hypotheses: (1) farms near the bush edge or livestock watering points will experience more crop raiding incidences than those farther away, and (2) given the geographical differences, the total cost of damage to crops sustained in all the farms will be different across the seven villages. For hypothesis 1, the distances of random farms to the bush and to the bush edge were mapped and measured on Google EarthTM. Results of the study showed that there were differences in the distribution of the distances from the bush and from water for farms that experienced damage and a random selection of farms (p < .0001).
Additionally, total cost of damage to crops (Kruskal-Wallis; p < 0.0001), average cost of damage to crops per acre per incursion (Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA; p = 0.0255) and mean cost of damage to crops and facilities (Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA; p < 0.0001) were also found to be statistically different across all the villages. Four villages (Bungule,Ngambenyi, Makwasinyi, and Kisimenyi) sustained high total cost of damage to crops and average cost of damage to crops per acre per incursion indicating that these villages had similar elephant pressure. Ngambenyi village sustained the greatest cost of damage to crops while Kiteghe recorded the greatest average cost of damage to crops per acre per incursion.
A posteriori hypotheses included: (1) there will be seasonal distribution of elephant attacks on farms. Results showed that the proportion of total crop-raiding incidents was different during wet and dry seasons in my study period (X2 = 5.49, df = 1, p < .019) with the greatest occurrence of attacks taking place in February, which coincided with crop maturity. This indicates that crop raiding incidents were most common during harvesting time. This result coincides with what was reported elsewhere. (2) there will be difference in the number of crop-raiding incidents by single and multiple elephant responsible for crop incursions in Kasigau. Results demonstrated that the number of crop-raiding incidents by single and multiple elephants were significantly different (X2 = 329.1037; df = 1; p < .0001). A total of 163 (72%) farm incursions were caused by elephant herds comprising multiple individuals while single elephants were responsible for 62 crop-raiding incidents, or 28% of total farm incursions. 100% (225 incursion) of crop incursions reported occurred during the night.
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Roux, Candice. "Feeding ecology, space use and habitat selection of elephants in two enclosed game reserves in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2006. http://eprints.ru.ac.za/298/.
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Hook, Margaret Rose. "Effect of Lion Calls on African Elephants (Loxodonta Africana) in Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa." TopSCHOLAR®, 2012. http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1196.
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Perceived predation risk alters animals’ behavior. This shift in behavior often comes at the cost of attaining resources. Generally, African elephants (Loxodonta africana) experience little predation pressure; however, the risk of predation by lions (Panthera leo) increases other prey species are less abundant. In elephant herds, related females and their offspring travel together in family groups, led by the eldest female. Response to predation pressure was examined by playing lion calls to the population of 437 elephants at the Main Camp Section of Addo Elephant National Park (AENP) in South Africa. Unfamiliar lion calls from a single male and two males, static, and running water were played from a remote speaker to elephants at waterholes. These trials were recorded by video. Behaviors of elephants were then extracted from video into focal observations of thirty second segments before, during and after a sound was played. I analyzed these data using parametric t-tests and non-parametric randomization tests. When no sound was played, elephants did not alter their behavior. Water elicited low levels of distress behaviors. Elephants behaved in a threatened or annoyed manner toward static. Elephants changed their behavior more in response to lion calls than to the controls, namely by decreasing drinking and increasing walking and distress behaviors. I also examined how individuals differed in their responses to the lion calls based on a number of demographic factors. Adult and subadult females performed more social behaviors after lion calls when the matriarch was absent than when she was present. Furthermore, when group size was larger and more calves were present, females decreased drinking and increased time exhibiting distress behaviors. Based on this and other studies it can be concluded that elephants of different demographics perceived similar levels of elevated risk when hearing lion calls. Landscape of fear models are useful for assessing habitat use by prey species in response to real and perceived predation risk. The present study corroborates findings from a study in East Africa that elephants perceive threat from lions based on calls alone and appear to distinguish levels of threat by the number of lions calling.
