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Mating effort and space use of an alpine ungulate during the rut

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Abstract

In ungulates, the rut generally leads to increased intra and interpopulation movements for males. Because movements induce energetic costs and missed feeding opportunities, they could be an indication of male mating effort. We studied space use of 44 male mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus) from three neighboring subpopulations in southeast Alaska, during the rut from 2005 to 2008. Using mixed models and an information theoretic approach with AIC, we analyzed the relationships between individual traits of males and their space use. We found no indication of breeding migration between subpopulations. Distances between individual seasonal ranges were not related to any individual trait. Daily movements, home range sizes, and total distance traveled during the rut did not vary with mass or age of individuals. As such, effects of individual traits on male space use during the rut appear weak and observed space use patterns do not support any of the main mating effort hypotheses.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to A.-S. Julien and D. Emond for their help with statistical analysis and to J. Wilmshurst, M. Apollonio, and an anonymous reviewer for valuable comments on an earlier version of the manuscript. Funding was provided by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities and Coeur Alaska. We thank J. Jemison, N. Barten, D. Larsen, R. Scott, A. Crupi, C. Rice, K. McCoy, and L. Butler for their help with capture, handling, and monitoring of mountain goats. Aerial capture support was provided by R. Madrid and M. Horton (Temsco Helicopters). Fixed-wing aerial support was provided by L. Bennett, C. Schroth, J. Norvell, M. Morris, D. Larsen, and P. Valkenburg. We thank J. Mainguy, M. Houle, E. Cardinal, and J. Taillon for their help studying the rut of goats at Caw Ridge. JHR was supported by a scholarship from Ski Marmot Basin and Parks Canada.

Ethical standards

All capture procedures were approved by the State of Alaska Animal Care and Use Committee.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Département de biologie and Centre d’études nordiques, Université Laval, 1045 avenue de la Médecine, G1V 0A6, Québec, Canada

    Julien H. Richard & Steeve D. Côté

  2. Division of Wildlife Conservation, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, 802 Third Street, PO Box 110024, Douglas, AK, USA

    Kevin S. White

Authors
  1. Julien H. Richard
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  2. Kevin S. White
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  3. Steeve D. Côté
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Correspondence to Julien H. Richard.

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Communicated by K. E. Ruckstuhl

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Richard, J.H., White, K.S. & Côté, S.D. Mating effort and space use of an alpine ungulate during the rut. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 68, 1639–1648 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-014-1772-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-014-1772-1

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