Environmental disturbance increases social connectivity in a passerine bird.
Individual level response to natural and anthropogenic disturbance represents an increasingly important, but as yet little understood, component of animal behavior. Disturbance events often alter habitat, which in turn can modify behaviors of individuals in affected areas, including changes in habit...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2017-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5576644?pdf=render |
| _version_ | 1828859199440814080 |
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| author | Samantha M Lantz Jordan Karubian |
| author_facet | Samantha M Lantz Jordan Karubian |
| author_sort | Samantha M Lantz |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Individual level response to natural and anthropogenic disturbance represents an increasingly important, but as yet little understood, component of animal behavior. Disturbance events often alter habitat, which in turn can modify behaviors of individuals in affected areas, including changes in habitat use and associated changes in social structure. To better understand these relationships, we investigated aspects of habitat selection and social connectivity of a small passerine bird, the red-backed fairywren (Malurus melanocephalus), before vs. after naturally occurring fire disturbance in Northern Territory, Australia. We utilized a social network framework to evaluate changes in social dynamics pre- vs. post-fire. Our study covered the non-breeding season in two consecutive years in which fires occurred, and individuals whose habitat was affected and those that were not affected by fire. Individuals in habitat affected by fires had stronger social ties (i.e. higher weighted degree) after fires, while those that were in areas that were not affected by fire actually had lower weighted degree. We suggest that this change in social connections may be linked to habitat. Before fires, fairywrens used habitat that had similar grass cover to available habitat plots randomly generated within our study site. Fire caused a reduction in grass cover, and fairywrens responded by selecting habitat with higher grass cover relative to random plots. This study demonstrates how changes in habitat and/or resource availability caused by disturbance can lead to substantive changes in the social environment that individuals experience. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T02:14:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c8aa31b585a646c190aae4d0ea4f844a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T02:14:00Z |
| publishDate | 2017-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-c8aa31b585a646c190aae4d0ea4f844a2022-12-22T00:02:57ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032017-01-01128e018314410.1371/journal.pone.0183144Environmental disturbance increases social connectivity in a passerine bird.Samantha M LantzJordan KarubianIndividual level response to natural and anthropogenic disturbance represents an increasingly important, but as yet little understood, component of animal behavior. Disturbance events often alter habitat, which in turn can modify behaviors of individuals in affected areas, including changes in habitat use and associated changes in social structure. To better understand these relationships, we investigated aspects of habitat selection and social connectivity of a small passerine bird, the red-backed fairywren (Malurus melanocephalus), before vs. after naturally occurring fire disturbance in Northern Territory, Australia. We utilized a social network framework to evaluate changes in social dynamics pre- vs. post-fire. Our study covered the non-breeding season in two consecutive years in which fires occurred, and individuals whose habitat was affected and those that were not affected by fire. Individuals in habitat affected by fires had stronger social ties (i.e. higher weighted degree) after fires, while those that were in areas that were not affected by fire actually had lower weighted degree. We suggest that this change in social connections may be linked to habitat. Before fires, fairywrens used habitat that had similar grass cover to available habitat plots randomly generated within our study site. Fire caused a reduction in grass cover, and fairywrens responded by selecting habitat with higher grass cover relative to random plots. This study demonstrates how changes in habitat and/or resource availability caused by disturbance can lead to substantive changes in the social environment that individuals experience.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5576644?pdf=render |
| spellingShingle | Samantha M Lantz Jordan Karubian Environmental disturbance increases social connectivity in a passerine bird. PLoS ONE |
| title | Environmental disturbance increases social connectivity in a passerine bird. |
| title_full | Environmental disturbance increases social connectivity in a passerine bird. |
| title_fullStr | Environmental disturbance increases social connectivity in a passerine bird. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Environmental disturbance increases social connectivity in a passerine bird. |
| title_short | Environmental disturbance increases social connectivity in a passerine bird. |
| title_sort | environmental disturbance increases social connectivity in a passerine bird |
| url | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5576644?pdf=render |
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