2022 December - 18 articles
Zoos and botanical gardens (ZBGs) play a variety of roles in regional conservation partnerships, including their most common role as the ex situ managers of rare plant and animal populations. Using case studies from a 70-year history of conservation...
I am proud to have accepted the invitation to become the new Editor in Chief of the Journal of Zoological and Botanical Gardens, a new open-access journal published by MDPI, dedicated to ex-situ research and the conservation of our planet’s bio...
Human–animal relationships have been demonstrated to have impacts on animal and keeper welfare, although their impacts on zookeepers have been less studied outside of evaluating job satisfaction. Many zoological facilities are active in support...
When 0.1 Reticulated Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata) began displaying signs of lameness and a persistent swelling of the front left pastern joint, an operant based training program was created for front foot radiographs to diagnose and be...
Zoological institutions aim to continually improve the lives of the animals under their stewardship. To this end, bull elephants are now increasingly maintained in all-male groups to mimic social conditions observed in the wild. While cortisol is the...
A primary goal of zoos is to educate their visitors about global conservation efforts. Studying visitors’ perceptions and attitudes towards captive and wild endangered species helps target conservation messaging. This is especially important in...
This study compared hematocrit measured with the EPOC and i-STAT Alinity v point-of-care analyzers and manual measurement of packed cell volume in managed African savanna elephants (Loxodonta africana) and southern white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium sim...
As biodiversity continues to decline across the globe, conservation of wildlife species and the ecosystems they inhabit is more important than ever. When species dwindle, ecosystems that depend on them are also impacted, often leading to a decrease i...
The study of animal behaviour is important for the development of husbandry and management practices for zoo-housed species. Yet, data are typically only collected during daylight hours, aligning with human work schedules rather than animal activity...
There are very few studies describing euthanasia complications in non-domestic species. The goal of this study was to survey veterinarians to determine what complications may commonly occur during the euthanasia of non-domestic species. An online sur...
Visitors are a prominent feature of the zoo environment and lives of zoo animals. The COVID-19 pandemic led to repeated and extended closure periods for zoos worldwide. This unique period in zoological history enabled the opportunity to investigate t...
The timber rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus horridus) is extinct in Rhode Island and Maine with populations in the remaining New England states afforded endangered species status. Lou Perrotti, Director of Conservation and Research at Roger Williams Pa...
As part of a science-based conservation strategy for the New England cottontail (NEC), Roger Williams Park Zoo (RWPZ), located in Providence, Rhode Island, participates in a NEC ex situ breeding program in partnership with the NEC Population Working...
Reptile behaviour and welfare are understudied in comparison with mammals. In this study, behavioural data on three species (Astrochelys radiata, Stigmochelys pardalis, Aldabrachelys gigantea) of tortoises were recorded before and after an environmen...
To understand fatty acid status and the potential impact of sample storage, dried blood spot (DBS) samples were collected from fourteen green turtles and ten Kemp’s ridleys undergoing rehabilitation. Half the DBS samples from each animal specie...
The Phoenix Zoo has partnered with US Fish and Wildlife Service, Arizona Game and Fish Department, US Forest Service, and other organizations for more than 25 years to help recover Chiricahua leopard frogs (Rana [=Lithobates] chiricahuensis) in Arizo...
The detailed evaluation of environmental parameters can be a great tool for the optimal selection and location of vegetable species, not only in vegetable production facilities and greenhouses but also in zoological and botanical gardens, which frequ...
The interest in the welfare of zoo animals, from both the public and the scientific community, has long been biased towards mammals. However, growing evidence of the complex behavioural repertoires of less charismatic animals, such as reptiles, revea...
