Calibrating the data logger…
Across ecosystems, disturbances drive changes in habitat composition, which alter visibility. Visibility, in turn, alters animal behavior. Climate change is expected to increase the frequency/severity of disasters, and thus understanding how such events alter animal behavior is a critical part of understanding how climate change alters the biosphere. Here, we investigate how a change in visibility brought about by a climax avalanche alters anti-predator vigilance levels and social network measures in a wild population of yellow-bellied models (Marmota flaviventer). We fit a series of generalized linear mixed models to examine the influence that the year being before versus after the avalanche has on the time spent being vigilant and several social network measures. We found a significant increase in anti-predator vigilance following the avalanche, while no significant changes in social network measures were detected. Our finding suggests that the obstruction of peripheral visibility brought about by the avalanche increased the marmot’s perception of risk without affecting their ability to socialize.
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