More Than Just Kibbles: Keeper Familiarity and Food Can Affect Bonobo Behavior.

ABSTRACT: The welfare of captive animals relies on numerous factors. Keepers can affect animals' welfare and this could especially apply to emotionally and cognitively complex species, such as great apes. We collected video data over three months on 17 bonobos (La Vallée des Singes, France) and extracted five behaviours (play, aggression, anxiety, gestures, sociosexual interactions) -during two-minute slots-under three conditions: keeper-present/food-unavailable; keeper-present/food-available; keeper-absent/food-unavailable. We ran generalized linear models to investigate whether behavioral frequencies were affected by food presence/quality and keeper familiarity. Anxiety-related behaviors increased when the keeper was present and in absence of food, due to food expectation. Sociosexual interactions

SUBMITTER: Caselli M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9913499 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature