Zoobiquity Project

Animal Welfare, Conservation, and Compassion

[alexasark]

Sea Lions

As you may have gathered from my previous post, I am currently in the Galápagos Islands. I recently returned from five days at sea spent snorkeling and swimming with many different wildlife including (but not limited to) Galápagos Penguins, California and Fur Sea Lions, Parrot Fish, King Angel Fish, Marine Iguanas and White-tipped, Black-tipped and Galápagos Sharks!

However, to this point, my favorite would have to be the California Sea Lions. The Fur Sea Lions are adorable too, though have been a little less gregarious. While they are both Sea Lions, the two differ immensely. Fur Sea Lions hunt at night and can be found sunning themselves during the day on rocks. In the water, they almost appear as bats, floating upside down so that they can visualize any sharks coming at them from below during the night. California Sea Lions hunt during the day and colonize beaches! California Sea Lions in the Galápagos are insulated with fat. However, they have much less fat than their Northern relatives in California and are thus smaller by a third! Fur Sea Lions are insulated with a thick fur undercoat which traps warm air bubbles when they sun on the rocks and are thus even smaller than their “Californian” relatives because they do not rely on fat. However, this serves as a disadvantage to the Fur Sea Lions when humans are involved. The Fur Sea Lions, as previously mentioned, almost became extinct due to human hunting. Their fur, coveted for its warmth and density, made them a prime target for poaching. They became intensely protected once the situation became dire, allowing their population to recover. However, due to bottleneck effects, their population is much less genetically diverse.

Here it might also serve as a place to note the difference between seals and sea lions. Physically, they differ in the size and strength of their flippers and the way they use them. Seals use their tail flippers primarily to propel them through the water. Sea Lions use their front flippers more, walking on them in land and using them to navigate in the water. The other key difference is their ears. Seals have internal ears that appear as holes in their head while sea lions have smaller external ears.

Sea Lions gender can be differentiated in both size and head shape from a first glance. As they mature, bulls become much larger and develop a crest within their skull that makes their head appear much larger and rounder. In this video, infant California Sea Lions come say hello to me on a very empty beach on a small, remote, uninhabited island. If a bull were present, we would not be allowed nearly as close. Furthermore, it is important to note that I do not advocate approaching wildlife! However, in this case, seeing as the pups are young and approached us curiously, the experienced naturalist I was with assured us that it was okay!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVhpFTQx3-4&feature=youtu.be

The Fur Sea Lions recovery on the Galápagos Islands is a really impressive example of successful conservation biology. Yet it is important to note that there are many more examples of either failed or ignored threatened species that are near or have already become extinct. In considering this, it might be worth reflecting on our values in conservation. How do we value species? Why do we put more value into conserving some species over others? Who do we allow to share our space?

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Keep a look out for Racing Extinction (Fall 2016)

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Galapagos: Endemicity and Extinction

In almost every biology class, you learn about the Galapagos. Here Darwin studied a set of finches that spurred his theory of Natural Selection. Ironically, Darwin did not come to the Galapagos as a biologist per se. He was actually shipped off by his family with the hope that when he returned he might have discovered a greater sense of responsibility. I cannot attest much to his sense of personal responsibility, though we can all recognize that Darwin forever changed our perception of evolution.

The Galapagos served as a perfect location for understanding evolution. Between isolated islands, species (e.g. Darwin’s finches) differentiated to specialize in particular ecological niches. Darwin noted that there were similar but slightly different species on almost all islands. From here he reasoned they likely all had the same ancestor, but differentiated from them when they migrated to other islands, creating bottleneck effects and then selecting for mutations that were evolutionarily advantageous on that island.

Furthermore, animals that otherwise would not have survived in the presence of mainland predators, such as Boobies (which lay their egg on the ground), were able to thrive. Tortoises, without the presence of a larger herbivore, were able to grow to be much larger, thus evolving into Giant Tortoises, sexually selecting for height. 

With all these effects in mind, the Galapagos developed an extremely high rate of endemicity (estimated to be 40%, compared to an average of 5%). This makes the Galapagos Islands particularly susceptible to extinction because without other populations from around the world, once a species becomes extinct on one island, it is possible that it will never return.

While Darwin was in the Galapagos, he not only witnessed signs of adaptive radiation and natural selection (though these were not yet named phenomenons) but also current human-caused extinction. The Galapagos Islands served as a major stopping site for ships needing to refuel on fresh foods. Tortoises can live for up to a year without food and water. This made them the ideal shipping meat. They were carried on board (often by at least four men because they could weigh as much as 700 lbs) and then used throughout the trip as a source of food. While Darwin did not explicitly write about this human caused extinction, it is something he might have been aware of.

The tortoises dropped to dangerously low levels before they were protected. One subspecies, the Pinta Island Tortoise, died out completely a few years ago with its last known individual, Lonely George. Because the Pinta Island Tortoise is genetically only considered a subspecies, biologists are hoping to recreate or reintroduce the species on Pinta Island through DNA extraction of the most genetically similar tortoises from neighboring islands. 

