Increased Flight Initiation Distance (FID) in Golden Marmots (<i>Marmota caudata aurea</i>) Responding to Domestic Dogs in A Landscape of Human Disturbance
Humans and dogs initiate measurable escape responses in wild animals including flight initiation distance (FID), with potentially negative consequences. Golden marmots are important prey for endangered carnivores and are subject to human persecution including via marmot baiting with dogs. We quantif...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2019-08-01
|
| Series: | Animals |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/9/9/605 |
| _version_ | 1818269779462455296 |
|---|---|
| author | Muhammad Zaman Bryony A. Tolhurst Mengyan Zhu Guangshun Jiang |
| author_facet | Muhammad Zaman Bryony A. Tolhurst Mengyan Zhu Guangshun Jiang |
| author_sort | Muhammad Zaman |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Humans and dogs initiate measurable escape responses in wild animals including flight initiation distance (FID), with potentially negative consequences. Golden marmots are important prey for endangered carnivores and are subject to human persecution including via marmot baiting with dogs. We quantified FID at four marmot colonies (72 individuals) in the Karakoram range, Pakistan in response to approach by a pedestrian with a leashed dog versus approach by a pedestrian alone (i.e., a control). Additionally, we related FID to background variables of human activity, namely proximity to roads, and presence of other pedestrians in the vicinity of study sites during sampling. We also controlled for potential environmental and social covariates (e.g., group size, age and sex, and colony substrate). Dogs initiated greater FID than pedestrians alone, and there was evidence that roads increased FID. However, these effects were weaker than those of marmot age and colony substrate. FID was greater at lower elevations, but this may reflect the clustering in these zones of human settlements and livestock pasture. Further work is needed elucidate the importance of colony substrate (linked to ease of human persecution), the effect of settlements and pasture, and the impact of increased FID on marmot fitness. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-12T20:59:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8311693c0620459690111bffd27627a0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-12T20:59:48Z |
| publishDate | 2019-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-8311693c0620459690111bffd27627a02022-12-22T00:12:11ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152019-08-019960510.3390/ani9090605ani9090605Increased Flight Initiation Distance (FID) in Golden Marmots (<i>Marmota caudata aurea</i>) Responding to Domestic Dogs in A Landscape of Human DisturbanceMuhammad Zaman0Bryony A. Tolhurst1Mengyan Zhu2Guangshun Jiang3Feline Research Center of Chinese State Forestry and Grassland Administration, College of Wildlife and Protected Areas, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, ChinaEcology, Conservation and Zoonosis Research and Enterprise Group, University of Brighton, Brighton BN2 4GJ, UKFeline Research Center of Chinese State Forestry and Grassland Administration, College of Wildlife and Protected Areas, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, ChinaFeline Research Center of Chinese State Forestry and Grassland Administration, College of Wildlife and Protected Areas, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, ChinaHumans and dogs initiate measurable escape responses in wild animals including flight initiation distance (FID), with potentially negative consequences. Golden marmots are important prey for endangered carnivores and are subject to human persecution including via marmot baiting with dogs. We quantified FID at four marmot colonies (72 individuals) in the Karakoram range, Pakistan in response to approach by a pedestrian with a leashed dog versus approach by a pedestrian alone (i.e., a control). Additionally, we related FID to background variables of human activity, namely proximity to roads, and presence of other pedestrians in the vicinity of study sites during sampling. We also controlled for potential environmental and social covariates (e.g., group size, age and sex, and colony substrate). Dogs initiated greater FID than pedestrians alone, and there was evidence that roads increased FID. However, these effects were weaker than those of marmot age and colony substrate. FID was greater at lower elevations, but this may reflect the clustering in these zones of human settlements and livestock pasture. Further work is needed elucidate the importance of colony substrate (linked to ease of human persecution), the effect of settlements and pasture, and the impact of increased FID on marmot fitness.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/9/9/605Flight Initiation Distancedisturbancedomestic dogmarmotburrow substrate |
| spellingShingle | Muhammad Zaman Bryony A. Tolhurst Mengyan Zhu Guangshun Jiang Increased Flight Initiation Distance (FID) in Golden Marmots (<i>Marmota caudata aurea</i>) Responding to Domestic Dogs in A Landscape of Human Disturbance Animals Flight Initiation Distance disturbance domestic dog marmot burrow substrate |
| title | Increased Flight Initiation Distance (FID) in Golden Marmots (<i>Marmota caudata aurea</i>) Responding to Domestic Dogs in A Landscape of Human Disturbance |
| title_full | Increased Flight Initiation Distance (FID) in Golden Marmots (<i>Marmota caudata aurea</i>) Responding to Domestic Dogs in A Landscape of Human Disturbance |
| title_fullStr | Increased Flight Initiation Distance (FID) in Golden Marmots (<i>Marmota caudata aurea</i>) Responding to Domestic Dogs in A Landscape of Human Disturbance |
| title_full_unstemmed | Increased Flight Initiation Distance (FID) in Golden Marmots (<i>Marmota caudata aurea</i>) Responding to Domestic Dogs in A Landscape of Human Disturbance |
| title_short | Increased Flight Initiation Distance (FID) in Golden Marmots (<i>Marmota caudata aurea</i>) Responding to Domestic Dogs in A Landscape of Human Disturbance |
| title_sort | increased flight initiation distance fid in golden marmots i marmota caudata aurea i responding to domestic dogs in a landscape of human disturbance |
| topic | Flight Initiation Distance disturbance domestic dog marmot burrow substrate |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/9/9/605 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT muhammadzaman increasedflightinitiationdistancefidingoldenmarmotsimarmotacaudataaureairespondingtodomesticdogsinalandscapeofhumandisturbance AT bryonyatolhurst increasedflightinitiationdistancefidingoldenmarmotsimarmotacaudataaureairespondingtodomesticdogsinalandscapeofhumandisturbance AT mengyanzhu increasedflightinitiationdistancefidingoldenmarmotsimarmotacaudataaureairespondingtodomesticdogsinalandscapeofhumandisturbance AT guangshunjiang increasedflightinitiationdistancefidingoldenmarmotsimarmotacaudataaureairespondingtodomesticdogsinalandscapeofhumandisturbance |