Intrusion Experiments to Measure Territory Size: Development of the Method, Tests through Simulations, and Application in the Frog Allobates femoralis

Territoriality is a widespread behaviour in animals and its analysis is crucial in several areas of behavioural, ecological and evolutionary research. Commonly, territory size is assessed through territory mapping and the application of simple area estimators such as minimum convex polygons. In the present study we demonstrate that territory size can be determined adequately with an active approach through intrusion experiments, a technique that is commonly used in behavioural research in other contexts. Tests with simulated data indicate that a minimum of twelve trials needs to be performed to establish reliable orders of relative territory size. To estimate absolute territory size, detailed hull techniques are most appropriate when analyzing point patterns of intrusion experiments, while the local convex hull estimator enables the construction of internal utilization distributions based on such point patterns. Additionally we suggest a ‘stretch the centre’ approach to emphasize the actual process of intrusion experiments in the construction of internal utilization distributions. To demonstrate the utility of the method, we apply all findings from the simulations to data from fieldwork with the model species Allobates femoralis, a territorial aromobatid frog from the lowland rainforest of French Guiana

Identification of Change in a Dynamic Dot Pattern and its use in the Maintenance of Footprints

Examples of spatio-temporal data that can be represented as sets of points (called dot patterns) are pervasive in many applications, for example when tracking herds of migrating animals, ships in busy shipping channels and crowds of people in everyday life. The use of this type of data extends beyond the standard remit of Geographic Information Science (GISc), as classification and optimisation problems can often be visualised in the same manner. A common task within these fields is the assignment of a region (called a footprint) that is representative of the underlying pattern. The ways in which this footprint can be generated has been the subject of much research with many algorithms having been produced. Much of this research has focused on the dot patterns and footprints as static entities, however for many of the applications the data is prone to change. This thesis proposes that the footprint need not necessarily be updated each time the dot pattern changes; that the footprint can remain an appropriate representation of the pattern if the amount of change is slight. To ascertain the appropriate times at which to update the footprint, and when to leave it as it is, this thesis introduces the concept of change identifiers as simple measures of change between two dot patterns. Underlying the change identifiers is an in-depth examination of the data inherent in the dot pattern and the creation of descriptors that represent this data. The experimentation performed by this thesis shows that change identifiers are able to distinguish between different types of change across dot patterns from different sources. In doing so the change identifiers reduce the number of updates of the footprint while maintaining a measurably good representation of the dot pattern

The genetic mating system and analyses of reproductive success in Allobates femoralis

