Blending Enrichment Into Habitats

Habitats

Habitats should be designed to be complex, dynamic environments that have interactive components.   Some habitats have views of other animals or are home to multiple species.  Habitats should include choice in temperature ranges, cover, moisture, concealment and barriers from conspecifics that align with the natural history. 

When we consider adding enrichment initiatives to these dynamic environments we want these initiatives to blend into the habitat.  Some factors to consider when blending an item in:

• Disguise – do we want the item to look like something it is not (log, rock, stump, etc.)

• Colors – does the color or the item blend into the other colors in the habitat

• Surfaces – shiny surfaces are more obvious to the eye than matte surfaces, textures

• Patterns – having multiples of an item can help it to appear part of a pattern

• Organic – multiple colors, curvy, textured surfaces to help it blend into the space

By keeping these factors in mind, we can create enrichment initiatives that blend seamlessly into the habitat.