Ongoing AERU projects collect information on captive elephants based at KEP and sister facilities. This includes records of biological, anatomical, veterinary, physiological, behavioural and dietary data for each individual animal in its care. AERU researchers and volunteers collect these data, not only to establish baseline values for all elephants, but also to co-ordinate and assimilate multidisciplinary research on the behaviour, ecology, anatomy and physiology of these large mammals.
Research Studies & Collaborations
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Bonding with Giants
~ (2018) Zoë Rossman. Article about the Elephant-Initiated Interactions study led by Zoë.
Read article onlineSalivary cortisol levels and self-directed behaviours in African elephants
~ (2017) Megan Evans – Master’s thesis, University of Exeter, UK
How African elephant behaviour differs when listening to different moods of music
~ (2017) Hannah Hurt – BSc research project, Bishop Burton College, UK
Breaking a fence-breaking habit: maintaining the fences that reduce human-elephant conflict
~ (2017) Sue Palminteri – Mongabay-Wildtech. Article about ‘tusk braces’ to prevent breaking of electric fences, based on interviews at KEP. Read article online
Elephant-initiated interactions with humans: individual differences and specific preferences in captive African elephants
~ (2015 – 2017) Zoë Rossman, Clare Padfield, Debbie Young & Lynette Hart – 2015 student project, later collaboration with the University of California: Davis. Published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science, section Veterinary Humanities and Social Sciences 4:60 (2017).
Read onlineWhen yawning occurs in elephants
~ (2015 – 2017) Zoë Rossman, Benjamin Hart, Brian Greco, Debbie Young, Clare Padfield, Lisa Weidner, Jennifer Gates & Lynette Hart – Collaboration with the University of California: Davis. Published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science, section Animal Behavior and Welfare (2017). Read online
Information content and acoustic structure of male African elephant social rumbles
~ (2015 – 2017) Angela Stoeger-Horwath & Anton Baotic – University of Vienna, Department of Cognitive Biology. AERU enabled and assisted with data collection on KEP elephants. Published in Scientific Reports 6 (2017).
Read onlineEffects of GnRH vaccination in wild and captive African Elephant bulls on reproductive organs and semen quality
~ (2011 – 2017) Imke Lueders, Debbie Young, Liana Maree, Gerhard van der Horst, Ilse Luther, Stephan Botha, Brendan Tindall, Geoffrey Fosgate, Andre Ganswindt & Henk Bertschinger – Multi-facility collaboration. Published in PLoS One 12:9 (2017). Read online
Standing sedation in captive African elephants
~ (2013 – 2016) I. Lüders, B. Tindall, Debbie Young, G. van der Horst, S. Botha, I. Luther, L. Maree & H.J. Bertschinger – Multi-facility collaboration. Published in The Veterinary Journal 209 (2016). Read online
How fluctuating levels of tourist interactions affect the sleeping behaviours of African elephants
~ (2016) Becka Prangnell – Master’s thesis, University of Exeter, UK. Read the abstract
Effects of life stage on daily social patterns of captive African elephants
~ (2016) Alison Jeffrey. Undergraduate research project, University of New Hampshire, USA. See the poster
Does auditory stimulation in the form of classical music and recorded sounds influence stereotypical and resting behaviour in African elephants?
~ (2015) Brooke Reilly – Master’s thesis, University of Queensland, Australia
The short- and medium-term effect of tourist presence and density on the affiliative behaviours of African elephants
~ (2015) Rebecca Moss – Master’s thesis, University of Exeter, UK
Long-term administration of haloperidol in an African elephant, supporting the therapy of self-destructive stereotypic behaviour
~ (2015) Endre Papp & László Garamvölgyi – Nyíregyházi Állatpark Nonprofit Kft. (SostoZoo), Hungary.