Das Bild von Froschpopulationen, die als Brutgemeinschaften während kurzer reproduktiver Perioden an einzelnen Wasserstellen große Mengen an Laich ablegen, ist weit verbreitet. Innerhalb der Anuren finden wir jedoch ein breites Spektrum an verschiedenen reproduktiven Strategien. Neotropische Pfeilgiftfrösche (Dendrobatidae und Aromobatidae in der Überfamilie Dendrobatoidea) nehmen hinsichtlich ihres aufwändigen Reproduktionsverhaltens eine Sonderstellung innerhalb der Amphibien ein. Charakteristische Attribute aller Arten in dieser Gruppe sind lange Brutperioden, Territorialität zumindest bei einem der Geschlechter und obligate Brutpflege. Folglich kann man erwarten, dass sich Dendrobatoidae im Bezug auf ihre Populationsgenetik und reproduktiven Dynamiken erheblich von „temperaten Explosivlaichern“ unterscheiden. Die Kenntnisse über reproduktives Verhalten von Pfeilgiftfröschen basieren Großteils auf detaillierten Verhaltensbeobachtungen, und wurden bisher nur durch wenige molekulare Studien belegt. Die über ganz Amazonien verbreitete Pfeilgiftfroschart Allobates femoralis eignet sich sehr gut für Studien auf Individuen- bzw. Populationsniveau. Während der langen Fortpflanzungsperiode, die mit der Regenzeit einhergeht, sind die Männchen hoch territorial; die Weibchen sind iteropar und standorttreu. Balz und Paarung findet in den Territorien der Männchen statt. Das genetische Paarungssystem zu erfassen und die Verteilung des Fortpflanzungserfolges bei Männchen und Weibchen innerhalb einer A. femoralis Population zu untersuchen war das Ziel meiner Dissertation. Diese Arbeit trägt somit zum Wissen über Paarungssysteme, Parameter der Partnerwahl und über Effekte der elterlichen Verwandtschaft auf individuellen Fortpflanzungserfolg, insbesondere in Dendrobatoidea, bei. Die untersuchte A. femoralis Population befindet sich in der Nähe der Forschungsstation ‘Saut Pararé’ im Naturschutzgebiet ‘Les Nouragues’, in Französisch Guyana. Anhand molekularer Elternschaftsanalysen zweier aufeinanderfolgender Generationen adulter Individuen konnte ein hoch polygynandrisches Paarungssystem identifiziert werden. Trotz erheblicher Unterschiede im reproduktiven Verhalten von Männchen und Weibchen, hatten erfolgreiche Individuen in beiden Geschlechtern sowohl eine ähnliche Anzahl von Fortpflanzunspartnern als auch adulte Nachkommen pro Individuum. Auch der Prozentsatz an Männchen und auch Weibchen in der Population, die erfolgreich Nachkommen produzierten, die bis zum Adultstadium überlebten, war sehr hoch. Der individuelle Reproduktionserfolg war signifikant höher für Männchen, welche ein Territorium besaßen, jedoch unabhängig von der Größe des Territoriums oder Körpergröße beider Geschlechter. Elternschaftszuordnungen von Nachkommen zu zwei unterschiedlichen Zeitpunkten in der Entwicklung zu ihrer Parentalgeneration wurden verwendet, um die Effekte von genetischer Verwandtschaft auf individuellen Fortpflanzungserfolg in A. femoralis zu identifizieren. Die schrittweise räumliche Einengung der potentiellen männlichen Fortpflanzungspartner in unserer Analyse ermöglichte zwischen räumlichen und genetischen Effekten bei der Partnerwahl zu differenzieren. Räumliche und genetische Distanzen wiesen keinerlei Korrelation auf. Weibchen wählten ihre Fortpflanzungspartner meist (in 72%) innerhalb eines Radius von 20m. Unsere Analysen lieferten keinen Hinweis auf Inzuchtvermeidung bei A. femoralis, jedoch war die Varianz der genetischen Divergenz der erfolgreichen Fortpflanzungspaare signifikant kleiner, als bei Zufallsverpaarungen zu erwarten gewesen wäre. DNA Proben für die molekularen Analysen wurden gesammelt, in dem wir von allen adulten männlichen und weiblichen A. femoralis Phalangenamputationen durchführten. Nach wenigen Monaten, konnte die Größenzunahme dieser Phalangenstümpfe beobachtet werden, ein Phänomen, das bisher nur fallweise bei einzelnen Froscharten beschrieben wurde. Außerdem wiesen die rasch nachgewachsenen Zehenscheiben in fast ausnahmslos allen Individuen, die nach einem bzw. zwei Jahren wiedergefangen wurden, eine schwarze statt der ursprünglichen weißen Färbung auf. Der Besitz eines Territoriums, nicht jedoch dessen Größe, ist ein signifikanter Bestimmungsfaktor für den Fortpflanzungserfolg in A. femoralis Männchen. Jedoch resultiert der Unterschied zwischen der Kernzone, die ein Männchen während des Rufend okkupiert, und dem Raum, den ein Männchen aktiv verteidigt, in zwei möglichen Definitionen für „Territorium“. Das Ergebnis, dass in A. femoralis die Ausdehnung des verteidigten Areales nicht mir der Kernzone korreliert, ist von spezieller Relevanz für zukünftige Studien, die Effekte von Territorialität auf Fortpflanzungserfolg untersuchen. Schließlich dokumentieren wir die Prädation eines A. femoralis Männchen durch eine Schlange der Art Xenopholis scalaris (Colubridae).Anuran amphibians are often portrayed as generally congregating at confined aquatic sites to deposit rather large egg clutches during short reproductive bouts, but they actually show a remarkably wide array of different reproductive strategies. Neotropical poison frogs and their relatives (Dendrobatidae and Aromobatidae in the superfamily Dendrobatoidea), for example, hold an extraordinary position within amphibians due to their elaborate reproductive behaviour which is found across the whole taxon. Dendrobatoid frogs are characterised by prolonged breeding, territoriality of at least one sex, and uni- or biparental care. Hence, it can be expected that in this taxonomic group population genetics and reproductive dynamics also differ considerably from the ‘temperate explosive breeding’ situation. Dendrobatoid reproductive behaviour is well documented from behavioural observations, but very few molecular studies have been performed in this taxon so far. The pan-Amazonian dendrobatoid frog Allobates femoralis is a highly suitable species for studies at the individual and also population level. Throughout the prolonged breeding period, which corresponds to the rainy season, males are highly territorial. Females are iteroparous and show strong site fidelity. Courtship and mating takes place inside the male territories. The aim of my dissertation was to assess the genetic mating system and to investigate the distribution and determinants of male and female reproductive success across an entire A. femoralis population. This thesis hence contributes to the knowledge about mating systems, parameters of mate choice, and effects of parental relatedness on reproductive success, particularly in Dendrobatoid frogs. The A. femoralis population under study is located near the research station ‘Saut Pararé’ in the nature reserve ‘Les Nouragues’, French Guiana. Through molecular parentage analyses of two successive generations of adult individuals a highly polygynandrous mating system was identified. Despite significant differences in the reproductive behaviour of males and females, successful individuals of both sexes had similar numbers of mating partners and produced similar numbers of adult progeny. Furthermore, a high percentage of the males and females in the population produced progeny which survived until adulthood. Reproductive success was significantly higher in territorial males, but not related to territory size in males or body size in both sexes. Parentage assignments of one offspring generation at two different life history stages were used to identify patterns of parental relatedness on reproductive success in Allobates femoralis. The stepwise spatial restriction of candidate males in our analysis allowed us to discern between spatial and genetic effects of mate choice. There was no correlation between genetic and spatial distance. Females mainly (in 72%) chose their mating partners within a radius of 20 m. Our results show no evidence of behavioral inbreeding avoidance in A. femoralis but indicate a selective benefit of matings between partners of intermediate genetic divergence. For the molecular analyses, we removed toe clips to gain sufficient DNA from all adult male and female A. femoralis. After a few months, the regrowth of the clipped toes was observed, a phenomenon, which was so far only occasionally reported from few anuran species. Furthermore, in almost all one- and two-year recaptured individuals the regrown toe discs showed a black instead of the original white colouration. Territory occupancy, but not territory size, was identified as a significant determinant of reproductive success in A. femoralis males. Given the distinct difference between the core area that is occupied during calling and the area a male is willing to defend, results in two possible definitions of male territory size. Our finding that the extension of the defended area did not correlate with the area occupied during calling is of particular relevance to studies that investigate the effect of territory size on reproductive success. Finally, we document a predation event on an A. femoralis male by a colubrid snake

