Journal article
A Face in the Crowd: A Non-Invasive and Cost Effective Photo-Identification Methodology to Understand the Fine Scale Movement of Eastern Water Dragons
PLoS One, Vol.9(5), e96992
2014
Abstract
Ectothermic vertebrates face many challenges of thermoregulation. Many species rely on behavioral thermoregulation and move within their landscape to maintain homeostasis. Understanding the fine-scale nature of this regulation through tracking techniques can provide a better understanding of the relationships between such species and their dynamic environments. The use of animal tracking and telemetry technology has allowed the extensive collection of such data which has enabled us to better understand the ways animals move within their landscape. However, such technologies do not come without certain costs: they are generally invasive, relatively expensive, can be too heavy for small sized animals and unreliable in certain habitats. This study provides a cost-effective and non-invasive method through photo-identification, to determine fine scale movements of individuals. With our methodology, we have been able to find that male eastern water dragons (Intellagama leuseurii) have home ranges one and a half times larger than those of females. Furthermore, we found intraspecific differences in the size of home ranges depending on the time of the day. Lastly, we found that location mostly influenced females' home ranges, but not males and discuss why this may be so. Overall, we provide valuable information regarding the ecology of the eastern water dragon, but most importantly demonstrate that non-invasive photo-identification can be successfully applied to the study of reptiles.
Details
- Title
- A Face in the Crowd: A Non-Invasive and Cost Effective Photo-Identification Methodology to Understand the Fine Scale Movement of Eastern Water Dragons
- Authors
- Riana Zanarivero Gardiner (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and EngineeringErik Doran (Author) - University of the Sunshine CoastKasha Strickland (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and EngineeringLuke Carpenter-Bundhoo (Author) - University of Exeter, United KingdomCeline H Frere (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
- Publication details
- PLoS One, Vol.9(5), e96992; 7
- Publisher
- Public Library of Science
- Date published
- 2014
- DOI
- 10.1371/journal.pone.0096992
- ISSN
- 1932-6203
- Copyright note
- Copyright © 2014 Gardiner et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
- Organisation Unit
- School of Science and Engineering - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; GeneCology Research Centre - Legacy; School of Science, Technology and Engineering
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99448769002621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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