Individual Mechanical Energy Expenditure Regimens Vary Seasonally with Weather, Sex, Age and Body Condition in a Generalist Carnivore Population: Support for Inter-Individual Tactical Diversity
Diverse individual energy-budgeting tactics within wild populations provide resilience to natural fluctuations in food availability and expenditure costs. Although substantial heterogeneity in activity-related energy expenditure has been documented, few studies differentiate between responses to the...
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2025-05-01
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| author | Julius G. Bright Ross Andrew Markham Michael J. Noonan Christina D. Buesching Erin Connolly Denise W. Pallett Yadvinder Malhi David W. Macdonald Chris Newman |
| author_facet | Julius G. Bright Ross Andrew Markham Michael J. Noonan Christina D. Buesching Erin Connolly Denise W. Pallett Yadvinder Malhi David W. Macdonald Chris Newman |
| author_sort | Julius G. Bright Ross |
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| description | Diverse individual energy-budgeting tactics within wild populations provide resilience to natural fluctuations in food availability and expenditure costs. Although substantial heterogeneity in activity-related energy expenditure has been documented, few studies differentiate between responses to the environment and inter-individual differences stemming from life history, allometry, or somatic stores. Using tri-axial accelerometry, complemented by diet analysis, we investigated inter-individual within-season variation in overall dynamic body acceleration (ODBA; activity intensity measure) and “Activity” (above an ODBA threshold) in a high-density population of European badgers (<i>Meles meles</i>). Weather (including wind speed) affected ODBA and activity according to predictors of earthworm (food) availability and cooling potential. In spring, maximal ODBA expenditure at intermediate rainfall and temperature values suggested that badgers traded foraging success against thermoregulatory losses, where lower-condition badgers maintained higher spring ODBA irrespective of temperature while badgers in better body condition reduced ODBA at colder temperatures. Conversely, in summer, lower-condition badgers modulated ODBA according to temperature, likely in response to super-abundant food supply. Between 35% (spring, summer) and 57% (autumn) of residual total daily ODBA variance related to inter-individual differences unexplained by seasonal predictors, suggesting within-season tactical activity typologies. We propose that this heterogeneity among individual energy-expenditure profiles may contribute to population resilience under rapid environmental change. |
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| institution | Kabale University |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-be67739b018e43fca8a00b044ff4ecd62025-08-20T03:46:47ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152025-05-011511156010.3390/ani15111560Individual Mechanical Energy Expenditure Regimens Vary Seasonally with Weather, Sex, Age and Body Condition in a Generalist Carnivore Population: Support for Inter-Individual Tactical DiversityJulius G. Bright Ross0Andrew Markham1Michael J. Noonan2Christina D. Buesching3Erin Connolly4Denise W. Pallett5Yadvinder Malhi6David W. Macdonald7Chris Newman8Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Department of Biology, University of Oxford, The Recanati-Kaplan Centre, Tubney House, Abingdon Rd, Tubney OX13 5QL, UKDepartment of Computer Science, University of Oxford, Wolfson Building, Parks Road, Oxford OX2 3QD, UKThe Irving K. Barber School of Arts and Sciences, The University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus, Kelowna, BC V1V 1V7, CanadaThe Irving K. Barber School of Arts and Sciences, The University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus, Kelowna, BC V1V 1V7, CanadaCentre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UKUK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Wallingford OX10 8BB, UKEnvironmental Change Institute, School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QY, UKWildlife Conservation Research Unit, Department of Biology, University of Oxford, The Recanati-Kaplan Centre, Tubney House, Abingdon Rd, Tubney OX13 5QL, UKCarnivore Ecology and Conservation Research Group, Institute of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Saiwaicho 3-5-8, Fuchu, Tokyo 183-8509, JapanDiverse individual energy-budgeting tactics within wild populations provide resilience to natural fluctuations in food availability and expenditure costs. Although substantial heterogeneity in activity-related energy expenditure has been documented, few studies differentiate between responses to the environment and inter-individual differences stemming from life history, allometry, or somatic stores. Using tri-axial accelerometry, complemented by diet analysis, we investigated inter-individual within-season variation in overall dynamic body acceleration (ODBA; activity intensity measure) and “Activity” (above an ODBA threshold) in a high-density population of European badgers (<i>Meles meles</i>). Weather (including wind speed) affected ODBA and activity according to predictors of earthworm (food) availability and cooling potential. In spring, maximal ODBA expenditure at intermediate rainfall and temperature values suggested that badgers traded foraging success against thermoregulatory losses, where lower-condition badgers maintained higher spring ODBA irrespective of temperature while badgers in better body condition reduced ODBA at colder temperatures. Conversely, in summer, lower-condition badgers modulated ODBA according to temperature, likely in response to super-abundant food supply. Between 35% (spring, summer) and 57% (autumn) of residual total daily ODBA variance related to inter-individual differences unexplained by seasonal predictors, suggesting within-season tactical activity typologies. We propose that this heterogeneity among individual energy-expenditure profiles may contribute to population resilience under rapid environmental change.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/15/11/1560activity profilesage differencesbehavioral plasticitybehavioral thermoregulationdynamic heterogeneitytri-axial accelerometry |
| spellingShingle | Julius G. Bright Ross Andrew Markham Michael J. Noonan Christina D. Buesching Erin Connolly Denise W. Pallett Yadvinder Malhi David W. Macdonald Chris Newman Individual Mechanical Energy Expenditure Regimens Vary Seasonally with Weather, Sex, Age and Body Condition in a Generalist Carnivore Population: Support for Inter-Individual Tactical Diversity Animals activity profiles age differences behavioral plasticity behavioral thermoregulation dynamic heterogeneity tri-axial accelerometry |
| title | Individual Mechanical Energy Expenditure Regimens Vary Seasonally with Weather, Sex, Age and Body Condition in a Generalist Carnivore Population: Support for Inter-Individual Tactical Diversity |
| title_full | Individual Mechanical Energy Expenditure Regimens Vary Seasonally with Weather, Sex, Age and Body Condition in a Generalist Carnivore Population: Support for Inter-Individual Tactical Diversity |
| title_fullStr | Individual Mechanical Energy Expenditure Regimens Vary Seasonally with Weather, Sex, Age and Body Condition in a Generalist Carnivore Population: Support for Inter-Individual Tactical Diversity |
| title_full_unstemmed | Individual Mechanical Energy Expenditure Regimens Vary Seasonally with Weather, Sex, Age and Body Condition in a Generalist Carnivore Population: Support for Inter-Individual Tactical Diversity |
| title_short | Individual Mechanical Energy Expenditure Regimens Vary Seasonally with Weather, Sex, Age and Body Condition in a Generalist Carnivore Population: Support for Inter-Individual Tactical Diversity |
| title_sort | individual mechanical energy expenditure regimens vary seasonally with weather sex age and body condition in a generalist carnivore population support for inter individual tactical diversity |
| topic | activity profiles age differences behavioral plasticity behavioral thermoregulation dynamic heterogeneity tri-axial accelerometry |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/15/11/1560 |
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