Detecting and Identifying Collective Phenomena within Movement Data

Collective phenomena are ubiquitous in our every day lives; each day we are likely to observe or take part in a collective. Examples include a traffic jam on the way to work, a flock of birds in the sky or a queue in the shop. These examples include only three types of collective that are considered in this thesis: those phenomena whose individual members can be assigned a physical location in geographic space. However, this criterion is satisfied by many different types of collective. The movement patterns that are exhibited by collectives are one of their most prominent properties; it is often the property that we wish to reason about most. For example, the movement patterns of crowds, traffic or demonstrations. This thesis hypothesises that, given a dataset that comprises the movement data for a group of individuals, the presence of certain collectives can be achieved through an examination of the exhibited movement patterns. To identify the different types of collective that exist, a general taxonomy of collectives is presented. A class of collectives are found to manifest themselves through spatial coherence. Therefore, a set of spatial coherence criteria have been developed that can be applied to a movement dataset to indicate if any individuals within that dataset may be participating in a spatial collective. To indicate the different types of spatial collective that may be extracted, a taxonomy of spatial collectives is also presented

ICTERI 2020: ІКТ в освіті, дослідженнях та промислових застосуваннях. Інтеграція, гармонізація та передача знань 2020: Матеріали 16-ї Міжнародної конференції. Том II: Семінари. Харків, Україна, 06-10 жовтня 2020 р.

This volume represents the proceedings of the Workshops co-located with the 16th International Conference on ICT in Education, Research, and Industrial Applications, held in Kharkiv, Ukraine, in October 2020. It comprises 101 contributed papers that were carefully peer-reviewed and selected from 233 submissions for the five workshops: RMSEBT, TheRMIT, ITER, 3L-Person, CoSinE, MROL. The volume is structured in six parts, each presenting the contributions for a particular workshop. The topical scope of the volume is aligned with the thematic tracks of ICTERI 2020: (I) Advances in ICT Research; (II) Information Systems: Technology and Applications; (III) Academia/Industry ICT Cooperation; and (IV) ICT in Education.Цей збірник представляє матеріали семінарів, які були проведені в рамках 16-ї Міжнародної конференції з ІКТ в освіті, наукових дослідженнях та промислових застосуваннях, що відбулася в Харкові, Україна, у жовтні 2020 року. Він містить 101 доповідь, які були ретельно рецензовані та відібрані з 233 заявок на участь у п'яти воркшопах: RMSEBT, TheRMIT, ITER, 3L-Person, CoSinE, MROL. Збірник складається з шести частин, кожна з яких представляє матеріали для певного семінару. Тематична спрямованість збірника узгоджена з тематичними напрямками ICTERI 2020: (I) Досягнення в галузі досліджень ІКТ; (II) Інформаційні системи: Технології і застосування; (ІІІ) Співпраця в галузі ІКТ між академічними і промисловими колами; і (IV) ІКТ в освіті