Abstract
For several years, several wild species are experiencing a comeback in Europe, especially large herbivores. Despite the good news, the increased number of wild herbivores also potentially increases human-wildlife conflicts due to crop damages and road traffic accidents where such species have been involved in previously. In this context, studying the movements of animal groups is particularly relevant for managing their use of space and ensure sufficient cohabitation with human populations. We thus studied the European bison (Bison bonasus), a species concerned in several rewilding programs, to understand to what extent individual characteristics and social relationships are involved in the leadership process and how these factors influence the success of group movements. We observed a herd of 14 individuals in Zuid-Kennemerland National Park (the Netherlands) and analysed the initiation phase of spontaneous group movements. We showed that leadership was distributed throughout the group but the two oldest females showed higher propensity to initiate and to be followed. They seemed to have a high social power and a strong capacity to federate probably due to their dominance rank and their knowledge of the areas. The joining process was faster when animals were grouped before departure and when the initiator moved in the direction towards which the majority of individuals was oriented. Individuals joined the movement according to a selective mimetic process, based on kinship. These results, combined with virtual fence device, could be used to manage herd movements in a given territory and thus, might be an innovative tool to decrease human-wildlife conflicts.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Altmann J (1974) Observational study of behavior: sampling methods. Behaviour 49:227–266. https://doi.org/10.1163/156853974X00534
Anderson DM (2007) Virtual fencing—past, present and future. Rangel J 29:65–78
Bartoń K (2016) MuMIn: multi-model inference
Berry PSM, Bercovitch FB (2015) Leadership of herd progressions in the Thornicroft’s giraffe of Zambia. Afr J Ecol 53:175–182. https://doi.org/10.1111/aje.12173
Blowers TE, Waterman JM, Kuhar CW, Bettinger TL (2009) Social behaviors within a group of captive female Hippopotamus amphibius. J Ethol 28:287–294. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-009-0184-6
Bode NWF, Wood AJ, Franks DW (2011) The impact of social networks on animal collective motion. Anim Behav 82:29–38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2011.04.011
Bon R, Campan R (1996) Unexplained sexual segregation in polygamous ungulates: a defense of an ontogenetic approach. Behav Process 38:131–154. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0376-6357(96)00029-0
Bourjade M, Sueur C (2010) Shared or unshared consensus for collective movement? Towards methodological concerns. Behav Process 84:648–652. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2010.02.027
Bourjade M, Thierry B, Maumy M, Petit O (2009) Decision-making in przewalski horses (Equus ferus przewalskii) is driven by the ecological contexts of collective movements. Ethology 115:321–330. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0310.2009.01614.x
Briard L, Dorn C, Petit O (2015) Personality and affinities play a key role in the organisation of collective movements in a group of domestic horses. Ethology 121:888–902. https://doi.org/10.1111/eth.12402
Bumann D, Krause J, Rubenstein D (1997) Mortality risk of spatial positions in animal groups: the danger of being in the front. Behaviour 134:1063–1076. https://doi.org/10.1163/156853997X00403
Burnham KP, Anderson DR (eds) (2004) Model selection and multimodel inference. Springer New York, New York, NY
Butler Z, Corke P, Peterson R, Rus D (2006) From robots to animals: virtual fences for controlling cattle. Int J Robot Res 25:485–508. https://doi.org/10.1177/0278364906065375
Caboń-Raczyńska K, Krasińska M, Krasiński ZA, Wójcik JM (1987) Bisoniana XCVII. Rhythm of daily activity and behavior of European bison in the Białowieża Forest in the period without snow cover. Acta Theriol (Warsz) 32:335–372
Conradt L, Roper TJ (2005) Consensus decision making in animals. Trends Ecol Evol 20:449–456. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2005.05.008
Craney TA, Surles JG (2002) Model-dependent variance inflation factor cutoff values. Qual Eng 14:391–403. https://doi.org/10.1081/QEN-120001878
Decker SE, Bath AJ, Simms A, Lindner U, Reisinger E (2010) The return of the king or bringing snails to the garden? The human dimensions of a proposed restoration of European bison (Bison bonasus) in Germany. Restor Ecol 18:41–51. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1526-100X.2008.00467.x
Della-Rossa L, Chadœuf J, Boissy A, Dumont B (2013) Leaders of spontaneous group movements influence whole-group social organization: an experimental study on grazing heifers. Behaviour 150:153–173. https://doi.org/10.1163/1568539X-00003043
Distefano E (2005) Human-wildlife conflict worldwide: collection of case studies, analysis of management strategies and good practices. SARD Initiat Rep FAO Rome 18:41–51. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1526-100X.2008.00467.x
