Habitat selection by the wood turtle (Clemmys insculpta) at the northern limit of its range

2004 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. 391-398 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Arvisais ◽  
Esther Lévesque ◽  
Jean-Claude Bourgeois ◽  
Claude Daigle ◽  
Denis Masse ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Selection ◽  
Habitat Use ◽  
Mixed Forest ◽  
Activity Period ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Aquatic Habitats ◽  
Active Season ◽  
Habitat Features ◽  
Wood Turtles ◽  
Wood Turtle

We characterized the chronology of habitat use by the wood turtle, Clemmys insculpta (LeC., 1829), in the Mauricie region of Quebec, Canada. We also determined if this species used habitats according to availability within a home range and identified habitat features influencing habitat selection. Habitats were characterized for 20 wood turtles followed weekly by telemetry during the active season of 1997. Turtles used a great diversity of terrestrial and aquatic habitats. Alder (Alnus rugosa (Du Roi) Spreng.) stands were the most used terrestrial habitats throughout the active season. Habitat use varied according to activity period. Indeed, wood turtles used aquatic habitats and alder stands during prenesting and prehibernation activity periods, whereas all habitat types were used during nesting and postnesting activity periods. Wood turtles did not use habitats randomly within their home ranges, suggesting that they selected them. Wood turtles seemed to select mixed forest stands that were relatively young (16 years), short (1–4 m), had low arborescent cover (25%), moderate cover of the upper shrub layer (35%), and low total canopy closure (0%–50%). This knowledge will be helpful in the establishment of future conservation measures.

Home range and movements of a wood turtle (Clemmys insculpta) population at the northern limit of its range

2002 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 402-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Arvisais ◽  
J -C Bourgeois ◽  
E Lévesque ◽  
C Daigle ◽  
D Masse ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Site Fidelity ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Buffer Strips ◽  
Northern Limit ◽  
Seasonal Movements ◽  
Active Season ◽  
Wood Turtles ◽  
Wood Turtle

We studied the home ranges and seasonal movements of 20 wood turtles (Clemmys insculpta) living near the northern limit of their distribution in the Mauricie region, Quebec, Canada. We found average home-range areas of 28.3 ha. Wood turtles showed site fidelity; there was an average overlap of 60.7% in their home ranges, and 88.8% of the home-range centroids were not significantly different for the 2 years of the study. The home ranges were larger than those reported from studies in more southerly locations, leading us to hypothesize larger home-range territories with increasing latitude. Our analyses indicate that turtle movements could be grouped into four distinct activity periods during the active season: the prenesting, nesting, postnesting, and prehibernation periods. We found that wood turtles were closely associated with streams. Based on the importance of this habitat for the species, we suggest the establishment of protected buffer strips along streams used by wood turtles.

Ecology of the rufous hare-wallaby, Lagorchestes hirsutus Gould (Marsupialia : Macropodidae) in the Tanami Desert, Northern Territory.I Patterns of habitat use.

1993 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 457 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Lundie-Jenkins
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Environmental Parameters ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Faecal Pellets ◽  
Habitat Features ◽  
Food Diversity ◽  
Local Contraction ◽  
Feeding Area ◽  
Controlled Burns ◽  
Insight Into

A 2-year study was conducted to investigate two aspects of the local distribution of the rufous harewallaby, Lagorchestes hirsutus, in a region of the Tanami Desert. These were: (a) patterns of habitat use in response to changing environmental conditions and (b) environmental parameters influencing 'local' choice of habitat. Counts of faecal pellets and tracks were used to obtain indices of hare-wallaby activity within occupied sites and to gain an insight into the movements by individuals. Local choice of habitat was analysed by assessment of numerous habitat features at occupied and unoccupied sites in the region. Previous surveys over the greater part of the study area provide evidence of a significant local decline and local contraction of range by L. hirsutus during recent times. Hare-wallabies showed seasonal trends in the relative use of different vegetation systems in response to the relative availability of food items within each habitat. The home ranges of hare-wallabies consisted of two distinct areas of activity: a large sparsely used area within the dense Triodia pungens vegetation and a small concentrated feeding area within the neighbouring caliche system. Hare-wallabies were dependent upon a specialised form of spinifex habitat. Patchiness, hummock size, food diversity and the degree of floral senescence affected suitability for hare-wallabies. Within the Tanami Desert site, suitable combinations of these characters were associated with tight mosaics of different regenerative stages after fire. Fire is therefore clearly implicated as an important force in creating a greater diversity of feeding and sheltering habitats for the hare-wallabies in the otherwise uniform spinifex sandplains. There is an obvious role for the application of controlled burns as a means of managing habitats to favour L. hirsutus in the Tanami Desert.

