Monica nature conservation

Module 1 Question 8

2011-12-29T10:10:00.001-08:00

Research a representative each of 1) ordinary game; 2) protected game and 3) specially protected game, in terms of which interests should be protected before issuing a permit, e.g. economic and cultural importance

Each province have a different approach to conservation & the status of animals, grouping every animal into different categories: Protected wild animals, protected game, ordinary game & specially protected game. Only Cape Nature conservation Ordinance lists its animals as endangered wild animals & protected wild animals. Some of these lists have to be updated because most of the animals on these lists doesn’t have the same status currently then in the past years. List from the Limpopo & Eastern Cape provinces are more up to date & can reflect the current status of their animals better.

The definition of “problem animal” differs from each province & only 8 of the provinces include the category of “problem animals” or “problem species”.

Allow hunting of problem animals	Problem animals to be hunted/ poisoned.
Mpumalanga	Mpumalanga
Northern cape	Northern cape
Western cape	Western cape
Eastern cape	Eastern cape
Gauteng

The poor management of this system is the reason why the nation struggles with the overall control species population in SA. The overall conservation status & species population in South Africa is not very clear or accurate this is what causes the confusion & the illegal poaching of endangered an overall threatened species. The situation may soon change & be resolved since it states in Section 2 of the Biodiversity ACT that the minster of each province may publish a list of Threatened or protected species. DEAT (Department of Environmental Affairs & Tourism) is currently compiling information on these lists from all the provinces, which will be published through the republic, providing the conservation status of all the animals in every province. This will give a much clearer picture of the conservation status of animals in SA.

Animals called “GAME ANIMALS”			Animals called “WILD ANIMALS”
ORDINARY	PROTECTED	SPECIALLY PROTECTED	PROBLEM	NOT PROTECTED	PROTECTED
Kudu	Roan	Elephant	Baboon	Warthog	Lion
Impala	Sable	Rhino	Bush pig	Porcupine	Leopard
Game birds	Giraffe		Jackal	Hyrax	Buffalo
Springbok	Most birds		Vervet monkey	Meerkat	Cheetah

What is the Red List?

The Red List was compiled to give all stakeholders, both private and governmental, a clear picture of the urgency and scale of global conservation problems. The publication will serve as a source of motivation for the global community to counteract actively the vast and unsustainable rate of species extinction occurring currently.

The IUCN 2000 Red List edition is a comprehensive inventory of the conservation status of plant and animals species on a global scale. This list is compiled according to strict scientific principles and as such is recognised as the most authoritative guide on the status of biological diversity on the planet.

The accuracy of the list is assured through an ongoing process to establish Red List Authorities for all the taxonomic groups included in the Red List. Birdlife International, for example, has been designated as the Red List Authority for birds and will liaise with bird specialist groups and Wetlands International where necessary.

Additionally taxonomic standards will be available by 2003, which will bring greater credibility and transparency to listings and allow better analyses of findings. Provision has also been made for formal challenges to the categories in which species at risk are placed, but a challenge is disallowed if it is made for political or economic reasons.

Evaluation procedures for Red Data Species follow set criteria that determine the extinction risk of thousands of species and subspecies that populate this planet. It is produced by the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC), which is a network of some 7 000 species experts working in nearly every country on the globe.

To be relevant, these criteria have to accommodate all the different aspects of species and habitat that occur in all the regions of the world. There are eight categories in the IUCN Red List system, which are:

1. Extinct

2. Extinct in the Wild

3. Critically Endangered

4. Endangered

5. Vulnerable

6. Lower Risk

7. Data Deficient

8. Not Endangered.

· Categories 1 to 5 are determined through a set of five quantitative criteria based on biological factors related to extinction risk:

· Rate of decline

· Population size

· Area of geographic distribution Degree of population distribution Degree of population fragmentation.

· Each species listed under one of these criteria must be re-evaluated once every ten years.

Endangered mammal species in South Africa

These species include three categories: Critically Endangered, Endangered and Vulnerable. (In each case, "Endemic" means Endemic to South Africa.)

