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Efficacy of auditory enrichment in a prosimian primate (Otolemur garnettii)

Lab Animal volume 38, pages 122–125 (2009)Cite this article

Abstract

Research suggests that auditory environmental enrichment might reduce abnormal behavior in certain primate species. The authors evaluated the behavioral effects of exposure to music in a prosimian primate (Garnett's bushbaby; Otolemur garnettii). They exposed bushbabies to a Mozart concerto for 15 min per day for 20 d (5 h exposure total), video-recorded them and subsequently analyzed the frequency of subjects' grooming and stereotypic behaviors. The authors compared the data with baseline behavioral data that had been recorded over a 20-d period before the experimental treatment. Neither stereotypy nor grooming behavior varied as a result of exposure to music. These results do not support the hypothesis that auditory enrichment in the form of exposure to music is an effective means of reducing stereotypic behavior in O. garnettii.

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Figure 1: Stereotypic behavior.
Figure 2: Grooming.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the University of Southern Mississippi department fund number DE00431. S.L.W. was supported by the Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (grant number C76HF05998, award number 1 C7HF05998-01-00).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Drive, Box 5025, Hattiesburg, 39406-0001, MS

    David B. Hanbury, David Bunch &  Sheree L. Watson

  2. Department of Behavioral Sciences, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, New Iberia Primate Research Center, P.O. Box 13610, New Iberia, 70562, LA

    M. Babette Fontenot

  3. Department of Psychology, Eckerd College, 4200 54th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, 33711, FL

    Lauren E. Highfill

  4. Mississippi Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, Pearl, MS

    Willie Bingham

Authors
  1. David B. Hanbury
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  2. M. Babette Fontenot
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  3. Lauren E. Highfill
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  4. Willie Bingham
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  5. David Bunch
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Correspondence to Sheree L. Watson.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Hanbury, D., Fontenot, M., Highfill, L. et al. Efficacy of auditory enrichment in a prosimian primate (Otolemur garnettii). Lab Anim 38, 122–125 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban0409-122

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