Winter survival and habitat use of orphaned and non-orphaned moose calves in southern Quebec

1988 ◽  
Vol 66 (4) ◽  
pp. 919-924 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hélène Jolicoeur ◽  
Michel Crête
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Selection ◽  
Home Range ◽  
Habitat Use ◽  
Survival Rates ◽  
Winter Survival ◽  
Tree Cover ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Severe Winter ◽  
Browse Species ◽  
Forage Utilization

Survival, movements, home ranges, habitat selection, and diets of 13 orphaned and 13 non-orphaned moose calves were compared during their first winter. Survival of four other calves that became separated from their mothers was also monitored. The study took place during three winters between December 1978 and April 1983. Overall, winter survival rates between the two groups did not differ. When mortality did occur, it involved solitary (orphaned and separated) calves during a severe winter. Movements and home-range sizes of the two groups were also similar. Biomass of forage on winter sites, forage utilization, and importance of tree cover were similar on sites chosen by orphaned and non-orphaned calves. Minor differences were observed in the order of preference of browse species. Five solitary calves were involved in either temporary or permanent associations with other moose.

Habitat selection, movement, and food preferences of Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta) in an agri-forested landscape

2020 ◽  
Vol 98 (11) ◽  
pp. 743-750
Author(s):  
S.D. Wallace ◽  
G.J. Forbes ◽  
J.J. Nocera
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Selection ◽  
Fourth Order ◽  
Woody Debris ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Ecological Trap ◽  
Habitat Features ◽  
The Third ◽  
Glyptemys Insculpta ◽  
Wood Turtles

Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta (Le Conte, 1830)) can use agricultural fields for basking and feeding, but hayfields can be an ecological trap due to mortality associated with agricultural machinery. It is unclear if hayfields are selected habitat or simply occur adjacent to used waterways. We sought to investigate Wood Turtle habitat selection at the third- and fourth-order scales in an agri-forested landscape and quantify food abundance (berries, fungi, and gastropods–worms) among habitat types. To quantify habitat selection by Wood Turtles, we radio-tracked 23 adults from May to November of 2018. We measured habitat features at each turtle location and three random sites within 50 m. At the third order, turtles primarily selected for edge habitat and selected hayfields over forest. At the fourth order, turtles selected for low canopy cover and presence of woody debris. Earthworms (suborder Lumbricina) were abundant within hayfields, and berries and fungi were abundant in forests. Turtles abandoned hayfields at the end of July, likely due to the emergence of food within the forest. Food availability likely influences their habitat use during the season, and hayfields provide a food source that entices Wood Turtles during the prime hay harvest period, which likely increases the risk of machinery-related mortality.

Habitat use by female western roe deer (Capreolus capreolus): influence of resource availability on habitat selection in two contrasting years

2010 ◽  
Vol 88 (11) ◽  
pp. 1052-1062 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Pellerin ◽  
C. Calenge ◽  
S. Saïd ◽  
J.- M. Gaillard ◽  
H. Fritz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Selection ◽  
Habitat Use ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Roe Deer ◽  
Habitat Type ◽  
Capreolus Capreolus ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Distribution Of Resources ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Selection Of

