Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Conspecific and heterospecific attraction in assessments of functional connectivity

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Biodiversity and Conservation Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Functional connectivity is known to have an important, positive influence on species persistence. Measurements of functional connectivity traditionally focus on structural attributes of landscapes such as the distance and matrix type between habitat patches as well as on how species interact with those structural attributes. However, we propose that the social behavior of a species, through conspecific and heterospecific attraction, will also impact connectivity by changing how dispersers move with respect to each other and occupied patches. We analyzed functional connectivity patterns using circuit and graph theory for golden-headed lion tamarins (Leontopithecus chrysomelas) in Brazil under three scenarios. In the first scenario, we looked at connectivity without the effects of attraction under varying maximum dispersal distance and ecological movement cost thresholds. In the second scenario, we allowed dispersers to travel over more hostile matrix than they normally would to reach an occupied patch. In the final scenario, we allowed dispersers to move only to occupied patches. We found that, according to the first scenario, range-wide functional landscape connectivity for golden-headed lion tamarins is low at realistic maximum dispersal distance and movement cost thresholds. Incorporating the effects of conspecific or heterospecific attraction would increase functional connectivity, in the case of scenario two, or decrease functional connectivity, in the case of scenario three. Because conspecific/heterospecific attraction can have an impact on movement for some species, this factor should be incorporated in assessments of functional connectivity patterns for social species and others where patch occupancy is likely to influence the movements of dispersers.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alleé WC, Emerson AE, Park O et al (1949) Principles of animal ecology. W.B. Saunders, Philadelphia

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson J, Rowcliffe JM, Cowlishaw G (2007) Does the matrix matter? A forest primate in a complex agricultural landscape. Biol Conserv 135:212–222

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anzures-Dadda A, Manson RH (2007) Patch- and landscape-scale effects on howler monkey distribution and abundance in rainforest fragments. Anim Conserv 10:69–76

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baguette M, Van Dyck H (2007) Landscape connectivity and animal behavior: functional grain as a key determinant for dispersal. Landsc Ecol 22:1117–1129

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boulinier T, Danchin E (1997) The use of conspecific reproductive success for breeding patch selection in terrestrial migratory species. Evol Ecol 11:505–517

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown J, Kodric-Brown A (1977) Turnover rates in insular biogeography: effect of immigration on extinction. Ecology 58:445–449

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buchanan-Smith HM (1990) Polyspecific associations of two tamarin species, Saguinus labiatus and Saguinus fuscicollis in Bolivia. Am J Primatol 22:205–214

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Channell R, Lomolino MV (2000a) Dynamic biogeography and conservation of endangered species. Nature 403:84–86

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Channell R, Lomolino MV (2000b) Trajectories to extinction: spatial dynamics of the contraction of geographical ranges. J Biogeogr 27:169–179

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Danchin E, Boulinier T, Massot M (1998) Conspecific reproductive success and breeding habitat selection: implications for the study of coloniality. Ecology 79:2415–2428

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • D’Eon R, Glenn SM, Parfitt I et al (2002) Landscape connectivity as a function of scale and organism vagility in a real forested landscape. Conserv Ecol 6:10

    Google Scholar 

  • Dietz JM, de Sousa SN, da Silva JRO (1994) Population structure and territory size in golden-headed lion tamarins, Leontopithecus chrysomelas. Neotropical Primates 2:21–23

    Google Scholar 

  • Dunning JB, Danielson BJ, Pulliam HR (1992) Ecological processes that affect populations in complex landscapes. Oikos 65:169–175

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ellstrand NC, Elam DR (1993) Population genetic consequences of small population size: implications for plant conservation. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 24:217–242

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Epple G (1969) Comparative studies on vocalizations in marmoset monkeys (Hapalidae). Folia Primatol 8:1–40

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fagan W, Unmack P, Burgess C et al (2002) Rarity, fragmentation, and extinction risk in desert fishes. Ecology 83:3250–3256

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fletcher RJ Jr (2006) Emergent properties of conspecific attraction in fragmented landscapes. Am Nat 168:207–219

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fletcher RJ Jr, Sieving KE (2010) Social-information use in heterogenous landscapes: a prospectus. The Condor 112:225–234

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fonseca GAB, Alves MC, Pinto LPS et al (1999) Inventario e diversidade de especies de mamiferos na regiao da reserva biologica de una: fazenda bolandeira. IESB, Ilheus

    Google Scholar 

  • Gilpin ME (1990) Correlated extinctions in a finite metapopulation. In: Schorrocks B (ed) Living in a patchy environment. Oxford University Press, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Goodwin BJ, Fahrig L (2002) How does landscape structure influence landscape connectivity? Oikos 99:552–570

