Inferring activity budgets in wild animals to estimate the consequences of disturbances

Lay summary: In species that are difficult to observe, activity budgets can be inferred indirectly from other behavioral variables, to assess human induced non-lethal effects on wildlife. We used a step-wise modeling approach to quantitatively infer activity states from multiple continuous behaviora...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Behavioral ecology 2013-11, Vol.24 (6), p.1415-1425
Main Authors: Christiansen, Fredrik, Rasmussen, Marianne H., Lusseau, David
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cetacea
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Lay summary: In species that are difficult to observe, activity budgets can be inferred indirectly from other behavioral variables, to assess human induced non-lethal effects on wildlife. We used a step-wise modeling approach to quantitatively infer activity states from multiple continuous behavioral data to show that whalewatching boat interactions caused a reduction in the time minke whales spend feeding. The modeling approach provides a means to link short-term behavioral changes to potential long-term bioenergetic consequences in individuals. Lay summary: In species that are difficult to observe, activity budgets can be inferred indirectly from other behavioral variables, to assess human induced non-lethal effects on wildlife. We used a step-wise modeling approach to quantitatively infer activity states from multiple continuous behavioral data to show that whalewatching boat interactions caused a reduction in the time minke whales spend feeding. The modeling approach provides a means to link short-term behavioral changes to potential long-term bioenergetic consequences in individuals.
ISSN:1045-2249
1465-7279
DOI:10.1093/beheco/art086