In most previous studies of habitat selection, the use of a given habitat type is assumed to be directly proportional to its availability. However, the use and (or) the selection of a given habitat may be conditional on the availability of that habitat. We aim here to (i) identify the environmental variables involved in habitat selection, (ii) identify classes of individuals with similar patterns of habitat selection, and (iii) assess whether habitat use changes with changing availability of habitat types, within monthly home ranges of female western roe deer ( Capreolus capreolus (L., 1758)). We found that some females adjust their habitat use according to the distribution of resources within habitats. Females with similar home ranges in terms of resource quantity and quality showed similar patterns of habitat selection. Differences in habitat use between 2 years with contrasting resource availability showed that temporal changes of environmental conditions influenced the pattern of habitat selection by female roe deer. Habitat selection also differed between periods of the life cycle likely because of contrasted energy requirements. This study shows that the relationship between habitat use by herbivores and habitat availability is nonproportional, and that the availability of resources influences use mostly at intermediate values.

scholarly journals Amphibian terrestrial habitat selection and movement patterns vary with annual life-history period

2017 ◽  
Vol 95 (6) ◽  
pp. 433-442 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luke A. Groff ◽  
Aram J.K. Calhoun ◽  
Cynthia S. Loftin
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Habitat Selection ◽  
Habitat Use ◽  
Movement Patterns ◽  
Spring Migration ◽  
Spatiotemporal Variability ◽  
Amphibian Conservation ◽  
Lithobates Sylvaticus ◽  
Habitat Features ◽  
Annual Life History

Identification of essential habitat is a fundamental component of amphibian conservation; however, species with complex life histories frequently move among habitats. To better understand dynamic habitat use, we evaluated Wood Frog (Lithobates sylvaticus (LeConte, 1825)) habitat selection and movement patterns during the spring migration and foraging periods and described the spatiotemporal variability of habitats used during all annual life-history periods. We radio-tracked 71 frogs in Maine during 2011–2013 and evaluated spring migration, foraging activity center (FAC), and within-FAC habitat selection. Telemetered frogs spent the greatest percentage of each field season in hibernacula (≥54.4%), followed by FACs (≥25.5%), migration habitat (≥16.9%), and breeding sites (≥4.5%). FACs ranged 49 – 1 335 m2 (568.0 ± 493.4 m2) and annual home ranges spanned 1 413 – 32 165 m2 (11 780.6 ± 12 506.1 m2). During spring migration, Wood Frogs exhibited different movement patterns (e.g., turn angles), selected different habitat features, and selected habitat features less consistently than while occupying FACs, indicating that the migration and foraging periods are ecologically distinct. Habitat-use studies that do not discriminate among annual life-history periods may obscure true ecological relationships and fail to identify essential habitat necessary for sustaining amphibian populations.

scholarly journals Space and Habitat Use by Male and Female Raccoons, Procyon lotor, in Kansas

2003 ◽  
Vol 117 (2) ◽  
pp. 218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan F. Kamler ◽  
Philip S. Gipson
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Selection ◽  
Habitat Use ◽  
Procyon Lotor ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Behavioral Strategies ◽  
Seasonal Differences ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Grassland Habitats

We monitored 12 radio-tagged adult Raccoons (Procyon lotor) from an unexploited population in northeastern Kansas to determine intersexual differences in space and habitat use. Home ranges (mean ± SE) of males were relatively large (266 ± 14 ha) and mutually exclusive, whereas home ranges of females were relatively small (122 ± 52 ha) and overlapped extensively. Sizes of home ranges were smaller (P < 0.05) in winter than summer for both sexes, although females reduced their home ranges more than males. Females used more grassland habitats than males during summer (P < 0.05), whereas males used more grassland habitats than females during winter (P < 0.05). Seasonal differences in habitat selection was detected for females (P < 0.05), but not males. Intersexual differences in space and habitat use were likely related to different behavioral strategies employed by male and female Raccoons.

scholarly journals Spatial ecology and multi-scale habitat selection by Western Painted Turtles (Chrysemys picta bellii) in an urban area

2019 ◽  
Vol 132 (2) ◽  
pp. 108-119
Author(s):  
Kelsey A. Marchand ◽  
Christopher M. Somers ◽  
Ray G. Poulin
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Selection ◽  
Spatial Ecology ◽  
Space Use ◽  
Chrysemys Picta ◽  
Urban Park ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Active Season ◽  
Painted Turtles ◽  
Large Trees ◽  
Chrysemys Picta Bellii

