Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The present study focused on the behavioral ecology of a group of red-handed howlers, Alouatta belzebul, which inhabits a fragment of Atlantic Forest habitat in the northeastern Brazilian municipality of Sapé, Paraíba. In particular, it was hoped that the study would contribute to the conservation of the species in this region of Brazil. A study group of 19 individuals was monitored for seven months (August-October, 2011, and January-April, 2012), with monthly visits of five complete days (sleep-tree to sleep-tree). Quantitative behavioral data were collected in one-minute instantaneous scan samples at intervals of 10 minutes. All-events sampling was used to record rare behaviors, in particular social interactions. Based on scan sample records, resting was the predominant activity (67.8% of records), followed by feeding (13.7%) and locomotion (12.0%). Significantly higher levels of resting were recorded during the dry season, whereas feeding and resting increased significantly during the rainy season. The diet was folivorous-frugivorous, with a small proportion of flowers. The consumption of leaves increased significantly during the dry season, and that of fruit during the rainy season. The study group occupied an estimated home range of 10.25 hectares, although a much smaller area was used during any given month. Mean daily path length was 573 m (range: 276-1179 m), with shorter paths being recorded during the dry season and periods of increased folivory. In comparison with previous studies at the site, some considerable differences were observed in parameters such as the composition of the diet, while others, such as home range size, were relatively stable. Overall, the availability of feeding resources within the group s home range appeared to be the principal factor determining variations in the activity budget, ranging patterns, and the composition of the diet, as well as longitudinal patterns in the ecology of the species at the study site. / O objetivo deste estudo foi caracterizar a ecologia comportamental de um grupo de guariba-de-mãos-ruivas, Alouatta belzebul, em um fragmento de Mata Atlântica localizado no município de Sapé, Paraíba, com finalidade de contribuir para a conservação desta espécie no Nordeste brasileiro. Visando alcançar o proposto, um grupo composto por 19 animais foi monitorado por sete meses (agosto a outubro de 2011 e janeiro a abril de 2012) em visitas mensais de cinco dias completos (dormida-dormida). Os dados comportamentais quantitativos foram obtidos através da amostragem de varredura instantânea com varreduras de um minuto de observação e intervalos de 10 minutos entre amostras. O método todas as ocorrências foi empregado para registro de atividades raras, principalmente as interações sociais. Baseado nos registros da amostragem de varredura foi observado que o repouso foi à atividade predominante (67,8% dos registros), seguido de alimentação (13,7%) e deslocamento (12,0%). Analisando sazonalmente estes comportamentos, notou-se que eles foram significantemente diferentes, com maiores proporções do repouso na estação seca e do deslocamento e alimentação na estação chuvosa. A dieta foi folívora-frugívora, complementada por uma pequena proporção de flores. O consumo de frutos e flores foi significantemente diferente entre as estações: a maior participação dos frutos e folhas ocorreu nas estações chuvosa e seca, respectivamente. O grupo ocupou uma área de vida estimada em 10,25 hectares. Mensalmente, o tamanho da área de vida foi pequeno quando comparado ao tamanho total do espaço utilizado pelos guaribas. O percurso diário médio foi de 573 m (amplitude: 276-1179 m), com percursos menores durante a estação seca e períodos de maior folivoria. Por fim, em comparação com os estudos anteriores realizados no mesmo sítio, notaram-se variações consideráveis em alguns parâmetros, como a composição da dieta, mas não em outros, como o tamanho da área de vida. Conclui-se, portanto, que a disponibilidade de recursos alimentares na área de vida dos animais foi considerado o fator preponderante para as variações no orçamento de atividade diárias, tamanho da área de vida e do percurso médio diário, composição da dieta do grupo e variações longitudinais no sítio de estudo.

Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2016-06-17T14:40:24Z No. of bitstreams: 1 giovanneambrosioferreira.pdf: 4854968 bytes, checksum: 69664974d5a598bcb10de741b98887d4 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2016-07-13T14:39:11Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 giovanneambrosioferreira.pdf: 4854968 bytes, checksum: 69664974d5a598bcb10de741b98887d4 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-13T14:39:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 giovanneambrosioferreira.pdf: 4854968 bytes, checksum: 69664974d5a598bcb10de741b98887d4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-03-31 / Alterações antrópicas na paisagem proporcionam potenciais ameaças para diversas espécies de mamíferos. A introdução de espécies domésticas representa uma forte pressão, seja pela predação, competição, ou na veiculação de doenças domésticas para vida silvestres. O gato doméstico possui características biológicas e comportamentais que permitem uma grande adaptabilidade às áreas naturais, propiciando assim a exploração e ocupação destes ambientes, potencializando riscos às espécies nativas. Por essa razão, sua ação é apontada como um dos principais motivos da perda de espécies, principalmente em ilhas. Torna-se assim imprescindível a necessidade da verificação destas potenciais ameaças e da avaliação de estratégias voltadas para amenizá-las. Neste estudo, observamos a interferência da presença de fêmeas como um fator importante para a determinação do tamanho da área de vida dos machos. Foi constatada a predação sobre todas as espécies de pequenos mamíferos não voadores, amostradas em campanhas de capturas, em uma Área de Proteção Ambiental insular de Mata Atlântica. Entretanto, foram detectados valores opostos ao esperado para riqueza, abundância e diversidade de espécies entre diferentes áreas, considerando-se a presença ou ausência e a densidade destes felinos. Verificou-se também que para os gatos semidomiciliados, a disponibilidade de presas não foi determinante para o consumo destas espécies, o que reforça seu comportamento generalista e oportunista de predação. Observou-se ainda a sobreposição entre quatro espécies de felinos neotropicais em relação às áreas utilizadas pelos gatos domésticos vivendo nesta Unidade de Conservação. No que diz respeito às estratégias para amenizar os impactos pela presença dos gatos, foi demonstrado que o procedimento de intervenção pela castração dos machos, reduz significativamente, tanto a área de vida (75,89%), quanto o padrão de atividade (73,59%) destes gatos em condições semidomiciliares. Todavia, mesmo com a redução desta área de atividade após o procedimento de castração, esperava-se o mesmo efeito para o consumo de presas, mas verificou-se que a castração não interferiu nem no consumo destas, nem nas estimativas de populações de pequenos mamíferos não voadores, amostradas em áreas naturais onde ocorrem em simpatria com gatos. A presença de espécies de pequenos mamíferos exóticas com estreita associação com ambientes antropizados, registradas apenas nas amostras fecais analisadas, tanto no período anterior, quanto no período pós-castração, e a pouca variação no número de presas consumidas, indicam que esta predação possivelmente ocorra nas imediações das propriedades onde residem estes gatos. Os resultados indicam que, embora deva ser incentivada a fim de evitar um crescimento desordenado da população de gatos nestas áreas, a castração não deve ser a única estratégia utilizada para minimizar possíveis impactos causados pela presença destes felinos em áreas naturais. / Anthropic changes in the landscape provide potential threats to several mammal species. The introduction of domestic species is a strong pressure, by either the predation, competition, or placement of domestic diseases to wild lives. The domestic cat has biological and behavioral characteristics that allow to it a great adaptability to natural areas, promoting thus the exploitation and occupation of these environments, increasing risks to native species. Because of this, its action is one of the main reasons for the loss of species, especially on islands. It is therefore imperative the need to verify these potential threats and the evaluation of strategies aimed to mitigate them. In this study, the interference of female presence was observed as an important factor for determining the dimensions of the males home range. It has been found the predation on all kinds of small non-flying mammals, sampled on collection campaigns in an Islander Atlantic Environmental Protection Area. However, it was possible to detect opposite values expected for wealth, abundance and species diversity among different areas, considering the presence or absence and the density of these felines. It was also found that for semi-domiciled cats, the availability of preys was not decisive for the consumption of these species, which reinforces its generalist and opportunistic behavior of predation. In addition to this, there was a superimposition among four species of Neotropical felines in relation to areas used by domestic cats living in this Protection Area. In regards to the strategies to mitigate the impacts by the presence of cats, the intervention through castration of males significantly reduces both the home range (75.89%), and the pattern of activity (73.59%) of these cats under semi-domiciled conditions. However, even with the reduction of this activity area after the castration procedure, it was expected the same effect for the prey consumption of, but it was found that castration did not interfere on the consumption nor on the estimates of small non-flying mammals, sampled in natural areas where there is sympathy with cats. The presence of exotic species of small mammals with close association with anthropic environments, registered only in fecal samples analyzed both in the previous period and the post-castration period, and the small variation in the number of preys consumed indicate that this predation possibly occurs in the vicinity of the properties where these cats reside. The results indicate that, although it should be encouraged in order to avoid a disorderly growth of the cat population in these areas, castration should not be the only strategy used to minimize possible impacts caused by the presence of these felines in natural areas.

