TY  - JOUR
A1  - Bailleul, Frederic
A1  - Grimm, Volker
A1  - Chion, Clement
A1  - Hammill, Mike
T1  - Modeling implications of food resource aggregation on animal migration phenology
JF  - Ecology and evolution
N2  - The distribution of poikilotherms is determined by the thermal structure of the marine environment that they are exposed to. Recent research has indicated that changes in migration phenology of beluga whales in the Arctic are triggered by changes in the thermal structure of the marine environment in their summering area. If sea temperatures reflect the spatial distribution of food resources, then changes in the thermal regime will affect how homogeneous or clumped food is distributed. We explore, by individual-based modelling, the hypothesis that changes in migration phenology are not necessarily or exclusively triggered by changes in food abundance, but also by changes in the spatial aggregation of food. We found that the level of food aggregation can significantly affect the relationship between the timing of the start of migration to the winter grounds and the total prey capture of individuals. Our approach strongly indicates that changes in the spatial distribution of food resources should be considered for understanding and quantitatively predicting changes in the phenology of animal migration.
KW  - Animal migration
KW  - food structuring
KW  - global change
KW  - individual-based model
KW  - polar environment
Y1  - 2013
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.656
SN  - 2045-7758
VL  - 3
IS  - 8
SP  - 2535
EP  - 2546
PB  - Wiley-Blackwell
CY  - Hoboken
ER  -