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grativol AD, Ballou JD, Fleischer RC (2001) Microsatellite variation within and among recently fragmented populations of the golden lion tamarin (Leontopithicus rosalia). Conserv Genet 2:1–9

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Henderson M, Merriam G, Wegner J (1985) Patchy environments and species survival: chipmunks in an agricultural mosaic. Biol Conserv 31:95–105

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heymann EW, Buchanan-Smith HM (2000) The behavioral ecology of mixed-species troops of callitrichine primates. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 75:169–190

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • IUCN (2010) IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, version 2010.3 in IUCN, editor, Gland, Switzerland

  • Kozakiewicz M (1995) Resource tracking in space and time. In: Hanson L, Fahrig L, Merriam G (eds) Mosaic landscapes and ecological processes. Chapman and Hall, London, pp 136–148

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Lee-Yaw JA, Davidson A, McRae BH et al (2009) Do landscape processes predict phylogeographic patterns in the wood frog? Mol Ecol 10:1863–1874

    Google Scholar 

  • Lomolino MV, Channell R (1995) Splendid isolation: patterns of geographic range collapse in endangered mammals. J Mammol 76:335–347

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McRae BH (2006) Isolation by resistance. Evolution 60:1551–1561

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McRae BH, Dickson BG, Keitt TH et al (2008) Using circuit theory to model connectivity in ecology, evolution, and conservation. Ecology 89:2712–2724

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mech SG, Zollner PA (2002) Using body size to predict perceptual range. OIKOS 98:47–52

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mönkkönen M (1990) Removal of territory holders causes influx of small-sized intruders on passerine bird communities in northern Finland. Oikos 57:281–288

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mönkkönen M, Forsman JT (2002) Heterospecific attraction among forest birds: a review. Ornithol Sci 1:41–51

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neves LG (2008) Distribuicao geografica e conservacao de Callithrix kuhlii no sul da Bahia, Brasil. Programa de Pos-Graduacao em Zoologia. Universidade estadual de Santa Cruz-UESC, Ilheus/Itabuna, Brazil

  • Nocera JJ, Forbes GJ, Giraldeau L (2006) Inadvertent social information in breeding site selection of natal dispersing birds. Proc R Soc Lond Biol Sci 273:349–355

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olden JD, Schooley RL, Monroe JB et al (2004) Context-dependent perceptual ranges and their relevance to animal movements in landscapes. J Anim Ecol 73:1190–1194

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oliveira L (2010) Ecology and demography of golden-headed lion tamarins (Leontopithecus chrysomelas). In: Cabruca Agroforest, Bahia State, Brazil, Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD

  • Oliveira L, Dietz J (2011) Predation risk and the interspecific association of two Brazilian Atlantic forest primates in cabruca agroforest. Am J Primatol 73:1–9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oostermeijer JGB, Luijten SH, den Nijs JCM (2003) Integrating demographic and genetic approaches in plant conservation. Biol Conserv 113:389–398

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parejo D, Danchin E, Aviles JM (2004) The heterospecific habitat copying hypothesis: can competitors indicate habitat quality? Behav Ecol 16:96–105

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pascual-Hortal L, Saura S (2006) Comparison and development of new graph-based landscape connectivity indices: towards the prioritization of habitat patches and corridors for conservation. Landsc Ecol 21:959–967

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pinto L, Rylands A (1997) Geographic distribution of the golden-headed lion tamarin, Leontopithecus chrysomelas: implications for its management and conservation. Folia Primatol 68:161–180

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Porter LM (2001) Benefits of polyspecific associations for the Goeldi’s monkey (Callimico goeldii). Am J Primatol 54:143–158

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Raboy B (2002) The ecology and behavior of wild golden-headed lion tamarins (Leontopithecis chrysomelas). Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park

    Google Scholar 

  • Raboy B, Dietz J (2004) Diet, foraging, and the use of space in wild golden-headed lion tamarins. Am J Primatol 63:1–15

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Raboy BE, Christman MC, Dietz JM (2004) The use of degraded and shade cocoa forests by endangered golden-headed lion tamarins Leontopithecus chrysomelas. Oryx 38:75–83

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raboy BE, Canale GR, Dietz JM (2008) Ecology of Callithrix kuhlii and a review of eastern Brazilian marmosets. Int J Primatol 29:449–467

