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Linley GD, Guay PJ, Weston MA. Are disturbance separation distances derived from single species applicable to mixed-species shorebird flocks? Wildl Res 2019. [DOI: 10.1071/wr18198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
ContextHuman disturbance threatens many bird species worldwide. Flight-initiation distances (FIDs) offer a scientific basis for separation distances between fauna and agents of disturbance, such as people. However, most available FIDs are from single-species groups. Multi-species flocks have received scant attention with regard to their FIDs; yet, they are extremely common in nature.
AimTo examine suitable separation distances for mixed-species shorebird flocks by comparing single-species FIDs with those of the same species in mixed-species flocks.
MethodWe examined FIDs in mixed- and single-species flocks of four shorebirds (double-banded plover, Charadrius bicinctus, red-capped plover, Charadrius ruficapillus, red-necked stint, Calidris ruficollis, and curlew sandpiper, Calidris ferruginea). FIDs were collected in comparable habitat and sites with similar (i.e. highly restricted) regimes of human occurrence.
ResultsFIDs of single-species flocks of these species differed in their FID to an approaching walker. Different species permutations in mixed-species flocks resulted in different FIDs. FIDs of mixed-species flocks were lower than or the same as the FIDs of single-species groups of constituent species.
Conclusions and implicationsIn our study system, separation distances (e.g. buffers; zones that exclude humans to reduce shorebird disturbance) based on FIDs of single species also would be efficacious for mixed-species flocks containing those species.
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Montano V, van Dongen WF, Weston MA, Mulder RA, Robinson RW, Cowling M, Guay PJ. Response to Rawlence et al. (): Native or not? Extinct and extant DNA of New Zealand Black Swans. Evol Appl 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/eva.12587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Valeria Montano
- School of Life Sciences; École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne; Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Wouter F.D. van Dongen
- Deakin University; Geelong Vic. Australia
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences; Centre for Integrative Ecology; Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment; Burwood Vic. Australia
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation; Victoria University; Melbourne Vic. Australia
| | - Michael A. Weston
- Deakin University; Geelong Vic. Australia
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences; Centre for Integrative Ecology; Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment; Burwood Vic. Australia
| | - Raoul A. Mulder
- School of Biosciences; University of Melbourne; Melbourne Vic. Australia
| | - Randall W. Robinson
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation; Victoria University; Melbourne Vic. Australia
| | - Mary Cowling
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation; Victoria University; Melbourne Vic. Australia
| | - Patrick-Jean Guay
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation; Victoria University; Melbourne Vic. Australia
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Montano V, van Dongen WF, Weston MA, Mulder RA, Robinson RW, Cowling M, Guay PJ. A genetic assessment of the human-facilitated colonization history of black swans in Australia and New Zealand. Evol Appl 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/eva.12535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | - Wouter F.D. van Dongen
- Deakin University; Geelong Vic Australia
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Centre for Integrative Ecology, Faculty of Science; Engineering and the Built Environment; Burwood Vic Australia
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation; Victoria University; Melbourne Vic Australia
| | - Michael A. Weston
- Deakin University; Geelong Vic Australia
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Centre for Integrative Ecology, Faculty of Science; Engineering and the Built Environment; Burwood Vic Australia
| | - Raoul A. Mulder
- School of Biosciences; University of Melbourne; Melbourne Vic Australia
| | - Randall W. Robinson
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation; Victoria University; Melbourne Vic Australia
| | - Mary Cowling
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation; Victoria University; Melbourne Vic Australia
| | - Patrick-Jean Guay
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation; Victoria University; Melbourne Vic Australia
