Human Animal Relationships Essay

write a short essay, 1-2 pages in length, detailing the parts of the scientific method discussed in your article and comparing that information to what was reported in the news story.  Each entry will be written in a logical and professional manner using the APA template attached to the post.

The entire entry must be written IN YOUR OWN WORDS.  Direct quotes of the articles are not allowed.  However, when you summarize or paraphrase something from one of the articles you will need to provide an in-text APA reference. The essay must be written entirely in third person.  DO NOT USE FIRST OR SECOND PERSON.  This means you cannot use the words “I”, “we”, or “you”.

ntroduction (1 paragraph)

This section identify which of the two articles was the scientific study and the subject of the scientific study.  You will also identify the problem or observation that spurred the research.  DO NOT LIST THE RESULTS OF THE STUDY ITSELF HERE.  You will identify the hypothesisthe scientists were testing.  Remember that a hypothesis is a testable educated guess.  Thus, it is not appropriate to pose a question here.  However, while reading your articles, it can be helpful to ask yourself what explanation scientists tried to use to explain their initial observation.  You will then transition into the body of the journal.

Body (~1 paragraph each)

Here, you will identify the test or experimentthat was performed to address the hypothesis.  You should be detailed here.  It may be helpful to pull from other sources, if you do not fully understand how the experiment was conducted.    After detailing how the experiment was done compared to how it reported in the media, you will transition into a discussion of the results.

In this section of your entry you will identify the experimental results that the scientists obtained.  What did the scientists find after doing their experiment?    Again, you can be detailed here.  After detailing the results, you will transition into the conclusionsections.

The last paragraph of the body should explain the conclusion of the study.  You should address whether the hypothesis was supported or rejected, and how the results led to that finding.  Also provide a possible new avenue of research the scientists might pursue based on what was discovered in this study.

Evaluation (1 paragraph)

Here you will signal the end of your entry.  In this section you will identify the new study about the scientific study and discuss whether or not the news story was a representative reporting of the scientific study.  Did the news change anything or leave out something important from the scientific study?  Summarize the important content from your entry, then you will end with a definitive final statement.

