GPS tracking of non-breeding ravens reveals the importance of anthropogenic food sources during their dispersal in the Eastern Alps

Current Zoology
Matthias-Claudio LorettoThomas Bugnyar

Abstract

In many songbirds, the space use of breeders is well studied but poorly understood for non-breeders. In common ravens, some studies of non-breeders indicate high vagrancy with large individual differences in home range size, whereas others show that up to 40% of marked non-breeders can be regularly observed at the same anthropogenic food source over months to years. The aim of this study was to provide new insights on ravens' behavior during dispersal in the Eastern Alps. We deployed Global Positioning System (GPS) loggers on 10 individuals to gather accurate spatial and temporal information on their movements to quantify: 1) the dimension of the birds' space use (home range size with seasonal effects and daily/long-term travel distances), 2) how long they stayed in a dispersal stage of wandering as opposed to settling temporarily, and 3) their destination of movements. We recorded movements of up to 40 km per hour, more than 160 km within 1 day and more than 11,000 km within 20 months, indicating high vagrancy. Switching frequently between temporarily settling and travelling large distances in short time intervals leads to extensive home ranges, which also explains and combines the different findings in the literature. The des...Continue Reading

References

May 12, 2004·Journal of Theoretical Biology·Graeme D Ruxton, David C Houston
Jun 1, 2005·Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society·Diana E Bowler, Tim G Benton
Aug 30, 2008·The American Naturalist·María del Mar Delgado, Vincenzo Penteriani
Jul 1, 1948·Psychological Review·E C TOLMAN
May 21, 2010·PloS One·Orlaith N Fraser, Thomas Bugnyar
Nov 17, 2010·Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences·J CoteA Sih
Nov 26, 2010·The Journal of Animal Ecology·Nils BunnefeldGöran Ericsson
Apr 6, 2011·PloS One·Orlaith N Fraser, Thomas Bugnyar
Sep 21, 2011·Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society·Dries BonteJustin M J Travis
Dec 25, 2012·Animal Behaviour·Anna Braun, Thomas Bugnyar
Dec 3, 2014·Current Biology : CB·Jorg J M MassenThomas Bugnyar
Aug 1, 2012·Journal of Ornithology·Anna BraunThomas Bugnyar

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Citations

Mar 23, 2018·Frontiers in Zoology·Markus BoeckleThomas Bugnyar
May 8, 2019·Animals : an Open Access Journal From MDPI·Doris PreiningerMarkus Boeckle
Mar 25, 2017·Scientific Reports·Matthias-Claudio LorettoThomas Bugnyar
Apr 2, 2019·Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology·Palmyre H BoucherieThomas Bugnyar
Mar 9, 2019·Behavioral Ecology : Official Journal of the International Society for Behavioral Ecology·Florian UhlChristine Schwab
Mar 24, 2020·Ethology : Formerly Zeitschrift Für Tierpsychologie·Mario Gallego-AbenzaThomas Bugnyar

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Software Mentioned

multcomp
adehabitat
R R Development Core Team

Related Concepts

Related Feeds

Autoimmune Lymphoproliferative Syndrome

Autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS) is a rare genetic disorder of abnormal lymphocyte survival caused by defective Fas mediated apoptosis. Discover the latest research on ALPS here.

Aphasia

Aphasia affects the ability to process language, including formulation and comprehension of language and speech, as well as the ability to read or write. Here is the latest research on aphasia.