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van Dongen WFD, San Martin R, Guay PJ, Weston MA. A comparison of the effectiveness and time efficiency of traditional and photographic environmental monitoring techniques. J Environ Manage 2017; 193:64-69. [PMID: 28189930 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.01.050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2016] [Revised: 01/15/2017] [Accepted: 01/21/2017] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Photographic methods of environmental monitoring have grown in popularity and now represent one of the main ways in which habitat and biodiversity are monitored for change through time. However, efficacy and efficiency of this technique compared with traditional approaches to environmental monitoring (direct count or observation) are lacking. This study compares the results and time-efficiency of manual versus photographic monitoring of floral abundance in low-growing flowering plants in a relatively open herbfield. Specifically, we compared 1) manual flower counting of individual plants for four species, followed by data entry in the laboratory, with 2) taking photographic images of each plant and quantifying flower counts in the laboratory. Photographic monitoring underestimated flower counts by an average of 7.5%. Manual counting was more time consuming in the field, but less time consuming in post-processing than photographic monitoring. Overall, photographic monitoring took almost twice as long as manual counting (81.5% longer in duration), which was attributed to the much longer post-processing associated with photographic monitoring. This suggests that perhaps the main benefit of photographic monitoring is a permanent record of the sampling frame rather than any cost savings or enhanced data accuracy, at least in the systems investigated in this study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wouter F D van Dongen
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
| | - Ricardo San Martin
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
| | - Patrick-Jean Guay
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University, Footscray Park Campus, PO Box 14428, Melbourne MC, VIC 8001, Australia
| | - Michael A Weston
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia.
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Guay PJ, van Dongen WFD, Robinson RW, Blumstein DT, Weston MA. AvianBuffer: An interactive tool for characterising and managing wildlife fear responses. Ambio 2016; 45:841-851. [PMID: 27055852 PMCID: PMC5055477 DOI: 10.1007/s13280-016-0779-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2015] [Revised: 01/29/2016] [Accepted: 03/21/2016] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
The characterisation and management of deleterious processes affecting wildlife are ideally based on sound scientific information. However, relevant information is often absent, or difficult to access or contextualise for specific management purposes. We describe 'AvianBuffer', an interactive online tool enabling the estimation of distances at which Australian birds respond fearfully to humans. Users can input species assemblages and determine a 'separation distance' above which the assemblage is predicted to not flee humans. They can also nominate the diversity they wish to minimise disturbance to, or a specific separation distance to obtain an estimate of the diversity that will remain undisturbed. The dataset is based upon flight-initiation distances (FIDs) from 251 Australian bird species (n = 9190 FIDs) and a range of human-associated stimuli. The tool will be of interest to a wide audience including conservation managers, pest managers, policy makers, land-use planners, education and public outreach officers, animal welfare proponents and wildlife ecologists. We discuss possible applications of the data, including the construction of buffers, development of codes of conduct, environmental impact assessments and public outreach. This tool will help balance the growing need for biodiversity conservation in areas where humans can experience nature. The online resource will be expanded in future iterations to include an international database of FIDs of both avian and non-avian species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick-Jean Guay
- Applied Ecology Research Group and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University, Footscray Park Campus, PO Box 14428, Melbourne, VIC MC 8001 Australia
| | - Wouter F. D. van Dongen
- Applied Ecology Research Group and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University, Footscray Park Campus, PO Box 14428, Melbourne, VIC MC 8001 Australia
| | - Randall W. Robinson
- Applied Ecology Research Group and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University, Footscray Park Campus, PO Box 14428, Melbourne, VIC MC 8001 Australia
| | - Daniel T. Blumstein
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA USA
| | - Michael A. Weston
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, VIC 3125 Australia