8/30/2018
Elephants ‘Think Humans Are Cute’ Just Like We Think Puppies Are
Elephants ‘Think Humans Are Cute’ Just Like We Think Puppies Are
BY : GEORGE MCKAY
Getty
We need a bit of a pick-me-up at this time of year because, let’s face it, 2017 has been a
pretty exhausting year.
It seems people just can’t get along at all, and the internet is actually quite a depressing
place to spend time.
But every now and then, we get a bit of information which makes it all worth it. A sliver of
hope in a bleak online world.
And ladies and gentlemen, we think we have just that piece of info which will keep you
jolly for the entirety of Christmas and into the New Year.
https://www.unilad.co.uk/featured/elephants-think-humans-are-cute-just-like-we-think-puppies-are/
1/5
8/30/2018
Elephants ‘Think Humans Are Cute’ Just Like We Think Puppies Are
Getty
It was posted to Twitter by user Julia Hass, who wrote:
I just learnt that elephants think humans are cute the way humans think puppies are cute (the
same part of the brain lights up when they see us) so pack it in, nothing else this pure and good
is happening today.
Naturally, the internet couldn’t get enough of this amazing piece of information, and it’s
been shared hundreds of thousands of times by animal lovers everywhere.
This just proves how amazing elephants are, and while the direct study which makes this
claim can’t be found (though Julia says she found evidence to support the fact), there is
plenty of evidence which places the massive creature at the top of the animal kingdom for
intelligence.
Julia
@JuliaHass
I just learned that elephants think humans are cute the way
humans think puppies are cute (the same part of the brain lights
up when they see us) so pack it in, nothing else this pure and
good is happening today.
12:24 – 20 Dec 2017
598K
204K people are talking about this
We know they have brains which are similar in connectivity to the human brain, and even
have heightened emotional intelligence over nearly every other creature on this earth.
Elephants have an incredibly large and highly complex hippocampus, which is the part of
the brain which is linked to emotion and processing emotional information.
https://www.unilad.co.uk/featured/elephants-think-humans-are-cute-just-like-we-think-puppies-are/
2/5
8/30/2018
Elephants ‘Think Humans Are Cute’ Just Like We Think Puppies Are
There are known cases of elephants su ering from post-traumatic stress disorder as a
result of this enlarged hippocampus.
In terms of community structure, elephants have been known to display relatively
complex social structures, forming close knit communities and exhibiting extreme
emotion at the loss of one of their family.
Julia @JuliaHass · 20 Dec 2017
I just learned that elephants think humans are cute the way
humans think puppies are cute (the same part of the brain lights up
when they see us) so pack it in, nothing else this pure and good is
happening today.
Julia
@JuliaHass
“I love you, weird trunk-less friend.” youtube.com/watch?
v=t5MQVB…
12:26 – 20 Dec 2017
YouTube @YouTube
7,114
1,377 people are talking about this
It has even been theorised that elephants are one of the handful of animals in the history
of the planet which exhibit a recognisable ritual around death.
Elephant researcher Martin Meredith recalls in his book an example of such a ritual when
the entire family of an elderly female elephant gently touched her dead body with their
trunks.
There were audbile screams and weeping from the entire herd before they all fell silent
and began to throw leaves and branches over her to cover her. They then proceeded to
stand over her for two days.
𝕦𝕟𝕒𝕙 @justunah · 20 Dec 2017
Replying to @leahwilss @JuliaHass
GENUINELY NOT SEEN THIS BEFORE BUT THANK YOU
I didn’t know I needed to hear this until now
leah
https://www.unilad.co.uk/featured/elephants-think-humans-are-cute-just-like-we-think-puppies-are/
3/5
8/30/2018
Elephants ‘Think Humans Are Cute’ Just Like We Think Puppies Are
HAVE SWEET DREAMS XX pic.twitter.com/pbM8DbFNDf
20:00 – 20 Dec 2017
1,088
173 people are talking about this
Elephants are also known for their altruism to other animals, including humans. They will
help other elephants if hurt, regardless of relation.
In one instance, in India, an elephant helping to lift logs for locals by following a truck and
placing the logs in holes which had been dug.
In one of the holes, the elephant refused to lower the log into the hole, and eventually the
people realised there was a dog sleeping in the hole. The elephant only lowered the log
when the dog had gone.
We really don’t deserve elephants. God bless them.
Watch Next:
Baby Elephant Cuddles Tourist
–
Loading…
https://www.unilad.co.uk/featured/elephants-think-humans-are-cute-just-like-we-think-puppies-are/
4/5
8/30/2018
Elephants ‘Think Humans Are Cute’ Just Like We Think Puppies Are
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CREDITS
Twitter
https://www.unilad.co.uk/featured/elephants-think-humans-are-cute-just-like-we-think-puppies-are/
5/5
Original Research
published: 28 April 2017
doi: 10.3389/fvets.2017.00060
E
Zoë T. Rossman 1*, Clare Padfield 2, Debbie Young 2 and Lynette A. Hart 3
1
Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA, USA, 2 African Elephant Research Unit,
Knysna Elephant Park, Western Cape, South Africa, 3 Department of Population Health and Reproduction,
School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA, USA
Edited by:
Chris Walzer,
Veterinärmedizinische Universität,
Austria
Reviewed by:
Malathi Raghavan,
Purdue University, USA
V. Wensley Koch,
