The Benefits of Increased Space and Habitat Complexity for the Welfare of Zoo-Housed King Penguins ( Aptenodytes patagonicus )

Zoos and aquariums accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums embrace animal welfare as a foundational principle of habitat design. Modern habitats are designed to provide animals with choices and agency over their environment, and to encourage species-appropriate behavior and space use. In...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Animals
Main Authors: Grace Fuller, Megan Jones, Kylen N. Gartland, Sara Zalewski, Matthew R. Heintz, Stephanie Allard
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023
Subjects:
exhibit design
animal welfare
post-occupancy evaluation
data-loggers
time–depth recorders
aquatic behavior
Veterinary medicine
SF600-1100
Zoology
QL1-991
Detroit
King Penguins
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13142312
https://doaj.org/article/57cb92c86a5c4902aef47cc469dfe659
Description
Summary:Zoos and aquariums accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums embrace animal welfare as a foundational principle of habitat design. Modern habitats are designed to provide animals with choices and agency over their environment, and to encourage species-appropriate behavior and space use. In 2016, the Detroit Zoological Society opened the Polk Penguin Conservation Center, a 3065.80 m 2 facility that features a naturalistic design. The building was designed to optimize animal welfare by incorporating various substrates, nesting sites, and a 1234 kL pool with elements of underwater complexity. The facility houses a mixed-species group of penguins that were previously housed in a smaller habitat that opened in 1968. Between 2015 and 2022, we opportunistically monitored the behavior of ten king penguins ( Aptenodytes patagonicus ) as they moved back and forth between the two buildings while additional modifications were made to the new habitat. We collected 695 h of behavioral observations and 10,416 h of data from flipper-mounted time–depth recorders. We found that the king penguins spent less time engaged in aggression and more time engaged in swimming and positive social behaviors in the redesigned space. They also spent less time in proximity to other species of penguins and more time alone. These behavioral trends suggest that increased space and environmental complexity had positive welfare benefits for these penguins.

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