Assessing year‐round habitat use by migratory sea ducks in a multi‐species context reveals seasonal variation in habitat selection and partitioning

We completed 22 night snorkeling surveys between November and March 1995-1997 to quantify Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) parr habitat use relative to habitat availability in the Rock River, Vermont, U.S.A. On average, post-young-of-the-year (PYOY) parr selected greater water depths in winter than young-of-the-year (YOY) parr, whereas YOY and PYOY parr both selected water velocities ([Formula: see text]19 cm/s) that were significantly lower than random measurements (46 cm/s). Maturity of PYOY parr had no significant influence on habitat selection. The majority of YOY and PYOY parr at night were found in contact with the stream bottom resting on silt-sand or gravel substrates in velocity dead-zone habitats created by the stream edge or depositional habitats created by midstream rocks and boulders. The strong selection that nocturnal Atlantic salmon parr exhibit for low water velocity areas in winter indicates the importance of maintaining large instream cover that provides refuges from high flows. The similarity that YOY and PYOY parr exhibited in many elements of habitat selection suggests that both stages may be similarly susceptible to habitat limitations in winter.

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Habitat selection by the Puerto Rican yellow-chinned anole, Anolis gundlachi

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z05-082 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 83 (7) ◽

pp. 983-988 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Javier A Rodríguez-Robles ◽

Manuel Leal ◽

Jonathan B Losos

Keyword(s):

Habitat Selection ◽

Habitat Use ◽

Puerto Rican ◽

Visual Cues ◽

Evolutionary Dynamics ◽

Males And Females ◽

Selection For ◽

Free Ranging ◽

Woody Substrates ◽

Selection Of

Habitat selection can directly affect the fitness of an individual and the evolutionary dynamics of the population to which that organism belongs. We studied habitat use of the Puerto Rican yellow-chinned anole (Anolis gundlachi Peters, 1876) to examine whether this arboreal lizard uses its environment in a nonrandom manner. Males and females preferred woody vegetation substrates over nonwoody plants and sierra palms (Prestoea acuminata var. montana (Graham) A. Henderson and G. Galeano) as perching sites, and they also selected wider vegetation than what was randomly available. Selection for minimizing conspicuousness to potential predators and for increased locomotion capacity may help explain the preference for woody substrates and broader surfaces, respectively. Anolis gundlachi relies almost exclusively on visual cues for foraging and social interactions, and using wider perches also increases an individual's ability to scan a larger proportion of its territory. Our findings thus indicate that the nonrandom habitat use of free-ranging A. gundlachi leads to the selection of perching substrates that may increase performance of ecologically relevant capabilities.

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Foraging-habitat selection by bats at an urban–rural interface: comparison between a successful and a less successful species

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z04-095 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 82 (7) ◽

pp. 1157-1164 ◽

Cited By ~ 59

Author(s):

Joseph E Duchamp ◽

Dale W Sparks ◽

John O Whitaker, Jr.

Keyword(s):

Habitat Selection ◽

Habitat Use ◽

Compositional Analysis ◽

Sympatric Species ◽

Eptesicus Fuscus ◽

Foraging Habitat ◽

Tree Cavities ◽

Urban Rural ◽

Regional Population ◽

Suburban Development

We compared habitat use of two sympatric species of bat in a rural area undergoing suburban development. The two species are similar in diet and foraging-habitat use but differ in current roosting habitat, and exhibit contrasting regional population trends. Evening bat, Nycticeius humeralis (Rafinesque, 1818), populations are declining in central Indiana, whereas big brown bat, Eptesicus fuscus (Beauvois, 1796), populations are increasing. We assessed habitat selection by 22 adult female bats using radiotelemetry and compositional analysis. Eptesicus fuscus used several roosts across the study area; all but one roosted in human-made structures. Nycticeius humeralis clustered roosts within a small group of woodlots; all roosted in tree cavities. Eptesicus fuscus foraged for longer periods of time and nonreproductive individuals of this species had larger foraging ranges than N. humeralis. Both species foraged primarily in agricultural and wooded areas. During foraging, N. humeralis showed greater foraging-site fidelity and a stronger selection for agricultural and wooded areas than E. fuscus. We suggest that N. humeralis in our study area is probably more sensitive to suburban development near their roosts than E. fuscus.

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The Influence of Seasonal Variation on Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) Fallback Food Consumption, Nest Group Size, and Habitat Use in Gishwati, a Montane Rain Forest Fragment in Rwanda

International Journal of Primatology ◽

10.1007/s10764-011-9561-4 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 33 (1) ◽

pp. 115-133 ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

Rebecca L. Chancellor ◽

Aaron S. Rundus ◽

Sylvain Nyandwi

Keyword(s):

Seasonal Variation ◽

Habitat Use ◽

Food Consumption ◽

Pan Troglodytes ◽

Rain Forest ◽

Pan Troglodytes Schweinfurthii ◽

Forest Fragment ◽

Montane Rain Forest ◽

Nest Group ◽

Fallback Food

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Habitat use of the introduced cane toad (Rhinella marina) and native frog species in tropical Australia

Journal of Tropical Ecology ◽

10.1017/s0266467415000474 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 31 (6) ◽

pp. 531-540 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Martin Mayer ◽

Gregory P. Brown ◽

Barbara Zimmermann ◽

Matthew J. Greenlees ◽

Richard Shine

Keyword(s):

Spatial Distribution ◽

Habitat Selection ◽

Habitat Use ◽

Ecological Impacts ◽

Northern Australia ◽

Cane Toad ◽

Rhinella Marina ◽

Frog Species ◽

Tropical Australia ◽

Reducing Activity

Abstract:The ecological impacts of introduced species can reveal mechanisms underlying habitat selection and behaviour. We investigated the habitat use of native frog species and the invasive cane toads (Rhinella marina) in tropical northern Australia to measure overlap in habitat use, and to test if the presence of the cane toad influences frog behaviour. Native frog species and the cane toad both preferred habitats close to water and unvegetated holes. However, native frogs were found further from water (on average 19.4 m) than were toads (on average 12.6 m), and preferred areas with higher vegetation (8–50 cm) than did toads, which were more abundant in vegetation lower than 8 cm. For both types of anuran, the next neighbour was more often of the same type (89% in frogs, 52% in toads) than expected by chance (observed ratio: 75% frogs vs 25% toads), reflecting these differences in habitat use. Our counts of frog abundance increased on average 14.5% in areas from which we removed cane toads temporarily. This result suggests that cane toads inhibit the activity of native anurans either by inducing avoidance, or by reducing activity. By modifying the behaviour and spatial distribution of native taxa, invasive cane toads may curtail activities such as feeding and breeding.

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