United States Department of
Agriculture, USA
*Correspondence:
Zoë T. Rossman
ztrossman@ucdavis.edu
Specialty section:
This article was submitted to
Veterinary Humanities and
Social Sciences,
a section of the journal
Frontiers in Veterinary Science
Received: 17 October 2016
Accepted: 12 April 2017
Published: 28 April 2017
Citation:
Rossman ZT, Padfield C, Young D
and Hart LA (2017) Elephant-Initiated
Interactions with Humans: Individual
Differences and Specific Preferences
in Captive African Elephants
(Loxodonta africana).
Front. Vet. Sci. 4:60.
doi: 10.3389/fvets.2017.00060
South Africa has seen a recent increase in the number of African elephants (Loxodonta
africana) maintained in reserves and parks and managed in free contact, where they
may spend a significant amount of time in close proximity to humans. This study investigates how individual elephants choose to initiate interactions with humans by examining
whether interaction types and frequencies vary both between elephants and with regards
to the category of human involved in the interaction. Observations were made on a herd
of seven captive African elephants frequently exposed to elephant handlers (guides),
volunteers (who carry out general observations for the park’s research unit), and tourists. The elephants differed in the frequencies with which they initiated interactions with
each category of human and in the types of behaviors they used to initiate interactions.
However, all of the elephants interacted most frequently with guides. Certain individual
elephants showed preferences in interacting with specific guides, indicating particular
elephant-guide bonds. This study provides evidence for elephant-handler bonds as well
as information on the extent of interactions between humans and African elephants
managed in free contact.
Keywords: elephants, human–animal interactions, human–animal bonds, social behavior, free contact
INTRODUCTION
As wild elephant populations decline, many African elephants (Loxodonta africana) are maintained
in reserves and parks across Southern Africa, where they may spend a significant amount of time
in close proximity to humans. There are currently 129 captive elephants in South Africa, which is
approximately a 30% increase in the last decade (D. Young, personal communication, 18 February
2016). Captive elephants are maintained in parks and zoos where management techniques range
from protected contact to free contact, a method where elephant handlers work alongside elephants
with no physical barrier. Despite the large number of elephants living in captive facilities, there is
little information on the interactions that take place between captive African elephants and the
humans with whom they are in contact.
The effects of human–animal interactions (HAIs) have been studied extensively across a variety
of species. Interactions with humans may have the effect of reducing stress in dogs, a quality that
Frontiers in Veterinary Science | www.frontiersin.org
1
April 2017 | Volume 4 | Article 60
Rossman et al.
Elephant-Initiated Interactions with Humans
interaction with other dogs lacks (1). Dogs also preferred to initiate
interactions with humans to kennelmates (2). HAIs have been successful as enrichment for both captive chimpanzees (3) and gorillas
(4). Both studies found that increased interaction with humans led
to an increase in affiliative behaviors between conspecifics and a
decrease in abnormal behaviors or stereotypies. Interactions that
are initiated by the animal have further implications. Humandirected behaviors such as approaching or seeking out can be
related to how friendly a particular animal is (5). These types of
behaviors may be indicators of attachment (6) or even indicators of
positive relationships between humans and animals (7).
The human–animal relationship (HAR) and its subset, the
human–animal bond (HAB), are two additional concepts that are
becoming increasingly important in the field of animal behavior.
HABs have been defined as “reciprocal and persistent” relationships that benefit both parties involved (8, 9). The potential for
animals to develop HABs has been evidenced in multiple species,
including dogs and horses (1), farm animals (10), and various zoo
animals (5, 8). A positive relationship has been shown between
the frequency of HAIs and the subsequent development of a HAB
(1). The implications of the HAB in a captive facility include
increased ease of management and potential increase in quality
of life for the animals (8).
Personality and temperament play a role in HARs, as the extent
to which an animal is willing to interact with humans varies
depending on the individual. Personality and temperament are
often treated as synonyms and have been defined as the consistent,
specific behavior patterns of an individual (11). Elephants specifically have been shown to differ individually in temperament traits
relating to social integration, leadership, aggression, and exploratory behaviors (12). The different temperaments of individuals can
also be important in determining how animals will interact with
humans (6, 13). Individual behavioral variations in response to
the presence of a stranger, more specifically exploratory behavior
versus fearful behavior, have been demonstrated by house cats (14)
and deer (15). Human personality traits may also have an effect on
HAIs, as chimpanzees have been shown to differ in their response to
humans based on whether the experimenter acted shy or bold (16).
The information on the interactions and relationships between
