Using dynamic Brownian Bridge Movement Models to identify home range size and movement patterns in king cobras

PLoS One. 2018 Sep 18;13(9):e0203449. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0203449. eCollection 2018.

Abstract

Home range estimators are a critical component for understanding animal spatial ecology. The choice of home range estimator in spatial ecology studies can significantly influence management and conservation actions, as different methods lead to vastly different interpretations of movement patterns, habitat selection, as well as home range requirements. Reptile studies in particular have struggled to reach a consensus on the appropriate home range estimators to use, and species with cryptic behavior make home range assessment difficult. We applied dynamic Brownian Bridge Movement Models (dBBMMs) to radio-telemetry data from Ophiophagus hannah, a wide-ranging snake species. We used two focal individuals at different life stages (one juvenile male and one adult male) and sought to identify whether the method would accurately represent both their home range and movement patterns. To assess the suitability of dBBMMs, we compared this novel method with traditional home range estimation methods: minimum convex polygons (MCP) and Kernel density estimators (KDE). Both KDE and MCP incorporated higher levels of Type I and Type II errors, which would lead to biases in our understanding of this species space-use and habitat selection. Although these methods identified some general spatial-temporal patterns, dBBMMs were more efficient at detecting movement corridors and accurately representing long-term shelters sites, showing an improvement over methods traditionally favored in reptile studies. The additional flexibility of the dBBMM approach in providing insight into movement patterns can help further improve conservation and management actions. Additionally, our results suggest that dBBMMs may be more widely applicable in studies that rely on VHF telemetry and not limited to studies employing GPS tags.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animal Migration / physiology*
  • Animals
  • Models, Biological*
  • Ophiophagus hannah / physiology*

Grants and funding

We are supported by the National Science and Technological Development Agency of Thailand via P.S. and Wildlife Reserves Singapore via C.S. Neither funding agency had any role in the study design data collection and analysis or the decision to publish and preparation of the manuscript.