The value of long-term studies in behavioural ecology

Abstract

Artículo publicado en Open Access bajo los términos de Creative Commons attribution Non Comercial License 3.0. MONOGRÁFICO: Papel de los estudios comportamentales enEcología ecosistemas REVISTA CIENTÍFICA DE ECOLOGÍA Y MEDIO AMBIENTE

The importance of long‐term studies on wildlife diseases and their interfaces with humans and domestic animals: A review

“…The number of publications selected decreased as the duration of the study increased (146 for a study period of 4 years but only 35 over 20 years; see Figure 7a). The duration of the projects on wildlife diseases and therefore the continuity of this type of study are conditioned by factors such as infrastructures, staff, time and are usually further limited by budgetary constraints (Gordo & Avilés, 2017) and the absence of a long-term perspective on the part of the policymakers for science.…”

“…Long-term approaches are aimed at providing the necessary perspective to understand processes that operate over long temporal scales (Christensen et al, 2020;Nugent et al, 2012;Vicente et al, 2013). We can discern what the drivers of infection dynamics are, and how pathogens become endemic or fade out in host communities and populations (Gordo & Avilés, 2017;Nugent et al, 2012;Strayer et al, 1986), and generate (or evaluate) well-informed strategies for effective risk management (Delahay et al, 2013;Portier et al, 2019). This is especially relevant when analysing the epidemiological and demographic consequences of infections in long-lived species and endemic situations (Barroso et al, 2020;McDonald et al, 2017), and also to characterize the arena of 'hot scenarios' where pathogens may emerge (Jones et al, 2008).…”

“…This is especially relevant when analysing the epidemiological and demographic consequences of infections in long-lived species and endemic situations (Barroso et al, 2020;McDonald et al, 2017), and also to characterize the arena of 'hot scenarios' where pathogens may emerge (Jones et al, 2008). However, longterm studies are generally more costly, time-consuming and difficult to carry out than shorter investigations (Gordo & Avilés, 2017;Likens, 1989). This type of study is based on the replication of the same/comparable protocol/s or experiment/s for many years and compiling enough accurate replicas (either in different areas and hosts or not) and covering the different phases of ecological and epidemiological processes with the purpose of providing reliable conclusions.…”

“…The relevance of long-term studies in the field of ecology and evolutionary biology has been widely recognized, and an increasing body of knowledge is available, both individual-and population-based (Gordo & Avilés, 2017;Likens, 1989;Strayer et al, 1986).…”