Diverse migratory portfolios drive inter‐annual switching behavior of elk across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
Abstract A growing body of evidence shows that some ungulates alternate between migratory and nonmigratory behaviors over time. Yet it remains unclear whether such short‐term behavioral changes can help explain reported declines in ungulate migration worldwide, as opposed to long‐term demographic ch...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2023-05-01
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| Series: | Ecosphere |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4502 |
| _version_ | 1797817058161852416 |
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| author | Gabriel R. Zuckerman Kristin J. Barker Laura C. Gigliotti Eric K. Cole Justin A. Gude Mark A. Hurley Matthew J. Kauffman Daryl Lutz Daniel R. MacNulty Eric J. Maichak Doug McWhirter Tony W. Mong Kelly Proffitt Brandon M. Scurlock Daniel R. Stahler Ben Wise Arthur D. Middleton |
| author_facet | Gabriel R. Zuckerman Kristin J. Barker Laura C. Gigliotti Eric K. Cole Justin A. Gude Mark A. Hurley Matthew J. Kauffman Daryl Lutz Daniel R. MacNulty Eric J. Maichak Doug McWhirter Tony W. Mong Kelly Proffitt Brandon M. Scurlock Daniel R. Stahler Ben Wise Arthur D. Middleton |
| author_sort | Gabriel R. Zuckerman |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract A growing body of evidence shows that some ungulates alternate between migratory and nonmigratory behaviors over time. Yet it remains unclear whether such short‐term behavioral changes can help explain reported declines in ungulate migration worldwide, as opposed to long‐term demographic changes. Furthermore, advances in tracking technology reveal that a simple distinction between migration and nonmigration may not sufficiently describe all individual behaviors. To better understand the dynamics and drivers of ungulate switching behavior, we investigated 14 years of movement data from 361 elk in 20 herds across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE). First, we categorized yearly individual behaviors using a clustering algorithm that identified similar migratory tactics across a continuum of behaviors. Then, we tested seven hypotheses to explain why some ungulates switch behaviors, and we evaluated how behavioral changes affected the proportions of different behaviors across the system. We identified four distinct behavioral tactics: residents (4.8% of elk‐years), short‐distance migrants (53.7%), elevational migrants (21.9%) and long‐distance migrants (19.6%). Of the 20 herds, 18 were partially migratory, and 5 had all four movement tactics present. We observed switches between migratory tactics in all sets of consecutive years during our study period, with an average of 22.5% of individual elk changing movement tactics from one year to the next. Elk in herds with higher movement tactic diversity were significantly more likely to switch tactics and often responded more effectively to adverse environmental conditions, compared to those in herds with low movement tactic diversity. During our study period, switching increased the prevalence of both short‐ and long‐distance migrants, decreased the prevalence of elevational migrants, and had no effect on the prevalence of residents. Our findings suggest that rather than contributing to the declining migratory behavior found in the GYE, switching behavior may enable greater resiliency to continuously changing environmental and anthropogenic conditions. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T08:46:54Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-44e5c44b977a4e31b5be8bb0c9d9c483 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2150-8925 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-13T08:46:54Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecosphere |
| spelling | doaj.art-44e5c44b977a4e31b5be8bb0c9d9c4832023-05-30T00:04:33ZengWileyEcosphere2150-89252023-05-01145n/an/a10.1002/ecs2.4502Diverse migratory portfolios drive inter‐annual switching behavior of elk across the Greater Yellowstone EcosystemGabriel R. Zuckerman0Kristin J. Barker1Laura C. Gigliotti2Eric K. Cole3Justin A. Gude4Mark A. Hurley5Matthew J. Kauffman6Daryl Lutz7Daniel R. MacNulty8Eric J. Maichak9Doug McWhirter10Tony W. Mong11Kelly Proffitt12Brandon M. Scurlock13Daniel R. Stahler14Ben Wise15Arthur D. Middleton16Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management University of California, Berkeley Berkeley California USADepartment of Environmental Science, Policy and Management University of California, Berkeley Berkeley California USADepartment of Environmental Science, Policy and Management University of California, Berkeley Berkeley California USANational Elk Refuge, US Fish and Wildlife Service Jackson Wyoming USAMontana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Helena Montana