STARS of the show they may be, but circus acts featuring elephants, lions and tigers should end, the first global study of animal welfare in circuses concludes.
鈥淲hether it鈥檚 lack of space and exercise, or lack of social contact, all factors combined show it鈥檚 a poor quality of life compared with the wild,鈥� says lead researcher Stephen Harris of the University of Bristol, UK.
On average, circus animals were found to spend just 1 to 9 per cent of their time training, and the rest confined to cages or enclosures typically covering a quarter of the area recommended for zoos. While domesticated animals such as dogs or horses can adapt to these conditions, species such as elephants, lions, tigers and bears cannot, the researchers say.
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鈥淐ircus animals spend most of their time confined to cages or enclosures far smaller than those in zoos鈥�
Many of the confined animals exhibit stress behaviours such as pacing up and down for hours on end. 鈥淓ven if they are in a larger circus pen, there鈥檚 no enrichment such as logs to play with, in case they use them to break the fence and escape,鈥� says Harris, whose appear in Animal Welfare (vol 18, p 129).
Some countries, including Austria, have already banned wild animals from circuses, but they still feature prominently in the US and much of Europe. While elephants were not seen in UK circuses for 10 years, three have been performing since February in the Great British Circus.