dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaLevy walk patterns in the foraging movements of spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi)
| Authors | Gabriel Ramos-Fernandez, Jose Luis Mateos, Octavio Miramontes, Germinal Cocho, Hernan Larralde, Barbara Ayala-Orozco |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | physics/0301019 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0301019 |
Abstract
Scale invariant patterns have been found in different biological systems, in many cases resembling what physicists have found in other nonbiological systems. Here we describe the foraging patterns of free-ranging spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) in the forest of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico and find that these patterns resemble what physicists know as Levy walks. First, the length of a trajectory s constituent steps, or continuous moves in the same direction, is best described by a power-law distribution in which the frequency of ever larger steps decreases as a negative power function of their length. The rate of this decrease is very close to that predicted by a previous analytical Levy walk model to be an optimal strategy to search for scarce resources distributed at random Viswanathan et al 1999). Second, the frequency distribution of the duration of stops or waiting times also approximates a power-law function. Finally, the mean square displacement during the monkeys first foraging trip increases more rapidly than would be expected from a random walk with constant step length, but within the range predicted for Levy walks. In view of these results, we analyze the different exponents characterizing the trajectories described by females and males, and by monkeys on their own or when part of a subgroup. We discuss the origin of these patterns and their implications for the foraging ecology of spider monkeys.
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"abstract": "Scale invariant patterns have been found in different biological systems, in\nmany cases resembling what physicists have found in other nonbiological\nsystems. Here we describe the foraging patterns of free-ranging spider monkeys\n(Ateles geoffroyi) in the forest of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico and find that\nthese patterns resemble what physicists know as Levy walks. First, the length\nof a trajectory s constituent steps, or continuous moves in the same direction,\nis best described by a power-law distribution in which the frequency of ever\nlarger steps decreases as a negative power function of their length. The rate\nof this decrease is very close to that predicted by a previous analytical Levy\nwalk model to be an optimal strategy to search for scarce resources distributed\nat random Viswanathan et al 1999). Second, the frequency distribution of the\nduration of stops or waiting times also approximates a power-law function.\nFinally, the mean square displacement during the monkeys first foraging trip\nincreases more rapidly than would be expected from a random walk with constant\nstep length, but within the range predicted for Levy walks. In view of these\nresults, we analyze the different exponents characterizing the trajectories\ndescribed by females and males, and by monkeys on their own or when part of a\nsubgroup. We discuss the origin of these patterns and their implications for\nthe foraging ecology of spider monkeys.",
"arxiv_id": "physics/0301019",
"authors": [
"Gabriel Ramos-Fernandez",
"Jose Luis Mateos",
"Octavio Miramontes",
"Germinal Cocho",
"Hernan Larralde",
"Barbara Ayala-Orozco"
],
"categories": [
"physics.bio-ph",
"physics.data-an",
"q-bio"
],
"title": "Levy walk patterns in the foraging movements of spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi)",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0301019"
},
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