Spatial organization of the honey badger Mellivora capensis in the southern Kalahari: home-range size and movement patterns

Home-range size and overlap and movement patterns of adult male platypus, Ornithorhynchus anatinus, occupying streams in southern Victoria were investigated near the start of the breeding season using radio-tracking techniques. On the basis of a sample of males monitored for four or more complete activity periods, home-range size varied from 2.9 to 7.0 km, with individuals (n = 4) moving a mean net distance of 2.0 +/- 1.4 km per activity period. Longer-range movements were also observed, with one male travelling at least 15 km from one stream catchment to another via an intervening stretch of river. Some home ranges of males were mutually exclusive whereas others overlapped substantially; in the latter case, males largely avoided each other, spending most of their time in different parts of the shared area. All home ranges of males apparently overlapped those of two or more adult females. Three patterns of travel over complete activity periods were recognised, including unidirectional travel (point A to B), return travel (A to B to A) and multidirectional travel with multiple, relatively short-range backtracking. Males occupying overlapping areas often moved multidirectionally and rarely undertook unidirectional travel, whereas the converse applied to males occupying exclusive areas.

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Home range size, utilization and spatial organization of Pine Martens in Bial'owieza National Park, Poland

Mammal Review ◽

10.1046/j.1365-2907.2000.0075l.x ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 30 (3-4) ◽

pp. 232-232

Author(s):

A. Zalewski ◽

W. Jedrzejewski

Keyword(s):

Home Range ◽

National Park ◽

Spatial Organization ◽

Home Range Size ◽

Range Size ◽

Pine Martens

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Movement patterns of feral predators in an arid environment – implications for control through poison baiting

Wildlife Research ◽

10.1071/wr08098 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 36 (5) ◽

pp. 422 ◽

Cited By ~ 64

Author(s):

K. E. Moseby ◽

J. Stott ◽

H. Crisp

Keyword(s):

Home Range ◽

Sand Dunes ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Movement Patterns ◽

Home Range Size ◽

Range Size ◽

Home Ranges ◽

Feral Cats ◽

Poison Baiting ◽

Specific Variation

Control of introduced predators is critical to both protection and successful reintroduction of threatened prey species. Efficiency of control is improved if it takes into account habitat use, home range and the activity patterns of the predator. These characteristics were studied in feral cats (Felis catus) and red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in arid South Australia, and results are used to suggest improvements in control methods. In addition, mortality and movement patterns of cats before and after a poison-baiting event were compared. Thirteen cats and four foxes were successfully fitted with GPS data-logger radio-collars and tracked 4-hourly for several months. High intra-specific variation in cat home-range size was recorded, with 95% minimum convex polygon (MCP) home ranges varying from 0.5 km2 to 132 km2. Cat home-range size was not significantly different from that of foxes, nor was there a significant difference related to sex or age. Cats preferred habitat types that support thicker vegetation cover, including creeklines and sand dunes, whereas foxes preferred sand dunes. Cats used temporary focal points (areas used intensively over short time periods and then vacated) for periods of up to 2 weeks and continually moved throughout their home range. Aerial baiting at a density of 10 baits per km2 was ineffective for cats because similar high mortality rates were recorded for cats in both baited and unbaited areas. Mortality was highest in young male cats. Long-range movements of up to 45 km in 2 days were recorded in male feral cats and movement into the baited zone occurred within 2 days of baiting. Movement patterns of radio-collared animals and inferred bait detection distances were used to suggest optimum baiting densities of ~30 baits per km2 for feral cats and 5 per km2 for foxes. Feral cats exhibited much higher intra-specific variation in activity patterns and home-range size than did foxes, rendering them a potentially difficult species to control by a single method. Control of cats and foxes in arid Australia should target habitats with thick vegetation cover and aerial baiting should ideally occur over areas of several thousand square kilometres because of large home ranges and long-range movements increasing the chance of fast reinvasion. The use of temporary focal points suggested that it may take several days or even weeks for a cat to encounter a fixed trap site within their home range, whereas foxes should encounter them more quickly as they move further each day although they have a similar home-range size. Because of high intra-specific variability in activity patterns and home-range size, control of feral cats in inland Australia may be best achieved through a combination of control techniques.

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Home-range size and spatial organization of black-footed ferrets Mustela nigripes in South Dakota, USA

Wildlife Biology ◽

10.2981/09-034 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 66-76 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

David S. Jachowski ◽

Joshua J. Millspaugh ◽

Dean E. Biggins ◽

Travis M. Livieri ◽

Marc R. Matchett

Keyword(s):

Home Range ◽

South Dakota ◽

Spatial Organization ◽

Home Range Size ◽

Range Size ◽

Mustela Nigripes

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Home range size adjustments by the eastern chipmunk, Tamias striatus, in response to natural and manipulated water availability

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z90-284 ◽

1990 ◽

Vol 68 (9) ◽

pp. 2016-2020 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Michael A. Bowers ◽

David N. Welch ◽

Timothy G. Carr

Keyword(s):