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Gough, Katie F. "Relatedness, social behaviour, and population dynamics of the elephants (Loxodonta africana) of Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/3569.
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This study presents an investigation into the population dynamics and social structure of a small, closed elephant population. Specifically, it examined population growth rates for evidence of density-dependent regulation. It also quantified the association patterns of female elephants groups, and male elephants groups. Social structure was examined using Hamilton’s kinship theories of inclusive fitness, and age. Male-female patterns of association were also examined for inbreeding avoidance behaviours. The study population was located in Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa. Density-dependence was assessed using a long-term data set. Densities were considerably higher than estimated carrying capacities. Population growth rate was positively correlated with increasing density. No relationship between birth rate, the age of first calving or calf sex ratio and elephant density was detected but there was a positive relationship between birth rate and rainfall during conception year. Mortality rates, particularly for juveniles, were low, and mean inter-calf interval was 3.3 years. There is no evidence of density dependent regulation in this population. These findings indicate that density dependence should not be considered as an option in the control of elephant numbers in this Park, or where elephant resources are not seasonally limited. Examination of association patterns of the adult female component revealed that associations were not random at the population, family or individual scale. This is the second study on African elephants to confirm previous behavioural studies that predicted that preferred associates were close maternal relatives. This supports many studies showing that social species preferentially associate with their kin. The adult males in this population were found to have a well differentiated society with non-random associations. Generally, males were found to have weak associations with most other males and strong associations with only a few males. This association pattern was found to be persistent over the time frame of the study, as indicated by the time lag analysis. Males returned to their natal family, even when maternally related females were in oestrus. Oestrous females directed positive behaviours towards musth males. It appears that behavioural inbreeding avoidance mechanisms in this small, closed population are inhibited: musth status seems to override inbreeding avoidance. General principles from this case study were interpreted in terms of their applicability to other small, closed populations.
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Wylie, D. "Elephants, compassion, and the largesse of literature." Rhodes University, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018924.
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[From the text] Why is it that we do not raise a monument, a mausoleum, nor even a humble gravestone, to mark the death of every elephant? We habitually, even compulsively, do this for other humans, occasionally for treasured pets. Yet we do not do it for the most charismatic, gigantic, culturally resonant land animal we will ever encounter. Why not? Some possible answers. One: too much work. Another: we regard other animals as less conscious than ourselves; we are the only creatures who deserve to have our deaths so commemorated. A third: wild animals are part of wild ecosystems; it is ‘natural’ for them to die and to be reabsorbed namelessly back into those ecosystems. We humans, on the other hand, consider ourselves somehow separate from those ecosystems: we shield ourselves from ‘Nature’ with bricks and literatures while we live, with marble and epitaphs after we die.
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Yasui, Saki. "Behavioral Study of Sociality in Captive Elephants." Kyoto University, 2020. http://hdl.handle.net/2433/252974.
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Mumby, Hannah. "Stress, ecology and demography of Asian elephants." Thesis, University of Sheffield, 2014. http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/6922/.
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Du, Toit Jana. "Changes in diet resource use by elephants, Loxodonta Africana, due to changes in resource availability in the Addo National Park." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2015.
