It is considered of significant importance to provide wild animals in captivity with environmenta... more It is considered of significant importance to provide wild animals in captivity with environmental enrichment elements to improve their psychological and physiological well being, stimulating a higher activity and behavioral variety. This study evaluated the effect of different enrichment elements (explorative/ manipulative, physical and feeding enrichment devices) on the behavior and physiology of two groups of great apes, gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) at the Zoo-Aquarium of Madrid. The proposed prediction was that there would be a reduction of inactivity, anomalous and nondesired behavior, also on cortisol levels, as a result of the stimular improvements. The behaviors and cortisol faecal levels were compared between two different conditions: 1. previous phase without enrichment, 2. enrichment phase. The data analysis allowed measuring the efficiency of the enrichment, revealing that the frequency of inactivity and anomalous behaviors was significant...
In the stable and cohesive social groups of primates (and other group-living mammals) individuals... more In the stable and cohesive social groups of primates (and other group-living mammals) individuals maintain long-lasting partnerships with a subset of their group companions. Such inter-individual relationships are based on the active exchange of a variety of affiliative, agonistic and cooperative behaviour patterns. Since these interactions influence the partners' biological fitness they are often regarded as 'services' or 'commodities' that are offered ('sold') and demanded ('bought') by individuals in order to cultivate those partnerships that best contribute to maximise their fitness. According to the biological markets theory, an individual's attractiveness as a social partner depends on the value of the services that it can provide and trade for, which depends on the levels of supply and demand, that is, a given service is more expensive to buy, the fewer are the individuals that offer it relative to the individuals that demand it. This p...
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Papers by Felix Zaragoza