ASVA E-ZINE

Welcome to the May 2024 edition of the ASVA E-Zine

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Introducing ‘LemurLounge’: A New Chapter in Enrichment at Blair Drummond Safari Park

April 2024

Blair Drummond Safari Park are proud to announce their latest collaboration with researchers from the University of Glasgow to introduce groundbreaking enrichment for zoo lemurs. This exciting initiative, dubbed the "LemurLounge," aimed to enhance the well-being of their beloved lemurs through interactive technology.

The LemurLounge project, a brainchild of Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas of the University of Glasgow’s Computing Science department, set out to explore whether the lemurs would engage with sounds of their choosing and how this interaction could positively impact their daily lives.

Constructed with care and innovation, the LemurLounge is a wooden box equipped with infrared sensors that plays a variety of sounds when lemurs enter. From the bustling noises of a city to the serene ambiance of a rainforest, the LemurLounge offered the lemurs a range of auditory experiences.

Throughout the trial period, the lemurs had the freedom to visit the LemurLounge at their leisure. Observations revealed that they showed a clear preference for sound over silence, with many opting to spend time in the lounge when sounds were playing.

What's particularly fascinating is the diversity of preferences observed among the lemurs. From species-specific tendencies to individual quirks, each lemur showcased unique interactions with the LemurLounge, highlighting the importance of personalised enrichment in zoo environments.

Blair Drummond Safari Park’s Research Coordinator Alasdair Gillies said, “We are delighted to be part of the push to bring interactive systems into more common usage as enrichment devices. It’s very interesting to hear this study has shown that individual preference may be just as significant to the design process as species variation. For us keepers, these findings come as no surprise. Our interactions with these animals grant us the privilege of witnessing their many varied idiosyncrasies on a daily basis. It will be fascinating to see how we can utilise these learnings going forward.”

This collaboration underscores the park’s commitment to advancing animal welfare through innovative research and technology. By partnering with experts from the University of Glasgow, Blair Drummond Safari Park hope to pave the way for new insights into animal behaviour and interaction with digital enrichment systems.

This research will be presented by Dr Hirskyj-Douglas at the upcoming Association of Computing Machinery's CHI conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, where she hopes to inspire others to join her in reimagining zoo enrichment.

Photograph: LemurLounge

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