elephants and humans is limited and consists mainly of data
concerning Asian elephants. HABs between Asian elephants and
their individual handlers, or mahouts, are discussed at length in
Ref. (17). Through interviews with mahouts, it was shown that
HABs allowed the mahouts to work more safely and productively
with their elephants due to the high level of “trust” that had
developed over time. Mahouts also specified that their elephants
would not necessarily respond to the commands of others, which
reinforces the idea that HABs are highly individual. In a separate
study, boys as young as 12 were able to work safely with female
Asian elephants and even indicated preferences for certain
elephants, indicating that the development of HARs with captive
elephants is not necessarily limited to trainers who exert control
over their animals (18). Following their time spent working with
elephants, Lehnhardt and Galloway (19) described the ability of
HABs between trainers and elephants to contribute to the safety
of training and handling elephants and indicated that the formation of the HAB may be more important than any formal training
Frontiers in Veterinary Science | www.frontiersin.org
on how to handle elephants. This study also acknowledges the
lack of information on HAIs between humans and young, male
African elephants.
Elephants are cognitively advanced creatures with the largest
brain of any land mammal and a remarkable capacity for long-term
social memory (20). From their reactions to injured conspecifics
(21) to their ability to recognize the calls of an estimated 100 other
individuals (22), it is clear that interactions and relationships with
conspecifics play an important role in the day-to-day life of the
African elephant. Positive interactions occur frequently between
females and calves in a herd (23) and families often function
cohesively (12).
In a captive setting, African elephants have been shown to
vary in their individual personalities, and various methods of
rating temperament traits in elephants have proven successful
(24, 25). These studies also discuss how recognizing an individual
elephant’s unique set of characteristics can help direct management practices that cater to an elephant’s particular needs. For
Asian elephants, mahouts similarly identified specific traits that
they found either preferable or undesirable concerning the handling of a working elephant (17). The variability in an individual
elephant’s personality may then inform the frequency and types
of interactions that they exhibit toward humans, as previously
discussed regarding other species.
The purpose of this study is to provide an in-depth look at how
individual captive African elephants in a free contact environment choose to initiate interactions with humans, and whether
interaction types and frequencies vary both between elephants
and with regards to the type of human involved in the interaction.
At the study site, it is anecdotally accepted that certain elephants
maintain unique bonds with certain handlers, and that some
elephants are friendlier overall than others. Past observations
at this site provided further indications that the focal elephants
may differ in when and how they interact with humans, and with
which humans they choose to interact. This study attempts to use
detailed information collected on elephant-initiated interactions
in order to address the following:
I.
Will elephants show variations both individually and as a
group in the frequencies and types of interactions they initiate overall?
II. Will elephants show variations both individually and as a
group in the interactions initiated toward a specific category
of human (handler, volunteer, or tourist)?
III. Within the subset of elephant-handler interactions, will
elephants show individual variations in the numbers of
interactions initiated toward particular handlers, indicating
potential human–elephant bonds?
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Observations were conducted on a herd of seven captive African
elephants (Loxodonta africana) at Knysna Elephant Park (KEP),
Western Cape, South Africa. KEP was home to 18 elephants when
the study was conducted; however, only seven of them make up
the herd that interacts with tourists, hereafter referred to as Sally’s
herd (see Table 1 for a full herd profile). Sally’s herd is composed
2
April 2017 | Volume 4 | Article 60
Rossman et al.
Elephant-Initiated Interactions with Humans
barrier, and any interactions with guides carrying pellet bags, as
these were the two situations in which the elephants expected a
food reward for an interaction. These interactions were ignored
since the elephant’s motivation for interacting was directly and
inextricably linked to the promise of a food reward, and thus of
little relevance to this study.
Data on interactions were collected from June to September
2015 over 243 h of direct observation. Observations were made
daily in intervals between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. A roughly even
number of observations were conducted during the first half of
the day and second half of the day to control for any potential
daily variations in the herd’s routine. An all occurrences sampling
method was used (26), and Zoë T. Rossman moved position as
needed in order to keep the maximum number of elephants in
view. Final interaction counts were adjusted for how long each
elephant was visible in the focal group (i.e., the members of Sally’s
herd within viewing distance). However, differences in time in view
for each elephant were negligible (