Au sein de son aire de répartition, le chevreuil (Capreolus capreolus) rencontre des conditions environnementales variables et contrastées qui engendrent une grande variété de patrons d'utilisation de l'espace. Jusqu'à présent, aucune étude n'a clairement établi un lien entre les différents patrons d'utilisation de l'espace et les conditions environnementales dans lesquelles le chevreuil évolue, ce qui limite notre compréhension des mécanismes impliqués dans le processus de sélection d'habitat. Grâce aux suivis télémétriques de nombreux chevreuils dans 4 sites avec des conditions environnementales fortement variables et contrastées nous avons cherché à établir un lien entre les variations des conditions environnementales et les variations des patrons d'utilisation de l'espace. Ainsi, nous avons démontré qu'en milieu alpin, les chevreuils adaptent l'amplitude de leurs déplacements en fonction des variations spatiales et temporelles de la disponibilité des ressources ainsi qu'en fonction des conditions d'enneigement. Contrairement aux précédentes études sur l'utilisation de l'espace par le chevreuil en milieu de montagne, nous avons montré que les mouvements des chevreuils au sein de notre aire d'étude correspondaient à un processus de sélection d'habitat de troisième ordre (48 cas; 89%) plutôt qu'à de la migration partielle, puisque très peu d'individus (6 cas; 11%) avaient stabilisé leurs déplacements au sein de domaines vitaux distincts au cours des saisons. Par ailleurs, nous avons démontré que le comportement de sélection d'habitat des chevreuils à l'échelle du domaine vital était très variable entre les populations mais également au sein de chaque population. Ainsi dans les forêts les plus pauvres où les ressources sont spatialement séparées au sein de différents habitats, nous avons démontré que les chevreuils étaient contraints de réaliser des compromis, générant des réponses fonctionnelles en sélection d'habitat. Au contraire, dans les habitats les plus riches où les ressources sont disponibles dans toutes les catégories d'habitat, nous n'avons pas observé de réponse fonctionnelle puisque les chevreuils n'étaient pas contraints et donc ne réalisaient pas de compromis. De plus, nous avons démontré que les chevreuils avec une même composition de domaine vital dans différents sites, utilisaient les ressources différemment. Ces résultats démontrent que la façon dont une ressource est utilisée ne dépend pas seulement de son niveau de disponibilité au sein du domaine vital mais varie également en fonction des conditions environnementales. De ce fait, il est impératif de tenir compte des conditions environnementales au sein d'un site pour mieux comprendre les mécanismes impliqués dans l'émergence des différents patrons d'utilisation de l'espace observés chez les ongulés. Enfin, nous avons tenté d'établir un lien entre les variations observées dans les patrons de sélection d'habitat à différentes échelles et la valeur sélective des chevreuils dans les populations de Chizé et de Trois-Fontaines pour lesquelles les données requises étaient disponibles, mais nous n'avons pu mettre en évidence aucun effet du comportement de sélection d'habitat sur la valeur sélective individuelle des femelles / Across its distributional range, the European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) encounters a wide range of environmental conditions that generate marked differences of space use patterns. However, linking variation in space use by animals in different populations facing contrasted environmental conditions to site-specific conditions has not yet been investigated, which currently limits our understanding of the mechanisms involved in habitat selection. Using data collected on roe deer equiped with VHF and GPS collars in four different sites with contrasted environmental conditions, we aimed to fill this knowledge gap by relating variations in space use by animals in variable environmental conditions. We found that roe deer in Alpine environment adapt