Michelot, T., Langrock, R., Bestley, S. et al. (3 more authors) (2017) Estimation and simulation of foraging trips in land-based marine predators. Ecology, 98 (7). pp. 1932-1944. ISSN 0012-9658
Abstract
The behavior of colony-based marine predators is the focus of much research globally. Large telemetry and tracking data sets have been collected for this group of animals, and are accompanied by many empirical studies that seek to segment tracks in some useful way, as well as theoretical studies of optimal foraging strategies. However, relatively few studies have detailed statistical methods for inferring behaviors in central place foraging trips. In this paper we describe an approach based on hidden Markov models, which splits foraging trips into segments labeled as “outbound”, “search”, “forage”, and “inbound”. By structuring the hidden Markov model transition matrix appropriately, the model naturally handles the sequence of behaviors within a foraging trip. Additionally, by structuring the model in this way, we are able to develop realistic simulations from the fitted model. We demonstrate our approach on data from southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina) tagged on Kerguelen Island in the Southern Ocean. We discuss the differences between our 4-state model and the widely used 2-state model, and the advantages and disadvantages of employing a more complex model.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2017 by the Ecological Society of America. This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Michelot, T., Langrock, R., Bestley, S., Jonsen, I. D., Photopoulou, T. and Patterson, T. A. (2017), Estimation and simulation of foraging trips in land-based marine predators. Ecology, 98: 1932–1944, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.1880. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving. |
Keywords: | animal telemetry; central place foraging; hidden Markov model; Mirounga leonina; southern elephant seal |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Science (Sheffield) > School of Mathematics and Statistics (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 13 Sep 2017 10:41 |
Last Modified: | 28 Mar 2018 11:34 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.1880 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Ecological Society of America |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1002/ecy.1880 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:121032 |