As urban centres expand, knowledge on the habitat and space use of native wildlife, particularly long-lived species, is required for proper management. Our objective was to understand space requirements and key habitat features necessary for long-term persistence of Western Painted Turtles (Chrysemys picta bellii) living in a Canadian urban park. Using radio telemetry, we examined seasonal habitat selection and space use over two years, 2015–2016 (n = 23), and 2016–2017 (n = 29) in Regina, Saskatchewan. Daily movements and home ranges of males and females were smaller during emergence than during nesting or post-nesting phases of the active season. Turtles inhabiting marsh sites had 2- and 4-times larger daily movements and home ranges compared to turtles inhabiting the creek. Turtles selected the shoreline habitat over urban/parkland and open water. Turtles used marsh-shoreline habitats non-randomly, selecting accessible shoreline with large trees in the active season. In contrast, turtles used creek-shoreline habitat according to availability. Overwintering sites selected by turtles were warmer and deeper than random available sites, with no difference in dissolved oxygen level. However, water was hypoxic for most overwintering sites. Our results show that turtles range widely, requiring 20–60 ha throughout the year. Urban park areas should be managed to provide accessible shorelines with a combination of cover and open basking areas. Critically, careful attention needs to be paid to managing water depth so that over-wintering sites remain viable.

The ecology of a Mediterranean tortoise (Testudo hermanni): a declining population

1985 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 169-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Stubbs ◽  
Ian R. Swingland
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Forest ◽  
Nest Density ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Active Season ◽  
Age Cohort ◽  
Nesting Sites ◽  
Testudo Hermanni ◽  
Evergreen Oak Forest ◽  
Evergreen Oak

In France, wild tortoises occur at low densities (< 3/ha) in the mixed forest and maquis of the Massif des Maures. In an evergreen oak forest with scattered, traditional cultivations, distinct subpopulations still exist at relatively high density (> 10/ha). The population structure is heavily skewed in favour of old adults and recruitment is low. The population is declining due to habitat loss, both from fire and through the decline in traditional horticultural practices, leading to a reduction in nest site availability. The increase in nest density in the few suitable sites remaining leaves the eggs highly vulnerable to predation and losses of over 90% cannot be sustained. The active season is from March to November, but there is evidence of some activity during the hibernation period. Adult males maintain small, fixed home ranges, while females undertake distinct migrations to and from nesting sites in the spring and can switch to new home ranges. Juveniles are sedentary up to the age of 4 or 5 years, after which they may wander considerable distances in no particular direction, until the onset of sexual maturity. Sex ratio does not differ significantly from parity within any age cohort.

Generally specialized or especially general? Habitat selection by Snapping Turtles (Chelydra serpentina) in central Ontario

2012 ◽  
Vol 90 (2) ◽  
pp. 139-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.E. Paterson ◽  
B.D. Steinberg ◽  
J.D. Litzgus
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Selection ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Chelydra Serpentina ◽  
Northern Population ◽  
Individual Specialization ◽  
Active Season ◽  
Metabolic Costs ◽  
Euclidean Distances

Habitat selection is the disproportionate use of habitat compared with availability. Many studies have focused on specialists, but few have considered habitat selection in populations that are generalists, which can be composed of generalist individuals or individuals that specialize on different habitats. We tested habitat selection and individual specialization in a northern population of a supposed generalist, the Snapping Turtle ( Chelydra serpentina (L., 1758)), during the active season and winter using telemetry. Habitat selection was tested at two spatial scales by comparing random points to home ranges and turtle locations using Euclidean distances. Turtles selected home ranges from the habitats available in the population range. However, at the population level, all aquatic habitats were equally preferred, and the population behaved as a generalist owing to individuals specialized on different habitats. Over half of the individuals showed evidence of individual specialization on different habitat types. Turtles did not select habitat within home ranges during the active season, but overwintering turtles chose locations that were colder than haphazard stations in the same habitats, likely to reduce metabolic costs and the risk of acidosis. These findings have implications for the management of this species at risk and for understanding the evolution of resource generalization.

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