Does dispersal make the heart grow bolder? Avoidance of anthropogenic habitat elements across wolf life history

Abstract

Dispersal is a fundamental ecological process that, on an individual level, is associated with intrinsic and fixed personality traits such as ‘boldness’. However, it is unknown whether personality traits or behavioural syndromes might change as a consequence of dispersal itself. We analysed 14 GPS-collared grey wolves, Canis lupus, in Finland that dispersed from their natal territories and settled in new territories, as well as 22 time-matched nondispersing controls. We used wolf avoidance of low-use forest roads, high-use primary roads and houses as proxies for boldness, and we estimated wolf responses to these features across spatial scales and across dispersal phases. Wolves, which already occupy portions of Finland with low human density, expanded into more human-impacted areas, but with a strong large-scale selection for relatively low human presence. At the finer scale, avoidance of human elements varied as a function of dispersal phase. During dispersal, avoidance of forest roads, primary roads and houses was substantially lower than in natal territories, reflecting the need to take more risks while moving in a small group (alone or with a single mate) in unfamiliar environments. After settling in new territories, the strength of avoidance of those elements continued to be lower than in natal territories, even after controlling for changes in availability. These results suggest that experiences gained across a major life-history transition, such as dispersal, might themselves influence personality traits.