Resumo

TREJO, Edgar; MCNEIL, Raymond; GONZALO MORALES, Luis  e  LAU, Pablo. Daily movements, home range and habitat use by radio-tracked crested bobwhites (colinus cristatus) in a venezuelan savanna. INCI [online]. 2008, vol.33, n.3, pp.207-212. ISSN 0378-1844.

Crested bobwhites (Colinus cristatus) inhabit dry areas in the northern region of South America and in the Caribbean. It is a game bird hunted by sport hunters and local people, whose ecology and natural history are poorly known. The pattern of displacements of marked individuals was studied in a savanna of the Venezuelan Eastern Plains, radio tracking five individuals that were captured with funnel traps. Individuals were followed for sessions of 10-15 days during a 10-month period. Each of the followed individuals formed part of different groups of five to seven birds. Habitat use and total distance traveled by bobwhites were registered daily and home ranges were estimated. The crested bobwhites traveled longer distances at the end of the afternoon and preferred tree groves over other vegetation types, although they used open savanna a high proportion of the time. The home range of the observed individuals averaged 16ha, with an ample overlap between them, although the birds belonged to different groups. The implications that these findings could have in the management of this specie of great economic potential are discussed

Palavras-chave : Área de Hábitat; Perdiz Encrestada; Sabanas; Uso del Hábitat.