Rewilding Europe (2015) Rewilding Europe—making Europe a wilder place. https://www.rewildingeurope.com/. Accessed 3 Jan 2017
Farine DR, Whitehead H (2015) Constructing, conducting and interpreting animal social network analysis. J Anim Ecol 84:1144–1163. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.12418
Feist JD, McCullough DR (1976) Behavior patterns and communication in feral horses. Z Für Tierpsychol 41:337–371. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0310.1976.tb00947.x
Fischhoff IR, Sundaresan SR, Cordingley J, Larkin HM, Sellier MJ, Rubenstein DI (2007) Social relationships and reproductive state influence leadership roles in movements of plains zebra, Equus burchellii. Anim Behav 73:825–831. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2006.10.012
Fry JC (1993) Biological data analysis: a practical approach. Oxford University Press, Inc., New York
Gammell MP, de VH, Jennings DJ et al (2003) David’s score: a more appropriate dominance ranking method than Clutton-Brock et al.’s index. Anim Behav 66:601–605
Green WCH (1992) The development of independence in bison: pre-weaning spatial relations between mothers and calves. Anim Behav 43:759–773. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0003-3472(05)80199-X
Green WCH, Griswold JG, Rothstein A (1989) Post-weaning associations among bison mothers and daughters. Anim Behav 38:847–858. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0003-3472(89)80116-2
Haddadi H, King AJ, Wills AP, Fay D, Lowe J, Morton AJ, Hailes S, Wilson AM (2011) Determining association networks in social animals: choosing spatial–temporal criteria and sampling rates. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 65:1659–1668. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-011-1193-3
Harcourt JL, Ang TZ, Sweetman G, Johnstone RA, Manica A (2009) Social feedback and the emergence of leaders and followers. Curr Biol 19:248–252. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2008.12.051
Hofman-Kamińska E, Kowalczyk R (2012) Farm crops depredation by European bison (Bison Bonasus) in the vicinity of forest habitats in northeastern Poland. Environ Manag 50:530–541. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-012-9913-7
Ihl C, Bowyer RT (2011) Leadership in mixed-sex groups of muskoxen during the snow-free season. J Mammal 92:819–827. https://doi.org/10.1644/10-MAMM-A-109.1
Jachowski DS, Slotow R, Millspaugh JJ (2014) Good virtual fences make good neighbors: opportunities for conservation. Anim Conserv 17:187–196. https://doi.org/10.1111/acv.12082
Jacobs A, Sueur C, Deneubourg JL, Petit O (2011) Social network influences decision making during collective movements in brown lemurs (Eulemur fulvus fulvus). Int J Primatol 32:721–736. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-011-9497-8
Jędrzejewski W, Jędrzejewska B, Okarma H, Ruprecht AL (1992) Wolf predation and snow cover as mortality factors in the ungulate community of the Białowieża National Park, Poland. Oecologia 90:27–36. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00317805
Jouven M, Ickowiczi A, Leroy H, Lapeyronie P (2010) Les clôtures virtuelles: un outil pour gérer le pâturage en élevage ovin allaitant? Rencontres Autour Rech Sur Rumin:53–56
Kamler J, Homolka M, Barančeková M, Krojerová-Prokešová J (2010) Reduction of herbivore density as a tool for reduction of herbivore browsing on palatable tree species. Eur J For Res 129:155–162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10342-009-0309-z
Kerley GIH, Kowalczyk R, Cromsigt J (2012) Conservation implications of the refugee species concept and the European bison: king of the forest or refugee in a marginal habitat? Ecography 35:519–529. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0587.2011.07146.x
Klich D, Perzanowski K (2012) A chance for the restoration of wisents to northern Caucasus. Eur Bison Conserv Newsl 5:57–66
Klingel H (1968) Soziale Organisation und Verhaltensweisen von Hartmann-und Bergzebras (Equus zebra hartmannae und E. z. zebra). Z Für Tierpsychol 25:76–88. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0310.1968.tb00004.x
Kluever BM, Breck SW, Howery LD, Krausman PR, Bergman DL (2008) Vigilance in cattle: the influence of predation, social interactions, and environmental factors. Rangel Ecol Manag 61:321–328. https://doi.org/10.2111/07-087.1
Kondo S, Terashima H, Nishino S (1980) Leader-follower relationship in steer calves and lactating dairy cows. J Coll Dairy
Krasińska M, Krasiński ZA (2013) European bison: the nature monograph. Springer Science & Business Media
Krause J, Ruxton GD (2002) Living in groups. OUP, Oxford
Krueger K, Flauger B, Farmer K, Hemelrijk C (2014) Movement initiation in groups of feral horses. Behav Process 103:91–101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2013.10.007
Krysiak K (1963) News of the European bison in Poland. Oryx 7:94–96. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0030605300002453
Kurvers RHJM, Eijkelenkamp B, van Oers K, van Lith B, van Wieren SE, Ydenberg RC, Prins HHT (2009) Personality differences explain leadership in barnacle geese. Anim Behav 78:447–453. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.06.002