the magnitude of their movements to the spatial and temporal variation in resource availability, but also to the amount of snow cover. Contrary to previous studies on roe deer performed in mountain ranges, we showed that roe deer movements in the northern French Alps corresponds to the usage of various habitat components within the home range (third order habitat selection process; 48 cases; 89%) rather than as partial migration because very few (6 cases; 11%) roe deer stabilized their activity in distinct home ranges across seasons. Moreover, we found that roe deer markedly differed in habitat selection within their home range, both within and among populations. Roe deer facing poor environmental conditions with spatially segregated resources should trade one resource for another one, which generates a functional response in habitat selection. At the opposite, roe deer benefiting from rich environmental conditions in their home range do not have to trade one resource for another one and therefore did not display any functional response. In addition, our results suggest that a same habitat composition can lead to widely different space use patterns. These findings demonstrate that the way a given habitat type is used in relation to its availability strongly varies in response to environmental conditions, so that accounting for variation in environmental conditions is required to provide a reliable assessment of the mechanisms involved to shape the diversity of space use patterns we currently observed in ungulates. Finally, we looked for linking observed variation in space use patterns to indivudual fitness of female roe deer in the populations of Chizé and Trois-Fontaines for which the required data were available. However, we did not find any evidence of a positive effect of the intensity of habitat selection on individual female fitness

The goals of this study were to use Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing technologies to gain a better understanding of habitat requirements of a population of ocelots in south Texas, and then apply this knowledge to form a predictive model to locate areas of suitable habitat in Willacy and Cameron counties, Texas. Satellite imagery from August 1991 and August 2000 were classified into four land cover types: closed canopy, open canopy, water, and urban/barren. These classified images were converted into digital thematic maps for use in resource utilization studies and modeling. Location estimates (762 from 1991 and 406 from 2000) were entered into a GIS in order to extract information about home range and resource selection. Each animal's home range was calculated using both Minimum Convex Polygon (MCP) and Kernel home range estimators (95% and 50%). Habitat parameters of interest were: soil, land cover, human density, road density, and distance to closest road, city and water body. Ocelots were found to prefer closed canopy and avoid open canopy land cover types. Ocelots preferred soils known to support thorn scrub, an indication of the importance of this habitat. Landscape metrics associated with habitat used by ocelots were determined through the use of Patch Analyst, an extension for ArcView 3.2. Contrary to expectations, ocelots utilized areas with greater fragmentation than random areas available for use. However, this use of highly fragmented areas was an indication of the degree of fragmentation of suitable habitat in the area. Further investigation of patch size selection indicated that ocelots used large sized patches disproportionately to availability, indicating a preference for larger patches. A model was created using the resource selection and habitat preference GIS database from 1991. This model was used to identify areas of “optimal”, ”sub-optimal”, and “unsuitable” habitat for ocelots in 2000. This resultant map was compared to known locations of ocelots in 2000. Ocelots were found to prefer optimal habitat and avoid unsuitable habitat, an indication that the model created was valid.

