Clinical Aspects of Reptile Behavior

doi:10.1016/S1094-9194(17)30025-7

Veterinary Clinics of North America: Exotic Animal Practice

Volume 4, Issue 3, September 2001, Pages 599-612

https://doi.org/10.1016/S1094-9194(17)30025-7 Get rights and content

The clinical evaluation of reptiles, in particular with regard to behavior, has centered previously on subjective assessments of responsiveness and overt aggression. The appreciation and understanding of normal (perhaps more importantly when dealing with captive reptiles) and abnormal behaviors will enable a more complete appraisal of the individual animal and captive population, however. This appraisal can be useful in identifying and correcting underlying stressors that might be the cause of aberrant behavior and disease and provide a valuable means of evaluating the welfare of reptiles. This article aims to introduce reptile behavior to the clinician, with particular emphasis on those aspects of behavior that frequently are noticed by owners, keepers, and veterinary personnel.

Section snippets

Stress, Pain, and Behavior

Stress is a frequently abused term when attempting to evaluate or describe maladaption syndromes. Stress can be considered as the sum of the biologic reactions to any adverse stimulus (i.e., physical, mental, or emotional, internal or external) that tends to disturb the homeostasis of an organism. Should these reactions be inappropriate or prolonged, they may lead to disease. Those stimuli that can cause stress are termed stressors, and they may be physical (e.g., temperature), nutritional

Color and Behavior

Coloration plays a vital role in many aspects of behavior including: social interaction including courtship and reproduction; predatory and antipredatory; and thermoregulation.

It is clear that preferred coloration is likely to vary especially between vivid courtship displays and predatory-antipredatory concealment. Evolutionary pressures have directed and modified color adaptation; for example, vivid display colors are located ventrally or ventrolaterally and concealed unless specific postures

Thermoregulation

Ever since Cowles and Bogart⁵ demonstrated that reptile body temperature does not passively mirror that of the environment, the importance of both physiologic and behavioral means of thermoregulation have been realized. Much research has been undertaken on reptile thermoregulation, particularly in lizards.¹ Reptiles attempt to maintain a preferred body temperature using a combination of postural changes and movements between microclimates of differing temperatures. There are two main

Foraging and Feeding Behavior

In the wild, all reptiles have to search for food. In captivity, this is seldom the case, and ready food access predisposes to obesity. Reptiles can be broadly divided into herbivores, omnivores, and carnivores (including vertebrate and invertebrate items). There are, however, many dietary specialists including the ophiophagic (cannibalistic) snakes (e.g., Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getulus, and King cobra, Ophiophagus Hannah) and molluscivorous (snail-eating) lizards (e.g., the Pink-tongued

Distance-Reducing Behavior

Distance-reducing behaviors are in many ways opposite to territorial behaviors (i.e., they function to bring conspecifics together and can be classed as social behaviors).¹⁰

Antagonistic Behavior

The concept of antagonistic, aggressive, or agnostic behavior has adaptive significance across the animal kingdom, and reptiles are no different. Antagonistic behaviors may be subtle (e.g., coloration, threat displays) or violent (e.g., aggressive attack) and invariably seek to impart dominance of one being over another or at least prevent a successful attack by a predator. Antagonistic behaviors are often an integral part of many ethologic repertoires, particularly territoriality, combat, and

Escape and Avoidance

A common concern when dealing with captive, nondomestic animals is stereotypic behavior and repeated attempts to escape or avoid stressful encounters with either the environment, conspecifics, or keepers.

Reptiles may attempt to repeatedly escape for a variety of reasons including: unsuitable environment (e.g., temperature, humidity, substrate, lighting, furnishings), inappropriate feeding (e.g., incorrect diet, inadequate food, prey attacking reptile), and intraspecific and intergender

Summary

At first glance, the abstract world of reptile ethology may seem remote to clinicians dealing with the health and disease of captive animals. By delving a little deeper, however, veterinarians can learn to appreciate the reasons for certain behaviors and actually use these behaviors as indicators of various biologic states. Close scrutiny of subtle changes in behavior can further help assess reptile well-being and judge captive welfare. In the future, it is hoped that improved ethologic

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Thermoregulation, metabolism and social behavior in Laceridae
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Neurology
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Variation and evolution of stereotyped behavior in reptiles
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Behavioral consequences of husbandry manipulations: Indicators of arousal, quiescence and environmental awareness
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Cited by (24)

