Are fission-fusion dynamics consistent among populations? A large-scale study with Cape buffalo

Fission-fusion dynamics allow animals to manage costs and benefits of group living  by adjusting group size. The degree of intraspecific variation in fission-fusion dynamics across the geographical range is poorly known. During 2008-2016, 38 adult female Cape buffalo were equipped with GPS collars in three populations located in different protected areas (Gonarezhou National Park and Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe; Kruger National Park, South Africa) to investigate the patterns and environmental drivers of fission-fusion dynamics among populations. We estimated home range overlap and fission and fusion events between Cape buffalo dyads. We investigated the temporal dynamics of both events at daily and seasonal scales and examined the influence of habitat and distance to water on event location. Fission-fusion dynamics were generally consistent across populations: fission and fusion periods lasted on average between less than one day and three days. However, we found seasonal differences...

裂变-融合动态（fission-fusion dynamics）允许动物通过调整群体规模来管控群居生活的成本与收益。目前学界对不同地理种群间裂变-融合动态的种内变异程度仍知之甚少。2008年至2016年间，研究人员在三处位于不同保护区的种群（津巴布韦的戈纳雷若国家公园、万基国家公园，以及南非的克鲁格国家公园）为38头成年雌性非洲水牛佩戴了GPS项圈，以此探究不同种群间裂变-融合动态的模式及其环境驱动因子。本研究估算了非洲水牛配对个体间的家域重叠度，以及裂变与融合事件；在日尺度与季节尺度上分析了两类事件的时间动态，并检验了生境与距水源距离对事件发生位置的影响。总体而言，各种群的裂变-融合动态特征基本一致：裂变与融合周期的平均时长介于不足一日至三日之间。但本研究发现了季节差异……