Proactive and reactive movement behaviours shape the antipredator sequence in a large herbivore
Abstract Background Prey species can display antipredator movement behaviours to reduce predation risk, including proactive responses to chronic or predictable risk, and reactive responses to acute or unpredictable risk. Thus, at any given time, prey movement choice may reflect a trade-off between p...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
BMC
2025-08-01
|
| Series: | Movement Ecology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40462-025-00584-z |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849739635978141696 |
|---|---|
| author | Charlotte Vanderlocht Benjamin Robira Andrea Corradini Simone Dal Farra Federico Ossi Davide Righetti Heidi C. Hauffe Luca Pedrotti Francesca Cagnacci |
| author_facet | Charlotte Vanderlocht Benjamin Robira Andrea Corradini Simone Dal Farra Federico Ossi Davide Righetti Heidi C. Hauffe Luca Pedrotti Francesca Cagnacci |
| author_sort | Charlotte Vanderlocht |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Prey species can display antipredator movement behaviours to reduce predation risk, including proactive responses to chronic or predictable risk, and reactive responses to acute or unpredictable risk. Thus, at any given time, prey movement choice may reflect a trade-off between proaction and reaction. In previous studies, proaction and reaction have generally been considered separately, which neglects their potentially simultaneous influence on animal movement decisions and overall space use. Methods In this study, we analysed how proaction and reaction interact to shape the movements of GPS-collared red deer (Cervus elaphus) in response to hunting by humans. Using an exhaustive inventory of red deer hunting events and very high-resolution canopy cover density (LiDAR), we combined movement metric (displacement and path length) models and integrated step selection functions to investigate antipredator movement responses to lethal risk on various spatiotemporal scales, considering a dynamic landscape of risk. Results Our results show that red deer either proactively avoided areas of chronic risk, or they selected canopy cover where and when risk was predictably high. However, when risk was encountered anyway, canopy cover was no longer selected, but only modulated a reactive response along a remain-to-leave continuum. This reaction was even more evident when the environment was unfamiliar, underlining the importance of memory in such reaction patterns. Conclusions We describe how proaction and reaction fuse in an antipredator sequence of interconnected movement decisions in a large herbivore, and discuss how this result may help disentangle the ecological consequences of behavioural responses to predation. Finally, we lay the foundations for further investigations into the origins of similarities and differences between proactive and reactive movement responses. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-db2fb0a7afc5475f9531a8f878df84cb |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2051-3933 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Movement Ecology |
| spelling | doaj-art-db2fb0a7afc5475f9531a8f878df84cb2025-08-20T03:06:13ZengBMCMovement Ecology2051-39332025-08-0113111610.1186/s40462-025-00584-zProactive and reactive movement behaviours shape the antipredator sequence in a large herbivoreCharlotte Vanderlocht0Benjamin Robira1Andrea Corradini2Simone Dal Farra3Federico Ossi4Davide Righetti5Heidi C. Hauffe6Luca Pedrotti7Francesca Cagnacci8Animal Ecology Research Unit, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund MachAnimal Ecology Research Unit, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund MachAnimal Ecology Research Unit, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund MachAnimal Ecology Research Unit, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund MachAnimal Ecology Research Unit, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund MachWildlife Office, Autonomous Province of Bolzano - South TyrolConservation Genomics Research Unit, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund MachStelvio National Park Office - Sustainable Development and Protected Areas Service, Autonomous Province of TrentoAnimal Ecology Research Unit, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund MachAbstract Background Prey species can display antipredator movement behaviours to reduce predation risk, including proactive responses to chronic or predictable risk, and reactive responses to acute or unpredictable risk. Thus, at any given time, prey movement choice may reflect a trade-off between proaction and reaction. In previous studies, proaction and reaction have generally been considered separately, which neglects their potentially simultaneous influence on animal movement decisions and overall space use. Methods In this study, we analysed how proaction and reaction interact to shape the movements of GPS-collared red deer (Cervus elaphus) in response to hunting by humans. Using an exhaustive inventory of red deer hunting events and very high-resolution canopy cover density (LiDAR), we combined movement metric (displacement and path length) models and integrated step selection functions to investigate antipredator movement responses to lethal risk on various spatiotemporal scales, considering a dynamic landscape of risk. Results Our results show that red deer either proactively avoided areas of chronic risk, or they selected canopy cover where and when risk was predictably high. However, when risk was encountered anyway, canopy cover was no longer selected, but only modulated a reactive response along a remain-to-leave continuum. This reaction was even more evident when the environment was unfamiliar, underlining the importance of memory in such reaction patterns. Conclusions We describe how proaction and reaction fuse in an antipredator sequence of interconnected movement decisions in a large herbivore, and discuss how this result may help disentangle the ecological consequences of behavioural responses to predation. Finally, we lay the foundations for further investigations into the origins of similarities and differences between proactive and reactive movement responses.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40462-025-00584-zPredator–prey dynamicsLandscape of fearSchedule of fearBio-loggingDisplacementPath length |
| spellingShingle | Charlotte Vanderlocht Benjamin Robira Andrea Corradini Simone Dal Farra Federico Ossi Davide Righetti Heidi C. Hauffe Luca Pedrotti Francesca Cagnacci Proactive and reactive movement behaviours shape the antipredator sequence in a large herbivore Movement Ecology Predator–prey dynamics Landscape of fear Schedule of fear Bio-logging Displacement Path length |
| title | Proactive and reactive movement behaviours shape the antipredator sequence in a large herbivore |
| title_full | Proactive and reactive movement behaviours shape the antipredator sequence in a large herbivore |
| title_fullStr | Proactive and reactive movement behaviours shape the antipredator sequence in a large herbivore |
| title_full_unstemmed | Proactive and reactive movement behaviours shape the antipredator sequence in a large herbivore |
| title_short | Proactive and reactive movement behaviours shape the antipredator sequence in a large herbivore |
| title_sort | proactive and reactive movement behaviours shape the antipredator sequence in a large herbivore |
| topic | Predator–prey dynamics Landscape of fear Schedule of fear Bio-logging Displacement Path length |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40462-025-00584-z |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT charlottevanderlocht proactiveandreactivemovementbehavioursshapetheantipredatorsequenceinalargeherbivore AT benjaminrobira proactiveandreactivemovementbehavioursshapetheantipredatorsequenceinalargeherbivore AT andreacorradini proactiveandreactivemovementbehavioursshapetheantipredatorsequenceinalargeherbivore AT simonedalfarra proactiveandreactivemovementbehavioursshapetheantipredatorsequenceinalargeherbivore AT federicoossi proactiveandreactivemovementbehavioursshapetheantipredatorsequenceinalargeherbivore AT daviderighetti proactiveandreactivemovementbehavioursshapetheantipredatorsequenceinalargeherbivore AT heidichauffe proactiveandreactivemovementbehavioursshapetheantipredatorsequenceinalargeherbivore AT lucapedrotti proactiveandreactivemovementbehavioursshapetheantipredatorsequenceinalargeherbivore AT francescacagnacci proactiveandreactivemovementbehavioursshapetheantipredatorsequenceinalargeherbivore |