Article
Ecology
Rhys Munden, Luca Borger, Rory P. Wilson, James Redcliffe, Rowan Brown, Mathieu Garel, Jonathan R. Potts
Summary: Step selection analysis is a fundamental technique for uncovering the drivers of animal movement decisions. By using high-frequency data and a new method called time-varying iSSA, researchers can better understand and analyze animal movement patterns, leading to more behaviorally-meaningful conclusions. This method allows for more accurate insights into animal decision-making processes and can infer covariates dependent on the time between turns, which was not possible with previous techniques.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Natasha Gillies, Lucia Martina Martin Lopez, Olivier F. C. den Ouden, Jelle D. Assink, Mathieu Basille, Thomas A. Clay, Susana Clusella-Trullas, Rocio Joo, Henri Weimerskirchi, Mario Zampolli, Jeffrey N. Zeyl, Samantha C. Patrick
Summary: This study investigated whether wandering albatrosses respond to microbarom infrasound at sea. The results showed that albatrosses not only respond to winds encountered in situ but also move toward source regions associated with higher sound pressure levels. This suggests that albatrosses may be responding to long-range infrasonic cues, which are important for optimizing their flight over long distances.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Review
Ecology
Mara. F. F. Mueller, Sam. C. C. Banks, Tara. L. L. Crewe, Hamish. A. A. Campbell
Summary: The advancement and availability of innovative animal biotelemetry and genomic technologies are improving our understanding of how the movements of individuals influence gene flow within and between populations and ultimately drive evolutionary and ecological processes. The predominant drivers for this research are understanding the effects of individual-based movements on animal populations, analyzing the relationship between genetic relatedness and social structuring, and studying how the landscape affects the flow of genes and how this is impacted by environmental change. Integrating two data types using innovative statistical techniques greatly improves our understanding of the link between the individual, the population, and the environment and is being used to better conserve and manage species.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Marcelina Los, Kamil Smolak, Cezary Mitrus, Witold Rohm, Nico Van de Weghe, Katarzyna Sila-Nowicka
Summary: With the advancement of sensors and the availability of high-resolution movement data, human mobility and movement ecology have rapidly developed. The Integrated Science of Movement aims to bridge the methodological gaps between these fields and enhance the understanding of movement processes. By applying human mobility metrics and data processing methods to GPS tracking data of European Herring Gulls, this study demonstrates the potential of using human mobility analysis methods to explain animal mobility behavior.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Elizabeth Eisenhauer, Ephraim Hanks, Matthew Beckman, Robert Murphy, Tricia Miller, Todd Katzner
Summary: We propose a flexible model for describing the movement behavior of partially migrating species. The model relies on a smoothly time-varying potential surface and attractors, and it is compared to a latent state model. The model demonstrates the ability to fit a wide range of movement strategies and shows flexibility in describing non-stereotypical movement behavior.
SPATIAL STATISTICS
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Jonathan R. Potts, Luca Borger, Bronson K. Strickland, Garrett M. Street
Summary: The study provides a methodological framework for understanding the movement mechanisms necessary for building predictive models of animal space use. By analyzing individual movement patterns, constructing step selection models, and comparing predicted and empirical patterns, the researchers iteratively improve the model's predictive power. The effectiveness of this method is demonstrated through a case study on a population of feral pigs in Mississippi, USA, which identified missing features in the model.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Marcus Michelangeli, Eric Payne, Orr Spiegel, David L. Sinn, Stephan T. Leu, Michael G. Gardner, Andrew Sih
Summary: Individual variation in movement patterns is important for understanding the dynamics of populations and communities. This study on sleepy lizards found consistent differences in movement traits among individuals, which were influenced by internal traits, environmental factors, and habitat type. These differences reflect variation in life-history tactics and have implications for ecological and evolutionary processes.
JOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Syafiq Munir Ismail Munir, Mohd Istajib Mokhtar, Ahmad Firdhaus Arham
Summary: The management of strays and companion animals is a contentious issue in Malaysia. This study surveyed 704 respondents to explore public opinion on the causes and management of the stray animal population, as well as the national strategy on strays and companion animal management. The findings indicate that a lack of public awareness regarding animal care is seen as the main cause of the stray animal population, and treating and vaccinating animals for zoonotic diseases is considered a reasonable measure for population management. Developing animal protection areas through a multi-stakeholder partnership strategy has the highest support for national intervention planning. These insights are valuable for informing future legislation to mitigate the negative effects of stray animal populations in Malaysia.
