The Effect of Different Types of Enrichment on Stereotypic Behaviour of Captive Hylobates lar at Gibbon Rehabilitation Project in Raub, Pahang, Malaysia

Abstract

Owa serudung, juga dikenal sebagai Hylobates lar, sangat terancam punah. Rehabilitasi merupakan salah satu solusi untuk mencegah owa dari kepunahan. Untuk mengembalikan owa ke alam liar, owa harus siap secara fisik dan mental untuk kembali ke alam liar serta memenuhi tujuh kriteria pelepasan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk memahami penyebab, akibat, dan solusi perilaku stereotipik dan menyelidiki pengaruh empat perangkat pengayaan yang berbeda (pengayaan taktil, penciuman, makanan dan kognitif serta sosial) terhadap pengurangan perilaku stereotipik. Pengumpulan data dilakukan dengan metode observasi. Penataan dan analisis data dilakukan dengan menggunakan Statistical Package for Social Sciences for Windows (SPSS) dan Microsoft Excel. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa kehadiran manusia memicu terjadinya masturbasi dan demonstrasi posterior. Pemberian pengayaan membantu pengurangan perilaku stereotip. Dari empat perangkat pengayaan yang berbeda, owa serudung paling banyak berinteraksi dengan kain dan pisang (pengayaan taktil); namun, kotak penggali gantung lebih efektif dalam mengurangi perilaku stereotip meskipun owa paling sedikit tertarik padanya.

White-handed gibbon, also known as Hylobates lar, are highly endangered and threatened with extinction. Rehabilitation is one of the solutions to prevent the gibbon from extinction. To reintroduce the gibbons into the wild, gibbons must be both physically and mentally ready to return to the wild as well as achieve seven criteria of release. This research aimed to understand the causes, effects and solutions to the stereotypic behaviour and investigate the effect of four different enrichment devices (tactile, olfactory, food and cognitive as well as social enrichment) on the reduction of stereotypic behaviour in one captive gibbon. The data were collected using the observation method. Data arrangement and analysis were done by using The Statistical Package for Social Sciences for Windows (SPSS) and Microsoft Excel. The result showed that the presence of humans triggers masturbation and posterior demonstration. The giving of enrichment helped the reduction of stereotypic behaviour . Of the four different enrichment devices, the gibbon interacted the most with the cloth and banana leaves (tactile enrichment); however, the hanging digging box was more effective in reducing the stereotypic behaviour even though the gibbon had the least interest on it.