Animal behaviour is a state variable of the individual that deserves special attention given its determinant role in eco-evolutionary processes (Wolf et al. 2007 in Nature). The decomposition of the behavioural variation in between- and within-individual variability has revealed the existence of consistent between-individual differences referred to as personality or behavioural types (Dall et al. 2004 in Ecology Letters). Five axes of personality are usually recognized (exploration, aggressiveness, activity, sociability and boldness), and individual specificities along them tend to be correlated leading to what is known as behavioural syndromes. Recently, these patterns of covariation have been enlarged to accommodate movement behaviour within a personality-dependent spatial ecology theory (Spiegel et al. 2017 in Ecology Letters). Most animals tend to forage, reproduce and develop any activity within specific bounded space, which leads to the formation of home range (HR) areas (i.e., HR behaviour, Börger et al. 2008 in Ecology Letters). The increasing development of animal tracking technology is providing a huge amount of movement data revealing that HR behaviour is widespread among taxa and shows a large consistent variability, both at within- and between-individual level, which allows to define the existence of well-contrasted spatial behavioural types (SBTs). SBTs, as other personality traits, play an important role in selective processes as those impelled by harvesting activities. The Pace-of-Life-Syndrome (POLS) theory (Réale et al. 2010 in Philos. Trans. R. Soc. B Biol. Sci), hypothesises on how personality traits are expected to be correlated with life history (LH) traits along the fast-slow continuum (Stearns 1992 in Oxford Univ. Press) in the broadest sense. Accordingly, patterns of covariation between specific SBTs, physiology-related features and LHs would be expected to exist whenever they maximize the animal performance in a given environment. However, the way in which behavioural variation at the within-species level is translated to the wide range of LH traits remains a fundamental yet unresolved question, mainly due to the lack of a proper theoretical framework (Mathot & Frankenhuis, March 2018 in Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology). Thus, unrevealing the mechanisms behind is certainly scientifically very exciting but also socially relevant. In such a context, this PhD thesis aimed to address from conceptual, empirical and theoretical perspectives cornerstone questions in behavioural ecology: what are the feasible mechanisms underpinning the establishment of HR areas and within-species variation, what are their consequences for animal functioning and performance (i.e., in. LH traits) at the individual and eco-evolutionary levels, or what are the implications for the assessment and conservation of wildlife of the existence of SBTs. The PhD thesis focusses in a fish heavily exploited by recreational fishers but it aims to provide general reasoning applicable to a wide range of wild animals. First, the PhD thesis proposes a mechanistic theory of personality-dependent movement behaviour based on dynamic energy budget models (i.e., a behavioural-bioenergetics theoretical model). Second, integrated in the field of animal personality (i.e., decomposition of behavioural variability into within- and between-individual’s components), it addresses empirically the study of behavioural variability in the main axis of personality for a marine fish species and looked for evidences of whether personality-mediated differences in energy acquisition may exist. Aiming to support empirically the possible connections between personality traits and space-use behaviour, the thesis provides some insights on the application of a novel-tracking algorithm to analyse the movement of individual fish submitted to different experimental conditions. Third, it provides two examples of how applying HR-related theoretical concepts may improve the management of natural resources: attending the properties of HR may facilitate the assessment of wildlife using fixed monitoring sampling stations, and considering SBTs may influence the assessment of the status of wild fish stocks. Finally, the adaptive value of the proposed behavioural-bioenergetics theory is explored by means of dynamic optimization to understand the eco-evolutionary consequences related with HR variability. In summary, this PhD thesis makes an important contribution to behavioural ecology by developing a unifying theory to test the generality and adaptive value of POLS based on dynamic energy budgets. This behavioural-bioenergetics model connects (1) personality traits (2) HR behaviour, (3) physiology and (4) LH traits through an interwoven of mass/energy fluxes, within which they interact and feedback with the ecological context. Overall, from an eco-evolutionary perspective, the proposed framework constitutes a powerful tool for exploring the ecological role of HR behaviour and predicting what combination of behavioural traits would be evolutionally favoured in a given ecological context. Moving forward to including managerial scenarios, this unifying theory provides scientifically founded knowledge that would promote to improve natural resource management by attending the behavioural component of animal populations.