Critically Endangered

Black rhinoceros	(Diceros bicornis)
Juliana's golden mole	(Amblysomus julianae) (Endemic)
Van Zyl's golden mole	(Cryptochloris zyli) (Endemic)
Visagie's Golden Mole	(Cryptochloris visagiei) (Endemic)

Endangered

African elephant	(Loxodonta africana)
Giant golden mole	(Chrysospalax trevelyani) (Endemic)
Mountain zebra	(Equus zebra)
Riverine rabbit	(Bunolagus monticularis) (Endemic)
Rock mouse species	(Petromyscus barbouri) (Endemic)
Wild dog	(Lycaon pictus)

Vulnerable

African bush squirrel species	(Paraxerus palliatus)
African dormouse species	(Graphiurus ocularis) (Endemic)
Big-eared free-tailed bat	(Otomops martiensseni)
Cheetah	(Acinonyx jubatus)
De Winton's golden mole	(Cryptochloris wintoni) (Endemic)
Duthie's golden mole	(Clorotalpa duthiae) (Endemic)
Free-tailed bat species	(Mormopterus acetabulosus)
Grant's golden mole	(Eremitalpa granti)
Gunning's golden mole	(Amblysomus gunningi) (Endemic)
Horseshoe bat species	(Rhinolophus capensis)
Lion	(Panthera leo)
Little brown bat species	(Myotis leseuri) (Endemic)
Little brown bat species	(Myotis seabrai)
Long-eared elephant shrew	(Elephantulus edwardii) (Endemic)
Long-eared elephant shrew	(Elephantulus rupestris) (Endemic)
Long-tailed forest shrew	Myosorex longicaudatus) (Endemic)
Mouse shrew species	(Myosorex sclateri) (Endemic)
Mouse shrew species	(Myosorex tenuis)
Rough-haired golden mole	(Chrysospalax villosus) (Endemic)
Sclater's golden mole	(Chlorotalpa sclateri)
Short-eared elephant shrew	Macroscelides proboscideus)
Springhare	(Pedetes capensis)
White-tailed rat	(Mystrimys albicaudatus)
White-toothed shrew species	(Crocidura flavescens)

“Game” animals in South Africa

Ordinary game

§ Ordinary game has a very big role in South Africa. They are the most common game in the country and the numbers are the largest. They mostly come in herds or flocks so this means that they are not scarce to see. They are the animals that tourists mostly see on vacation when visiting a game farm or Park, like the Kudu, Impala or Springbok, without these game animals the bush would be empty. They are ordinary game because they are common & most wildlife keepers breed with them because there population grows very fast, there for they are known as “game animals”. These are also the animals most likely to be hunted & it is easy to get hunting permits for them. Some animals like the kudu have significant cultural importance to some cultures in Africa. Some cultures are known to use the spiral horns to make music from or to communicate with each other from long distances. This means that the Kudu plays a role in the culture of some tribes in Africa.

§ Different types of permits need different requirements to be obtained. For ordinary game all you would need is enough space and grazing and browsing potential to maintain the animal in his natural habitat. Because Ordinary game is mostly herbivores you don’t need a huge amount of meat for it to prey on if it was a carnivore.

Threatened or protected “game” (TOPS).

§ To be in possession of these animals you need TOPS permits because their numbers are very low or have drastically dropped.

§ Animals like the Roan antelope, Sable or Giraffe are listed as threatened species & therefore needs to be protected by law from over hunting & poaching too keep the numbers from dropping even lower, where the specie will then become specially protected.

§ These “game” animals are very high in demand when it comes to breeding with them to sell to other breeders or selling them to trophy hunters this is why they are known as “game” animals.

§ There are sub categories in which species are placed to know their status:



§ Vulnerable

§ Threatened

§ Endangered

§ Critically endangered

Threatened species.

· A permit must be refused for the translocation of a threatened or protected species to an extensive wildlife system which is declared as a protected area and which falls outside the natural distribution range of such a species.

· A permit may be issued for the translocation of a threatened or protected species to an extensive wildlife system which is not declared as a protected area and which falls outside the natural distribution range of such a species.

· A permit must be refused for the translocation of a threatened or protected species to an extensive wildlife system if there is a risk of spreading a disease or a risk of hybridization with other species on that extensive wildlife system.

