An IKONOS-based comparison of methods to estimate cattle home ranges in a semi-arid landscape of southern Africa

We estimated home range (HR) and core areas of cattle herds in a semi-arid rangeland in southern Africa using the fixed kernel and the local convex hull (LoCoH) methods. We also compared the HR values of the two methods with the aid of high spatial resolution IKONOS imagery. We also compared area estimates determined by the two methods at different probability contours of the utilization distribution (UD). Results showed that the LoCoH performed better than the kernel method in estimating UD. We found significant (p < 0.05) differences concerning the area estimated at each probability contour of the UD between the fixed kernel and LoCoH methods. However, both methods produced similar land cover preferences within the HR and core areas. Based on IKONOS-imagery-aided evaluation, our results imply that LoCoH determines core areas in HR analysis better than the kernel method, while both methods can be used in preference analysis.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Zengeya, Fadzai, Murwira, Amon, De Garine-Wichatitsky, Michel
Format: article biblioteca
Language:eng
Subjects:U30 - Méthodes de recherche, L01 - Élevage - Considérations générales, pâturage, bétail, bovin, caprin, ovin, âne, parcours, dynamique des populations, élevage extensif, savane, utilisation des terres, télédétection, système de positionnement global, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_25243, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_4397, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_1391, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_3324, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_7030, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_676, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_6448, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_6111, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_2764, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_6825, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_4182, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_6498, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_36733, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_7265, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_8516,
Online Access:http://agritrop.cirad.fr/561698/
http://agritrop.cirad.fr/561698/1/document_561698.pdf
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!