USAIdaho Department of Fish and Game Boise Idaho USAWyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Department of Zoology and Physiology, U.S. Geological Survey University of Wyoming Laramie Wyoming USAWyoming Game and Fish Department Lander Wyoming USADepartment of Wildland Resources and Ecology Center Utah State University Logan Utah USAWyoming Game and Fish Department Lander Wyoming USAWyoming Game and Fish Department Lander Wyoming USAWyoming Game and Fish Department Lander Wyoming USAMontana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Helena Montana USAWyoming Game and Fish Department Lander Wyoming USAYellowstone Center for Resources Yellowstone National Park Wyoming USAWyoming Game and Fish Department Lander Wyoming USADepartment of Environmental Science, Policy and Management University of California, Berkeley Berkeley California USAAbstract A growing body of evidence shows that some ungulates alternate between migratory and nonmigratory behaviors over time. Yet it remains unclear whether such short‐term behavioral changes can help explain reported declines in ungulate migration worldwide, as opposed to long‐term demographic changes. Furthermore, advances in tracking technology reveal that a simple distinction between migration and nonmigration may not sufficiently describe all individual behaviors. To better understand the dynamics and drivers of ungulate switching behavior, we investigated 14 years of movement data from 361 elk in 20 herds across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE). First, we categorized yearly individual behaviors using a clustering algorithm that identified similar migratory tactics across a continuum of behaviors. Then, we tested seven hypotheses to explain why some ungulates switch behaviors, and we evaluated how behavioral changes affected the proportions of different behaviors across the system. We identified four distinct behavioral tactics: residents (4.8% of elk‐years), short‐distance migrants (53.7%), elevational migrants (21.9%) and long‐distance migrants (19.6%). Of the 20 herds, 18 were partially migratory, and 5 had all four movement tactics present. We observed switches between migratory tactics in all sets of consecutive years during our study period, with an average of 22.5% of individual elk changing movement tactics from one year to the next. Elk in herds with higher movement tactic diversity were significantly more likely to switch tactics and often responded more effectively to adverse environmental conditions, compared to those in herds with low movement tactic diversity. During our study period, switching increased the prevalence of both short‐ and long‐distance migrants, decreased the prevalence of elevational migrants, and had no effect on the prevalence of residents. Our findings suggest that rather than contributing to the declining migratory behavior found in the GYE, switching behavior may enable greater resiliency to continuously changing environmental and anthropogenic conditions.https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4502elkGPS trackingGreater Yellowstone Ecosystemmigratory plasticitymigratory portfoliosmigratory tactic |
| spellingShingle | Gabriel R. Zuckerman Kristin J. Barker Laura C. Gigliotti Eric K. Cole Justin A. Gude Mark A. Hurley Matthew J. Kauffman Daryl Lutz Daniel R. MacNulty Eric J. Maichak Doug McWhirter Tony W. Mong Kelly Proffitt Brandon M. Scurlock Daniel R. Stahler Ben Wise Arthur D. Middleton Diverse migratory portfolios drive inter‐annual switching behavior of elk across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem Ecosphere elk GPS tracking Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem migratory plasticity migratory portfolios migratory tactic |
| title | Diverse migratory portfolios drive inter‐annual switching behavior of elk across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem |
| title_full | Diverse migratory portfolios drive inter‐annual switching behavior of elk across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem |
| title_fullStr | Diverse migratory portfolios drive inter‐annual switching behavior of elk across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem |
| title_full_unstemmed | Diverse migratory portfolios drive inter‐annual switching behavior of elk across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem |
| title_short | Diverse migratory portfolios drive inter‐annual switching behavior of elk across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem |
| title_sort | diverse migratory portfolios drive inter annual switching behavior of elk across the greater yellowstone ecosystem |
| topic | elk GPS tracking Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem migratory plasticity migratory portfolios migratory tactic |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4502 |
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