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Landscape and fine-scale movements of a leaf beetle: the importance of boundary behaviour

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Abstract

Movement underpins animal spatial ecology and is often modelled as habitat-dependent correlated random walks. Here, we develop such a model for the flightless tansy leaf beetle Chrysolina graminis moving within and between patches of its host plant tansy Tanacetum vulgare. To parameterize the model, beetle movement paths on timescales of minutes were observed in uniform plots of tansy and inter-patch matrix (meadow) vegetation. Movement lasted longer, covered greater distances and had narrower turning angles in the matrix. Simulations of the model emulated an independent two-season multi-patch mark–resight study at daily timescales and included variable boundary-mediated behaviour affecting the probability of leaving habitat patches. As boundaries in the model became stronger there were disproportionately large decreases in net displacements, inter-patch movements and the proportion of beetles in the matrix. The model produced realistic patterns of population-level displacement over periods up to 13 days with fully permeable boundaries for one dataset and strong boundaries for the other. This may be explained by the heights of the tansy patches in each study, as beetles will be unable to cross the boundary near the top of a patch that emerges from the matrix. The simulations demonstrate the important effects of boundary behaviour on displacement patterns and indicate temporal and spatial variability in permeability. Realistic models of movement must therefore include behaviour at habitat boundaries.

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Acknowledgements

Duncan Sivell performed the 2003 mark–recapture study, funded by the British Ecological Society SEPG no. 2015 awarded to G. S. O. and C. D. D. S. C. was supported by a NERC Case studentship with English Nature, from whom we thank Roger Key. We are also indebted to the City of York Council for financial support as part of their Biodiversity Action Plan. Mark Williamson, Wolf Mooij and an anonymous reviewer provided valuable comments on an earlier draft of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, University of York, York, YO10 5YW, UK

    Daniel S. Chapman, Calvin Dytham & Geoff S. Oxford

  2. IICB, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK

    Daniel S. Chapman

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  1. Daniel S. Chapman
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  2. Calvin Dytham
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  3. Geoff S. Oxford
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Correspondence to Daniel S. Chapman.

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Communicated by Wolf Mooij.

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Chapman, D.S., Dytham, C. & Oxford, G.S. Landscape and fine-scale movements of a leaf beetle: the importance of boundary behaviour. Oecologia 154, 55–64 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-007-0806-z

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