No description available.

The conducted study on the southern river otter Lontra provocax presents for the first time substantial data and analyses on preferred habitat components, activity pattern, prey availability, diet composition and potential food competitors, as well as a first attempt in age determination. Three southern river otter (1,2) were successfully equipped with radio transmitter. Both females were classified as resident whereas the male southern river otter was classified as temporary resident. Home range (FK 95) was 14358 m and 17675 m respectively. As only one home range was accessible for habitat analysis, the preferred habitat structures were analysed. Thus the plant Chusquea quila is most important for den sites in anthropogenic modified areas. In natural habitat dens were encountered under big trees and overhanging roots. Hunting areas in anthropogenic modified regions show considerably more woody debris than non-hunting areas, as the main prey the crayfish Samastacus spinifrons hides in this substrate. Most of their time southern river otter spent in their dens (60 %). Lontra provocax show cathemeral behaviour and when being active, the time bouts of movement behaviour averaged 2:18 hours.The crustacean species Samastacus spinifrons was the most encountered aquatic prey species in abundance and in total biomass in the river Queule and in the diet of Lontra provocax. Likewise fish may play an important role to meet the southern river otter s daily metabolic requirements. Monthly collected water samples even close to villages, had physico-chemical parameter values well below critical or toxic levels on aquatic species. Age determination was conducted on four male skulls of southern river otter. Tooth wears; tooth abrasions; dental pulp; relative width of dental pulp, incremental cementum lines and sutures of the skull were used for age determination. The animals were classified as juvenile (1), subadult-adult (1) and senior (2).

I studied movement characteristics and vegetative resources effects on home range size of beavers at Redstone Arsenal (RSA) in north central Alabama, USA. Beavers were captured and radio tagged from 11 wetlands during winter and spring of 2011. I monitored movements of radio-tagged beavers using radio telemetry from May 2011–April 2012. Beavers moved faster, presumably more favorable to central place foraging, in wetland as they proceeded farther away from the central place, but did not in upland. Additionally, distributions of hourly distances from lodges were bimodal. Home range, core areas, and distance from lodge did not differ between age classes. Home range sizes increased with increasing habitat productivity and resource dispersion, whereas home ranges decreased with temporal variation in resources throughout the year. Quantity and spatial distribution of resources and patterns of foraging behavior influence movements and home ranges of central place foragers.

No description available.

Knowledge about a species’ reproductive parameters such as breeding behaviours is a vital building block for essential conservation actions, especially for endangered species. Despite this, there is a considerable knowledge gap about the snow leopard (Panthera uncia) maternal behaviours, as well as the timing of den independence for the cubs. It has been assumed that female snow leopards change their behaviours post-denning and that the cubs leave their den together with their mothers around two to three months of age. However, until this day no quantitative data has been used to analyse female behaviours post-denning and when the cubs leave their den. I analysed pre- and post-denning activity for seven GPS-collared snow leopard females in Tost Mountains of southern Mongolia during the years 2010 to 2019. With linear mixed models and generalized linear mixed models, I found that female snow leopards with small cubs changed their behavioural patterns and space use by decreasing their monthly home range size, compared to females with older or no cubs. When the cubs became six months old, there were no detectable differences in these behaviours which suggests that the cubs started to travel continuously with their mother at the age of 5-6 months. The rate at which the collars successfully acquired positions decreased considerably during the early phase of denning when the female spent considerable time at the den sites where the collars could not communicate with the satellites. The age of the cubs when the female left the den ranged from 21-61 days (mean =44 days), suggesting that snow leopard females use their dens for 1.5 ± 0.5 months. This study provides the first estimate of the extent of den use by snow leopards, as well as the first estimates of post-denning behavioural patterns for snow leopard females and their cubs.