Example: Where blue wildebeest already occur on an extensive wildlife system, and the intention is to introduce black wildebeest on the same extensive wildlife system, a permit for the translocation of the black wildebeest to the extensive wildlife system must be refused.

Specially protected game:

« Animals like the Rhino & elephant are specially protected game because they are animals which are very highly sort after for their ivory or body parts. Very few of these species are left in the wild & are no a day’s only kept as “game” on Game farms & Parks.

« This creates a big problem when it comes to keeping the population of the specie balanced.

« The black market pays large amount of money for these animals ivory & the people involved in this business will kill as many animals as it takes to fill up the hole in the market.

« Nature conservation has struggled for years to control this, but it has been futile… The black Rhino has been declared as endangered & the numbers are still declining daily!

« To own a rhino is a very big risk because of the obsessive poaching, you need a TOPS permit to be an owner of this specie.

« Transport, Import & exporting permits for ivory in SA are also very strict, only a certain amount of ivory can be exported out of the country yearly, although huge amounts are smuggled over the border each year unnoticed!

“Wild” animals in South Africa.

Problem animals.

¶ These animals are categorized as “Problems” because there is an overpopulation of them in the wild. No one breeds with or cells these animals because they are not “rare” & they are not highly sort after.

¶ They cause problems for people, the Vervet monkey & Baboon is seen as pests in rural areas, simply because there are too many of them & people are moving into & taking over their natural habitat. They get tame, go into people’s homes, trash the place & they are dangerous to people. Most Jackal species are also a pest. Mostly the “Black Backed Jackal” is over populating Game farms simply because there is no more competition from top predators & they pry on Farmer’s small live stock.

¶ You need no special permits for these animals because they roam freely where ever their habitat stretches & these for there are no control as to where they go.

Not Protected “Wild” animals.

v These animals Like the Warthog, Porcupine, Hyrax & Meercat are seen as: No threat to people, not scarce in the wild & not sort after for breeding or trophies.

v We like to see these animals as “in the middle animals”. They have no significant pros or cons for humans. They just play their roll in the eco system daily.

v You need no special permits for these animals because they roam freely between farm borders; there is no control over them.

v Although some cultures use their body parts for mooty, like the porcupine’s quills and guard hairs are used for traditional decorative clothing. For example, their guard hairs are used in the creation of the Native American "porky roach" headdress; the specie does have a big loss in population numbers.

Protected “Wild” animals.

Ø These are animals like the: Lion, Leopard, Buffalo & Cheetah.

Ø When you are in possession of Lion, buffalo or Cheetah in a park with borders stretching over a big area & the animals are enclosed inside or you are breeding with any of them you need TOPS permits as well as Breeding permits.

Ø In The case of a Leopard which can escape from a large area, simply because it can climb borders or trees you need not have a TOPS permit. A Leopard roams freely over borders when it is not in strict confinement, however when owning a Leopard & breeding with it in a confined area, without it escaping you need to own a TOPS permit & breeding permit.

Ø These species are considered as Protected because of their sort after trophies by hunters & because of the slow reproducing rate in the wild. There for some of the species has to be confined & bred with to help the reproducing speed up.

Ø Nature conservation efforts are helping species like the Cheetah & Leopard by establishing various facilities like breeding farms to breed with & re-introduce captive bred animals into the wid.

Ø Some facilities are also dedicated to do research on them to help the conservation of the specific species.

Permits	Maximum period of validity
Ordinary permits	12 months
Standing permits: · provincial & national departments and protected areas	48 months
Standing permits: § registered captive breeding operation; § registered commercial exhibition facility; § registered game farm; § registered nursery; § registered veterinarian; § registered sanctuary; § registered rehabilitation facility; § registered scientific institution; § registered wildlife trader	36 months
· Possession permits	50 years
· Game farm hunting permits · Nursery possession permits · Personal effects permits	12 months

