Resource availability influences global social network properties in Gunnison’s prairie dogs (Cynomys gunnisoni)
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resource_availability_influenc ...
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Final Accepted Manuscript
Affiliation
School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of ArizonaIssue Date
2021-09-20
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BrillCitation
Jordán, F., Kovács, B., & Verdolin, J. L. (2021). Resource availability influences global social network properties in Gunnison’s prairie dogs (Cynomys gunnisoni). Behaviour.Journal
BehaviourRights
© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2021.Collection Information
This item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at repository@u.library.arizona.edu.Abstract
Increasingly we are discovering that the interactions between individuals within social groups can be quite complex and flexible. Social network analysis offers a toolkit to describe and quantify social structure, the patterns we observe, and evaluate the social and environmental factors that shape group dynamics. Here, we used 14 Gunnison's prairie dogs networks to evaluate how resource availability and network size influenced four global properties of the networks (centralization, clustering, average path length, small word index). Our results suggest a positive correlation between overall network cohesion and resource availability, such that networks became less centralized and cliquish as biomass/m2 availability decreased. We also discovered that network size modulates the link between social interactions and resource availability and is consistent with a more 'decentralized' group. This study highlights the importance of how individuals modify social cohesions and network connectedness as a way to reduce intragroup competition under different ecological conditions.Note
Immediate accessISSN
0005-7959EISSN
1568-539XVersion
Final accepted manuscriptae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1163/1568539x-bja10118