27th Annual Student Research Conference
Home Range, Movement Rate, and Habitat Use of Terrapene ornata at the Northern Edge of Its Range
Michael E. Kartje*, Allison R. Hanna, and Yannik E. Roell
Dr. Chad Montgomery, Faculty Mentor
The geographic range of a species reflects the distribution of available habitat and resources necessary for the species persistence. Within the range of a species, resource availability is not homogeneous. Instead, it is shown to exist as a continuum from most hospitable near the ranges center, to least hospitable at its boundaries. It follows that life history characteristics including movement rate, home range and habitat use may vary within a species range. Adair County, MO lies on the northernmost edge of the range of Terrapene ornata. While the life history strategies of T. ornata have been documented elsewhere, there is a paucity of life history information from populations along the range edge. We used radio telemetry to determine home range, habitat use, and movement rates of T. ornata. We compared these data to data from other areas within the range to elucidate life history variation in the species.
Keywords: Terrapene ornata, Life history, Movement rate, Habitat use, Home range, Radio telemetry
Topic(s):Biology
Presentation Type: Poster
Session: 4-9
Location: GEO - SUB
Time: 3:30