Stereotypic Behaviors in Managed Care
2022, Fowler's Zoo and Wild Animal Medicine Current Therapy: Volume 10
Stereotypic behavior (SB) can be seen in some species in managed care, often characterized by a repetitive behavior that appears to have no adaptive relevance to that particular species. SB has been touted as an indicator of negative animal welfare, as well as being hypothesized to be a coping mechanism, thus a positive or neutral indication of animal welfare. Certainly, the welfare impact of SB on individual animals is as variable as the context, species, and actual behavior being exhibited. This behavior is typically represented with repetitive locomotion, self-directed behavior, or, in extreme cases, self-injury. Although well studied and classified, the genesis of most individual SBs remains difficult to identify. It has been suggested that SB in managed care is attributed to an improper or impoverished environment, early developmental disruptions (maternal, social, or cognitive), or neurobiological deficits affecting the development or execution of otherwise normal brain function. The treatment of SB is not always identical, and some species respond differently to different treatments or even multifocal treatment options. This chapter will review the most common SBs found in animals in managed care, with examples from a broad range of taxonomic groups. Following a brief examination of the prevailing theories attributed to the source of SB, the authors will highlight prevention and treatment. Entire volumes and countless articles have been dedicated to this subject; as such, this chapter serves as a preliminary, rather than an exhaustive, introduction to SB exhibited by animals in managed care.
Clinical Behavioral Medicine
2019, Mader's Reptile and Amphibian Medicine and Surgery
Neurology
2019, Mader's Reptile and Amphibian Medicine and Surgery
Response to novelty as an indicator of reptile welfare
2017, Applied Animal Behaviour Science
Citation Excerpt :
However, little is known about how captive environments affect reptile welfare or even how welfare in reptilian species should be assessed (Burghardt, 2013). A few studies have shown initial research into reptile welfare (e.g. Kreger and Mench 1993 (ball python – Python regius, Blue-tongued skink – Tiliqua scincoides), Schuett et al., 2004 (rattlesnakes – Crotalus atrox) Case et al., 2005 (box turtles – Terrapene carolina carolina), Kalliokoski et al., 2012 (green iguanas – Iguana iguana)) and there is literature that highlights the importance of this subject area (Burghardt, 2013; Hernandez-Divers, 2001; Stanford, 2013; Warwick et al., 2013). Experimental studies have revealed an effect of housing environment on behaviour and immune response, as well as environmental preferences (Case et al., 2005) and impact of handling on behavioural and physiological measures (e.g. Schuett et al., 2004; Langkilde and Shine, 2006; Kalliokoski et al., 2012; although see Kreger and Mench 1993).
Whilst a great deal of research has been focused on identifying ways to assess the welfare of captive mammals and birds, there is comparatively little knowledge on how reptilian species are affected by captivity, and the ways in which their welfare can be accurately assessed. The present study investigated response to novelty – a commonly used approach to assess anxiety-like behaviour and hence welfare in non-human animals – in two species of reptile with the aim of determining whether this approach could be successfully translated from use in mammalian and avian species for use in reptiles, and whether we could also identify reptile-specific and/or species-specific behaviours. Eight red-footed tortoises (Chelonoidis carbonaria) and seventeen bearded dragons (Pogona vitticeps) were observed individually in both familiar and novel environments for 10 min time periods, and their behaviour recorded. Tortoises were found to begin locomotion sooner when placed in a familiar environment than when placed in a novel environment, they extended their necks further in a familiar environment and their neck length increased over time in both familiar and novel environments, suggesting an overall anxiety-like response to novelty as seen in non-reptilian species. In contrast, whilst bearded dragons exhibited significantly more tongue-touches in a novel, compared to a familiar, environment, they showed no difference between familiar and novel environments in their latency to move. This result suggests that, whilst the dragons appeared to discriminate between the two environments, this discrimination was not necessarily accompanied by an anxiety-like response. This study has confirmed the translatability of response to novelty as an approach to assess anxiety-like behaviour in one species of reptile, as well as identifying species-specific behaviours that have the potential to be used in future studies when assessing the welfare of reptiles in response to captive environments, but our results also highlight the need to be aware of species differences within a class as diverse as reptilia.
Reptiles: Aggression
2012, Clinical Veterinary Advisor: Birds and Exotic Pets
Behavioral Effects of Parasitism in Animals
2009, Journal of Exotic Pet Medicine
Citation Excerpt :
It is clear that greater study of normal and abnormal behaviors has contributed to a better understanding of the early effects of macroparasites and microparasites in domesticated species, some wild animals, and humans. There has also been some useful work on certain taxa—for example, on the clinical relevance of reptile behavior.93 However, very much more remains to be learned about most species of exotic pet, and the observant owner, together with the informed veterinarian, can contribute greatly to this dearth of important information.
Parasites are found in and on all living organisms. The ways in which a parasite manipulates the behavior of the host to its own advantage are wide ranging and are summarized in this article. Some of these methods aim to increase the rate of transmission from intermediate to definitive host by increasing or reducing activity that results in increased vulnerability of the intermediate host to predation, suppressing a host's fear response, or its ability to recognize a predator. Others aim to downregulate the reproductive fitness of a host (parasitic castration), allowing the parasite to maximize nutrient-taking from the host without reducing the survival ability of the host. In an evolutionary “arms race,” hosts have counteracted by evolving resistance to parasite infections and/or developing a tolerance against their harmful effects. These defense mechanisms include reducing the chances of getting infected via a change in habitat or food preference; generating behavioral fever; and recognizing and avoiding infected individuals, both as potential prey species and sexual partners. If an infection could not be prevented, the parasites can be attacked or removed by the host's behavior, such as scratching, grooming, and immersion in water. Behavioral changes (e.g., lethargy, inappetance, scratching, general malaise) are generally some of the most common reasons why an owner brings an animal to a veterinary practitioner, and these clinical signs can be indicative of a parasite infection. This article reviews some of the signs in exotic animals for which a veterinarian should be observant, especially if the patient is suspected of having a parasitic infection.

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Veterinary Clinics of North America: Exotic Animal Practice

Section snippets

Stress, Pain, and Behavior

Color and Behavior

Thermoregulation

Foraging and Feeding Behavior

Distance-Reducing Behavior

Antagonistic Behavior

Escape and Avoidance

Summary

References (15)

Reproductive surgery in the Green iguana

Seminars Avian and Exotic Pet Medicine

Thermoregulation, metabolism and social behavior in Laceridae

Neurology

Variation and evolution of stereotyped behavior in reptiles

Behavioral consequences of husbandry manipulations: Indicators of arousal, quiescence and environmental awareness

A preliminary study of the thermal requirements of desert reptiles

Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History

Iguana iguana - Guide to successful captive care

Cited by (24)

Stereotypic Behaviors in Managed Care

Clinical Behavioral Medicine

Neurology

Response to novelty as an indicator of reptile welfare

Reptiles: Aggression

Behavioral Effects of Parasitism in Animals