Article
Robotics
Douglas Blackiston, Sam Kriegman, Josh Bongard, Michael Levin
Summary: Advancements in science and engineering expose the limitations of classical approaches, necessitating the re-evaluation of conceptual categories and resolution of conflicting boundaries to facilitate experimental approaches. This essay addresses critiques regarding the intersection of developmental biology, computer science, and robotics, and explores how recent advances have transformed our understanding across fields. By embracing the convergence of disciplines, the essay argues that insights can be gained on issues of multiscale control and the relationship between form and function, leading to practical applications in regenerative medicine and synthetic living machines.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
James A. Klarevas-Irby, Damien R. Farine
Summary: Little is known about how animals overcome temporal constraints on movement during dispersal. This study used GPS tracking of vulturine guineafowl and found that dispersers showed the greatest increase in movement at the same times of day when they moved the most prior to dispersal. These findings suggest that individuals face the same ecological constraints during dispersal as they do in daily life and achieve large displacements by maximizing movement when conditions are most favorable.
Article
Biology
Antti Piironen, Toni Laaksonen
Summary: Migratory divides separate populations of migratory animals, leading to intraspecific differences in migration strategies. In this study, we used satellite tracking and neckband resightings to uncover a gradual migratory divide between two populations of greylag geese in Europe. The birds in the Western Flyway exhibited different migration strategies compared to those in the Central Flyway.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Biology
P. A. T. R. I. C. K. B. FINNERTY, C. L. A. R. E. MCARTHUR, P. E. T. E. R. BANKS, C. A. T. H. E. R. I. N. E. PRICE, A. D. R. I. A. N. M. SHRADER
Summary: Odor plays a crucial role in terrestrial ecosystems, as animals use it to gather information and make decisions about movement. The concept of an olfactory landscape helps us understand how animals move in space and time, and how ecological interactions can be altered.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
S. Balouch, D. A. Driscoll, A. Naseer, M. Rais, T. S. Doherty
Summary: Agriculture poses a significant threat to biodiversity globally, but its impact on animal movement remains poorly understood. This study investigated the effect of landscape composition on the movements of the oriental garden lizard in agricultural landscapes in Pakistan. The results showed that tree patches were preferred by the lizards and that movement rates were higher when animals moved between different land cover types. The study also highlighted the importance of maintaining tree cover and field margins to promote wildlife conservation in agricultural landscapes.
ANIMAL CONSERVATION
(2022)
Article
Ecology
James A. Klarevas-Irby, Martin Wikelski, Damien R. Farine
Summary: Dispersal is a critical and costly stage of life for organisms, but efficient movement strategies can significantly reduce the energy costs of large-scale displacements, allowing dispersing individuals to move faster and farther with minimal additional costs.
Article
Ecology
Scott W. Yanco, Brian D. Linkhart, Peter P. Marra, Markus Mika, Max Ciaglo, Amber Carver, Michael B. Wunder
Summary: This study explores the seasonal migration of birds using GPS tracking and remote sensing data, and evaluates competing hypotheses. The findings provide support for the dispersal-migration hypothesis, suggesting that winter resource scarcity is the primary driver of bird migration.
Article
Ecology
Brett T. McClintock, Briana Abrahms, Richard B. Chandler, Paul B. Conn, Sarah J. Converse, Robert L. Emmet, Beth Gardner, Nathan J. Hostetter, Devin S. Johnson
Summary: Ecologists and conservation biologists increasingly rely on spatial capture-recapture (SCR) and movement modeling to study animal populations. Historically, SCR has focused on population-level processes, while animal movement modeling has focused on individual behavior. Integrating SCR and animal movement modeling has the potential to scale up from individuals to populations, advancing types of inferences and improving population-level parameter estimations critical for species conservation and management.
Article
Ecology
Robert L. Emmet, Ben C. Augustine, Briana Abrahms, Lindsey N. Rich, Beth Gardner
Summary: Group living in species can have complex consequences for individuals, populations, and ecosystems. Estimating group density and size is crucial for understanding population dynamics and conservation needs. The cluster SCR model, through clustered point processes, provides a method to estimate group density, individual density, and group size, outperforming standard SCR models in various scenarios. This model offers opportunities to investigate ecological hypotheses related to group size and population dynamics while considering cohesive movement behaviors in group-living species.
Article
Ecology
Jerod A. Merkle, Briana Abrahms, Jonathan B. Armstrong, Hall Sawyer, Daniel P. Costa, Anna D. Chalfoun
Summary: Site fidelity, the behavior of returning to previously visited locations, provides benefits in stable environments. However, rapid environmental change in the Anthropocene can result in maladaptive site fidelity and the occurrence of ecological traps. Understanding the mechanisms enabling species to persist with site fidelity is crucial for conservation efforts.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Mallory Sandoval Lambert, Hall Sawyer, Jerod A. Merkle
Summary: This study found that animal responses to human-induced rapid environmental change (HIREC) are mediated by season-specific movement patterns. During migration, animals only avoid HIREC once a threshold is surpassed, while on winter range, they generally avoid all levels of HIREC.
ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Emily R. Gelzer, Michel P. Laforge, Justine A. Becker, Nathan P. Hough, Mallory Sandoval Lambert, Marie-Pier Poulin, Rebecca Thomas-Kuzilik, Tana L. Verzuh, Jerod A. Merkle
Summary: Understanding the factors that contribute to citation rates of scientific articles is important for scientists to write influential manuscripts in their field. This study analyzed a cohort of 778 articles published in The Journal of Wildlife Management from 2011-2015 and found that visibility strategies, article structure, and focal system significantly influenced citation rates within the first 5 years of publication. Visibility strategies such as open access, Altmetric Attention Score, and self-citations had a positive impact on citation counts. The number of factors associated with citation rates increased over time, with article structure and focal system becoming more influential after 5 years. Overall, this research highlights the controllable factors that authors can utilize to increase the influence of their articles on the scientific community.
JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Benjamin S. Robb, Jerod A. Merkle, Hall Sawyer, Jeffrey L. Beck, Matthew J. Kauffman
Summary: This study quantified the relative permeability of different anthropogenic barriers to pronghorn movement and assessed their influence on pronghorn space use using GPS collar data. The results showed that interstates were the most severe barrier to pronghorn movement, and the effects of barriers on pronghorn space use were not proportional to their permeability, but also depended on their density and location.
JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Marie-Caroline Prima, Thierry Duchesne, Jerod A. Merkle, Simon Chamaille-Jammes, Daniel Fortin
Summary: Movement of organisms plays a fundamental role in the evolution and diversity of life. This study developed a multi-state step selection function that can identify different behavioral bouts and behavior-habitat relationships, allowing for a better understanding of animal movement decisions.
Article
Ecology
Tristan A. Nunez, Mark A. Hurley, Tabitha A. Graves, Anna C. Ortega, Hall Sawyer, Julien Fattebert, Jerod A. Merkle, Matthew J. Kauffman
Summary: Management of animal populations requires knowledge of their movement corridors. This study presents a statistical corridor modelling approach that predicts movement corridors using migration tracking data. The approach does not require the transformation of habitat suitability surfaces and was tested on simulated and GPS data. The fitted models accurately predicted migration corridors and the effects of environmental variables. The framework can inform management for the conservation of migrations.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Simona Picardi, Briana Abrahms, Emily Gelzer, Thomas. A. A. Morrison, Tana Verzuh, Jerod. A. A. Merkle
Summary: Site fidelity, which refers to the tendency of individuals to return to previously visited locations, is influenced by various mechanisms such as memory, habitat selection, or chance. However, existing definitions often group different mechanisms under the same label of 'site fidelity', assuming memory as the main driver. In this study, we propose an operational definition of site fidelity that deviates from a null expectation derived from a memory-free movement model. We demonstrate through agent-based simulations that movement characteristics and landscape characteristics play important roles in generating return patterns, even in the absence of memory. We also provide a framework for establishing system-specific null expectations for site fidelity, allowing for hypothesis testing across different systems and scales.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Steffen Mumme, Arthur D. Middleton, Paolo Ciucci, Johannes De Groeve, Andrea Corradini, Ellen O. Aikens, Federico Ossi, Paul Atwood, Niko Balkenhol, Eric K. Cole, Lucie Debeffe, Sarah R. Dewey, Claude Fischer, Justin Gude, Marco Heurich, Mark A. Hurley, Anders Jarnemo, Matthew J. Kauffman, Alain Licoppe, Emiel van Loon, Doug McWhirter, Tony W. Mong, Luca Pedrotti, Nicolas Morellet, Atle Mysterud, Wibke Peters, Kelly Proffitt, Sonia Said, Johannes Signer, Peter Sunde, Martin Stary, Francesca Cagnacci
Summary: Human activity and landscape modifications affect animal movements, particularly those performing long-distance movements. Understanding and predicting animal responses to human activity is challenging. This study examines red deer and elk populations across different environments and finds that human activity is the strongest driver of movement patterns.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Anna C. Ortega, Ellen O. Aikens, Jerod A. Merkle, Kevin L. Monteith, Matthew J. Kauffman
Summary: This study found that mule deer are able to compensate for phenological mismatches en route by adjusting their movement speed and stopover use, allowing them to arrive at their summer range within a narrow window of time. This suggests that animals possess cognitive abilities to recognize key resources in space and time and adapt to rapidly changing environmental conditions.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Marie-Pier Poulin, Seth G. Cherry, Jerod A. Merkle
Summary: Animal behavior is influenced by the ability to assess and balance risks and rewards. Anthropogenic disturbances, like roads, create new risks and opportunities that wildlife must respond to. In this study, we investigated how elk dynamically balance risks and rewards when crossing roads, and found that they adjust their behavior based on the availability of forage and the number of road crossings.
JOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Jerod A. A. Merkle, Blake Lowrey, Cody F. F. Wallace, L. Embere Hall, Luke Wilde, Matthew J. J. Kauffman, Hall Sawyer
Summary: Conserving migratory ungulates requires analyzing GPS collar data and associated maps to inform management actions. Current methods lack accuracy and produce inconsistent migration corridors. To address this, we propose a line buffer approach that simplifies delineating individual migration corridors with consistent widths. Our approach improves transparency and facilitates discussions on functional corridor widths, aiding conservation efforts.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY
(2023)