Linearity of Home Ranges of California Mice and Other Animals

The present study investigated whether the flushing distance, the territorial use and the stress hormone physiology of the capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus) were influenced in the winter by the presence of a large number of people engaged in sporting activities. In most cases flushing distances were greater, and higher concentrations of stress hormone were found in the blood serum, in areas having a high intensity of sporting activities than in forest stands relatively undisturbed by tourists. During the ski season capercaillie avoided forest patches within their home ranges where there was a high level of recreational activity. The results lead to the conclusion that intensive winter tourism can be a serious threat to the remaining capercaillie populations in middle Europe. It is recommended that the construction of new recreational facilities and new developments should be avoided in the most important habitats for capercaillie. The important habitats which today already lie in the immediate vicinity of areas intensively used by tourists could clearly receive enhanced status, according to each situation, either as tranquility areas for wildlife where entrance is forbidden or with regulations requiring winter tourists to stay on trails.

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Effects of seed-rich habitat provision on territory density, home range and breeding performance of European Turtle Doves Streptopelia turtur

Bird Conservation International ◽

10.1017/s0959270920000635 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-20

Author(s):

JENNY C. DUNN ◽

ANTONY J. MORRIS ◽

PHILIP V. GRICE ◽

WILL J. PEACH

Keyword(s):

Reproductive Output ◽

Food Limitation ◽

Home Ranges ◽

Breeding Performance ◽

Ranging Behaviour ◽

Local Abundance ◽

Turtle Dove ◽

Human Habitation ◽

Territory Density ◽

Streptopelia Turtur

Summary Conservation measures providing food-rich habitats through agri-environment schemes (AES) have the potential to affect the demography and local abundance of species limited by food availability. The European Turtle Dove Streptopelia turtur is one of Europe’s fastest declining birds, with breeding season dietary changes coincident with a reduction in reproductive output suggesting food limitation during breeding. In this study we provided seed-rich habitats at six intervention sites over a 4-year period and tested for impacts of the intervention on breeding success, ranging behaviour and the local abundance of territorial turtle doves. Nesting success and chick biometrics were unrelated to the local availability of seed-rich habitat or to the proximity of intervention plots. Nestling weight was higher close to human habitation consistent with an influence of anthropogenic supplementary food provision. Small home ranges were associated with a high proportion of non-farmed habitats, while large home ranges were more likely to contain seed-rich habitat suggesting that breeding doves were willing to travel further to utilize such habitat where available. Extensively managed grassland and intervention plot fields were selected by foraging turtle doves. A slower temporal decline in the abundance of breeding males on intervention sites probably reflects enhanced habitat suitability during territory settlement. Refining techniques to deliver sources of sown, natural, and supplementary seed that are plentiful, accessible, and parasite-free is likely to be crucial for the conservation of turtle doves.

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The overabundance of resources leads to small but exclusive home ranges in Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) on Bering Island

Polar Biology ◽

10.1007/s00300-021-02888-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Anton Pletenev ◽

Elena Kruchenkova ◽

Yulia Mikhnevich ◽

Vyacheslav Rozhnov ◽

Mikhail Goltsman

Keyword(s):

Home Ranges ◽

Arctic Fox ◽

Vulpes Lagopus ◽

Bering Island

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Impact of natural salt lick on the home range of Panthera tigris at the Royal Belum Rainforest, Malaysia

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-89980-0 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Bryan Andrew Lazarus ◽

Azlan Che-Amat ◽

Muhammad Muzammil Abdul Halim Shah ◽

Azwan Hamdan ◽

Hasliza Abu Hassim ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Home Range ◽

Prey Availability ◽

Nutritional Ecology ◽

Camera Traps ◽

Home Ranges ◽

Panthera Tigris ◽

Health Maintenance ◽

Salt Lick ◽

Save Energy ◽

Salt Licks

AbstractNatural salt lick (sira) is a strategic localisation for ecological wildlife assemblage to exhibit geophagy which may act as a population dynamic buffer of prey and predators. Undoubtedly, many agree that geophagy at natural licks is linked to nutritional ecology, health and assembly places facilitating social interaction of its users. Overall, natural salt licks not only save energy of obtaining nutrient leading to health maintenance but also forms the basis of population persistence. The Royal Belum Rainforest, Malaysia (Royal Belum) is a typical tropical rainforest in Malaysia rich in wildlife which are mainly concentrated around the natural salt lick. Since this is one of the most stable fauna ecology forest in Malaysia, it is timely to assess its impact on the Malayan tiger (Panthera tigris) home range dynamics. The three-potential home ranges of the Malayan tiger in this rainforest were selected based on animal trails or foot prints surrounding the salt lick viz (e.g. Sira Kuak and Sira Batu; Sira Rambai and Sira Buluh and Sira Papan) as well as previous sightings of a Malayan tiger in the area, whose movement is dependent on the density and distribution of prey. Camera traps were placed at potential animal trails surrounding the salt lick to capture any encountered wildlife species within the area of the camera placements. Results showed that all home ranges of Malayan tiger were of no significance for large bodied prey availability such as sambar deer (Rusa unicolor), and smaller prey such as muntjacs (Muntiacus muntjac) and wild boar (Sus scrofa). Interestingly, all home range harbour the Malayan tiger as the only sole predator. The non-significance of prey availability at each home range is attributed to the decline of the Malayan tiger in the rainforest since tigers are dependant on the movement of its preferred prey surrounding natural salt licks. Thus, the information from this study offers fundamental knowledge on the importance of prey-predator interaction at salt lick which will help in designing strategy in rewilding or rehabilitation programs of the Malayan tiger at the Royal Belum Rainforest.