Read the abstractGender dependent differences in social context vocalizations in captive African elephants
~ (2014) Lisa Weidner – Master’s thesis, University of Vienna
Effects of enclosure size and social access on species-typical behaviour in African elephants
~ (2014) Sarah Grayson – Master’s thesis, University of Exeter, UK
Welfare at night: a new management solution to increase the welfare of captive African elephants
~ (2014) Simon Hendry, Master’s thesis, University of Exeter, UK
Zoogeomorphological impacts by elephants in private game reserves: Case study of Knysna Elephant Park, South Africa
~ (2014) Cecelia Engvall – Student project, Uppsala University, Sweden
The welfare of African elephants in relation to modern-day tourist practices
~ (2013) Petra Boelhouwers – Honours thesis, University of Exeter, UK
Social interactions and play behaviour of juvenile African elephants in captivity
~ (2013) Lisa Weidner – F1 internship report, University of Wuerzburg, Germany
The use of cognitive bias technique to investigate emotional states in African elephants
~ (2013) Lenka Feilhauerova – Master’s thesis, University of Exeter, UK
The effectiveness of intrinsic enrichments in reducing stereotypic behaviour in African elephants
~ (2013) Sophie Johnson – Master’s thesis, University of Exeter, UK
Free versus protected contact management: The influence of two different management techniques on the behaviour of two semi-captive African bull elephants
~ (2013) Mieke de Kreij – Student project, University of Applied Sciences, Van Hall Larenstein, Netherlands
Behavioural changes in juvenile elephants – the influence of age, environment and tourism
~ (2013) Alex Sancho – Master’s thesis, University of Barcelona, Spain
The allometry of African elephant ears
~ (2012) Joseph Tomkins – University of Western Australia
The relationships between behaviour and FGMs in an African elephant during a translocation event
~ (2012) Stephan Zander – University of Potsdam, Germany
How does the African elephant influence plant diversity at Knysna Elephant Park?
~ (2012) Kathrin Schmitt & Johanna Mettler – Master’s thesis, Munich University of Technology, Germany
Controlled versus free-range – the influence of tourism activities on the behaviour of elephants at Knysna Elephant Park
~ (2012) Lucia Silva – Student project, University of Cordoba, Spain
Determining systemic arterial pressure in semi-wild African elephants using a Cardell Multi-parameter monitor
~ (2011) Whitney Phipps, Carissa Wood, Kirk Suedmeyer & Deborah Fine – Student project, University of Missouri, College of Veterinary Medicine
The role of tourism as a potential stressor to a captive population of African elephants, using specific behavioural interactions and faecal glucocorticoid metabolites
~ (2011) Kelly Mealor – Honours thesis, Dept of Botany and Zoology, University of Stellenbosch
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Contagious yawning in African elephants: in response to other elephants and in response to familiar humans
~ (2017 – present) Collaboration with University of California: Davis. Zoë Rossman, Clare Padfield, Debbie Young, Benjamin Hart & Lynette Hart. Preparing for publication (2019)
Night-time, Daytime: Is stereotypic behaviour in African elephants related to levels of tourist interaction?
~ (2013 – present) Clare Padfield – Master’s thesis, University of Exeter, UK. Follow-up observations conducted as undergraduate project in 2015 by Katharine Ommanney, BSc Wildlife Management, Delaware State University, USA. Preparing for publication (2019 Read abstract of student project
Social bonds in unrelated captive African elephants
~ (2015 – present) Primrose Manning – Master’s thesis, University of Exeter, UK. Preparing for publication (2019) Read abstract of student project
Elephants: Up Close and Personal
~ (2017 – present) Ellen Stewart – Book about elephants, researched at KEP and being written in collaboration with AERU. Preparing for publication (2019)
Social networks and formation of new bonds during the integration of two captive African elephant herds
~ (2018 – present) Olivia Newman – Undergraduate research project, Mount Holyoke College, USA
Reduction of stereotypic behaviour in an African elephant: a case study
~ (2015 – present) AERU special project
Behavioural effects in captive African elephants following the discontinuation of tourist rides
~ (2018 – present) Laura Schwilp – Undergraduate research project, University of Veterinary Medicine, Budapest, Hungary.
Is self-directed behaviour in African elephants related to levels of tourist interaction? / Proximate correlates of captive African elephant self-directed behaviours during tourist interactions
~ (2015 – present) Hoi-Lam Jim (2015) / Lindsey Hauff (2016) – Master’s theses, University of Exeter, UK. Publication anticipated. Read abstract of 2016 project
Use of anti-gonadotropin-releasing hormone vaccines in African elephants
~ (2011 – present) Imke Lueders, Debbie Young, Charlie Gray, Gerhard van der Horst & Henk J Bertschinger. Multi-facility, long-term collaboration. Review published in Bothalia – African Biodiversity & Conservation 48:2 (2018). Read the review