The Galapagos Fur Sea Lions also came dangerously close to extinction. However with protection, the populations were able to recuperate (see video to come).

While visiting the Galapagos, I found myself reflecting on the present and the past. Three and a half million years ago, the islands were formed via a hot spot, and continuous west to east movement given the shifting ocean tectonic plate. Since then, life colonized, becoming more and more complex with each immigrant species and subsequent mutations. This gives rise to a set of islands that we use as the quintessential biological example of evolution. However, in a period with unparalleled extinction rates, how much longer will the Galapagos be able to exist as is? Given introduced species, marine ecosystem biomass decline with the crashing of fisheries, raising temperatures and sea levels, the Galapagos will likely become an example of the fragility of endemic existence. It may serve as only a history lesson unless dramatic changes are made.

This may sound like a doomsday forecast, but unfortunately, this is our reality. Many scientists have come to accept that we are living within the sixth mass extinction. If you want to read more, check out Elizabeth Kolbert’s The Sixth Extinction. It is a beatiful, information-filled book on past and current extinctions.

If you are more of a movie person, checkout Racing Extinction, which will be coming out in the fall. It is produced by the creators of The Cove, and is sure to be a very exciting and provocative depiction of our current environmental state of affairs.

If you are interested in what we can do to remmedy this, then please continue reading! Through veterinary wildlife medicine and compassionate conservation, I hope to expose and tackle many wildlife welfare issues that are resulting in species decline and eventual extinction! 

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If you are interested in more wildlife rehabilitation, here is a video of the release of successfully rehabilitated Red Shouldered and Red Tailed Hawks in Northern California. Watch carefully! Red Shouldered Hawks have an incredible ability to accelerate, as seen in this one’s release.

Notice the difference in setting. With the first release of the Red Shouldered Hawk, we chose a wooded area near a creek with plenty of shade. Red Shouldered Hawks thrive in these areas with smaller prey and not a lot of flying space, because they have the ability to accelerate so quickly. We released the Red Tailed Hawk in a much less wooded area, with more grasslands in the surrounding area. The Red Tailed Hawk will hunt slightly larger prey, like rabbits and gophers, and flies high above in the sky, watching the landscape from above, view unabated by foliage.

Red Tailed Hawks are much larger and do not have the same capacity for acceleration. Furthermore, as their name would suggest, Red Tailed Hawks have a redder tail when they are adults, while Red Shouldered Hawks have redder breasts and backs.

In a rehabilitation setting, hawks are one of my favorite species. Once you learn how to properly handle them (wearing very heavy and thick leather gloves), covering their head to reduce stress, you can really appreciate their physique. They have massive talons that are incredibly strong. Even through thick gloves, their strength is obvious. Their beaks are also incredible. Sharp and made for tearing, hawk’s beaks are distinctly curved compared to many other birds.

As patients, hawks can be challenging because they often do not eat well when they are stressed. We meticulously log how much of their food they eat, and force feed them if it comes to that. As always, we try to minimize handling and only intervene when absolutely necessary to limit their furthered exposure to humans.

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Welcoming the Unwanted

In the field of compassionate conservation, we try to value animals as individuals. Beyond rarity, how can we re-evaluate species worth to respect the species that can survive along side us?

While working at WildCare, a Bay Area rehabilitation hospital, I began to foster four seven week-old infant raccoons found in a garbage dumpster. These raccoons had not crawled into the dumpster (they could barely walk at this point), but actually had been tossed. Their mother had likely been trapped and killed and instead of killing the cubs, they were just discarded, allowed to die in a dump truck.

Welcoming these creatures into my garage (in a massive kennel), we slowly developed a relationship, as I learned to bottle feed with a 35 mL syringe, and they learned that I was their food source! Every day I weighed them, and fed them every 6 hours. As long as they continued to grow stronger and heavier, I continued to slowly introducing solid food, such as persimmons and eggs. As they got older, doubling their initial weight of approximately 550 grams (approximately 1.2 lbs), I began to provide more baby-safe learning stimulus, or enrichment, such as egg shells with scrambled eggs inside, or grapes.   

Raccoons, like humans, have proportionately larger prefrontal cortex. This allows them to learn very quickly. Acting as their surrogate mother, I tried to regularly introduce new stimulus and challenges. Within just two weeks, the bumbling raccoon cubs I had initially taken in were becoming stronger, faster and quicker, crunching egg shells, learning how to scale the slippery sides of their sink bathtub, and developing unique personalities. For instance, the only girl had a determined focus to always be close to my neck, clinging to my hair, while her bigger brothers preferred to tussle. Her smaller brother, was the least aggressive with the raccoon formula milk and with this siblings, and was often see suckling on clothing or on one of his siblings appendages.

Together, we learned. As they figured out how to escape my attempts to weigh them, I had to devise new strategies, constantly challenging each other. In their frustration with the limitations of milk flow from the bottle, the raccoon cubs began self-feeding, eating more and more of the yogurt, soft kibble, “raccoon custard” and persimmons I left for them. They even learned to crack donated pigeon eggs!