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raboy B, Neves L, Zeigler S et al (2010) Strength of habitat and landscape metrics in predicting golden-headed lion tamarin presence or absence in forest patches in southern Bahia, Brazil. Biotropica 42:388–397

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Radford JQ, Bennett AF (2004) Thresholds in landscape parameters: occurrence of the white-browed tree creeper Climacteris affinis in Victoria, Australia. Biol Conserv 117:375–391

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ray C, Gilpin M, Smith AT (1991) The effect of conspecific attraction on metapopulation dynamics. Biol J Linn Soc 42:123–134

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rayfield B, Fortin MJ, Fall A (2010) The sensitivity of least-cost habitat graphs to relative cost surface values. Landsc Ecol 25:519–532

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ribeiro MC, Metzger JP, Martensen AC et al (2009) The Brazilian Atlantic forest: how much is left, and how is the remaining forest distributed? Implications for conservation. Biol Conserv 142:1141–1153

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Richards C (2000) Inbreeding depression and genetic rescue in a plant metapopulation. Am Nat 155:383–394

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ricketts TH (2001) The matrix matters: effective isolation in fragmented landscapes. Am Nat 158:87–99

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rylands AB (1989) Sympatric Brazilian callitrichids: the black tufted-ear marmoset, Callithrix kuhli, and the golden-headed lion tamarin, Leontopithecus chrysomelas. J Hum Evol 18:679–695

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saura S, Torne J (2009) Confor sensinode 2.2: a software package for quantifying the importance of habitat patches for landscape connectivity. Environ Model Softw 24:135–139

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schooley RL, Wiens JA (2003) Finding habitat patches and directional connectivity. Oikos 102:559–570

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seppänen J, Forsman JT, Mönkkönen M et al (2007) Social information use is a process across time, space, and ecology, reaching heterospecifics. Ecology 88:1622–1633

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sieving KE, Contreras TA, Maute KL (2004) Heterospecific facilitation of forest-boundary crossing by mobbing understory birds in north-central Florida. Auk 121:738–751

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith AT, Peacock MM (1990) Conspecific attraction and the determination of metapopulation colonization rates. Conserv Biol 4:320–323

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Snowdon CT, Hodun A, Rosenberger AL et al (1986) Long-call structure and its relation to taxonomy in lion tamarins. Am J Primatol 11:253–261

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stamps JA (1988) Conspecific attraction and aggregation in territorial species. Am Nat 131:329–347

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stamps JA, Krishnan VV, Reid ML (2005) Search costs and habitat selection by dispersers. Ecology 86:510–518

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor P, Fahrig L, Henein K et al (1993) Connectivity is a vital element of landscape structure. Oikos 68:571–573

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Terborgh J (1983) Five new world primates. Princeton University Press, Princeton

    Google Scholar 

  • Urban D, Keitt T (2001) Landscape connectivity: a graph-theoretic perspective. Ecology 82:1205–1218

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Valone TJ (1989) Group foraging, public information and patch estimation. Oikos 56:357–363

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wagner RH, Danchin E (2010) A taxonomy of biological information. Oikos 119:203–209

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weddell BJ (1991) Distribution and movements of Columbian ground squirrels (Spermophilus columbianus): are habitat patches like islands? J Biogeogr 18:385–394

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Winfree R, Dushoff J, Crone EE et al (2005) Testing simple indices of habitat proximity. Am Nat 165:707–717

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • With KA, Crist TO (1995) Critical thresholds in species responses to landscape structure. Ecology 76:2446–2459

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zeigler S, Fagan WF, Defries R et al (2010) Identifying important forest patches for the long-term persistence of the endangered golden-headed lion tamarin (Leontopithecus chrysomelas). Trop Conserv Sci 3:63–77

    Google Scholar 

  • Zollner PA, Lima SL (1997) Landscape-level perceptual abilities in white-footed mice: perceptual range and the detection of forested habitat. Oikos 80:51–60

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank Brad McRae and Santiago Saura for their quick and enthusiastic help with the use of their modeling software. Michael Lloyd provided technical support. Finally, we thank James Dietz, Jennifer Mickelberg, and Carlos Guidorizzi for sharing their unpublished work and for providing interesting discussions on lion tamarin movement. Funding was provided through the Anne G. Wylie Dissertation Fellowship through the University of Maryland (to S.Z. and L.O.).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sara L. Zeigler.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Zeigler, S.L., Neel, M.C., Oliveira, L. et al. Conspecific and heterospecific attraction in assessments of functional connectivity. Biodivers Conserv 20, 2779–2796 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-011-0107-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-011-0107-z

Keywords

Navigation