TOPS Species

PROTECTED GAME

REPTILES AND MAMMALS

bullfrog	Pyxicephalus adspersus
hedgehog	Erinaceus frontalis
samango monkey	Cercopithecus albogularis
bush baby	Galago crassicaudatus
night ape	Galago senegalensis
pangolin	Manis temminckii
aardwolf	Proteles cristatus
brown hyaena	Hyaena brunnea
antbear	Orycteropus afer
mountain zebra	Equus zebra zebra
Hartmann's zebra	Equus zebra hartmannae
hippopotamus	Hippopotamus amphibius
giraffe	Giraffa camelopardalis
nyala	Tragelaphus angasi
eland	Taurotragus oryx
red duiker	Cephalophus natalensis
blue duiker	Cephalophus monticola
reedbuck	Redunca arundinum
mountain reedbuck	Redunca fulvorufula
waterbuck	Kobus ellipsiprymnus
sable antelope	Hippotragus niger
roan antelope	Hippotragus equinus
gemsbok	Oryx gazella Connochaetes gnou
red hartebeest	Alcelaphus buselaphus
bontebok	Damaliscus dorcas dorcas
tsessebe	Damaliscus lunatus
klipspringer	Oreotragus oreotragus
oribi	Ourebia ourebi
steenbok	Raphicerus campestris
Sharpe's grysbok	Raphicerus sharpei
suni	Neotragus moschatus
grey rhebuck	Pelea capreolus

· all species of reptiles excluding the water all species of the Class Reptilia excluding leguan, rock leguan and all species of Varanus niloticus, Varanus Albigularis

· all snakes species of the Sub Order Serpentes

SPECIALLY PROTECTED GAME

· elephant Laxodonta africana

· all species of rhinoceros all species of the Family Rhinocerotidae

ORDINARY GAME (Birds)

spur-winged goose	Plectropterus gambensis
Egyptian goose	Alopochen aegyptiacus
yellow-billed duck	Anas undulata
red-billed teal	Anas erythrorhyncha
coqui partridge	Francolinus coqui
crested partridge	Francolinus sephaena
greywing partridge	Francolinus africanus
Shelley's partridge	Franconlinus shelleyi
redwing partridge	Francolinus levaillantii
Orange River partridge	Francolinus levaillantoides
red-billed francolin	Francolinus adspersus
Natal francolin	Francolinus natalensis

PROTECTED WILD ANIMALS

wild dog	Lycaon pictus
cheetah	Acinonyx jubatus
leopard	Panthera pardus
lion	Panther leo
African Buffalo	Syncerus caffer

2011-12-14T05:52:00.000-08:00

Module 1 Question 4

Collect relevant permit application forms, and describe the information these forms need, and the route certain of these forms follow. Determine which permits your facility should carry and why these apply.

Information needed on a permit form

¨Application information for registration of Captive breeding operations, Commercial exhibition facilities, Nurseries, Scientific institutions, Sanctuaries, Rehabilitation facilities and Wildlife traders.

¨Applicant details

¨Facility details: Name of facility &Type of facility

¨Listed threatened or protected species involved.

¨Information captive breeding permits.

¡The number and age of males and females that will be used to breed with.

¡Evidence of legal acquisition.

¡Information on the percentage moralities in the different age groups between males and females.

¡Past, current and expected annual production of offspring .

¡An assessment of the facilities gene pool to prevent inbreeding.

¡Detailed description of the marking methods used for the breeding stock and offspring.

¡Description of the strategies used by the breeding operation, or other activities, that contribute to improving the conservation status of wild populations of the species.

¡The specific enclosure facilities that will be used when breeding the species.

¡Security measures to prevent escapes and/or thefts. E.g. Electric wiring, Safety cages, trees not to close to fences, alarm systems & generators.

¡Food & water supply for animals.

¡Removal of waste.

¡Availability of veterinary services.

Information to be submitted in case of application for registration of sanctuary and
rehabilitation facility:

¡Description and schematic diagram of the facilities to house the current and expected animals. (map of facility)

¡Security measures to prevent escapes and/or thefts. (Electric wiring, Safety cages, trees not to close to fences, alarm systems & generators.)

¡Food & water supply for the animals.

¡Removal of waste & waste disposal methods.

¡Availability of veterinary services to the animals.

¡Measures taken to prevent breeding in sanctuaries if the facility does not have a breeding permit for animals.

¡All of the enclosures must be at a certain standard that complies to the permit.

¡Correct pluming, water & drain systems.

Routes that permit forms follow.

