Precision and performance of an 180 g solar-powered GPS device for tracking medium to large-bodied terrestrial mammals
Advances in the technology of biotelemetry are transforming the ways in which we remotely acquire environmental, physiological and behavioural data. Large and heavy batteries, however, continue to reduce the availability of GPS tracking devices for small taxa and for species with morphologies that limit attachment options. Device miniaturisation is beginning to be achieved through the […]
Intensity of giraffe locomotor activity is shaped by solar and lunar zeitgebers
Natural cycles of light and darkness shift the balance of risks and gains for animals across space and time. Entrainment to photic cycles allows animals to spatiotemporally adapt their behavioural and physiological processes in line with interplaying ecological factors, such as temperature, foraging efficiency and predation risk. Until recently, our understanding of these chronobiological processes […]
Beast Buddies – Do Animals Have Friends?
That issue of preferred associates comes close to the human notion of friendship, and it can prove just as important in understanding animal goings-on as it does in people watching. Baboons, bats, and dozens of other animals have been studied from this perspective. Biologists may start by asking whether individuals prefer to hang out with […]
Use of Datura innoxia by ungulates in the Hoanib River, Namibia
The behaviour of springbok Antidorcas marsupialis feeding on the alien invasive plant Datura innoxia is described, as well as nervous symptoms possibly arising from tropane alkaloid poisoning. Dung collected from five herbivore species prior to 1989 contained no D. innoxia seeds, and other signs of use of it were rare. Feeding on this plant, principally […]
Ecology of desert-dwelling giraffe Giraffa camelopardalis angolensis in northwestern Namibia
The population size and range of giraffe Giraffa camelopardalis have been greatly reduced in Africa in the past century, resulting in geographical isolation of local populations and some herds surviving at the edge of the species’ preferred range. Numerous factors have contributed to these declines, but historical analysis indicates that habitat loss and fragmentation, human […]
Evolutionary Ecology of Giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) in Etosha National Park, Namibia
The giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) occupies a variety of habitats across sub-Saharan Africa. It is characterised by a loose social organisation, and a dominance driven polygynous mating system. This project sought to explain biogeographic and inter-sexual variation in pelage colouration in the context of natural and sexual selection. I also sought to test the hypothesis that […]
Automated species identification for camera trapping in the Iona Skeleton Coast Trans-Frontier Conservation Area
The Iona Skeleton Coast Trans-Frontier Conservation Area (TFCA), straddling the border between Angola and Namibia, has suffered through decades of civil war and poaching. While this history has been detrimental to the community of large mammals in the TFCA, data collected on the mammal populations are insufficient to enable effective management. Survey methods such as […]
Use of home range behaviour to assess establishment in translocated giraffes
Conservation translocation is a management technique employed to introduce, re-introduce or reinforce wild animal and plant populations. Giraffe translocations are being conducted throughout Africa, but the lack of effective post-translocation monitoring limits our ability to assess translocation outcomes. One potential indicator of translocation success is the establishment of characteristic movement and home range behaviour in […]
Habitat heterogeneity and social factors drive behavioral plasticity in giraffe herd-size dynamics
Behavioral plasticity, or the mechanism by which an organism can adjust its behavior in response to exogenous change, has been highlighted as a potential buffer against extinction risk. Giraffes (Giraffa spp.) are gregarious, long-lived, highly mobile megaherbivores with a large brain size, characteristics that have been associated with high levels of behavioral plasticity. However, while […]
Nightly selection of resting sites and group behavior reveal antipredator strategies in giraffe
This study presents the first findings on nocturnal behavior patterns of wild Angolan giraffe. We characterized their nocturnal behavior and analyzed the influence of ecological factors such as group size, season, and habitat use. Giraffe were observed using night vision systems and thermal imaging cameras on Okapuka Ranch, Namibia. A total of 77 giraffe were […]