Lawton JH (1994) What do species do in ecosystems? Oikos 71:367–374. https://doi.org/10.2307/3545824
Le Pendu Y, Briedermann L, Gerard JF, Maublanc ML (1995) Inter-individual associations and social structure of a mouflon population (Ovis orientalis musimon). Behav Process 34:67–80. https://doi.org/10.1016/0376-6357(94)00055-L
Lusseau D, Conradt L (2009) The emergence of unshared consensus decisions in bottlenose dolphins. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 63:1067–1077. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-009-0740-7
McComb K, Moss C, Durant SM, Baker L, Sayialel S (2001) Matriarchs as repositories of social knowledge in African elephants. Science 292:491–494. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1057895
McComb K, Shannon G, Durant SM et al (2011) Leadership in elephants: the adaptive value of age. Proc R Soc Lond B Biol Sci rspb20110168. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2011.0168
McDonnell S (2003) Practical field guide to horse behavior: the equid ethogram. Lexington
McHugh T (1958) Social behavior of the American buffalo (Bison bison bison). Zoologica 43:1–40
Merkle JA, Sigaud M, Fortin D (2015) To follow or not? How animals in fusion–fission societies handle conflicting information during group decision-making. Ecol Lett 18:799–806. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.12457
Michelena P, Jeanson R, Deneubourg J-L, Sibbald AM (2010) Personality and collective decision-making in foraging herbivores. Proc R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 277:1093–1099. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2009.1926
Navarro LM, Pereira HM (2012) Rewilding abandoned landscapes in Europe. Ecosystems 15:900–912. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-012-9558-7
Olech W (2008) Bison bonasus. In: IUCN Red List Threat. Species. http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/2814/0. Accessed 3 Jan 2017
Pays O, Fortin D, Gassani J, Duchesne J (2012) Group dynamics and landscape features constrain the exploration of herds in fusion-fission societies: the case of European roe deer. PLoS One 7:e34678. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0034678
Petit O, Bon R (2010) Decision-making processes: the case of collective movements. Behav Process 84:635–647. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2010.04.009
Prins H (1996) Ecology and behaviour of the African buffalo: social inequality and decision making. Springer Science & Business Media
Pucek Z, Belousova I, Krasinska M, et al (2004) Status survey and conservation action plan: European bison. IUCNSSC Bison Spec Group–Gland IUCN
Putman R, Apollonio M, Andersen R (2011) Ungulate management in Europe: problems and practices. Cambridge University Press
Quigley TM, Sanderson HR, Tiedemann AR, McInnis ML (1990) Livestock control with electrical and audio stimulation. Rangelands 12:152–155
Ramos A, Petit O, Longour P, Pasquaretta C, Sueur C (2015) Collective decision making during group movements in European bison, Bison bonasus. Anim Behav 109:149–160. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2015.08.016
Ramos A, Petit O, Longour P, Pasquaretta C, Sueur C (2016) Space use and movement patterns in a semi-free-ranging herd of European bison (Bison Bonasus). PLoS One 11:e0147404. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0147404
Ramseyer A, Boissy A, Dumont B, Thierry B (2009a) Decision making in group departures of sheep is a continuous process. Anim Behav 78:71–78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.03.017
Ramseyer A, Boissy A, Thierry B, Dumont B (2009b) Individual and social determinants of spontaneous group movements in cattle and sheep. Anim Int J Anim Biosci 3:1319–1326. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731109004790
Ramseyer A, Thierry B, Boissy A, Dumont B (2009c) Decision-making processes in group departures of cattle. Ethology 115:948–957. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0310.2009.01686.x
Raveling DG (1969) Preflight and flight behavior of Canada geese. Auk 86:671–681
Reinhardt V (1983) Movement orders and leadership in a semi-wild cattle herd. Behaviour 83:251–264. https://doi.org/10.1163/156853983X00183
Ritchie ME, Tilman D, Knops JM (1998) Herbivore effects on plant and nitrogen dynamics in oak savanna. Ecology 79:165–177
RStudio Team (2016) RStudio: integrated development environment for R. RStudio, Inc., Boston, MA
Ruckstuhl KE, Neuhaus P (2000) Sexual segregation in ungulates: a new approach. Behaviour 137:361–377. https://doi.org/10.1163/156853900502123
Rutberg AT (1986) Dominance and its fitness consequences in American bison cows. Behaviour 96:62–91. https://doi.org/10.1163/156853986X00225
Sandom CJ, Hughes J, Macdonald DW (2013) Rewilding the Scottish highlands: do wild boar, Sus Scrofa, use a suitable foraging strategy to be effective ecosystem engineers? Restor Ecol 21:336–343. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1526-100X.2012.00903.x
Sibbald AM, Erhard HW, McLeod JE, Hooper RJ (2009) Individual personality and the spatial distribution of groups of grazing animals: an example with sheep. Behav Process 82:319–326. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2009.07.011