¨Depending on the type of permit the route that must be followed to obtain a specific permit will be different each time.

¨Any international trade, meaning any export, re-export, import or introduction from the sea of animals or plants, or any part or derivative of a species included in the appendices of the Convention, requires the issuance of a permit or certificate, issued by a Management Authority.

¨The period of validity of export permits or certificates may not exceed six months but import permits may be valid for up to one year. The procedures for issuance and use of the permits/certificates vary according to the appendix in which the species concerned is listed.

The following steps represent how trade in species listed in CITES is generally conducted

¨ The exporter applies to the Management authority for a permit to export..

¨The Management Authority reviews the request and consults with the Scientific Authority to determine whether the proposed trade is acceptable within the framework of CITES and to ensure that it is not detrimental to the survival of the species. In the case of shipment of live animals, the Management Authority requires proof that the specimens will be transported in accordance with IATA regulations regarding the safe transport of animals or within the CITES guidelines on transport of live animals.

¨If all is in order, the Management Authority issues a permit to the exporter. In some cases, a copy of the permit is sent to the CITES Secretariat.

¨The exporter declares the shipment to Customs with the permit. Customs checks the shipment against the permit. If all is in order, the specimens are shipped along with the permit.

¨ The shipment is declared to the customs authority of the destination country. Customs checks the permits against the shipment and consults with Management Authority.

¨If the permits are found to be faulty, or if the shipment is in violation of CITES, the specimens must be confiscated (or returned to the country of origin) and penalties imposed.

Transportation of animals

vThe Management Authority should be convinced that live specimens will be transported and handled in accordance with IATA (International Air Transport Association) regulations on the transport of live animals.

vIATA guidelines require the shipper to certify that animals are in good health and condition. Shippers must also provide health declarations and permits required under any national authority. When importing mammals and birds (including CITES species) the IATA guidelines require veterinary health certificates stating that the mammal or bird is healthy and appears to be free of any communicable disease. When an animal needs to be in quarantine before transport or after the necessary checks & Health certificates needs to be obtained.

vThe National Environmental Management Biodiversity Act (No. 10 of 2004) (NEMBA), describes the permit system, which works together with CITES’ framework for trade in wildlife.

vThe Limpopo Environmental Management Act, Act 7 of 2003 directs provincial permits and CITES application. Catching or hunting of wildlife is also directed.

vThe Schedules define the groups that wildlife fall into such as game or wild animals (e.g. Kudu, Impala) versus protected species (e.g. Elephant, Rhino).

vAll nine provinces use a permit or license system to regulate all wildlife activities both on nature reserves and private land. Getting a permit or license varies from province to province, permits are required for: hunting, capturing, importing, exporting, transporting, processing, selling, collecting, breeding, and harvesting.

ØOnly the owner/manager of a registered sanctuary/ rehabilitation centre can apply for a permit allowing activities involving listed, threatened or protected species cared for at the facility that need to be treated or cared for.

Ø The permit controls the possession, sale & trading of wild animals or animal products in & out of the province & country.

ØMost of the provinces in South- Africa uses the same electronic permitting system. Each province charge a fee for the permit. The fee differs from each province & the money usually goes back to the province & not the nature conservation fund.

ØIf you need a permit & you do not own one or the permit you own is not legit you can receive a fine or even go to jail.

ØThe permitting system in the different provinces causes confusion because some provinces need different permits for the same activities.

ØIf a hunter has a permit to hunt & transport trophies over one border he has to have the permit for the province he is transporting the trophies into.

Permits my facility carry.

v Trading & swopping permits.

We trade & swop some of the animals with other facilities for various reasons. If another facility needs some new blood in their genetic pool we swop them for one of your animals.

vBuying & selling permits.

We need these permits to sell our rehabilitated animals to farms where they will ether be released or bread with to ensure the survival of the species. We also buy threatened animals when they are small and use them to educate the public about the importance of their roll in the eco system.(Cheetah)

v CITIES permits.

CITES accords varying degrees of protection to wild animal and plant species depending on their biological status and the effect international trade has or could have on them.

v Permit to keep live wild animals at you facility.

