Movement Patterns, Home Range and Habitat Selection of Australasian Marsupials

Abstract

Knowledge of movement patterns, home range, and habitat selection is fundamental to understanding how species have adapted to their environments but also to effective conservation. A key insight from reviewing the movement behavior of Australasian marsupials is that most, excluding the medium-large macropods, show a pattern of changing shelters every 2–6 days. The most plausible hypothesis to account for such rapid changing of sites is the need for individuals to demonstrate ownership of their home range. More shelters were used where more were available. Studies of ranging behavior reveal multiple spatial strategies: home ranges that shift location over time, highly overlapping home ranges, moderately overlapping home ranges, female territoriality, male territoriality, and group territoriality. Habitat selection is reviewed at three spatial scales: microhabitat, home range (macrohabitat), and landscape. The microhabitat scale revealed the importance of factors that drive shelter site selection; in many cases the importance of dense vegetation. The home range scale revealed that habitats are used unevenly with respect to availability and that selection at this scale can be dynamic. Selection at the landscape scale reflects the uneven distribution of habitats. All spatial scales provide insights for conservation: specific substrates and the structure of vegetation important for shelter; whether mosaics, ecotones, or specific vegetation associations are needed; and where and how habitats should be configured across the landscape. Habitat protection and restoration will be an important part of species’ conservation for years to come and need to be informed by studies at all spatial scales.