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Animals are restricted in their diets by several factors, most notably the availability and quality of resources. Variation in resource availability causes herbivores to shift their diets seasonally and spatially. Elephants (Loxodonta africana), are known to have extensive impacts on plant communities, altering ecosystem functioning and causing a decline in biodiversity. In enclosed areas, these impacts are increased leading to a decline in resource availability and presumably resource quality. In the Addo Elephant National Park, the Main Camp section has a history of high elephant impacts and therefore reduced resource availability. Whereas, the recently added Colchester section has greater resource availability, due to the absence of elephants in this section since the fencing of the Park. This study investigated the changes in diet (diet breadth, preference and diet quality) of elephants due to an increase in resource availability. Three alternative hypotheses were contrasted: 1) elephants as generalist foragers, 2) elephants as optimal foragers, or 3) elephants learning foraging behaviour. Using microhistological analysis, the diets of elephants were described over five sampling periods (August 2010 – February 2014) in both sections. Forage availability was estimated using a modified line-intercept method, and was used to determine changes in preference by relating forage availability to use. In the Colchester section the diet breadth of elephants increased, and was coupled with a high initial variation between the diets of elephants, which decreased in subsequent sampling periods. This supported the elephants learning foraging behaviour hypothesis. However, there was no increase in diet preference by elephants in the Colchester section, which supported the elephants as generalist foragers hypothesis. There was also no difference in the diet quality of elephants in the Main Camp and Colchester sections, which did not support any of the three hypotheses. The elephants learning foraging behaviour hypothesis is proposed to be the link between the alternate two hypotheses, and given enough time, either of the two could be supported. The lack of difference in preference and diet quality between elephants in the Main Camp and Colchester sections is hypothesised to be due to the population level (not measured for individuals) at which these were measured. Microhistological analysis of faeces was used to describe the diet of elephants, which was compared to the diet described by DNA metabarcoding. Microhistological analysis is a traditional, favoured technique used in describing the diet of wild herbivores, whereas DNA metabarcoding is a relatively new and untested technique. These two techniques have not yet been compared in the diet of megaherbivores. Results indicated that microhistological analysis identified significantly more grass in the diet of elephants, than DNA metabarcoding did, which was expected as previous studies also found overestimation of grasses. Microhistological analysis identified more plant families in the diet of elephants, than DNA metabarcoding. Most of the differences between the two techniques can be attributed to the difference in taxonomic resolution, which was due to the lack of a complete reference collection for DNA metabarcoding. Although either of the two techniques can be used to describe the diet of elephants, the most reliable results would be obtained when using both techniques. The findings of this study suggest that due to the high initial variation between the diets of elephants, with an increase in resource availability, the impacts will also initially be highly varied. This suggests that identifying plant species to monitor elephants impacts initially will be difficult. However, important plant species, or those known to be vulnerable to elephants impacts should be carefully monitored initially and monitoring should not only occur annually, but also seasonally.
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Nyumba, Tobias Ochieng. "Are elephants flagships or battleships? : understanding impacts of human-elephant conflict on human wellbeing in Trans Mara District, Kenya." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2018. https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/275582.
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This thesis examines the impacts of human-elephant conflict on human wellbeing and the implications for elephant conservation and management in Trans Mara District, Kenya. The District comprises communal lands bordering the world-famous Masai Mara National Reserve in southwestern Kenya. Trans Mara supports a range of land use types and provides refuge to one of Kenya’s large elephant population comprised of over 3,000 transient and 500 resident animals. This study used interdisciplinary methods to gain insights into the nature and consequences of conflict on the wellbeing of communities living with elephants. In particular, I used a combination of existing wellbeing indices and a set of indicators developed through consultations with local communities in TM to measure impacts of HEC on specific wellbeing domains. The results show that elephants still use the communal lands in Trans Mara but are increasingly restricted to the riverine forest remnants in central Trans Mara. However, there was no evidence of a further decline in the elephant range. Instead, this study points to a shift in elephant range against a background of increasing human settlement, land sub-division and agricultural expansion. The wellbeing of Trans Mara residents comprised eight indicators. Human-elephant conflict negatively affected peoples’ wellbeing, but the impacts were limited to certain dimensions. Elephants affected school-going children within elephant range. Attitudes towards elephants and its conservation in TM were influenced by the location of human residence relative to elephant refuge, diversity of income sources, and age and gender. Finally, conflict mitigation in Trans Mara is still elusive and challenging, but opportunities exist to develop simple and dynamic mitigation tools. The findings of this study have important implications for the future of elephant conservation in the face of competing human needs, both in Trans Mara District and elsewhere in Africa.
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Osborn, Ferrel V. "The ecology of crop-raiding elephants in Zimbabwe." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 1998. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.368336.