This is he most important permit to have, you cannot own any wild animal in facility without this permit. Without it you can be fined or be sentenced to jail.

vTOPS permits:

We have this permit to keep threatened or protected species in your facility like the cheetah.

The National Environmental Management Biodiversity Act (No. 10 of 2004), Threatened and Protected Species Regulations (TOPS), indicates in Chapter 3 that there are compulsory registration requirements for keeping wildlife. The regulations will introduce a uniform national system for the registration of captive breeding operations, commercial exhibition facilities, game farms, nurseries, scientific institutions, sanctuaries and rehabilitation facilities.

2011-12-13T04:52:00.001-08:00

Agenda

Captive animal management: level 4

SAQUA: 48435.

· Feedback on training.

é The practical training of the 1^st years is complete.

é Some of the students still have to complete their POE work, they will do this while working there this December holiday.

· Feedback on research project.

« Research still in progress.

· Presentation of assignments(s).

· Handout & discussion of new assignments.

v Do research on IATA.

v Doing assessments on food cultures.

· Research for new assignments.

{ Research my animal’s behaviour.

{ Research Enclosure & food enrichment.

Module 4 Animal Training program.

2011-11-23T01:57:00.000-08:00

Owl training plan.

· My plan is to train a Verreaux Eagle owl named “Fudge”, from the WLC that is about 3 months old. The owl came in when it was 3 weeks old so it was relatively young & got use to humans when it was still young. This is great for training, the younger the animal the better, so that it can learn from a young age.

· Owls are one of the least intelligent birds to train because of the brain size which are oppressed by the large eye size & the attention span is also very short because of the eyes picking up every small movement & the incredible hearing improved by the satellite shaped face which catches all the sound waves.

· This specific specie of owl is also the largest in Africa so it is a challenge to do training with your arm because it can weigh up to 3 kg!

Previous training

· From the day the owl came in I fed it with my hand, holding a piece of meat near the beak & touching the sensory hairs on the edges specially evolved to sense the touch of a parent wanting to feed it.

· After every piece of meat was given I would rub between the owl’s eyes with my finger, this is a very sensitive spot & on touching the owl would relax & fall into a kind of trance.

· The owl is now old enough to be introduced to a glove because he is starting to perch on the branch inside the cage.

· Now I introduce my handling glove to him by placing it in front of him when feeding so that he can get use to the hand glove & see that it will not harm him.

· Later I lured him closer to the glove by wiggling the meat near the beak & the n slowly taking it away as soon as he wants to grab it, this forces him to come closer to the glove until he sits on the grove eventually.

· This can be seen as Positive reinforcement because I added something good like the food & I didn’t take anything away or punish him.

· After the owl has learned to climb on the glove to get food I started to put the glove on my arm with a piece of meat. Now he sees that it looks different & that if moves. When training any animals you have to be very patient & take small steps to achieve something. The owl has to now first get use to the movement & my presence in the enclosure with glove on.

· Now using negative reinforcement I take the food away when he does not come closer & increases good behaviour from him. Then I use “Targeting” by giving him a piece of meat as soon as he takes a small step forward, and then every time he touches the glove with hid feet or beak I also give him a meat piece as reward, now he sees by doing a certain action he gets rewarded & this makes him want to do the action again to get a treat!

Applying these terms to the Four Possible Consequences, you get:

· Something Good can start or be presented, so behaviour increases = Positive Reinforcement (R+)

· Something Good can end or be taken away, so behaviour decreases = Negative Punishment (P-)

· Something Bad can start or be presented, so behaviour decreases = Positive Punishment (P+)

· Something Bad can end or be taken away, so behaviour increases = Negative Reinforcement (R-)

	Reinforcement (behaviour increases)	Punishment (behaviour decreases)
Positive (something added)	Positive Reinforcement Something added increases behaviour	Positive Punishment Something added decreases behaviour
Negative (something removed)	Negative Reinforcement Something removed increases behaviour	Negative Punishment Something removed decreases behaviour

· I have trained him this way for about 1 and a half months now & he is now comfortable with the glove & sitting on my arm when feeding.

· I just touch his one leg & he lifts up the leg, then I just lift his body & automatically the other leg is lifted so that he can balance on my arm. He responds very well to this, because it is a natural reaction to pick up the remaining leg. He now does this without any struggle.

