The use of space by animals as a function of accessibility and preference
Authored by J Matthiopoulos
Date Published: 2003
DOI: 10.1016/s0304-3800(02)00293-4
Sponsors:
United Kingdom Ministries
Platforms:
No platforms listed
Model Documentation:
Other Narrative
Mathematical description
Model Code URLs:
Model code not found
Abstract
Heterogeneous usage of space by individual animals or animal populations
is partly due to their preference for particular resources that are, themselves. heterogeneously distributed. When all points in the
environment are equally accessible, a direct relationship between usage
and preference can be assumed. However, when accessibility is
restricted, spatial variations in usage can no longer be attributed
entirely to preference. In such cases, it is necessary to control for
the effects of accessibility on observed usage before conclusions about
preference can be drawn. In this paper, I develop a modelling framework
that treats the use of space by animals as a joint function of
preference and accessibility. I specify a null version of the framework
that assumes no preference and propose that its output can be used to
control for the effect of accessibility on the observed, spatial
distribution of usage. I briefly discuss how the framework can
subsequently be used to provide insights about the animals' preference
for different resources and types of movement, and to predict usage in
areas where no usage data exist. I explore the properties of the
methodology using data from a population of simulated animals and
present the first results of its application to a sub-set of the British
population of grey seals (Halichoerus grypus). (C) 2002 Elsevier Science
B.V. All rights reserved.
Tags
Individual-based model
behavior
ecology
Correlated random-walk
Habitat selection
Spatial-distribution
Relating populations
Home-range analysis
Foraging
movements
Random diffusion