Hello! First of all, this is my first thread on here so I'm sorry if it goes a bit wrong - I'm still learning how to use it all My name is Jade and I'm a second year Zoo Biology student at Nottingham Trent University. I feel it's time I should probably start looking for a potential dissertation project so I can get it all sorted before 3rd year begins - however, I'm struggling for ideas. Ideally, my dissertation project would be focused around canids (wolves in particular) as that is the area I would like to work in when I graduate. The only place I've specifically looked for projects is on the UK Wolf Conservation Trust website, although none of the suggested projects have caught my eye so far. There are no particular areas in which I'd say I wouldn't be interested in doing, however I'm assuming all projects must be non-invasive as the only access I'd be able to get to canids/wolves would be in a zoo. Therefore, I was just wondering whether anyone had any interesting ideas I could possibly look into studying? And/or know of any desirable research projects in zoos that involve canids? Thank you in advance and I look forward to your replies!
Hi Jade, I'm an ex Nottingham Trent student (Animal Bio) and fellow wolf advocate. I did my dissertation on a comparison of captive behaviour versus wild behaviour and used the Longleat pack as my study subjects. It depends on what kind of research you want to look into. Behavioural is obviously easiest but done to death so maybe a nutritional aspect or even genetic might be interesting? These don't necessarily need to be invasive or take up keeper time if you can gain access to keeper records or send out a questionnaire instead. You need to find a subject that will drive you through those 10,000 words and still find interesting at the end of it. Good luck.
Hi, I've just finished my dissertation (not wolf related though) and found by approaching various zoo's they often had preferred research areas, eg enclosure usage, new types of enrichment. So have a look around at collections with wolves and see if they have any suggestions as to topics. Also if you are looking toward an enrichment type project shape of enrichment can be a good place to start! Good luck and happy researching!
Hello, BonkersBlake! It's nice to meet a fellow NTU student and wolf lover XD when you did your dissertation was the research for the wild wolf behaviour carried out via books/journals etc? I'm trying to avoid a subject which would involve extensive literature use as that is what drives me crazy, so I'm hoping if I get actively involved in a study I should become more motivated to complete it. Thank you so much for your help though, I've definitely been thinking about nutrition - as I too think behaviour is a common choice and I want my dissertation to stand out a little bit. So I'll aim to look into that a bit more!
Hello, hippophilic! I have looked at some suggested topics from zoos, however non have specifically caught my eye yet. I have only looked at a few though so I'll definitely keep looking into them if you think that's advisable I also didn't know whether zoos would be more impressed if I thought of my own research to carry out or whether it doesn't really bother them aslong as the study benefits them in some way?
Whatever research area you choose you will have to carry out extensive literature research, it drives many people crazy but it's got to be doe and should allow your own research and knowledge of the species to expand. My in situ behavioural research was completed by Scott and Fuller in the 1940s as a holistic ethogram so I compared captive behaviours to their research, There was a secondary experiment to see whether holistic ethograms, though labour intensive can be a useful research tool, particularly in discovering whether captivity has a negative impact on natural behavioural repertoires. Nutrition would be a good topic but zoos don't particularly mind what you study as long as it benefits them in some way and is not labour intensive for them or disrupt their routine. Maybe look into an overview of captive wolf nutrition, prevalence of starve days, prevalence of whole carcass feeds compared to feeding out in pieces. Maybe a secondary look into hunting behaviours witnessed, how feeds are delivered, e.g. just plonked in an enclosure, whether vehicles are chased before a feed, zip wire feeding, all sorts of different ways feeds can be put out and which benefits the wolves most?
Oh, I see.. your dissertation sounds really interesting! Did you ever get it published? Slightly annoying I guess that it'll be so literature based, but I suppose it's understandable to ensure it's a viable and scientific study. I really like that idea of looking into feeding techniques specifically - why they're done, what are the benefits and costs associated with them. I was initially interested in looking into gait analysis, so this could potentially link in if I were to look into health benefits of feeding techniques. The only problem I feel I would face would be finding zoos with differing feeding strategies without travelling too far to collect data. I'd definitely have to look well into it and potentially discuss some ideas with my tutor