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Symonds MRE, Weston MA, van Dongen WFD, Lill A, Robinson RW, Guay PJ. Time Since Urbanization but Not Encephalisation Is Associated with Increased Tolerance of Human Proximity in Birds. Front Ecol Evol 2016. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2016.00117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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van Dongen WFD, Robinson RW, Weston MA, Mulder RA, Guay PJ. Variation at the DRD4 locus is associated with wariness and local site selection in urban black swans. BMC Evol Biol 2015; 15:253. [PMID: 26653173 PMCID: PMC4676183 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-015-0533-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2015] [Accepted: 11/04/2015] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Interactions between wildlife and humans are increasing. Urban animals are often less wary of humans than their non-urban counterparts, which could be explained by habituation, adaptation or local site selection. Under local site selection, individuals that are less tolerant of humans are less likely to settle in urban areas. However, there is little evidence for such temperament-based site selection, and even less is known about its underlying genetic basis. We tested whether site selection in urban and non-urban habitats by black swans (Cygnus atratus) was associated with polymorphisms in two genes linked to fear in animals, the dopamine receptor D4 (DRD4) and serotonin transporter (SERT) genes. Results Wariness in swans was highly repeatable between disturbance events (repeatability = 0.61) and non-urban swans initiated escape from humans earlier than urban swans. We found no inter-individual variation in the SERT gene, but identified five DRD4 genotypes and an association between DRD4 genotype and wariness. Individuals possessing the most common DRD4 genotype were less wary than individuals possessing rarer genotypes. As predicted by the local site selection hypothesis, genotypes associated with wary behaviour were over three times more frequent at the non-urban site. This resulted in moderate population differentiation at DRD4 (FST = 0.080), despite the sites being separated by only 30 km, a short distance for this highly-mobile species. Low population differentiation at neutrally-selected microsatellite loci and the likely occasional migration of swans between the populations reduces the likelihood of local site adaptations. Conclusion Our results suggest that wariness in swans is partly genetically-determined and that wary swans settle in less-disturbed areas. More generally, our findings suggest that site-specific management strategies may be necessary that consider the temperament of local animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wouter F D van Dongen
- Applied Ecology Research Group and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University-Footscray Park Campus, PO Box 14428, Melbourne MC, VIC, 8001, Australia. .,Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, VIC, 3125, Australia.
| | - Randall W Robinson
- Applied Ecology Research Group and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University-Footscray Park Campus, PO Box 14428, Melbourne MC, VIC, 8001, Australia.
| | - Michael A Weston
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, VIC, 3125, Australia.
| | - Raoul A Mulder
- Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3010, Australia.
| | - Patrick-Jean Guay
- Applied Ecology Research Group and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University-Footscray Park Campus, PO Box 14428, Melbourne MC, VIC, 8001, Australia.
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Møller AP, Samia DSM, Weston MA, Guay PJ, Blumstein DT. Flight initiation distances in relation to sexual dichromatism and body size in birds from three continents. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/bij.12706] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Anders P. Møller
- Laboratoire d'Ecologie, Systématique et Evolution; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 8079; Université Paris-Sud; Bâtiment 362 F-91405 Orsay Cedex France
| | - Diogo S. M. Samia
- Ecology and Evolution; Laboratory of Theoretical Ecology and Synthesis; Federal University of Goiás; Caixa Postal 131 74001-970 Goiânia Brazil
| | - Michael A. Weston
- Centre for Integrative Ecology; School of Life and Environmental Sciences; Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment; Deakin University; Burwood Vic. 3125 Australia
| | - Patrick-Jean Guay
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation; College of Engineering and Science; Victoria University; Footscray Park Campus PO Box 14428 Melbourne MC Vic. 8001 Australia
| | - Daniel T. Blumstein
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; University of California; 621 Young Drive South Los Angeles CA 90095-1606 USA
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Garnett ST, Duursma DE, Ehmke G, Guay PJ, Stewart A, Szabo JK, Weston MA, Bennett S, Crowley GM, Drynan D, Dutson G, Fitzherbert K, Franklin DC. Biological, ecological, conservation and legal information for all species and subspecies of Australian bird. Sci Data 2015; 2:150061. [PMID: 26594379 PMCID: PMC4640137 DOI: 10.1038/sdata.2015.61] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2014] [Accepted: 10/02/2015] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
We introduce a dataset of biological, ecological, conservation and legal information for every species and subspecies of Australian bird, 2056 taxa or populations in total. Version 1 contains 230 fields grouped under the following headings: Taxonomy & nomenclature, Phylogeny, Australian population status, Conservation status, Legal status, Distribution, Morphology, Habitat, Food, Behaviour, Breeding, Mobility and Climate metrics. It is envisaged that the dataset will be updated periodically with new data for existing fields and the addition of new fields. The dataset has already had, and will continue to have applications in Australian and international ornithology, especially those that require standard information for a large number of taxa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen T Garnett
- Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University , Darwin, NT 0909, Australia
| | - Daisy E Duursma
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University , North Ryde, NSW 2109, Australia
| | - Glenn Ehmke
- BirdLife Australia , 5/60 Leicester St, Carlton, Vic. 3053, Australia
| | - Patrick-Jean Guay
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, Victoria University, Footscray Park Campus , PO Box 14428, Melbourne MC, Vic. 8001, Australia
| | - Alistair Stewart
- Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University , Darwin, NT 0909, Australia
| | - Judit K Szabo
- Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University , Darwin, NT 0909, Australia ; East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership Secretariat , 3F G-Tower, 175 Art center-daero (24-4 Songdo-dong), Yeonsu-gu, Incheon 406-840, Republic of Korea
| | - Michael A Weston
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment, Deakin University , 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, Vic. 3125, Australia
| | | | - Gabriel M Crowley
- The Cairns Institute, James Cook University , PO Box 6811, Cairns, Qld 4870, Australia
| | - David Drynan
- Australian Bird & Bat Banding Scheme , GPO Box 8, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Guy Dutson
- Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University , Darwin, NT 0909, Australia ; School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University , Waurn Ponds, Vic. 3216, Australia
| | - Kate Fitzherbert
- Bush Heritage Australia , PO Box 329, Flinders Lane, Melbourne, Vic. 8009, Australia
| | - Donald C Franklin
- Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University , Darwin, NT 0909, Australia
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Møller AP, Samia DSM, Weston MA, Guay PJ, Blumstein DT. American exceptionalism: population trends and flight initiation distances in birds from three continents. PLoS One 2014; 9:e107883. [PMID: 25226165 PMCID: PMC4166455 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0107883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2014] [Accepted: 08/19/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND All organisms may be affected by humans' increasing impact on Earth, but there are many potential drivers of population trends and the relative importance of each remains largely unknown. The causes of spatial patterns in population trends and their relationship with animal responses to human proximity are even less known. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDING We investigated the relationship between population trends of 193 species of bird in North America, Australia and Europe and flight initiation distance (FID); the distance at which birds take flight when approached by a human. While there is an expected negative relationship between population trend and FID in Australia and Europe, we found the inverse relationship for North American birds; thus FID cannot be used as a universal predictor of vulnerability of birds. However, the analysis of the joint explanatory ability of multiple drivers (farmland breeding habitat, pole-most breeding latitude, migratory habit, FID) effects on population status replicated previously reported strong effects of farmland breeding habitat (an effect apparently driven mostly by European birds), as well as strong effects of FID, body size, migratory habit and continent. Farmland birds are generally declining. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE Flight initiation distance is related to population trends in a way that differs among continents opening new research possibilities concerning the causes of geographic differences in patterns of anti-predator behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anders Pape Møller
- Laboratoire d'Ecologie, Systématique et Evolution, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 8079, Université Paris-Sud, Orsay, France
| | - Diogo S. M. Samia
- Ecology and Evolution, Laboratory of Theoretical Ecology and Synthesis, Federal University of Goiás, Goiânia, Brazil
| | - Mike A. Weston
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment, Deakin University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Patrick-Jean Guay
- College of Engineering and Science, and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, Victoria University, Footscray Park Campus, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Daniel T. Blumstein
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
