Tatu foraging for seeds in mini cube enrichment.
Photographed by Justin Taus, caregiver and photographer at Fauna Foundation.
We, Isabelle and Tessa, had the remarkable opportunity to participate in the Visiting Intern Program offered by Fauna Foundation this summer. Throughout our internship, the Fauna team provided both theoretical and practical instruction on the importance of variety in chimpanzee lives. In their natural environment, chimpanzees habitually encounter situations that engage their critical thinking capacities. In most captive settings, however, chimpanzees are not exposed to circumstances that require them to exercise these problem-solving skills. At Fauna, we learned to build diverse forms of enrichment–such as food enrichment, object enrichment, and thematic enrichment–to provide the residents with opportunities to engage their agency and autonomy, maintain their health and wellbeing, and cultivate fulfillment within the bounds of the sanctuary.
Mini hose cubes and raisin boards adorned with colorful tissue paper for the Fauna chimpanzee residents.
Photographed by Emily Collins, caregiver and intern mentor at Fauna Foundation.
As one of our projects this summer, we introduced a new enrichment idea to the Fauna collection: mini hose cubes. This food-object enrichment is made from recycled fire hoses, which are cut and manipulated to create a cubical form (here’s a how-to video by Project Chimp). Once shaped into cubes, these objects can be filled with a variety of nutritional treats (e.g., seeds, dried fruits, nuts) and other materials that the chimpanzees enjoy manipulating (e.g., tissue paper, streamers). Although we provided only basic cubes, these miniature building blocks can be combined into larger structures for more complex cognitive challenges. As highly tactile and visual beings, chimpanzees appreciate these colorful and textural puzzles—see the photo below of Tatu foraging through the cube folds for hidden snacks while Loulis observes her strategy intently!
Tatu (left) and Loulis (right) engaging with the hose cube enrichment. Photographed by Justin Taus, caregiver and photographer at Fauna Foundation.
As anthropology students with research interests in multispecies ethnography and more-than-human ethics, we sought an internship that focused on the perspectives and experiences of nonhuman social beings whose lives are linked to human worlds. Thus, we were drawn to the Fauna Foundation for its trauma-informed approach to the care of nonhuman primates in captive settings. We are grateful for the opportunity to have worked alongside the dedicated Fauna team and to have engaged in a project that bridges theoretical knowledge of more-than-human ethics with tangible, life-enhancing outcomes for the chimps.
Interns Isabelle (left) and Tessa (right) building hose cube enrichment for the Fauna chimpanzee residents.
Photographed by Emily Collins, caregiver and intern mentor at Fauna Foundation.
Fauna would like to thank Isabelle & Tessa for an awesome summer and their compassion in participation in our summer internship.
If you would like to support enrichment projects like this, please consider a donation to Fauna Foundation.
