Foraging theory upscaled: the behavioural ecology of herbivore movement

We outline how principles of optimal foraging developed for diet and food patch selection might be applied to movement behaviour expressed over larger spatial and temporal scales. Our focus is on large mammalian herbivores, capable of carrying global positioning system (GPS) collars operating throug...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological sciences 2010-07, Vol.365 (1550), p.2267-2278
Main Authors: Owen-Smith, N., Fryxell, J. M., Merrill, E. H.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal feeding behavior
Animal Migration
Animals
Animals, Wild
Behavior, Animal
Ecological modeling
Ecosystem
Elks
Feeding Behavior
Food
Food movements
Foraging
Foraging Areas
Geographic Information Systems
GPS telemetry
Habitat Units
Herbivores
Movement Ecology
Population ecology
Review
Seasonal Ranges
Ungulates
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Summary:We outline how principles of optimal foraging developed for diet and food patch selection might be applied to movement behaviour expressed over larger spatial and temporal scales. Our focus is on large mammalian herbivores, capable of carrying global positioning system (GPS) collars operating through the seasonal cycle and dependent on vegetation resources that are fixed in space but seasonally variable in availability and nutritional value. The concept of intermittent movement leads to the recognition of distinct movement modes over a hierarchy of spatio-temporal scales. Over larger scales, periods with relatively low displacement may indicate settlement within foraging areas, habitat units or seasonal ranges. Directed movements connect these patches or places used for other activities. Selection is expressed by switches in movement mode and the intensity of utilization by the settlement period relative to the area covered. The type of benefit obtained during settlement periods may be inferred from movement patterns, local environmental features, or the diel activity schedule. Rates of movement indicate changing costs in time and energy over the seasonal cycle, between years and among regions. GPS telemetry potentially enables large-scale movement responses to changing environmental conditions to be linked to population performance.
ISSN:0962-8436
1471-2970
DOI:10.1098/rstb.2010.0095