Home Range ◽

Water Availability ◽

Spatial Organization ◽

Free Water ◽

Home Range Size ◽

Range Size ◽

Home Ranges ◽

Drought Period ◽

Tamias Striatus ◽

Early Fall

Capture–recapture techniques were used to study the spatial organization of a population of eastern chipmunks, Tamias striatus, over 16 weeks of an uncharacteristically dry summer and early fall. The objective was to examine the role of free water as a factor influencing home range size. Home range size was estimated for time periods of 1, 3, and 5 weeks. For animals captured more than two times, home range size estimates were not significantly correlated with the number of captures or body weight, nor did home ranges differ between males and females. Home ranges were relatively large in early summer, small in mid- to late-summer, and large again in the early fall. Home ranges were significantly smaller during the 8 weeks of greater-than-median precipitation than during weeks of less-than-median precipitation. Home ranges of 8 individuals out of 12 increased in size during a 3-week drought period relative to their pre- and post-drought home ranges. Differences in home range size between drought and nondrought periods were more pronounced for males than females. Comparison of home range size before and after the provision of supplemental drinking water showed that where water was added, chipmunks reduced the size of their home ranges significantly more than control (unwatered) chipmunks. These results identity water availability during certain years and seasons as a factor influencing home range size.

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Movement patterns and home range size of tigerfish (Hydrocynus vittatus) in the Incomati River system, South Africa

Koedoe ◽

10.4102/koedoe.v60i1.1397 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 60 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Francois Roux ◽

Gert Steyn ◽

Clinton Hay ◽

Ina Wagenaar

Keyword(s):

Life History ◽

Home Range ◽

Large Scale ◽

Specific Activity ◽

Movement Patterns ◽

River System ◽

Home Range Size ◽

Range Size ◽

Management Policy ◽

Fish Movement

Historical data suggested that the tigerfish (Hydrocynus vittatus) of the Incomati River migrates upstream and downstream as part of their life history. It has been suggested that this movement was a prerequisite for successful spawning in inundated floodplains in Mozambique. Recent advances in aquatic radio telemetry provided a reliable mechanism to monitor fish movement and increase knowledge of the ecology of tigerfish. From 04 January 2003 to 22 December 2003, 41 tigerfish in the Incomati River system were fitted with radio transmitters to record movement patterns and estimate home range size. On average, each fish was tracked 72 times, and the total number of fixes was 2971 over the study period, including 1322 summer fixes and 1649 winter fixes. The mean longest distance travelled by tigerfish was 730 m (range = 75 m to 3200 m). The home range size varied between individual fish, but on average fish stayed within a defined home range of 48 846 m2. Tigerfish showed high site fidelity to specific habitats within specific activity zones and movement occurred primarily within these defined zones. Differences in movement pattern, longest distance travelled and home range size could not be attributed to the sex or size of the fish. No large-scale movement patterns associated with specific life history activity were observed; thus, previous reports of large-scale downstream migrations and spawning migrations appear to be invalid. The presence of weirs in the study area impedes free fish movement as these weirs create migration obstructions.Conservation implications: River regulation such as damming, water abstraction, obstructive barriers and channel modification may have a detrimental impact on the survival strategy of this species. Implementation of these results in a management policy will provide a reliable basis for species specific requirements such as upstream reservoir release management; minimum flow volumes required for downstream ecosystem maintenance and management and planning of structures obstructing natural flow.

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Spatial organization of Molina’s hog-nosed skunk (Conepatus chinga) in two landscapes of the Pampas grassland of Argentina

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z10-110 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 89 (3) ◽

pp. 229-238 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

D. F. Castillo ◽

M. Lucherini ◽

E. M. Luengos Vidal ◽

C. Manfredi ◽

E. B. Casanave

Keyword(s):

Home Range ◽

Protected Area ◽

Spatial Organization ◽

Home Range Size ◽

Range Size ◽

Cropland Area ◽

Movement Rates ◽

Resting Sites ◽

Range Dynamics ◽

Ecosystem State

We radio-tracked 16 individuals (6 males, 10 females) of the little known Molina’s hog-nosed skunk ( Conepatus chinga (Molina, 1782)) and compared home-range dynamics, movement rates, and densities between a protected area and a landscape fragmented by agriculture. The mean home-range size (95% fixed kernel) was 166.7 ha (SD = 107.5 ha), without significant differences between areas. Home-range size varied significantly between males (mean = 243.7 ha, SD = 76.5 ha) and females (mean = 120.4 ha, SD =77.6 ha). Overlap between home range and core area was extensive between and within sexes in the protected area and more limited in the cropland area. Mean distance traveled between two consecutive resting sites was 269.5 m (SD = 365 m) and did not differ between areas, although movements were greater for males than females. Distance moved was influenced by seasons, being greater during the cold period. Finally, density estimates were consistently greater at the protected area. We argue that home-range size in Molina’s hog-nosed skunks is an inherent species property, whereas population density and territoriality are more flexible parameters that could reflect how the ecosystem state was affected. In our study, the greater dispersion of food patches in the cropland area than in the protected area may be the major factor influencing these parameters.

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