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Lynsdale, Carly L. "Evolutionary ecology of parasite infection in Asian elephants." Thesis, University of Sheffield, 2017. http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/19058/.
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Gadd, Michelle Erin. "Ecology and conservation of elephants in African rangelands /." For electronic version search Digital dissertations database. Restricted to UC campuses. Access is free to UC campus dissertations, 2003. http://uclibs.org/PID/11984.
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Stead, Sarah Kofie. "The assessment of stress in captive juvenile African elephants (Loxodonta africana)." Diss., University of Pretoria, 2000. http://hdl.handle.net/2263/29337.
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In 1998, 30 juvenile elephants were captured in Botswana and transported to a holding facility in South Africa to be trained and sold to zoos and safari parks. The welfare of the 'Tuli Elephants' as they became known, became the source of acrimonious dispute between a number of conservation and animal groups. The case highlighted concerns over the welfare of elephants during capture, transport and confinement. Questions asked were: can an objective assessment of the effect on juvenile elephants on the removal from matriarchal group be made. This study was aimed to take an objective approach to assessing the welfare of captive juvenile elephants using behavioural and physiological methods of investigation. A behavioural study to identify indicators of stress was conducted in five groups of elephants subject to various husbandry systems. Thirteen behavioural indicators of stress were identified. A group of two elephants held in an enclosure 70 m2 that was devoid of mud and sand baths showed the highest number of behavioural indicators of stress. Elephants in larger enclosures with mud and sand baths showed fewer indicators of stress. The group able to range freely during the day showed the least number of stress¬related indicators. Conventionally the physiological assessment of adrenal responses to stress relies upon blood sample collection and the measurement of glucocorticoids but this is impossible without immobilisation or restraint that influences results. This study validated a recently established enzyme immunoassay (EtA) measuring faecal glucocorticoid metabolites in elephants. A preliminary investigation into the biological relevance of this non-invasive method was made for use in assessing welfare in elephants. Four juvenile elephants were injected i.m. with synthetic adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) (Synacthen, Novartis; 2.15 mg). Blood and faecal samples were collected over 4 hand 7 days respectively. Concentrations of serum cortisol and faecal cortisol metabolites were determined using immunoassay. Variability of basal and peak values in blood and faeces were observed among the elephants. After ACTH injection, serum cortisol concentrations increased by 400-700%. When compared to cortisol and corticosterone EIAs, 11-oxoaetiocholanolone EIA proved best suited to measure cortisol metabolites. Concentrations of faecal 11,17¬dioxoandrostanes increased by 570-1070% reaching peak levels after 20-25.5h. Samples left outside could be collected up to 8hrs after defecation without a significant effect on metabolite concentrations. A correlation between enclosure size, presence of stress-related behaviour and faecal 11,17 -DOAs was observed. Elephants kept in small enclosures exhibited more stress-related behaviour and had higher levels of glucocorticoid metabolites than those ranging in a larger area. The results of the study suggest that non-invasive faecal monitoring of glucocorticoid metabolites is useful in investigating adrenal activity in African elephants.<br>Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2002.<br>Companion Animal Clinical Studies<br>MSc<br>Unrestricted
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Smet, Anna F. "A comparative cognition perspective on the production and use of visual signals by African savannah elephants (Loxodonta africana)." Thesis, University of St Andrews, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10023/11860.
