Premium
Measuring Home‐Range Changes Following Density Reduction of Australian Brushtail Possum
Author(s) -
Margetts Belinda I.,
Ross James G.,
Buckley Hannah L.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
the journal of wildlife management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.94
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1937-2817
pISSN - 0022-541X
DOI - 10.1002/jwmg.21768
Subject(s) - brushtail possum , home range , population density , wildlife , wildlife management , range (aeronautics) , population , biology , integrated pest management , pest analysis , ecology , zoology , geography , demography , marsupial , habitat , materials science , sociology , composite material , botany
It is not clear whether animals consistently change their home ranges in response to density reduction. This is important to understand for better management of pest species where sustained control is required. Our objective was to measure whether home ranges of Australian brushtail possums ( Trichosurus vulpecula ) change following density reduction, using global positioning system (GPS) tracking. We experimentally reduced the densities of 2 populations (1 high‐density at 7 possums/ha and 1 low‐density at 1.5 possums/ha) and did not manipulate another population. We then monitored home ranges of individual possums. The high‐density manipulated population had a significant increase in home‐range size and overlap within 5 weeks following reduction, whereas the other 2 populations did not. This research suggests that changes in possum home ranges following control are likely influenced by the initial density of the pest population. © 2019 The Wildlife Society.