Foraging site recursion by forest elephants Elephas maximus borneensis

Abstract

Recursion by herbivores is the repeated use of the same site or plants. Recursion by wild animals is rarely investigated but may be ubiquitous. Optimal foraging theory predicts site recursion as a function of the quality of the site, extent of its last use, and time since its last use because these influence site resource status and recovery. We used GPS collars, behaviour and site sampling to investigate recursion to foraging sites for two elephant Elephas maximus borneensis herds in the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary, Borneo, over a 12 month period. Recursion occurred to 48 out of 87 foraging sites and was most common within 48 hours or between 151-250 days, indicating two different types of recursion. Recursion was more likely to occur if the site had previously been occupied for longer. Moreover, the time spent at a site at recursion was the same as the time spent at the site on the first occasion. The number of days that had passed between the first visit and recursion was also positively correlated with how much time was spent at the site at recursion. Habitat type also influenced the intensity of site-use, with more time spent at recursion within riverine/open grass areas along forest margins compared to other habitat types. Recursion is a common behaviour used by the elephants and its pattern suggests it may be a foraging strategy for revisiting areas of greater value. The qualities of recursion sites might usefully be incorporated into landscape management strategies for elephant conservation in the area [Current Zoology 60 (4): 551-559, 2014].

Territory surveillance and prey management: Wolves keep track of space and time

“…The approach in this paper provides a step forward in the ongoing attempt to incorporate cognition and memory in movement analyses (Avgar et al, 2015;Börger, Dalziel, & Fryxell, 2008;Fagan et al, 2013;Oliveira-Santos, Forester, Piovezan, Tomas, & Fernandez, 2016). Our method goes beyond previous approaches that investigate traplining (Ohashi, Leslie, & Thomson, 2008) or periodicity in recursive movement patterns (Bar-David et al, 2009;English et al, 2014;Giotto, Gerard, Ziv, Bouskila, & Bar-David, 2015). In our models, time since last visit to locations is a spatially explicit feature that influences movement decisions in combination with information on territory geometry and prey densities.…”

Revisitation analysis uncovers spatio‐temporal patterns in animal movement data

“…For example, gorilla's Gorilla gorilla beringei return interval to foraging patches was related to food abundance and quality (Watts 1998). Forest elephants Elephas maximus borneensis spending more time at a foraging site were likely to revisit it at longer intervals (English et al 2014). Frankfurt, Frankfurt (Main), Germany.…”

Animal behavior can inform conservation policy, we just need to get on with the job – or can it?

“…Based on GPS data, behavioral sampling and measuring abiotic and biotic site characteristics, they found that recursive site-use was a function of the intensity of the last use, as expected by optimal foraging theory (Charnov et al, 1976). Additionally, English et al (2014) found two peaks in recursion behavior, one recursion occurring within two days of the initial visit, with another occurring between five and eight months since the previous visit. Immediate recursions were typically brief, while recursions occurring after a long absence were longer.…”

“…Berger-Tal and Saltz (2014) discuss how GPS technology serves as an aid to managers post reintroduction of animals, and provide data from fallow deer and from oryx to support their argument. An additional four papers are original research papers that explore the relationship between animal behavior and its implications for conservation in fish (Paciorek et al, 2014), birds (Blesdoe and Blumstein, 2014;Kleindorfer et al, 2014) and, on a larger scale, elephants (English et al, 2014). Caro and Riggio (2014) review six species (and associated subspecies) of African 'trophy' mammals: ele-phants, black and white rhinoceros, lions, leopards, and buffalo.…”

“…Also using GPS-based data, English et al (2014) consider the spatial behavior of Asian elephants over the course of a year. Here, the authors looked at possible causes underlying the spatiotemporal patterns of 'recursion behavior', or the repeated use of specific foraging areas.…”