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Elephants' complex societies, well-developed communication systems, evolutionary history and close working relationship with humans make them an important species for studies of cognition but research on elephant cognition is sparse. In this thesis I aim to illuminate the social cognition involved in the interpretation and production of visual signals by African elephants (Loxodonta africana). My results are intended to contribute to the cross-species literature on social cognition and help to elucidate wild elephant social behaviour. I studied captive elephants, housed at an elephant-back safari company in Victoria Falls, and wild elephants in Hwange National Park, both in Zimbabwe. Wild elephants display a vast array of postures, actions and signals. I found that elephants recognise visual attentiveness in others when they signal silently, producing more signals when their audience can see them, and using the body and face orientation of an audience to judge their attention. When responding to typically human visual signals, elephants immediately responded correctly to deictic gestures, including variants of pointing that they were unlikely to have already experienced. These results indicate elephants' astonishing sensitivity to even subtle social cues. I found no indication that elephants reason about mental states such as false beliefs, or rationality; however, limitations of the experimental design meant I was unlikely to find such an ability even if it is present in elephants. Furthermore, I discovered that elephants have a form of referential indication in their natural communication in the wild. Elephants match their direction of attention with a type of trunk action produced by a group member. Attending to human-like signals, and interpreting them as communicative is an advantage for any animal working with humans and that ability might explain the choice of species that are ancestors of today's domestic animals.
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Rasmussen, Henrik Barner. "Reproductive tactics of male African savannah elephants (Loxodonta africana)." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2005. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.425895.
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Kangwana, Kadzo Flora. "Elephants and Maasai : conflict and conservation in Amboseli, Kenya." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 1993. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.357726.
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Vanleeuwe, Hilde. "Managing the Mount Kenya environment for people and elephants." Thesis, University of Kent, 2004. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.413271.
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Forests contain much global biodiversity, and over 90% of the worlds' poorest people depend on them. Few forests remain in East Africa, and these are vulnerable to further fragmentation from expanding settlement, and to over-exploitation by people and wildlife that become prone to over-crowding through isolation. Kenya contains 26 natural habitat fragments and only 3% of forest cover across five main forest blocks. These blocks form the main water towers in semi-arid Kenya on which people and wildlife, far beyond the protected boundaries, depend. Mount Kenya (MK) is the largest forest block, and the protection of its water catchment function is of national importance (Chapter 2). The five forest blocks in Kenya hold almost one third of the total of 28,806 elephants in Kenya, of which MK was estimated as having the largest highland elephant population with 2,911 (±640) individuals in 2001 (Chapter 3). Elephant estimates in forest are usually derived from dung count surveys, which are prone to bias and accordingly most often classed as C or D, in the range from A (best) to E (worst), in the African Elephant Database (AED). The MK elephant estimate described in this thesis was one of only two dung count estimates that were classed as quality B in the AED of 2002 (Chapter 3). Explanatory models based on the dung count data were integrated with a geographic information system (GIS) to develop the most advanced predictive seasonal distribution maps currently available for elephants in a forested environment (Chapter 4). Furthermore, least-cost elephant travel routes and foraging paths were digitally traced over cost surface images, developed from data on preferred elephant habitats in different seasons, physical barriers such as extreme slopes, and land use barriers such as farmland (Chapter 5). This enabled the location of elephant movements in relation to plantations inside the MK forest, and investigation of the relationship between measured tree damage in plantations and elephant movements (Chapter 5). Two areas where subsequently identified where elephant routes strayed from the forest into adjacent farmland, which was where most elephant crop damage was reported by farmers to Kenya Wildlife Service stations and outposts (Chapter 6). Elephants and people trespassing on each other's habitats is pronounced because MK is surrounded by a ring of small-scale farmers, totalling over 500,000 people living within 5,000m of the MK forest boundary on farms of 1.6ha on average (Chapter 6).Time-series analysis of satellite imagery of 1987,1995, and 2000 illustrated a gradual deterioration of MK land and resources, and results of an aerial survey conducted in 1999 showed high levels of illegal exploitation of land and resources (Chapter 7). However, management responsibility of the MK forest transferred from the Forestry Department to the Kenya Wildlife Service in July 2000, and time-series analysis of satellite images of 2000 and 2002 show regeneration of degraded MK land by 2002 (Chapter 8). Comparison of two aerial surveys conducted in 1999 and 2002, showed a significant reduction of illegal exploitation of forest resources on MK by 2002 (Chapter 8). Sound land use management plans are needed for MK to avoid deterioration of the forest by an over-crowded and confined elephant population, and by surrounding people. These plans need to address problems with longer term solutions, regardless of the short term disadvantages that they may entail (Chapter 9).