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The spatial dynamics of White-browed Babbler groups in a fragmented agricultural landscape

Pacific Conservation Biology ◽

10.1071/pc030271 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 8 (4) ◽

pp. 271 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Peter G. Cale

Keyword(s):

Home Range ◽

Breeding Season ◽

Group Dynamics ◽

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Local Population ◽

Breeding Site ◽

Home Ranges ◽

Effective Population ◽

Study Sites ◽

Group Movements

White-browed Babbler Pomatostomus superciliosus groups occupying linear strips of vegetation had breeding territories that were smaller in area and had longer linear dimensions than those occupying patches. A group's non-breeding home range was larger than its breeding territory. Groups occupying linear/patch home ranges expanded the linear extent and area of their home ranges more than those within other home range configurations. Some groups moved during the non-breeding season and this was more likely to occur if the group occupied a remnant with a low abundance of invertebrates during summer. Some groups that moved returned prior to the next breeding season, but the majority were never seen again. New groups moved into the study sites and established in vacant home ranges. This suggests that those groups that left the study sites may have established new home ranges elsewhere. Breeding site fidelity was lower in groups that had failed in previous breeding attempts. Therefore, group movements were influenced by the feeding and breeding quality of the habitat. However, the configuration of the local population also influenced group movements with those groups on the edge of a local population being more likely to move than those in the interior. New groups were formed by two processes; group dispersal, where groups generally filled a vacant home range, and group budding, which involved the splitting of a large group. Group dispersal maintained group densities while group budding increased the density of groups in a local population. These two processes were common, producing localized fluctuations in the density of groups. Since babbler groups contain only one breeding pair, changes in group density represent changes in effective population size. Therefore, group dynamics may be important to the persistence of local populations of White-browed Babblers, especially in landscapes that have suffered from habitat loss and fragmentation.

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Critical In-Water Habitats for Post-Nesting Sea Turtles from the Southern Gulf of Mexico

Journal of Marine Science and Engineering ◽

10.3390/jmse9080793 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (8) ◽

pp. 793

Author(s):

Abigail Uribe-Martínez ◽

María de los Angeles Liceaga-Correa ◽

Eduardo Cuevas

Keyword(s):

Gulf Of Mexico ◽

Marine Ecosystem ◽

Satellite Telemetry ◽

Marine Turtle ◽

Home Ranges ◽

The Bahamas ◽

Turtle Species ◽

Southern Gulf Of Mexico ◽

Large Marine Ecosystem ◽

Physical Features

Marine turtles are globally endangered species that spend more than 95% of their life cycle in in-water habitats. Nevertheless, most of the conservation, recovery and research efforts have targeted the on-land habitats, due to their easier access, where adult females lay their eggs. Targeting the large knowledge gaps on the in-water critical habitats of turtles, particularly in the Large Marine Ecosystem Gulf of Mexico, is crucial for their conservation and recovery in the long term. We used satellite telemetry to track 85 nesting females from their beaches after they nested to identify their feeding and residency habitats, their migratory corridors and to describe the context for those areas. We delimited major migratory corridors in the southern Gulf of Mexico and West Caribbean and described physical features of internesting and feeding home ranges located mainly around the Yucatan Peninsula and Veracruz, Mexico. We also contributed by describing general aggregation and movement patterns for the four marine turtle species in the Atlantic, expanding the knowledge of the studied species. Several tracked individuals emigrated from the Gulf of Mexico to as far as Nicaragua, Honduras, and the Bahamas. This information is critical for identifying gaps in marine protection and for deciphering the spatial connectivity in large ocean basins, and it provides an opportunity to assess potential impacts on marine turtle populations and their habitats.

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Extraction of Parameters from Observations, Emergence of Home Ranges, and Applicability of the Fisher Equation for Bacteria

Theory of the Spread of Epidemics and Movement Ecology of Animals ◽

10.1017/9781108882279.008 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 98-125

Keyword(s):

Fisher Equation ◽

Home Ranges

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Changes in surface water drive the movements of Shoebills

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-95093-5 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Marta Acácio ◽

Ralf H. E. Mullers ◽

Aldina M. A. Franco ◽

Frank J. Willems ◽

Arjun Amar

Keyword(s):

Surface Water ◽

Optimal Foraging ◽

Animal Movement ◽

Bird Species ◽

Individual Variability ◽

Home Ranges ◽

Age Classes ◽

Water Index ◽

Normalized Difference Water Index ◽

Conservation Actions

AbstractAnimal movement is mainly determined by spatial and temporal changes in resource availability. For wetland specialists, the seasonal availability of surface water may be a major determinant of their movement patterns. This study is the first to examine the movements of Shoebills (Balaeniceps rex), an iconic and vulnerable bird species. Using GPS transmitters deployed on six immature and one adult Shoebills over a 5-year period, during which four immatures matured into adults, we analyse their home ranges and distances moved in the Bangweulu Wetlands, Zambia. We relate their movements at the start of the rainy season (October to December) to changes in Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), a proxy for surface water. We show that Shoebills stay in the Bangweulu Wetlands all year round, moving less than 3 km per day on 81% of days. However, average annual home ranges were large, with high individual variability, but were similar between age classes. Immature and adult Shoebills responded differently to changes in surface water; sites that adults abandoned became drier, while sites abandoned by immatures became wetter. However, there were no differences in NDWI of areas used by Shoebills before abandonment and newly selected sites, suggesting that Shoebills select areas with similar surface water. We hypothesise that the different responses to changes in surface water by immature and adult Shoebills are related to age-specific optimal foraging conditions and fishing techniques. Our study highlights the need to understand the movements of Shoebills throughout their life cycle to design successful conservation actions for this emblematic, yet poorly known, species.

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