DOI: 10.5061/dryad.s4mw6m9gg
title: An individual-based model trained on multiple data sources estimates population connectivity and facilitates aggregation of harvest management units

description: Management boundaries are often delimited by political and social factors,
 whereas animal movements are affected by ecological and geophysical
 constraints. Thus, understanding connectivity among distinct management
 units is of considerable importance, particularly for harvested species,
 where quotas set in ignorance of connectivity may fail to meet management
 goals. Our goal was to construct an individual-based model (IBM)
 to better understand Wild Turkey movements at large scales, benefiting
 from multiple data sources that are often available for harvested species.
 We built an IBM describing spring seasonal movements of Wild Turkeys,
 using data from ringed, radio-, and GPS-marked turkeys captured in Maine,
 USA. Our IBM accommodated variation in individual turkey response to
 landscape connectivity metrics and identified emergent migratory
 connectivity dynamics among harvest management regions. We calculated a
 low degree of connectivity among wildlife management districts (WMD)
 which, in combination with the substantial number of boundary crossings
 observed, indicated a more diffuse distribution of turkeys among WMDs.
 Nevertheless, the number of turkeys moving between districts provided a
 clear delineation of where immigration was strongest, identifying which
 WMDs should be managed as singular population units. This approach has
 widespread utility for any species or system where harvest management
 decisions are made at finer spatial scales than the movement dynamics
 affecting population processes.
description: We captured 890 turkeys from December through March of 2018-2020
 and marked each with one or two unique leg rings imprinted with
 information for reporting recovered birds. From late April to early June
 of 2018-2020, Maine allowed the recreational harvest of bearded turkeys in
 most management districts. When ringed turkeys were reported, we asked
 hunters to identify the town of harvest, which we used to define the
 locations of recoveries. Of captured turkeys, we fit a subset of females
 with either a GPS or VHF transmitter to monitor seasonal movements and
 nesting activity. We programmed GPS transmitters to record one nighttime
 roost location and hourly daylight locations each day from November 1
 through July 31 each year. We relocated radio-marked turkeys from April
 through July of 2018-2020 to identify nests following methods in
 Gonnerman, Shea, et al. (2022). We classified movement
 between winter and spring home ranges by comparing capture locations to
 either harvest or nest locations for the same turkey in the year of
 capture, as data collected in the following years included additional
 seasons of movement. We defined a seasonal movement as any instance where
 a harvested or nesting turkey was observed greater than 5.5km from its
 given capture location, which corresponds to the radius of the circle of
 area equal to the average Maine town. This was chosen to correspond with
 the most coarse observational scale at which harvest data was collected
 and while conservative ensured that all potential behaviors were
 captured.
description: # An individual-based model trained on multiple data sources estimates
 population connectivity and facilitates aggregation of harvest management
 units
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.s4mw6m9gg](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.s4mw6m9gg) **Missing data**: In cases where data was not recorded, we report NA instead. In trapping datasets, many NAs resulted from the fact that not all animals received the same marking, some were not sampled for blood or other individual-specific cases. In telemetry data, many NAs were produced for second and third location checks for triangulation, as it was not often necessary for general project purposes.  ### Files and variables #### File: CaptureSites\_-\_Sheet1.csv **Description:** Location information for captures of Wild Turkey ##### Variables * Study.Area: General Region  * Town: Town Name * Latitude: Decimal Degrees * Longitude: Decimal Degrees #### File: GPS\_Seasonal\_-\_Used.csv **Description:** Location information for Wild Turkeys capture near Bangor Maine ##### Variables * BirdID: Individual bird indicator * location.lat: Decimal Degree * location.long: Decimal Degree * timestamp: DateTime in GMT for Wild Turkey locations #### File: Harvests\_-\_Harvested\_Birds.csv **Description:** Location information ##### Variables * Season: Whether harvest occurred in spring or fall hunting season. * Year: Year of harvest * Alum Band ID: ID number of aluminum butt end leg band if present * Rivet ID: ID number of aluminum rivet bands if present * Color Band ID: ID number of color band if present * Pat Tag ID: ID number for patagial tag if present * MissingButt: If there was a missing leg band * VHF Trans: If there was a VHF transmitter on the bird * Sex: Sex of animal harvested * Capture Date: Date of original banding. * Town of Capture: Town where the animal was originally captured and banded * Date of Harvest: Date of harvest, as indicated by hunter self-reporting * Town of Harvest: Location of harvest, as indicated by hunter self-reporting and correspondence with a hunter if ambiguous * Harvest WMD: Location of harvest, identified via town information and correspondence with a hunter if ambiguous * Time of Harvest: Approximate time of harvest as indicated by hunter, self-reporting * Reported Online: Y/N Method of reporting as indicated by hunter, self-reporting * Reported to Phone: Y/N Method of reporting as indicated by hunter, self-reporting * Reported by Check Station: Y/N Method of reporting as indicated by hunter, self-reporting * Reported Via Other method: Y/N Method of reporting as indicated by hunter, self-reporting #### File: Nest\_Monitoring\_-\_Nest\_Info.csv **Description:** Information on the nesting behavior of Wild Turkeys marked with VHF and GPS transmitters ##### Variables * Year: Year in which the nest occurred * Alum Band ID: Common ID among datasets * Frequency: VHF frequency of transmitter * Nest Attempt: 1st, 2nd, or 3rd nest attempt within a nesting season * Bird Capture Site: Original location where the bird was captured and marked. * NestID: Individual identifier for nest * FlagLat: Decimal Degree flagging location for checking if hens were on the nest. * FlagLong: Decimal Degree flagging location for checking if hens were on the nest. * FlagBear: Direction in degrees from the flagging location for checking if hens were on the nest. * NestLat: Location of the nest, confirmed. Decimal degrees. * NestLong: Location of the nest, confirmed. Decimal degrees. * Nest Description: Brief description of nesting locations * Clutch Size: Number of eggs in clutch when counted * Date Counted: Date counted * FloatA: Estimated age from floating eggs * FloatB: Estimated age from floating eggs * FloatC: Estimated age from floating eggs * FloatD: Estimated age from floating eggs * FloatAverage: Average estimated age of floating eggs * Est.Laying.Initiation: Estimated laying initiation date, calculated based on egg floating and number of eggs present * EstimatedHatch: Estimated hatch date, calculated based on the estimated initiation date * Fate: Final fate of the nest, successful or failed * Comments: Relevant information #### File: SeasonShifts.csv **Description:** Estimates of seasonal shifts in movement behaviors of individual birds ##### Variables * BirdID: Common ID number across datasets, AlumBandID * Year: Year of movements * Season: Season names * Start: Start of behavioral phase * End: End of behavioral phase #### File: Spring\_Movement\_Timestamps.csv **Description:**  ##### Variables * BirdID: Common ID for bird * Start: DateTime Start of spring movement * End: DateTime End of spring movement * WNSame: Whether Winter and Nesting season overlap #### File: GPS\_Seasonal\_-\_SSF\_points.csv **Description:** Post-Data management SSF use-available locations. Inputs for SSF. ##### Variables * ID: Bird_Year ID * x1_: UTM19 EPSG 32619 Starting Location Longitude * x2_: UTM19 EPSG 32619 Ending Location Longitude * y1_: UTM19 EPSG 32619 Starting Location Latitude * y2_: UTM19 EPSG 32619 Ending Location Latitude * sl_: Step Length in meters * ta_: Turning angle in radians * t1_: DateTime for the starting location * t2_: DateTime for the end location * case_: Whether used or available location * step_id_: Individual step identifier, linking used and available * Year: Year data collected * BirdID: bird ID #### File: Trapping\_-\_Data.csv **Description:** Details about animal trapping and marking  ##### Variables * Study.Area: General region of capture * Location: Name of capture location  * Town: Town of capture location * WMD: Wildlife management district  * Region: Management region * Date: Date of capture * AlumBand: ID Number if marked * Rivet Band: ID Number if marked * TransFreq: Transmitter fruency * Trans.Type: Backpack, Necklace, or GPS * GPS ID: If GPS, ID number * Color Band: ID Number if marked * Pat Tag: ID Number if marked * Recapture: If previously capture * Tier Init: Name of the person who tied the transmitter * Trans On?: Was the transmitter confirmed on * Sex: Sex of bird * Age: relative age of bird at capture, either adult (&gt;1) or juvenile * Bld Red: Was blood draw collected in a red tube * Bld Purp: Was blood draw collected in a red tube * ClclSwb: Was cloacal swab collected * CapTube: Was blood collected via a capillary tube * Weight (lbs): Weight of bird * Spur: Spur length in inches (unit of measurement used by hunters) * Beard: Beard length cm * Tarsus: Tarsus (leg) length cm * Time.Fired: Time net was released/fired * Release Time: Time bird was released * Hematoma: Whether an animal obtained a hematoma during blood collection * Flock.Size: Approximate number of birds present when net-fired * Comments: comments * Comments 2: more comments #### File: Telemetry\_Data\_-\_Telemetry.csv **Description:** Details on VHF telemetry checks of marked birds ##### Variables * AlumBand: Common Bird ID * TransFreq: Transmitter frequency * Date: Date of check * Fate: Fate of bird, live/dead, when checked * Lat1: Decimal Degree Latitude * Long1: Decimal Degree Longitude * Bear1: Bearing in Degrees * Lat2: Decimal Degree Latitude * Long2: Decimal Degree Longitude * Bear2: Bearing in Degrees * Lat3: Decimal Degree Latitude * Long3: Decimal Degree Longitude * Bear3: Bearing in Degrees * Notes: note * Recovered: If dead, was the transmitter recovered * Downloaded: If GPS, was data downloaded ## Code/software R ## Access information Other publicly accessible locations of the data: * Movebank for GPS data