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Cooper, J. J., & Albentosa, M. J. (2005). Behavioural adaptation in the domestic horse: potential role of apparently abnormal responses including stereotypic behaviour. Livest. Prod. Sci., 92(2), 177–182.
Abstract: Classically, biologists have considered adaptation of behavioural characteristics in terms of long-term functional benefits to the individual, such as survival or reproductive fitness. In captive species, including the domestic horse, this level of explanation is limited, as for the most part, horses are housed in conditions that differ markedly from those in which they evolved. In addition, an individual horse's reproductive fitness is largely determined by man rather than its own behavioural strategies. Perhaps for reasons of this kind, explanations of behavioural adaptation to environmental challenges by domestic animals, including the capacity to learn new responses to these challenges, tend to concentrate on the proximate causes of behaviour. However, understanding the original function of these adaptive responses can help us explain why animals perform apparently novel or functionless activities in certain housing conditions and may help us to appreciate what the animal welfare implications might be. This paper reviews the behavioural adaptation of the domestic horse to captivity and discusses how apparently abnormal behaviour may not only provide a useful practical indicator of specific environmental deficiencies but may also serve the animal as an adaptive response to these deficiencies in an “abnormal” environment.
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Parrish, J. K., & Viscido, S. V. (2005). Traffic rules of fish schools: A review of agent-based approaches. In C. K. Hemelrijk (Ed.), Self-organisation and the evolution of social behaviour. (pp. 50–80). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Harewood, E. J., & McGowan, C. M. (2005). Behavioral and physiological responses to stabling in naive horses. J. Equine Vet. Sci., 25(4), 164–170.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate the response of horses to confinement and isolation in a stable (indoor individual housing) for the first time using behavioral indices, heart rate, and salivary cortisol concentration. Six naive 2-year-old Australian Stock Horse fillies were examined at 4-hour intervals over 24 hours in an outdoor group paddock followed by 24 hours in indoor individual housing. Behavioral observations and scores and heart rates were recorded and saliva samples were taken at each interval. During stabling, all horses became agitated and demonstrated increased vocalization and movement. Behavioral scores were significantly higher in the indoor individual housing (P < .001). No significant difference in heart rates between the two environments was detected. Mean salivary cortisol did not increase significantly (2 ng/mL ± 1.4 ng/mL in outdoor group paddock vs 2.5 mL ± 1.2 ng/mL in indoor individual housing). No diurnal rhythm in salivary cortisol was evident in either the outdoor group paddock or indoor individual housing. The results of this study highlight that a combination of behavioral and physiological measures allow better understanding of stress, where one measurement may be misleading. First time stabling of horses elicited marked behavioral responses indicative of stress that were not reflected in increased heart rates or salivary cortisol concentrations. The lack of a diurnal cortisol rhythm and the comparatively high basal cortisol concentrations found in the outdoor group paddock environment may imply that the fillies were already stressed; therefore, stabling did not cause further aberrations detectable by salivary cortisol analysis.
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Carlstead, K., & Brown, J. L. (2005). Relationships between patterns of Fecal corticoid excretion and behavior, reproduction, and environmental factors in captive black (Diceros bicornis) and white (Ceratotherium simum) rhinoceros. Zoo Biol., 24(3), 215–232.
Abstract: Mortality is high in zoo-housed black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis), and the reproductive rates of captive white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) are unsustainably low. To determine the possible role of stress in the causation of these problems, we analyzed weekly fecal samples collected for 1 year from black (10 males and 16 females) and white (six males and 13 females) rhinoceroses at 16 zoos for corticoid metabolite concentrations. Fecal corticoid profiles were examined in relation to behavior as rated by keepers in a questionnaire, luteal phase ovarian cycles of females (Brown et al., 2001), and socioenvironmental factors. We compared individual fecal corticoid profiles by examining hormone means and variability (i.e., standard deviation (SD) and coefficient of variation (CV)). For the black rhinos, higher mean corticoid concentrations were found at zoos where rhinos were maintained in enclosures that were exposed to the public around a greater portion of the perimeter. Higher variability in corticoid excretion was correlated with higher rates of fighting between breeding partners and higher institutional mortality rates. Black rhino pairs that were kept separated exhibited lower corticoid variability and less fighting activity when they were introduced during female estrous periods compared to pairs that were kept together every day. For white rhinos, significantly lower mean corticoids were found for individuals that rated higher on “friendliness to keeper.” Higher corticoid variability was found in noncycling as compared to cycling white rhino females. Noncycling females exhibited higher rates of stereotypic pacing and lower frequencies of olfactory behaviors. Interindividual differences in mean corticoids in both species appeared to be related to responsiveness to humans, whereas corticoid variability was related to intraspecific social relationships. More importantly, high corticoid variability appeared to be an indicator of chronic or “bad” stress, because of its association with potentially deleterious consequences in each species (i.e., fighting and mortality (black rhino), and reproductive acyclicity (white rhino)). Our results provide evidence that social stressors may cause chronic stress in black and white rhinos, and that this contributes to the captive-population sustainability problems observed in each species. Zoo Biol 0:1–18, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
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Kruska, D. C. T. (2005). On the evolutionary significance of encephalization in some eutherian mammals: effects of adaptive radiation, domestication, and feralization. Brain Behav Evol, 65.
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Saunders, F. C., McElligott, A. G., Safi, K., & Hayden, T. J. (2005). Mating tactics of male feral goats (Capra hircus): risks and benefits. Acta Ethol, 8.
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Shi, J., Dunbar, R. I. M., Buckland, D., & Miller, D. (2005). Dynamics of grouping patterns and social segregation in feral goats (Capra hircus) on the Isle of Rum, NW Scotland. Mammalia, 69.
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Pérez-Barbería, F. J., & Gordon, I. J. (2005). Gregariousness increases brain size in ungulates. Oecologia, 145.
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Bates, D. (2005). Fitting linear mixed models in R. R News, 5.
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Podlog, L., & Eklund, R. C. (2005). Return to Sport after Serious Injury: A Retrospective Examination of Motivation and Psychological Outcomes. Journal of Sport Rehabilitation, 14(1), 20–34.
Abstract: Context: It is argued in self-determination theory that the motivation underlying behavior has implications for health and well-being independent of the behavior itself. Objective: To examine associations between athlete motivations for returning to sport after injury and perceived psychological return-to-sport outcomes. Design: A correlational survey design was employed to obtain data in Canada, Australia, and England. Participants: Elite and subelite athletes (N = 180) with injuries requiring a minimum 2-month absence from sport participation. Main Outcome Measures: Participants completed an inventory measuring perceptions of motivation to return to sport from a serious injury and psychological return-to-sport outcomes. Results: Correlational analyses revealed that intrinsic motivations for returning to competition were associated with a positive renewed perspective on sport participation. Conversely, extrinsic motivations for returning to sport were associated with increased worry and concern. Conclusions: The motivation underlying return to sport might play an important role in return-to-sport perceptions among elite and subelite athletes.
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