In the wild, raccoons stay with their mothers for a year. In rehab, they stay for six months. Rehabilitators release them when they are reassured that the raccoons have learned the necessary skills to catch and forage food, and then release them in small groups of juveniles, in the hopes that together they can have an increased rate of survival. After two weeks of my more hands on bottle-feeding care, the raccoons moved on to an outdoor foster care kennel, where they could have limited human exposure, gain a sense for the outside world, and learn to be more dependent on self-feeding.

I handed them off to the next foster parents with a heavy heart. These little creatures, who are so underappreciated and even despised by much of society, had completely won my affection. They are the ultimate anthropocene survivors in that in many ways, they are similar to us. They, unlike many species, depend on their ability to continue to learn. As we invent and develop, so do raccoons. Now, we just need to learn to adapt to their presence, appreciating rather than discarding them.

[alexasark]

Compassionate Conservation

Compassionate Conservation differs from conservation biology in that it changes our valuing system. If we view animals with compassion, we value their individual experience rather than seeing them as a collective. It allows us to empathize more and respect animals intrinsically.

In veterinary medicine, we can use compassionate conservation as a tool for respecting and treating each animal’s life. Sharing the experience of healing wildlife can allow a greater population to connect to wildlife and empathize with their experience. At this point, conservation and veterinary fields have been confined to very traditional and limiting binaries of health, and only extended to animals that we eat, keep in our homes, or deem rare or limited and therefore more valuable.

Through The Zoobiquity Project, I want to extend an ethic of compassion beyond domesticated or endangered animals, to (all) wildlife! In an era where humans have manipulated almost every aspect of the Earth’s landscape, it is essential to value all creatures as individuals with independent, intrinsic worth. In working to make space for these wildlife in our communities, we can attempt to eliminate their labels as pest or nuisance species, and instead appreciate their hardiness.

Working with wildlife veterinarians and animal welfare scientists this year, I am attempting to extend compassionate values to all animals, especially those previously devalued by a nuisance label. In treating all animals with respect, valuing their right to exist and be healthy, we can combat species divides to create a nonviolent and accepting space for all beings.

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Our essential connection with animals is ancient, and it runs deep. It extends from body to behavior, from psychology to society—forming the basis of our daily journey of survival. This calls for physicians and patients to think beyond the human bedside to barnyards, jungles, oceans, and skies. Because the fate of our world’s health doesn’t depend solely on how we humans fare. Rather it will be determined by how all the patients on the planet live, grow, get sick, and heal.”

Barbara Natterson-Horowitz, Co-author of Zoobiquity

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Zoobiquity

Animals and humans get the same diseases. We share much of the same physiology, yet exist in almost completely separate spheres of society. 

Zoobiquity is a term originally coined by Barbara Natterson-Horowitz, M.D. and Kathryn Bowers, in their book (Zoobiquity). It was used to describe all the physiological similarities we have with animals. From her expert position as a human cardiologist, Dr. Natterson-Horowitz went through many health issues such as psychological, cardiological, oncological, etc. diseases and made many striking comparisons. As a biology and welfare enthusiast, I found myself wondering, why can’t this go one step further?

My interpretation of Zoobiquity differs from that of its creators, in that I believe it can also be extended to animal welfare principles. If we are so alike, in so many ways, shouldn’t this make it easier for us to sympathize, and change our behaviors to reflect greater concern for non-human wellbeing?

Why do we have completely different standards of health and welfare for non-human animals and humans? Why do we value human lives above those of animals?

In an era many have deemed the “anthropocene”, in which human cultivation of the Earth’s landscape has peaked to the point of mass extinction rates, climate change, and extreme habitat degradation, it might be worth reflecting on our communal attitudes toward the co-inhabitants of our world.

The Project:

My name is Alexa Boesel and I am spending this next year, post-college graduation studying the intersection of veterinary medicine, welfare and conservation. With a BA in Neuroscience & Behavior and Biology, I will be applying my education in presenting at animal welfare conferences and learning as much as I can at four wildlife medicine externships located in Hawaii, California, Oregon and Australia.

This blog will chronicle my exploration of animal and human species divides through animal welfare and veterinary medicine practices, all with the ethic of compassion. Primarily, I hope to connect people to wildlife in a way that instills a more empathetic perspective.

The Plan

May 18-21: Present at and attend the Lincoln Zoo Park’s Urban Wildlife Conference in Chicago

May 24: Graduate from Wesleyan

June 28-July 19: Three Ring Ranch for a three week wildlife and exotic animal medicine externship

July 11-14: Universities Federation for Animal Welfare International Conference in Zagreb, Croatia (in absentia)

July 28-30: Present at and attend the Compassionate Conservation Conference at the University of British Columbia

July 31-October 2: Wildlife medicine externship at California Wildlife Center in Malibu, California

October 2-December 12: Conservation medicine at Wildlife Safari, in Winston, Oregon, the premier cheetah captive breeding organization outside of Africa

January-April, 2016: Bathurst Kangaroo Project for the Centre of Compassionate Conservation: Research and extern at wildlife hospitals to further diagnose PTSD in Kangaroos