- Author : Reema Adella Persad-Clem
- Publisher :
- Release : 2009
- ISBN :
- Pages : 235 pages
Adaptation of Captive Chimpanzees Pan Troglodytes to Free Ranging in a Natural Temperate Environment
Download or read book Adaptation of Captive Chimpanzees Pan Troglodytes to Free Ranging in a Natural Temperate Environment written by Reema Adella Persad-Clem and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We studied the ecological impact and adaptation of 18 captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) from differing origins, rearing and housing situations as they made the transition from cages to a 6-acre tract of forest (Habitat) at the Chimp Haven retirement sanctuary in Caddo Parish, Louisiana. Before release in summer 2005, we permanently tagged all trees in the Habitat and did a line-transect to sample the canopy, understory and lianas and a neighboring control plot. Before release, we presented the group with eight novel species of edible, freshly-cut vegetation (we knew they would encounter in the Habitat) in bundled combinations and recorded how the apes used each taxa. We followed their use of these familiar and any non-familiar forms of vegetation during the post-release period in the Habitat. We used scan-sampling to collect data on activity budget (including locomotion and social behavior), spatial use and proximity before and after the release, and kept track of climate variables during the entire study period. Ulmus foliage was preferred to all other forms of vegetation for both eating and non-eating use during the browse study and in the Habitat. Based on a re-sampling of the Habitat and control plots in 2008, the saplings and lianas showed greater impact due to chimpanzee presence, while the trees were less affected. Wild-born females used the vegetation the most by foraging, climbing trees, eating familiar and non-familiar plants, building beds and moving in the Habitat, compared with males and captive-born females. Although differences in forest structure, advanced age, absence of resource competition and the minimal influence of neighboring communities hindered comparisons to wild chimpanzee behavior, grouping pattern and same-sex associations approached natural norms in this group after their release into the Habitat. These data show that a pre- versus post-release environmental impact assessment is critical in preserving the integrity of the vegetation structure and provide encouraging evidence that aged, captive chimpanzees of varied life-history backgrounds can adapt to existing in a temperate, forested environment, without doing large-scale damage to it.