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Symonds MRE, Weston MA, Robinson RW, Guay PJ. Comparative analysis of classic brain component sizes in relation to flightiness in birds. PLoS One 2014; 9:e91960. [PMID: 24637884 PMCID: PMC3956822 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0091960] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2013] [Accepted: 02/17/2014] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Increased encephalization has been linked to a range of behavioural traits and scenarios. However, studies of whole brain size in this context have been criticised for ignoring the role of specific brain areas in controlling behaviour. In birds, the response to potential threats is one such behaviour that may relate to the way in which the brain processes sensory information. We used a phylogenetic generalised least squares (PGLS) analyses, based on five different phylogenetic hypotheses, to analyse the relationship of relative sizes of whole brain and brain components with Flight-Initiation Distance (FID), the distance at which birds flee from an approaching human, for 41 bird species. Starting distance (the distance at which an approach to a bird commences), body mass and eye size have elsewhere been shown to be positively associated with FID, and consequently were included as covariates in our analysis. Starting distance and body mass were by far the strongest predictors of FID. Of all brain components, cerebellum size had the strongest predictor weight and was negatively associated with FID but the confidence intervals on the average estimate included zero and the overall predictor weight was low. Models featuring individual brain components were generally more strongly weighted than models featuring whole brain size. The PGLS analyses estimated there to be no phylogenetic signal in the regression models, and hence produced results equivalent to ordinary least squares regression analysis. However analyses that assumed strong phylogenetic signal produced substantially different results with each phylogeny, and overall suggest a negative relationship between forebrain size and FID. Our analyses suggest that the evolutionary assumptions of the comparative analysis, and consideration of starting distance make a profound difference to the interpretation of the effect of brain components on FID in birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew R. E. Symonds
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, Victoria, Australia
- * E-mail:
| | - Michael A. Weston
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, Victoria, Australia
| | - Randall W. Robinson
- Applied Ecology Research Group & Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University, St. Albans, Victoria, Australia
| | - Patrick-Jean Guay
- Applied Ecology Research Group & Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University, St. Albans, Victoria, Australia
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McLeod EM, Guay PJ, Taysom AJ, Robinson RW, Weston MA. Buses, cars, bicycles and walkers: the influence of the type of human transport on the flight responses of waterbirds. PLoS One 2013; 8:e82008. [PMID: 24367498 PMCID: PMC3867343 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0082008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2013] [Accepted: 10/20/2013] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
One way to manage disturbance to waterbirds in natural areas where humans require access is to promote the occurrence of stimuli for which birds tolerate closer approaches, and so cause fewer responses. We conducted 730 experimental approaches to 39 species of waterbird, using five stimulus types (single walker, three walkers, bicycle, car and bus) selected to mimic different human management options available for a controlled access, Ramsar-listed wetland. Across species, where differences existed (56% of 25 cases), motor vehicles always evoked shorter flight-initiation distances (FID) than humans on foot. The influence of stimulus type on FID varied across four species for which enough data were available for complete cross-stimulus analysis. All four varied FID in relation to stimuli, differing in 4 to 7 of 10 possible comparisons. Where differences occurred, the effect size was generally modest, suggesting that managing stimulus type (e.g. by requiring people to use vehicles) may have species-specific, modest benefits, at least for the waterbirds we studied. However, different stimulus types have different capacities to reduce the frequency of disturbance (i.e. by carrying more people) and vary in their capacity to travel around important habitat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily M. McLeod
- Applied Ecology Research Group and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Patrick-Jean Guay
- Applied Ecology Research Group and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia
- College of Health and Biomedicine, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Alice J. Taysom
- Applied Ecology Research Group and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Randall W. Robinson
- Applied Ecology Research Group and Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, College of Engineering and Science, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Michael A. Weston
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Burwood, Australia
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Guay PJ, Lorenz RDA, Robinson RW, Symonds MRE, Weston MA. Distance from Water, Sex and Approach Direction Influence Flight Distances Among Habituated Black Swans. Ethology 2013. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Patrick-Jean Guay
