Comparative home range size and habitat selection in provisioned and non-provisioned long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) in Baluran National Park, East Java, Indonesia

The effect of food provisioning on ranging patterns of long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) in non-anthropogenic areas is largely unknown, as most published studies have focused on urban macaques. In this study, we quantified habitat selection, daily path length and home range size in long-tailed macaques in Baluran National Park, East Java, Indonesia, comparing a non-provisioned to a provisioned group. To track the groups, we deployed six GPS-collars on females in both groups, of which only two collected data. Home range size (90% Auto-correlated Kernel Density Estimate) was 23 times smaller for the provisioned group (10.62 ha) than the non-provisioned group (249.90 ha). Home range size and area changed from dry to wet season for the non-provisioned group. Provisioned group home range size correlated negatively with number of visitors in the national park. Daily path length was significantly higher for the non-provisioned group. The provisioned group preferred settlements, where most of the provisioning occurred, and avoided areas with invasive acacia (Acacia nilotica). The non-provisioned group also avoided invasive acacia, preferred secondary forest in the dry season and restored savannah in the wet season. Food provisioning can affect macaque spatial ecology, by shaping daily travel length and home range size, and changing patterns of habitat selection. Even tourism in a managed national park, where provisioning is strictly prohibited although not always enforced, has significant consequences for animal behaviour and their natural ecosystems.

Impact of cost distance and habitat fragmentation on the daily path length of Rhinopithecus bieti

An understanding of primate movement patterns in response to natural and anthropogenically induced changes in habitat heterogeneity, food availability, and plant species distribution is essential for developing effective management and conservation programs. Therefore, from July 2013 to June 2014, we examined the effects of landscape configuration on the ranging behavior (daily path length, DPL) of the Endangered Yunnan snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus bieti) in the Baimaxueshan National Nature Reserve (27°34′N, 99°17′E) in Gehuaqing, China. Given the extreme difficulties in following the study group across high altitude mountainous terrain across an elevation of 2,500–4,000 m, we were only able to collect DPL using 3-4 GPS points per day on 21 individual days. We found that R. bieti traveled the shortest DPL in winter (1,141.31 m), followed by spring (2,034.06 m) and autumn (2,131.19 m). The cost distance, a statistical tool designed to estimate the difficulty of a species moving across its distributional range, was lowest in autumn (205.47), followed by spring (225.93) and winter (432.59) (one-way ANOVA: F = 3.852, P = 0.026, df = 2). The habitat fragmentation index (HFI), which measures the density of forest patches, indicated areas visited in the winter were more fragmented (HFI = 2.16) compared to spring (HFI = 1.83) or autumn (HFI = 1.3). Although our results should be considered preliminary, they suggest that both the availability of suitable travel routes and habitat fragmentation, driven by high-intensity human disturbance, constrain the movement of R. bieti. We found that undisturbed areas of the bands’ range contained a high density of lichens, which represent a nutritious and abundant and year-round food source for Yunnan snub-nosed monkeys. In order to protect this Endangered species, we recommend that researchers construct detailed maps of landscape heterogeneity, particularly habitat connectivity, forest fragmentation, and seasonal variation in the location of major food patches in order to better understand and mitigate the effects of seasonal habitat change on patterns of R. bieti habitat utilization and population viability.

The day range and home range of the Eastern Hoolock Gibbon Hoolock leuconedys (Mammalia: Primates: Hylobatidae) in Lower Dibang Valley District in Arunachal Pradesh, India

This paper presents the findings of a study conducted on the Eastern Hoolock Gibbon Hoolock leuconedys in Mehao Wildlife Sanctuary and outside to the south of the park, Arunachal Pradesh, India investigating the daily path length (DPL) and home range used by the species in two forest areas with different disturbance gradients. The four habituated groups of H. leuconedys in fragmented and contiguous forest areas, two groups in each of the forest types, showed considerable variation in their DPL ranging from 6.59m to 1019.01m with a mean distance of 192.75m (SE = ±26.48) in 73 full day observations. Although the mean DPL was recorded with very little variation across the seasons in both the forest types, it was significantly different from fragmented forest. Similarly, the home range size also varied among the groups and was estimated as the maximum for Group D (24.62ha) followed by Group E (16.28ha) in contiguous forest and Group B (2.49ha) and Group A (1.09ha) in fragmented forest. Also, there was a distinct seasonal pattern of home range used by all the study groups with largest seasonal home range in monsoon and pre-monsoon season in fragmented and contiguous forest respectively. The DPL and home range of H. leuconedys in Arunachal Pradesh has been highly affected by forest fragmentation and/or canopy discontinuity which makes the species vulnerable to hunting, predation by feral dogs and hawks and ultimately local extinction. Thus, the findings of the present research evoke the question of long term survival of the species in fragmented forests.

Home Range, Diet, and Activity Patterns of Common Marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) in Very Small and Isolated Fragments of the Atlantic Forest of Northeastern Brazil

We evaluate the impact of very small and isolated forest fragments on the common marmosets home range, diet, and activity patterns, in the northeastern Atlantic Forest of Brazil. Three groups were studied in three forest fragments, from January to October 2010, totaling 360 hours of observations and 1,080 field-hours. Systematic observations were recorded using Instantaneous Scan Sampling, and a checklist of the items exploited was built throughad libitumobservations. We recorded location of the groups and calculated home range. We recorded 11,639 scans and 236ad libitumfeeding records. 83.4% (n=10) of food items were plant species, the only animal protein was from insects (n=2; 16.6%), and the diet was based almost exclusively on gums. Mean home range was 5.5 ha, mean daily path length was 1,167 meters, and no differences were detected between seasons. Resting dominated their activity budget and varied between seasons. Common marmosets survived in this environment through a remarkable increase in their exploitation of tree gums (up to 98% of their feeding bouts) to compensate for the lack of food, in home ranges slightly larger than in the literature. Thus, they travelled and foraged less than expected and rested more since food was easily obtained.