Abstract
Knowledge of natal dispersal is essential for understanding how nonmigratory crane populations expand and how this process can be augmented by relocation or reintroduction. We conducted a study from 1988 to 1999 and found that natal dispersal in Florida sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis pratensis) was female-biased. Females (n = 16) dispersed an average of 11.6 km from their natal territory. Male (n = 12) dispersal averaged 3.9 km. This difference was significant (P 0.05) or affected by gender (P > 0.05). Male philopatry and female-biased natal dispersal are consistent with theories of a resource-based mating system. Timing of the start of dispersal (family breakup) was found to be more closely tied to the female's laying the subsequent clutch than to the age of the juvenile crane.
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