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation; Victoria University; St-Albans; VIC; Australia
| | - Rachael D. A. Lorenz
- Applied Ecology Research Group, College of Engineering and Science; Victoria University; St-Albans; VIC; Australia
| | | | - Matthew R. E. Symonds
- Centre for Integrative Ecology; School of Life and Environmental Science, Faculty of Science; Engineering and the Built Environment; Deakin University; Burwood; VIC; Australia
| | - Michael A. Weston
- Centre for Integrative Ecology; School of Life and Environmental Science, Faculty of Science; Engineering and the Built Environment; Deakin University; Burwood; VIC; Australia
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Payne CJ, Jessop TS, Guay PJ, Johnstone M, Feore M, Mulder RA. Population, behavioural and physiological responses of an urban population of black swans to an intense annual noise event. PLoS One 2012; 7:e45014. [PMID: 23024783 PMCID: PMC3443219 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0045014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2012] [Accepted: 08/14/2012] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Wild animals in urban environments are exposed to a broad range of human activities that have the potential to disturb their life history and behaviour. Wildlife responses to disturbance can range from emigration to modified behaviour, or elevated stress, but these responses are rarely evaluated in concert. We simultaneously examined population, behavioural and hormonal responses of an urban population of black swans Cygnus atratus before, during and after an annual disturbance event involving large crowds and intense noise, the Australian Formula One Grand Prix. Black swan population numbers were lowest one week before the event and rose gradually over the course of the study, peaking after the event, suggesting that the disturbance does not trigger mass emigration. We also found no difference in the proportion of time spent on key behaviours such as locomotion, foraging, resting or self-maintenance over the course of the study. However, basal and capture stress-induced corticosterone levels showed significant variation, consistent with a modest physiological response. Basal plasma corticosterone levels were highest before the event and decreased over the course of the study. Capture-induced stress levels peaked during the Grand Prix and then also declined over the remainder of the study. Our results suggest that even intensely noisy and apparently disruptive events may have relatively low measurable short-term impact on population numbers, behaviour or physiology in urban populations with apparently high tolerance to anthropogenic disturbance. Nevertheless, the potential long-term impact of such disturbance on reproductive success, individual fitness and population health will need to be carefully evaluated.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tim S. Jessop
- Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Wildlife Conservation and Science, Zoos Victoria, Victoria, Australia
| | - Patrick-Jean Guay
- Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, Victoria University, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Megan Feore
- Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Raoul A. Mulder
- Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- * E-mail:
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Mulder RA, Guay PJ, Wilson M, Coulson G. Citizen science: recruiting residents for studies of tagged urban wildlife. Wildl Res 2010. [DOI: 10.1071/wr10007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
The human residents of cities represent a largely untapped and potentially vast source of information about urban wildlife. One simple and scientifically valuable contribution involves the reporting of sightings of tagged animals, but even in urban areas, such reports are relatively rare. We draw on two case studies of conspicuously tagged and iconic animals to consider human reactions to wildlife tags, and how these influence the likelihood of unsolicited reports. We evaluate potential strategies for increasing participation from this pool of potential citizen scientists and maximising the reliability of these contributions. In both studies, public reports contributed substantial and largely accurate data. We conclude that such reports are often of unique value, and that common sources of reporting error can be minimised by careful tag design and clear advice to participants. Effective information campaigns can have unexpected effects on reporting rates, but in general, communication is crucial to raising awareness and encouraging public involvement. New interactive web-based tools have the potential to dramatically increase public accessibility to information and encourage involvement by providing instant feedback, access to research updates, and encouraging the formation of clusters of citizen scientists.
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Seferta A, Guay PJ, Marzinotto E, Lefebvre L. Learning Differences between Feral Pigeons and Zenaida Doves: The Role of Neophobia and Human Proximity. Ethology 2001. [DOI: 10.1046/j.1439-0310.2001.00658.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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