Movements of Australian Wood Ducks (Chenonetta jubata) in an agricultural landscape

Author(s)
McEvoy, John F
Hall, Graham P
McDonald, Paul G
Publication Date
2019
Abstract
We deployed satellite transmitters to provide the first detailed picture of the movement behaviour of Australian Wood Ducks (Chenonetta jubata) through agricultural landscapes where the availability and spatial arrangement of resources are highly predictable. We measured movement distances and home-range areas of individual Australian Wood Ducks and investigated their site fidelity by comparing the overlap of successive home-range areas on a fortnightly temporal scale. First passage time (FPT) analysis was used to determine the spatial scales at which foraging occurs within home-range areas. We found a peak of movement activity around the periods of dawn and dusk similar to many waterfowl species. The mean overlap of core home-range areas over successive 2 week periods was 89.81% (± 2.38 SD), which demonstrates strong site fidelity. Area-restricted search (ARS) occurred at the scale of individual foraging (ca.100 m), with no clear peaks at larger spatial scales. This finding implies that search effort was expended equally across the combined utilisation distribution of Australian Wood Ducks in this agricultural landscape. Our results support the conclusions of previous studies suggesting that the movement behaviour of Australian Wood Ducks is shaped strongly by the temporal and spatial predictability of their grazing areas and access to water in the form of farm dams.
Citation
Emu - Austral Onithology, 119(2), p. 147-156
ISSN
1448-5540
0158-4197
Link
Publisher
Taylor & Francis Australasia
Title
Movements of Australian Wood Ducks (Chenonetta jubata) in an agricultural landscape
Type of document
Journal Article
Entity Type
Publication

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