Density-dependent within-patch movement behavior of two competing species

Movement behavior is central to understanding species distributions, population dynamics and coexistence with other species. At present, relatively little is known about how conspecific and interspecific competitor density affect movement behavior. We conducted releases of two species of competing Tribolium flour beetles at different densities, alone and together in homogeneous microcosms, and tested whether their recaptures-with-distance were well described by a random-diffusion model. We also determined whether mean displacement distances varied with the release density of conspecific and heterospecific beetles. A diffusion model provided a good fit to the redistribution of T. castaneum and T. confusum at all release densities, explaining an average of >60% of the variation in recaptures. For both species, mean displacement (directly proportional to the diffusion rate) exhibited a humped-shaped relationship with conspecific density. Finally, we found that both species of beetle imp..., , , # Density-dependent within-patch movement behavior of two competing species

James T\. Cronin1\,\* \| Jerome Goddard II2 \| Aaron Krivchenia1 \| Ratnasingham Shivaji3

1Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803
2Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Auburn University Montgomery, Montgomery, AL 36124, USA
3Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA

\*Corresponding author: [e-mail], [phone]

Abstract
Movement behavior is central to understanding species distributions, population dynamics and coexistence with other species. Although the relationship between conspecific density and emigration has been well studied, little attention has been paid to how interspecific competitor density affects another species’ movement behavior. We conducted releases of two species of competing *Tribolium* flour beetles at different densities, alone and together in homogeneous ...