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Rood, Ente Jacob Johan. "Elephant endurance in Aceh : the effects of habitat disturbance and land cover change on the conservation of Sumatran elephants in Aceh, Indonesia." Thesis, Oxford Brookes University, 2010. http://radar.brookes.ac.uk/radar/items/cdc9c8ad-86b4-ecf9-d90a-435b3cff1bbc/1.
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The Sumatran elephant is seriously threatened by extinction throughout its range. Here, conservation issues threatening the future survival of Asian elephants in Sumatra, and Aceh in particular, are analyzed and evaluated. The impact of deforestation on the prevalence of elephants living in isolated subpopulations scattered across Sumatra was addressed by analyzing the spatial patterns of deforestation and habitat use of elephants. Deforestation data was obtained from remotely sensed imagery and elephant habitat use was assessed by means of ecological niche modelling. The Sumatra-wide impact of deforestation on elephant population survival was analyzed by comparing the historic distribution of elephants to their current distribution. The observed incidences of population extinctions were then compared to spatial pattern of land cover change and anthropogenic influences. Moreover, the occurrence of crop raiding by elephants was evaluated against the spatial configuration of the forests and forest disturbances. Finally, the effectiveness of different forest conservation strategies was assessed. Niche modelling revealed that elephants are mainly confined to closed canopy habitats located within landscape depressions and along the forest edge. Surprisingly, elephants were found over a wide range of elevations and were found at locations within rugged terrain. Since deforestation in Aceh was mainly concentrated within the same areas forming the most optimal elephant habitat, elephants are likely to become displaced from their natural ranges. Also, crop raiding incidents appeared to be most frequent in areas which recently had been cleared, but still had undisturbed or secondary forest patches in the direct vicinity. These findings, together with the observation that elephant population survival was significantly reduced in areas which had little forest cover over an extended period of time, suggest that deforestation is the main factor leading to elephant extinctions. To safeguard the survival of elephant populations into the future, conservation strategies should attempt to integrate elephant habitat requirements into land use plans while simultaneously considering human economic interests. Conserving forest by reducing access appears to be the most effective measure to reduce illegal logging. The application of buffer zones along the forest edge in which limited resource extraction is allowed is therefore more likely to reduce deforestation as compared to the investments needed to actively protect the forest.
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Velonis, Heather Kelly. "Predicting Parturition in a Long-Gestating Species: Behavioral and Hormonal Indicators in the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus)." PDXScholar, 2017. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/4021.
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Captive populations of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in North America are not self-sustaining, and increasing reproductive success within captive populations is a high priority. The ability to accurately predict parturition can have a direct impact on elephant welfare. Elephants in captivity often require significant preparation and management throughout the birthing process, and complications during labor and delivery can necessitate immediate intervention, including stillbirth, protracted labor, maternal aggression towards a newborn calf, and dystocia. Being able to predict when parturition will commence can ensure appropriate staff is available and adequate monitoring is performed. Routine endocrine sampling can be used to predict parturition in Asian elephants, with a drop in progesterone (P4) to baseline levels signaling parturition in 2-5 days. However, we determined this method is not without limitations, and it is not used in all institutions that house elephants. As changes in hormones regulate and alter behaviors, we investigated behavioral indicators as an additional management tool for predicting parturition, a time of drastic hormone changes. We conducted a study of five pregnancies in Asian elephants at the Oregon Zoo, U.S.A, and Taronga Zoo, Australia, between 2008 and 2012.
In Chapter 2, I evaluated progesterone (P4) and cortisol levels across three time periods: Baseline; Pre, (the week preceding the drop in P4); and Post, (the period after the P4 drop). Levels of P4 were significantly lower, and levels of cortisol were significantly higher in the days just prior to parturition. I found considerable intra- and inter-individual variation in both endocrine profiles, which can make endocrine assessments difficult to interpret in real time.
