Special Issue "Advancing Welfare Science for Reptiles and Amphibians in Zoos and Aquariums"

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Zoo Animals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2021.

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Grace Fuller
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Center for Zoo and Aquarium Animal Welfare and Ethics, Detroit Zoological Society, Royal Oak, MI 48067, USA
Interests: animal welfare; zoo research; endocrinology; animal behavior; biomarkers
Dr. Jennifer Hamilton
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Center for Zoo and Aquarium Animal Welfare and Ethics, Detroit Zoological Society, Royal Oak, MI 48067, USA
Interests: animal welfare; zoo; environmental enrichment
Dr. Stephanie Allard
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
National Aquarium, Baltimore, MD 21202, USA
Interests: animal welfare; zoo; aquarium; animal behavior; animal husbandry

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Due to their own ethical imperatives, new welfare-focused accreditation standards, and growing public questions regarding the welfare of animals in zoos and aquariums, these institutions are increasingly focused on evaluating and improving the welfare of animals in their care. However, many unanswered questions remain about how to measure and promote the welfare of captive reptiles and amphibians. These taxa pose special challenges to welfare researchers because they often exhibit specialized life history strategies that make them difficult to study (e.g., sit-and-wait predation, fossorial lifestyles); their needs may change radically throughout their lifespans (e.g., metamorphosis, hibernation); or they are often poorly studied (if at all) in the wild or in captivity. This Special Issue of Animals addresses this knowledge gap by broadly considering studies that provide information on evidence-based management, behavior, physiology, or other aspects of captive life for reptiles and amphibians within the context of their overall welfare. We particularly encourage contributors to explore new indicators of welfare specific to these taxa.

Dr. Grace Fuller
Dr. Jennifer Hamilton
Dr. Stephanie Allard
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • welfare assessment
  • herpetology
  • evidence-based management
  • welfare indicators
  • animal behavior
  • physiology
  • wellbeing
  • quality of life
  • animal care
  • frogs
  • toads
  • salamanders
  • caecilians
  • snakes
  • lizards
  • turtles
  • crocodilians
  • tuatara
  • amphisbaenians
  • squamates

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

Article
Identification of Animal-Based Welfare Indicators in Captive Reptiles: A Delphi Consultation Survey
Animals 2021, 11(7), 2010; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11072010 - 05 Jul 2021
Viewed by 1145
Abstract
There is an increasing focus on evidence-based welfare assessment by animal care staff in zoos, along with a strong interest in animal welfare by the zoo-visiting public, to the extent that this can influence their choice of institutions to visit. Regulatory oversight of [...] Read more.
There is an increasing focus on evidence-based welfare assessment by animal care staff in zoos, along with a strong interest in animal welfare by the zoo-visiting public, to the extent that this can influence their choice of institutions to visit. Regulatory oversight of animal welfare standards continues to strengthen across many jurisdictions. Zoos are increasingly formalizing their practices with the development and refinement of evidence-based welfare assessment tools. There has been a drive for welfare assessment tools to comprise both resource-based and animal-based measures. However, animal-based indicators are not always well characterized, in terms of their nature and whether they infer a positive or negative affective state. This is especially so for reptiles, which are often considered behaviorally inexpressive and are under-researched. In this study, a Delphi consultation approach was used to gather expert opinion on the suitability of potential animal-based indicators of welfare for inclusion in a welfare assessment tool across four families of reptiles: Agamidae, Chelidae, Pythonidae, and Testudinidae. Two rounds of online surveys were conducted eliciting responses from a global group of professionals who work with reptiles. In the first survey, respondents were provided with an author-derived list of potential animal-based indicators for consideration of their validity and practicality as welfare indicators. The indicators were refined for the second survey including only those indicators that were considered valid or practical on the first survey (≥4 on a 5-point Likert scale), and that achieved ≥70% consensus amongst experts. In the second survey, respondents were asked to re-evaluate the reliability and practicality of the indicators and to rank them on these facets. Eight to ten assessment indicators for each family of reptiles were identified from Survey 2. These indicators were often health related, for example, presence of oculo-nasal discharge or wounds. However, some true behavioral indicators were identified, such as showing species-specific interest and alertness. These indicators should now be incorporated into taxon-tailored welfare assessment tools for trial and validation in captive reptile populations. This study provides a next step towards developing reptile-specific animal welfare assessment tools for these often-overlooked animals. Full article
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Article
Bold Frogs or Shy Toads? How Did the COVID-19 Closure of Zoological Organisations Affect Amphibian Activity?
Animals 2021, 11(7), 1982; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11071982 - 02 Jul 2021
Viewed by 1364
Abstract
Amphibians are an understudied group in the zoo-focussed literature. Whilst commonly housed in specialist exhibits and of real conservation value due to the global extinction crisis, amphibian welfare is not often investigated empirically in zoo settings. The limited research that is available suggests [...] Read more.
Amphibians are an understudied group in the zoo-focussed literature. Whilst commonly housed in specialist exhibits and of real conservation value due to the global extinction crisis, amphibian welfare is not often investigated empirically in zoo settings. The limited research that is available suggests that enclosure design (structure, planting and naturalistic theming) has a positive impact on the time that amphibians will be on show to visitors. However, the categorisation of any “visitor effect” (i.e., influences of visitor presence on amphibian activity and time on display) is hard to find. The COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of zoological organisations in the UK for several months from March 2020, with gradual re-openings from the summer into autumn and winter. This event provided a unique opportunity to study the effect of the lack of visitors, the presence of essential zoo staff only, the wider return of organisational staff, and then the return of visitors over a prolonged period. This project at WWT Slimbridge Wetlands Centre assessed the number of individuals of six species of amphibian—common toad (Bufo bufo), common frog (Rana temporaria), smooth newt (Lissotriton vulgaris), pool frog (Pelophylax lessonae), golden mantella (Mantella aurantiaca) and golden poison dart frog (Phyllobates terribilis)—visible to observers under different conditions. All amphibians were housed in a purpose-built indoor exhibit of individual enclosures and were recorded when visible (as a proportion of the total population of the enclosure) during closure, the return of extra centre staff and visitor periods. The results showed species-specific differences in visibility, with some species of amphibian being more likely to be on view when the presence of people at their enclosure was less likely or in smaller numbers. Such differences are likely related to the specific camouflage or anti-predation tactics in these focal species. Further study to quantify amphibian sensitivity to, and perception of, environmental change caused by public presence (e.g., light levels and sound) would be useful welfare-themed research extensions. Our results can help inform husbandry, collection planning and amphibian enclosure design to reduce any noticeable visitor effects, and provide a useful benchmark for further, more complex, welfare assessment measures. Full article
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