A University of Plymouth academic is among the contributors to a new set of guidelines that aims to help zoos effectively evaluate the interactions between visitors and their animals.
Dr Joanna Newbolt has worked closely over a number of years with the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA), the professional body that represents zoos and aquariums in Britain and Ireland.
She is currently a member of BIAZA's Animal Welfare Working Group, which enables her to work alongside zoo staff and other academics to support member zoos and aquariums in all areas of animal welfare.
The group has previously produced a toolkit designed to ensure zoos can achieve and maintain the highest possible welfare standards.
Its members have now compiled a new Guidelines for Visitor Animal Experiences Assessment, which provides advice for zoos and aquariums on the best ways to evaluate encounters between visitors and their animals.
Zoos and aquariums provide an environment where visitors can encounter animals that they may not be able to see in the wild, something that has been shown can foster and enhance pro-conservation behaviours.
It is hoped the new document, accessible to BIAZA members through the organisation's website, will help ensure these encounters are managed and assessed in a suitable and consistent manner.
The new guidelines align closely with Dr Newbolt's research, and she has spent many years studying the factors that can influence patterns of zoo animal behaviour.
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