In Chapter 3, I investigated whether behaviors in the preparturition period could be predictive of impending parturition in the Asian elephant. ANOVA results indicated a significant difference in the amount of time that elephants spent walking backwards across three time periods (F(2) = 3.723, p = 0.033), with the behavior increasing as parturition approached. These results were supported by a non-parametric Kruskal- Wallis. Using a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM), I found that as P4 levels decrease, walking backwards behavior significantly increases.
In Chapter 4, I evaluated investigative trunk behaviors, or "trunk checks", directed towards the temporal gland near the ear, mammary glands, vulva and anus of the pregnant dam. Investigative behaviors included both self-directed behaviors and those sent from herd mates towards the pregnant dam. Self-directed behaviors are most likely associated with physical changes in the pregnant dam, such as using the trunk to pull on swollen teats. Other-directed behaviors may stem from chemo-sensory signaling or other types of communication between herd mates, such as detecting changes in progesterone or cortisol. I ran GLMM and found that four trunk-check behaviors varied significantly with P4 and/or cortisol profiles. These were: self-checks of mammary glands increased with decreasing P4 levels; herd-mate-checks of mammary glands increased with decreasing P4 levels; self-checks of vulva increased with decreasing P4 levels and increasing cortisol levels; herd-mate-checks of anus increased with increasing cortisol levels.
In Chapter 5, I evaluated activity budget behaviors in the pregnant elephants. Generalized comparisons were made to published activity budgets of typical captive Asian elephants. I report that activity budgets are within the range of normal activity, though I note a high level of inter-individual variation. In addition, I compared two sampling techniques, including one-zero and instantaneous sampling, that were used for activity budget data collection. I discuss the different results obtained by each sampling technique.
These results are a very promising indication that behaviors, including walking backwards and multiple trunk-check behaviors, are changing over time or with parturition-related hormone profiles. We recommend that keepers, veterinary staff, and other observers that are familiar with the regular behavioral repertoire of a pregnant female should pay close attention to these highlighted behaviors. Keeping track of these behaviors, especially in conjunction with P4 and cortisol tracking, can help staff refine existing windows of expected parturition.
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Ott, Theresia. "Landscape heterogeneity as a determinant of range utilization by African elephants (Loxodonta africana) in mesic savannas." Diss., Pretoria : [S.n.], 2007. http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-0522208-131027/.
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Lalander, Rickard O. "Suicide of the Elephants? : Venezuelan Decentralization between Partyarchy and Chavismo." Doctoral thesis, Stockholms universitet, Institutionen för spanska, portugisiska och latinamerikastudier, 2004. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-20193.
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On the 3rd of December 1989, Venezuelans went to the polls for the first time to directly elect their local and regional political leaders. A process of government decentralization was initiated with direct elections of municipal mayors and regional state governors. Since 1958, the political system had been dominated by two political parties, the social democratic AD (Acción Democrática) and Christian democratic COPEI, both strongly centralized parties. The system of strongly dominant political parties is often referred to as partyarchy, with penetration of organized social and political activities. Notwithstanding, the AD-COPEI partyarchy experienced a relatively rapid process of undermining from 1989, losing control over important mayordomes, governorships and municipal councils. The municipal, regional and national elections of 1998 and 2000 changed the political panorama even more. Several entirely new political parties have emerged. The MVR (Movimiento V República) party of current President Hugo Chávez presents the most dramatic and rapid rise in this context. But similarly, other parties associated with decentralization have achieved increased political influence.Theoretically, a combination of actors rational choice, and, more process-structural approaches, helps to theoretically understand the political transformations related to decentralization and its implications for the party system. The study demonstrates that the party system and political decentralization are Intimately connected and dependent of each other. This study describes and analyzes the "encounter" between the Venezuelan party system and the decentralization reform.<br><p>Forskningsämne: Latin American studies/Latinamerikastudier</p>