Environmental enrichment, training, and habitat characteristics of common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) and Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus).

Lisa K Lauderdale,Michael T Walsh,Lance J Miller,Douglas A Granger,Jill D Mellen,Kelly Jaakkola

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0253688

Abstract

In recent decades, animal welfare science has evolved to utilize a multidisciplinary approach to assess the welfare of animals in accredited zoos and aquariums. Science-based animal welfare assessments have become an essential component of management programs and widespread application is expected by animal care professionals. Management practices for bottlenose dolphins in accredited facilities incorporate several programs that potentially impact animal welfare including environmental enrichment and animal training. Additionally, habitat characteristics, such as the dimensions of the habitat, have been proposed to affect welfare. While accredited facilities are required to meet high standards of care, habitat characteristics and management practices are not standardized across locations. Knowledge and subsequent application of these practices and habitat characteristics can enhance our understanding of factors associated with positive welfare. As part of a larger study of dolphin welfare titled “Towards understanding the welfare of cetaceans in zoos and aquariums” (colloquially called the Cetacean Welfare Study), survey data were collected from 86 bottlenose dolphins in 40 habitats at 38 facilities in seven countries. The major aims of this paper are to provide general descriptive information regarding dolphin management in accredited zoos and aquariums and to provide supplemental context to the other research published from the Cetacean Welfare Study data set. This paper provides a review of current habitat characteristics and management practices at those 38 accredited zoos and aquariums. These data enabled the identification and quantification of how cetacean management practices differed between participating facilities accredited by the Alliance for Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums and the Association of Zoos & Aquariums. Variables were selected based on their potential association with welfare including the physical habitat, environmental enrichment, and training programs. The variables were also used for subsequent research in this collection of related papers to investigate important connections between potential indicators of welfare and habitat characteristics, environmental enrichment, and training programs.

Highlights

Animal welfare science has evolved rapidly in recent decades and this research has been used to advance evidence-based management in zoos and aquariums [1,2,3,4]
The goal of this paper is to provide a review of current management practices and habitat characteristics at a large number of accredited bottlenose dolphin-holding facilities with the goals of publishing general information regarding attributes of habitats and management as well as to provide supplemental context to the other research published from the Cetacean Welfare Study data set
Zoos and aquariums that were accredited in 2017 by the AMMPA or the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) were eligible for participation in this part of the Cetacean Welfare Study provided they cared for common bottlenose dolphins or Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus)

Summary

Introduction

Animal welfare science has evolved rapidly in recent decades and this research has been used to advance evidence-based management in zoos and aquariums [1,2,3,4]. Large-scale multi-institutional studies have been conducted with a considerable number of species in order to improve husbandry, reproduction, and welfare (e.g., [5,6,7]). These investigations generally focus on species that are long-lived, adaptable, intelligent, and live in a variety of social structures because these attributes can raise unique management challenges. Accreditation by a professional organization such as the Alliance for Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums (AMMPA) and the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) is an indication that an organization adopts and improves high standards of care and implements programs that evaluate and manage animal welfare [11]. While accreditation indicates facilities operate under specific standards and guidelines, dolphins under professional care experience a wide variety of physical environments and management practices

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