Smit C, Ruifrok JL, van Klink R, Olff H (2015) Rewilding with large herbivores: the importance of grazing refuges for sapling establishment and wood-pasture formation. Biol Conserv 182:134–142. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2014.11.047
Steventon J (2013) CyberTracker. CyberTracker conservation, Bellville, SA
Stewart KJ, Harcourt AH (1994) Gorillas’ vocalizations during rest periods: signals of impending departure? Behaviour 130:29–40. https://doi.org/10.1163/156853994X00127
Sueur C (2011) Group decision-making in chacma baboons: leadership, order and communication during movement. BMC Ecol 11:26. https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6785-11-26
Sueur C, Deneubourg J-L (2011) Self-organization in primates: understanding the rules underlying collective movements. Int J Primatol 32:1413–1432. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-011-9520-0
Sueur C, Petit O (2008a) Shared or unshared consensus decision in macaques? Behav Process 78:84–92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2008.01.004
Sueur C, Petit O (2008b) Organization of group members at departure is driven by social structure in Macaca. Int J Primatol 29:1085–1098. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-008-9262-9
Sueur C, Petit O, Deneubourg J-L (2009) Selective mimetism at departure in collective movements of Macaca tonkeana: an experimental and theoretical approach. Anim Behav 78:1087–1095. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.07.029
Sueur C, Deneubourg J-L, Petit O (2010) Sequence of quorums during collective decision making in macaques. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 64:1875–1885. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-010-0999-8
Sueur C, King AJ, Conradt L, Kerth G, Lusseau D, Mettke-Hofmann C, Schaffner CM, Williams L, Zinner D, Aureli F (2011) Collective decision-making and fission–fusion dynamics: a conceptual framework. Oikos 120:1608–1617. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2011.19685.x
Sueur C, MacIntosh AJJ, Jacobs AT et al (2012) Predicting leadership using nutrient requirements and dominance rank of group members. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 67:457–470. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-012-1466-5
Tulloch DG (1978) The water buffalo, Bubalus bubalis, in Australia: grouping and home range. Aust Wildl Res 5:327–354
Tyler SJ (1972) The behaviour and social organization of the new forest ponies. Anim Behav Monogr 5:87–196. https://doi.org/10.1016/0003-3472(72)90003-6
Vander Wal E, Gagné-Delorme A, Festa-Bianchet M, Pelletier F (2016) Dyadic associations and individual sociality in bighorn ewes. Behav Ecol 27:560–566. https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arv193
Villaret J-C, Bon R (1998) Sociality and relationships in alpine ibex (Capra Ibex). Rev Ecol 53:153–170
de Vries H (1993) The rowwise correlation between two proximity matrices and the partial rowwise correlation. Psychometrika 58:53–69. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02294470
de Vries H (1995) An improved test of linearity in dominance hierarchies containing unknown or tied relationships. Anim Behav 50:1375–1389. https://doi.org/10.1016/0003-3472(95)80053-0
de Vries H (2006) Measuring and testing the steepness of dominance hierarchies. Anim Behav 71:585–592. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2005.05.015
Wasserman S, Faust K (1994) Social network analysis: methods and applications. Cambridge University Press
Wells SM, von Goldschmidt-Rothschild B (1979) Social behaviour and relationships in a herd of Camargue horses. Z Für Tierpsychol 49:363–380. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0310.1979.tb00299.x
Whitehead H (2009) SOCPROG programs: analysing animal social structures. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 63:765–778. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-008-0697-y
Wittemyer G, Douglas-Hamilton I, Getz WM (2005) The socioecology of elephants: analysis of the processes creating multitiered social structures. Anim Behav 69:1357–1371. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2004.08.018
Zou KH, Tuncali K, Silverman SG (2003) Correlation and simple linear regression. Radiology 227:617–628. https://doi.org/10.1148/radiol.2273011499
Acknowledgements
We would like to warmly thank all the teams of Zuid-Kennemerland National Park, PWN, ARK Nature and all partners of the Kraansvlak Bison Project for their valuable help during data collection and their presence during the various stages of our study. We are grateful to Emilio R. Rojas (Wildstats) and Palmyre H. Boucherie for their help for statistical analyses and their scientific contributions, always enriching. We also thank Alexandre Naud, M-A Forin-Wiart and Joffrey Jouma’a for their fruitful advices regarding GLMM analysis.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ramos, A., Manizan, L., Rodriguez, E. et al. How can leadership processes in European bison be used to improve the management of free-roaming herds. Eur J Wildl Res 64, 18 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-018-1175-0
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-018-1175-0