When housed as a group, consistent leadership of the nesting behaviour was not recognised they seemed to prefer cooperative behaviour and built a communal nest. In one instance, parts of a wooden fence were used due to the lack of other nesting materials. In addition to picking up fallen plant matters, they also pulled various parts off trees while standing on the hind limbs. Various kinds of plant materials available in the enclosure were used. The babirusa favoured specific nesting sites in the enclosures determined by available structural supports such as walls, trees or corners. Young babirusa contributed from the age of 15 weeks. Both sexes frequently participated in the construction of sleeping nests during the short period from 17:00 hr to 18:00 hr, which corresponded to the period between the evening feed and the time of sunset. We recorded behavioural characteristics associated with the timing of nest building behaviour, nest sites, and selection of nest-building materials. A total of 504 observations of nest building behaviour and the re-use of sleeping nests exhibited by 10 individuals of Sulawesi babirusa ( Babyrousa celebensis) were made in spacious outdoor enclosures on Bali, Indonesia.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |