Environmental Enrichment and Its Effect on the Welfare of Two Asian Elephants in Africam Safari Wildlife Conservation Park (Puebla, Mexico)

Animal welfare is important in zoos to maintain the physical well-being and psychological health of individuals. An animal is considered to have welfare if it has good nutrition and also expresses its innate behavior, including sensations and feelings experienced as a result of physical health. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of environmental enrichment on the behaviors of two Asian elephants in a wildlife conservation park. The behavior of two Asian elephants, a 46-year-old male and a 59-year-old female, was observed. Behavior was measured by quantifying the frequency, latency, and duration of behavioral actions. Measurements were done with ad libitum sampling during 5 days of testing, then observations were recorded with focal sampling for 25 days with environmental enrichment and 25 days without enrichment. Data were analyzed with the Chi-square statistical test using the statistical program SPSS 20, observing significant differences (P the application of environmental enrichment. The frequency of maintenance behaviors was higher when environmental enrichment was provided, and the frequency of social conducts (affiliative and agonistic) decreased. In fact, the behaviors most frequently presented by elephants with and without environmental enrichment were definitely maintenance behaviors. The environmental enrichment program helped to reduce the duration of abnormal behaviors and increase the frequency of typical behaviors of the species. It also increased independent movements within the exhibition area and helped to know each of the elephants individually in order to apply each enrichment combination according to their needs.

Elephant Culture Matter for China’s Asian Elephants Conservation

Traditional anthropogenic impacts such as hunting,using as war-elephant,trading of ivory,paying tribute to the imperial court and so on,were once thought to be directly responsible for the rapid decline of Asian elephants in China.But in Yunnan Province,China,a unique human factor such as the traditional elephant culture of local ethnic minorities,is an important factor in the conservation of Asian elephants.In these areas,we investigated by means of village interviews,field surveys and data collection,the results show that the elephant culture of ethnic minorities has a great impact on people’s thoughts and behaviors,these traditional culture and belief(that mean taking elephant as the God,holding elephant as a belief,worshipping elephant and praise it)urges people to actively protect elephants and avoid more human-elephant conflicts.To enhance the public awareness of Asian elephant conservation,the Chinese Government or international environmental organizations should give higher attention and support to these elephant cultures.

Improving landscape connectivity through habitat restoration:application for Asian elephant conservation in Xishuangbanna Prefecture,China

Habitat restoration is an effective method for improving landscape connectivity,which can reduce habitat fragmentation.Maintaining landscape connectivity could promote connections between habitat,which is extremely essential to preserve gene flow and population viability.This study proposes a methodological framework to analyze landscape connectivity for Asian elephant habitat conservation,aiming to provide practical options for reducing habitat fragmentation and improving habitat connectivity.Our approach involved combining a species distribution model using MaxEnt and landscape functional connectivity models using graph theory to assess the impact on connectivity improvement via farmland/plantation restoration as habitat.The results showed that:(1)there were 119 suitable habitat patches of Asian elephant covering a total area of 1952.41 km^(2).(2)The connectivity between habitats improved significantly after vegetation restoration and the gain first decreased and then increased with the increase of dispersal distance.(3)The first few new habitat patches that were identified played an important role in improving connectivity,and the variation rate of connectivity gradually leveled off as the number of new habitats increased.(4)Prioritization of the 25 best new habitat patches increased connectivity from 0.54%to 5.59%as the dispersal distance increased and mainly was located between two Asian elephant distribution regions and two components.Establishment of new habitat patches was effective for improving or restoring connectivity.Our findings can be used as guidance for improving the studied fragmented Asian elephant habitats,and they can also be used as a reference for the habitat restoration of other endangered species heavily affected by habitat fragmentation.

Gut Microbiome Variation Along A Lifestyle Gradient Reveals Threats Faced by Asian Elephants

The gut microbiome is closely related to host nutrition and health.However,the relationships between gut microorganisms and host lifestyle are not well characterized.In the absence of confounding geographic variation,we defined clear patterns of variation in the gut microbiomes of Asian elephants(AEs)in the Wild Elephant Valley,Xishuangbanna,China,along a lifestyle gradient(completely captive,semicaptive,semiwild,and completely wild).A phylogenetic analysis using the 16S rRNA gene sequences highlighted that the microbial diversity decreased as the degree of captivity increased.Furthermore,the results showed that the bacterial taxon WCHB1-41_c was substantially affected by lifestyle variations.qRT-PCR analysis revealed a paucity of genes related to butyrate production in the gut microbiome of AEs with a completely wild lifestyle,which may be due to the increased unfavorable environmental factors.Overall,these results demonstrate the distinct gut microbiome characteristics among AEs with a gradient of lifestyles and provide a basis for designing strategies to improve the well-being or conservation of this important animal species.

Corridor use by Asian elephants

There are 18 km of Kunming–Bangkok Highway passing through the Mengyang Nature Reserve of Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve in Yunnan Province,China.From September 2005 to September 2006 the impact of this highway on movement of wild Asian elephants between the eastern and western part of the nature reserve was studied using track transecting,rural surveys and direct monitoring.Our results showed that the number of cross-road corridors used by Asian elephants diminished from 28 to 23 following the construction of the highway.In some areas,the elephant activity diminished or even disappeared,which indicated a change in their home ranges.The utilization rate of artificial corridors was 44%.We also found that elephants prefered artificial corridors that were placed along their original corridors.During the research,wild elephants revealed their adaptation to the highway.They were found walking across the highway road surface many times and for different reasons.We suggest that the highway management bureau should revise their management strategies to mitigate the potential risks caused by elephants on the road for the safety of the public and to protect this endangered species from harm.It is also very important to protect and maintain current Asian elephants corridors in this region.

