Roberta Castiglioni

We quantified how exhibit design and routine management shape behavior and space use in captive harbor seals (Phoca vitulina). Using a species-specific ethogram, scan sampling and focal follows on adult females housed in a modern zoo exhibit, we estimated time budgets, mapped space use across depth-defined zones, and modeled behavior sequences as first-order transition networks. Locomotion dominated activity (swimming/active travel), with resting and enrichment-related behaviors next most frequent; social and play behaviors occurred at low but non-negligible rates. Seals showed clear depth preferences, concentrating active swimming in deeper zones and using liminal/shallow areas for rest. Transition graphs revealed stable, low-entropy loops (e.g., swim → turn/pace → swim) consistent with repetitive locomotor routines, while enrichment and feeding windows temporarily diversified sequences and increased exploration. Overall, integrating time budgets with Markov-style transition analysis and spatial heatmaps provides a compact welfare-oriented dashboard: it identifies where exhibit depth and refuge availability support positive behavioral diversity, flags repetitive cycles as targets for enrichment, and offers actionable metrics to evaluate husbandry changes over time.

For the effective management of captive animals, monitoring their behavior and interactions within the exhibit is essential. This approach provides insights into their welfare and helps identify behavioral differences compared to conspecifics in the wild. This ex situ study aimed to provide more insights about the behavior of a pair of siamangs residing at the Wildlife Park “Le Cornelle” in Valbrembo, Italy. The focus was on their behavior, and observations were conducted during two distinct periods (May–June 2021 and December 2021) to identify any seasonal differences. In both periods, the most frequent behaviors observed were resting, feeding, and allogrooming. Compared to conspecifics in the wild, allogrooming and singing occurred more frequently. Spatial analysis indicated a higher utilization of outdoor spaces than the tunnel and indoor areas, with statistically significant variations for both periods. The spatial analysis of singing behavior showed an equal use of outdoor and indoor areas during the first observation period. However, in the second observation period, a preference for indoor spaces was observed, likely due to lower recorded temperatures. More observations are needed to identify the factors influencing behavior, but it is clear that continuous monitoring plays a vital role in promptly addressing deviations or anomalies in animal behavior.