Apex and ApeTouch: Development of a Portable Touchscreen System and Software for Primates at Zoos

Abstract

We report on the development and testing of a portable touchscreen apparatus and accompanying software program for primate enrichment, cognitive research, and husbandry applications. For zoos considering using technology to bolster scientific efforts or enhance the welfare of primates in their care, touchscreen activities offer a solution that has a long and proven record of primate use in laboratory settings as well as a history of usage in the zoo world. We review the options that are available for zoos to build their own touchscreen systems and we offer as an alternative our pre-built apparatus, Apex, and primate software suite, ApeTouch, both of which are tailored for use in a zoo setting. The efficacy and utility of these tools are demonstrated in a training study with four macaque groups of different species that were previously naïve to touchscreens. All of the groups in the study learned to use the device and displayed a consistent engagement with the touchscreen tasks over 95 daily sessions of exposure. In the final stage of the training, two of the four groups displayed an above-chance level performance on a numerical sequencing task.

Keywords: animal–computer interaction; enrichment; primate cognition; primate software; touchscreen; welfare; zoo.

Figure 1

(a) View of the Apex machine from behind where the human operator is situated. (b) View of the front, where the primate is situated. (c) View of the Apex machine with the back cover open and the core box extended outward.

Figure 2

Screenshots of the ApeTouch user interface. (a) The main menu screen. On the right side are icons that lead directly to the control screen for each task. On the left are settings, preferences, and data panels as well as the session builder for creating session queues consisting of multiple tasks. (b) The control screen for the Two Number Dot task.

Figure 3

Graphical overview of the series of training tasks given to the four macaque groups. On the top right is a photo of a macaque completing the One Dot task.

Figure 4

(a) Mean trials per minute for each group for the first and last session of each task. (b) Mean number of subjects that touched the screen for all sessions and tasks. (c) Performance rates on the Two Number Dot sequencing task. Blocks shown on the x-axis are composed of the five sessions each. Error bars show the mean standard error.