· I started walking around with him to get him use to the outside sights, sounds & smells. It is a nocturnal animal so he sleeps inside the boma during the day. I have only recently taken him outside during the day. This is now once he is use to humans & do not stress out that much.

· However if it is too hot outside I take him back inside, you can usually see over heating or stress by observing the panting of the throat.

· Fudge has been outside for about a month & is use to everything. I have been walking him around the WLC introducing him to people on the tours doing a short tour about him; He has gotten use to children touching him & people talking around him. One of the things I do with him to entertain the guests is Making him open his wings every once in a while. This is good for him because he stretches the wing muscles after perching on my arm the guests get to see his huge wingspan which will grow up to 1.43 cm. I trained him to open the wings by slowly putting my hand under the one wing & lifting it up, he the automatically lifts both wings & either stretch or flaps them. He seems to like it & doesn’t show any signs of aggressiveness.

· Next I have been walking with him in the Caravan Park telling people about the WLC, he hasn’t been stressing out much and seem to be acting normal when close to so much people.

· At the age of 2 to 3 moths these owlets become juveniles & start exercising the wing & flying to & from the nest so it is time to make Fudge use to a Jesse.

· A jesses is a small leather strap which goes around the ankle of a bird. We use this to keep the bird from flying off its handlers arm. The handler can either hold on to the strap or it can be clipped to the Handling glove.

Future training plan:

· I want to train the owl to fly to my handling glove when calling him, using Positive reinforcement I will give him a meat piece for rewarding the flying action to my hand. This is also called Classical conditioning, where a sound ,smell or sight is associated with a positive reaction like food from a trainer or negative like pain.

· Now I will first whistle every time he gets a piece of meat.

· In this way he will associate my calling with a reward & perch on my arm.

· Eventually this will become a habit for him & he will automatically fly when he hears a whistle.

· After I trained him to fly to my arm in an enclosure I want him to do is outside the enclosure.

· This is a much bigger step because he will get distracted by all the sounds, movements & trees where he can fly to.

· This is where I will get him use to a jesses to prevent him from flying away. By first putting it on him & giving him a reward for letting me put it on him, he will see it as a positive activity.

· I will then keep the jesses on him permanently to get use to it. This may take a while & he will try to get it off, but it is just like a collar on a dog, once they see that it is there to stay they just give up & leave it.

· Now this permanents stay of the jesses will allow the owl to feel conferrable when on my arm & this gives me control of his flying actions.

· Eventually I want him to fly to other people like guests. In other words he must associate whistling & food so good that it would not matter from whom it comes from.

Training philosophy & Ethics.

· A trainer must also see to the safety of the guests, safety when training animals, personal safety & equipment safety. Explain the safety precautions to the guests before the interaction with the animal. The trainer has the full authority to stop the interaction when there is a safety threat to both animal and guest. Both the animal’s safety & public safety has to be considered before & during any interaction.

· It is the keeper’s job to be professional at all times & to ensure the image of the facility stays professional and of the best quality. To ensure the keepers safety: Always inform someone that you are beginning a training session, Always use the appropriate equipment when in training & a trainer has to know her animal’s history & hapits to be able to work safely with the animal.

2011-11-16T04:24:00.000-08:00

Agenda

Captive animal management: level 4

SAQUA: 48435.

· Feedback on training.

é This is the last week of the current groups training at the WLC before the December holidays.

é Some of the students has not yet caught up with their POE’s & will have to catch up in their spare time.

é 2 students have completed with their assessments the other one will complete his last assessment on night duty with a 2^nd year.

· Feedback on research project.

¶ Will be driving on the cruiser next week to look for aardvark evidence.

· Presentation of assignments(s).

µ Module 3 still needs to be completed

µ Discussed Module 4 today in class (enrichment)

µ Discussed your projects on training of animals & Enrichment of food & enclosures.

· Handout & discussion of new assignments.

v Create training plan for animal.

v List the props for enclosure enrichment.

v Propagate plants Module 4: Chemical for garden.

· Research for new assignments.

{ Research my animal’s behaviour.

{ Research Enclosure & food enrichment.