New challenges facing traditional nature reserves: Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) conservation in China

Traditional conservation strategies can effectively preserve biodiversity within nature reserves,but may fail to mitigate the conflicts between rural development and wildlife conservation.This paper discusses the magnitude of the conflict and its development over time,focusing on elephant conservation and land resource management within and around nature reserves.We suggest that regulations alone can satisfy neither the demands to maintain biodiversity and ecosystem services nor the demands to achieve human welfare.More innovative tools such as informed landuse planning and integrated conservation development projects are called for to reduce the agricultural interface with elephant range,and therefore to alleviate the damage caused by the conflict.

Population viability analysis of small population:a case study for Asian elephant in China

Small populations are at risk of extinction from deterministic and stochastic factors.Less than 250 Asian elephants(Elephas maximus)remain in China,and are distributed in a few isolated areas;yet,population viability analyses of this endangered population have not been conducted.Here,the current genetic status of the Pu’Er-Mengyang Asian elephant populations in China was analyzed,and the risk of extinction was predicted over the next 500 years.Factors affecting the viability of this population were determined through simulations.The genetic diversity of the population was very low(mean allele number:3.1;expected heterozygosity:0.463),even though a recent population bottleneck was not detected.The effective population size was approximately 24.1 adult elephants.Enough adult breeding individuals exist to maintain population viability.VORTEX simulation model showed that this population would not go extinct in the next 500 years.However,illegal poaching and harvesting could negatively affect population size.A sensitivity analysis showed that the mean stochastic growth rate of the study population is sensitive to sex ratio,number of breeding females,mortality of females of different age classes,carrying capacity,and lethal equivalents.Based on our results,we suggest that action should be taken to alleviate inbreeding and any further loss of genetic diversity,by connecting fragmented elephant habitat or by translocating individual elephants.In addition,human–elephant conflict should be mitigated using various modern approaches,including crop guarding techniques,and by encouraging farmers to switch to crops and income sources not vulnerable to elephant raids.

Analysis of nutrient components of food for Asian Elephants in the wild and in captivity

Thirty-seven wild plants as food for Asian elephants in the field in Simao,Yunnan province,China and five cultivated plants as food for captive elephants in the Beijing Zoo were collected and analyzed for their main nutrient components.Protein,fat,fiber,dry material,ash as well as major microelements:calcium,kalium,zincum,sodium in the food were analyzed by standard methodology.No significant differences were found between the wild plants taken in the field and forage provided in captivity.However,the calcium content in the forage is significantly less than the average of those in the wild plants.It is suggested that the increase in calcium intake may contribute to the relief of low plasma calcium diseases of elephants in captivity.

Inferring Human-elephant Coexistence Based on Characteristics of Human-elephant Interactions in Nangunhe of Yunnan,China

Human-wildlife conflict(HWC)negatively impacts both humans and wildlife.Attitudes of local residents have been critical in promoting wildlife conservation.It is therefore necessary to understand the characteristics of HWC and identify influential factors on attitudes towards conservation to implement conservation strategies efficiently.This research focused on features of human-elephant interactions,while attitudes and values regarding the small population of Asian elephants(Elephas maximus)in Nangunhe National Nature Reserve(NNR),Yunnan,China.The total of 327 valid questionnaires were gathered around the area where Asian elephants were distributed.Logistic regression models were employed to analyze the correlations among five predictor variables(‘Area’,‘Family size’,‘Annual income’,‘Quantity of family members in non-primary industries’and‘Experiencing loss or not’)and three response variables(‘Attitude towards elephants’,‘Perception of the values of elephants’and‘Attitude towards tourism development’).The study area was densely forested with tea plants,rubber trees,corns and sugarcane.There,25.99%of respondents reported the experience of human-elephant conflict(HEC),with crop raiding and cash crop damages being the major conflict types.To demonstrate respect for elephants and to mitigate HEC,a unique custom called‘Giving tribute to elephants’was developed long ago.Respondents’township with an official annual festival of‘Giving Tribute to Elephants’(odds ratio(OR)=2.75,P=1.73×10^(-6))and higher annual income(OR=2.09,P=5.45×10^(-5))significantly contributed to forming a more positive attitude towards elephants,whereas HEC itself have contributed to a more negative attitude(OR=0.50,P=3.29×10^(-3)).Therefore,we propose that:1)reducing human-elephant conflict by testing multiple mitigation measures and adopting the most effective one of them;2)enhancing local livelihoods through the development of ecological products and ecotourism;and 3)preserving and developing the Wa culture in this region.The study area deserves more attention and further research to explore and obtain endorsement from the public to achieve coexistence between human and wildlife.

A preliminary study on designing ecological corridors in Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve with 3S techniques

This paper is based on the fieldwork in Xishuang-banna Natioanl Nature Reserve in Yunnan Province of China.GPS data of Asian elephants were collected and analyzed with the remote sensing satellite photos of the region to estimate the landform physiognomy of different colors.We also analyzed a series of ecological factors includ-ing altitude,landform,relief,villages and roads which affected the distribution and movement of Asian elephants.The results suggested the possibility of designing and estab-lishing corridors in Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve to protect the population of wild elephants in the region.