Walk the line—dispersal movements of gray mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus)
Despite the importance of dispersal for individuals and populations, little is known about the actual dispersal process in most species. We observed 90 subadult gray mouse lemurs—small, arboreal, nocturnal primates—in Kirindy Forest in western Madagascar, to determine the behavioral processes underl...
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| Format: | Online |
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Springer-Verlag
2012
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| Online Access: | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3397133/ |
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pubmed-33971332012-07-19 Walk the line—dispersal movements of gray mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus) Schliehe-Diecks, Susanne Eberle, Manfred Kappeler, Peter M. Original Paper Despite the importance of dispersal for individuals and populations, little is known about the actual dispersal process in most species. We observed 90 subadult gray mouse lemurs—small, arboreal, nocturnal primates—in Kirindy Forest in western Madagascar, to determine the behavioral processes underlying natal dispersal. Twelve radio-collared males dispersed over distances between 180 and 960 m (≈1–7 home range diameters) away from their presumed natal ranges. Dispersal forays were fast and highly directed, and thus distinct from routine movements. Contrary to expectations of current hypotheses on potential differences between different types of dispersal movements, their special movement style did not prevent dispersers from interrupting forays to exploit resources they encountered during their forays. Data from a translocation experiment indicated that highly directed dispersal or search forays reflect a general strategy for large-scale exploration away from familiar sites in this species. A prolonged transfer phase was also observed, with regular commuting between old and new sites for up to 14 days, which probably served to moderate costs of unfamiliarity with a new site. In conclusion, the dispersal process of gray mouse lemurs is characterized by high intra- and interindividual consistency in movement strategies, but variation in the duration of the transfer phase. The observed dispersal movement style represents an effective strategy balancing costs of dispersal with the need to gather an appropriate level of information about potential dispersal target sites. Springer-Verlag 2012-06-26 2012-08 /pmc/articles/PMC3397133/ /pubmed/22822289 http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00265-012-1371-y Text en © The Author(s) 2012 |
| repository_type |
Open Access Journal |
| institution_category |
Foreign Institution |
| institution |
US National Center for Biotechnology Information |
| building |
NCBI PubMed |
| collection |
Online Access |
| language |
English |
| format |
Online |
| author |
Schliehe-Diecks, Susanne Eberle, Manfred Kappeler, Peter M. |
| spellingShingle |
Schliehe-Diecks, Susanne Eberle, Manfred Kappeler, Peter M. Walk the line—dispersal movements of gray mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus) |
| author_facet |
Schliehe-Diecks, Susanne Eberle, Manfred Kappeler, Peter M. |
| author_sort |
Schliehe-Diecks, Susanne |
| title |
Walk the line—dispersal movements of gray mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus) |
| title_short |
Walk the line—dispersal movements of gray mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus) |
| title_full |
Walk the line—dispersal movements of gray mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus) |
| title_fullStr |
Walk the line—dispersal movements of gray mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus) |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Walk the line—dispersal movements of gray mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus) |
| title_sort |
walk the line—dispersal movements of gray mouse lemurs (microcebus murinus) |
| description |
Despite the importance of dispersal for individuals and populations, little is known about the actual dispersal process in most species. We observed 90 subadult gray mouse lemurs—small, arboreal, nocturnal primates—in Kirindy Forest in western Madagascar, to determine the behavioral processes underlying natal dispersal. Twelve radio-collared males dispersed over distances between 180 and 960 m (≈1–7 home range diameters) away from their presumed natal ranges. Dispersal forays were fast and highly directed, and thus distinct from routine movements. Contrary to expectations of current hypotheses on potential differences between different types of dispersal movements, their special movement style did not prevent dispersers from interrupting forays to exploit resources they encountered during their forays. Data from a translocation experiment indicated that highly directed dispersal or search forays reflect a general strategy for large-scale exploration away from familiar sites in this species. A prolonged transfer phase was also observed, with regular commuting between old and new sites for up to 14 days, which probably served to moderate costs of unfamiliarity with a new site. In conclusion, the dispersal process of gray mouse lemurs is characterized by high intra- and interindividual consistency in movement strategies, but variation in the duration of the transfer phase. The observed dispersal movement style represents an effective strategy balancing costs of dispersal with the need to gather an appropriate level of information about potential dispersal target sites. |
| publisher |
Springer-Verlag |
| publishDate |
2012 |
| url |
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3397133/ |
| _version_ |
1611543147087659008 |