ARTICLE Investigating the impacts of captive origin, time and vegetation on the daily activity of African lion prides Emma J. Dunston 1,7 • Jackie Abell 2,3 • Rebecca E. Doyle 4 • Jacqui Kirk 3 • Victoria B. Hilley 5 • Andrew Forsyth 6 • Emma Jenkins 6 • Dominique McAllister 1 • Rafael Freire 1 Received: 15 September 2016 / Accepted: 30 January 2017 / Published online: 15 February 2017 Ó Japan Ethological Society and Springer Japan 2017 Abstract Evaluation of activity budgets provides an indi- cation of whether captive history has influenced the daily behaviour of animals within an ex situ reintroduction program. We conducted the first study to compare activity budgets of prides of captive-origin African lions (Panthera leo) to a wild pride investigated under the same method- ologies. Behavioural data were collected via direct obser- vations of individual lions. The vegetation type in which each pride was located was recorded at the beginning and end of each observation session. Behaviours were analysed via linear mixed models, using restricted maximum-like- lihood analysis. Age, sex, origin, time observed and veg- etation type were fitted as fixed factors to assess the main effects of significant interactions, while average tempera- ture was fitted as a covariate. Resting and alert behaviours were found to vary at sex and age levels, with expected peaks and lows coinciding with observation session times. Captive-origin prides showed a decrease in resting and increase in alert and movement behaviours post- 1700 hours, while this behavioural change was not observed for the wild prides. Males of the wild prides were observed to rest more than captive-origin counterparts, while this variation was not observed for females across origins. Vegetation was found to influence behaviour, with cubs being more alert and active in riverbed vegetation, and adults and sub-adults in shrubland. Overall, all prides were observed to exhibit behaviours at natural levels. This study provides a comprehensive assessment of the daily activity of lions critical to the pre-release evaluation of prides within an ex situ reintroduction program. Keywords Panthera leo Á Behaviour Á Activity budget Á Reintroduction Á Captivity Introduction Captivity of animals impacts their natural behaviour by restricting their movement, exploration and hunting beha- viours, imposing unnatural social densities and population structures, and exposing the animals to human contact, new diseases and climates (Mason et al. 2013). As captivity is unlikely to allow for natural selection and the unpre- dictable pressures of wild environments, it restricts the development of adaptive behaviours necessary for survival in the wild (Mathews et al. 2005). Consequently, captive animals undergo artificial selection, allowing adaptation to the captive environment (McPhee 2004; Frankham 2007), which often favours animals that are more inactive and less aggressive (Edwards 2014). This intentional or unintended Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10164-017-0508-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. & Emma J. Dunston edunston@csu.edu.au 1 School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, NSW 2678, Australia 2 Psychology, Behaviour and Achievement Research Centre, Coventry University, West Midlands CV1 5FB, UK 3 African Lion and Environmental Research Trust, Livingstone, Zambia 4 Animal Welfare Science Centre, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia 5 African Lion and Environmental Research Trust, Antelope Park, Gweru, Zimbabwe 6 Siyafunda, Greater Makalali Private Game Reserve, Hoedspruit, South Africa 7 39 Alma Road, Leppington, NSW 2179, Australia 123 J Ethol (2017) 35:187–195 DOI 10.1007/s10164-017-0508-x