Behavioural flexibility in foraging mode of the spotted sand lizard (Pedioplanis l. lineoocellata) seems to buffer negative impacts of savanna degradation

Blumroeder, J.; Eccard, Jana A.; Blaum, Niels

doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2011.10.005

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Models predict that that the sit-and-wait and the active foraging strategies are favoured under different conditions of prey detectability and abundance (Scharf et al 2006). The behavioural flexibility observed in this study fits the model expectations well (Scharf et al 2006;Ioannou et al 2008;Blumroeder et al 2012). If plasticity was the dominant process determining adaptation to the cave environments, we predicted that the effect of test conditions on behaviour would offset the effect of origin (i.e.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

Foraging plasticity favours adaptation to new habitats in fire salamanders

2013

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

Foraging plasticity favours adaptation to new habitats in fire salamanders

2013

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“…These differences often have fitness-related consequences, and there is growing evidence that species that are more flexible in their behavior tend to be more successful in novel and rapidly changing environments (Sol and Lefebvre 2000; Sol et al 2002; Wright et al 2010). Thus, understanding variation in behavioral flexibility can be a powerful predictor of a species’ response to the growing number of anthropogenic environmental changes (Tanner et al 2011; Blumroeder et al 2012). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Individual variation in foraging behavior reveals a trade-off between flexibility and performance of a top predator

Pintor

McGhee

Roche

et al. 2014

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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There is increasing evidence that behavioral flexibility is associated with the ability to adaptively respond to environmental change. Flexibility can be advantageous in some contexts such as exploiting novel resources, but it may come at a cost of accuracy or performance in ecologically relevant tasks, such as foraging. Such trade-offs may, in part, explain why individuals within a species are not equally flexible. Here, we conducted a reversal learning task and predation experiment on a top fish predator, the Northern pike (Esox lucius), to examine individual variation in flexibility and test the hypothesis that an individual’s behavioral flexibility is negatively related with its foraging performance. Pikes were trained to receive a food reward from either a red or blue cup and then the color of the rewarded cup was reversed. We found that pike improved over time in how quickly they oriented to the rewarded cup, but there was a bias toward the color red. Moreover, there was substantial variation among individuals in their ability to overcome this red bias and switch from an unrewarded red cup to the rewarded blue cup, which we interpret as consistent variation among individuals in behavioral flexibility. Furthermore, individual differences in behavioral flexibility were negatively associated with foraging performance on ecologically relevant stickleback prey. Our data indicate that individuals cannot be both behaviorally flexible and efficient predators, suggesting a trade-off between these two traits.

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Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functions in Southern African Savanna Rangelands: Threats, Impacts and Solutions

Geißler,

Blaum,

von Maltitz

et al. 2024

Ecological Studies

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Savanna rangelands provide diverse communities across southern Africa with livestock and wildlife-based livelihoods, as well as extensive ecosystem services. Historical usage patterns, however, are increasingly challenged by widespread degradation. While regional- and local-scale policy initiatives have attempted to minimize damage and increase the sustainability of savanna rangelands, poverty, land tenure and shifting climate conditions all exacerbate ongoing degradation. Here, we detail the environmental and political setting of southern African savanna rangelands, causes and implications of rangeland degradation, and discuss possible strategies toward improved regional ecosystem management. We present recent knowledge on how degradation by bush encroachment influences biodiversity and biodiversity-mediated ecosystem functioning of semiarid savanna rangelands with the aim of improving rangeland management strategies. Improved rangeland management requires a broad approach which integrates both socioeconomic and ecological frameworks, built upon improved understanding of the strong couplings between flora, fauna, water and land-management strategies.

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Behavioural flexibility in foraging mode of the spotted sand lizard (Pedioplanis l. lineoocellata) seems to buffer negative impacts of savanna degradation

Cited by 3 publications

References 17 publications

Foraging plasticity favours adaptation to new habitats in fire salamanders

Foraging plasticity favours adaptation to new habitats in fire salamanders

Individual variation in foraging behavior reveals a trade-off between flexibility and performance of a top predator

Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functions in Southern African Savanna Rangelands: Threats, Impacts and Solutions

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