Using "travel time" data to characterize the behavior of migrating animals

The American Naturalist
R W Zabel

Abstract

For migratory species, duration of migration, or "travel time," is often a critical variable in determining the cost of migration. Observed travel times are the result of both environmental factors such as air or water currents and the behavior of individuals. In an effort to distinguish among these components, I developed a migration model based on an advection-diffusion equation that characterizes population movements in terms of two biologically meaningful parameters: migration rate and rate of population spread. I applied the model to travel time data from juvenile chinook salmon (Onchorhynchus tshawytscha), which were tagged during their seaward migration. The tagged fish originated from three separate evolutionarily significant units (ESUs) as classified by the U. S. National Marine Fisheries Service. The model was expanded by allowing migration and diffusion rates to vary with fish length and river flow. Variability in travel times explained by these factors was strikingly similar from year to year within ESUs, and the migratory behavior revealed by the analysis was consistent with the life-history patterns that distinguish the ESUs. The approach presented here is easily adaptable to a wide range of migratory species and...Continue Reading

References

Jul 19, 2002·Proceedings. Biological Sciences·E PostT V Callaghan
Jun 1, 1954·The Quarterly Review of Biology·L C COLE
Jun 1, 1951·Biometrika·J G SKELLAM
May 14, 1937·Science·W H Rich

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Citations

May 17, 2006·Trends in Ecology & Evolution·Jerald B Johnson, Kristian S Omland
Jun 9, 2007·Ecological Applications : a Publication of the Ecological Society of America·Julie B KellnerRoger M Nisbet
Apr 18, 2003·The American Naturalist·Garrick T Skalski, James F Gilliam
Dec 17, 2009·The Journal of Animal Ecology·Lisa G CrozierStephen Achord
Feb 8, 2019·Scientific Reports·Nathan M BachelerJamie H MacMahan

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