Work

Return or roam? Trapping-induced social disruption reshapes movement behavior allocation in wild pigs

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Understanding how invasive wild pigs ( Sus scrofa ) respond behaviorally to social disruption is critical for improving control strategies and disease emergency preparedness. Social cohesion and collective movement are central to wild pig ecology, and partial sounder removal can destabilize movement routines. However, little is known about how socially isolated individuals reallocate movement behavior over time or whether these responses depend on prior social structure. We tracked 18 GPS-collared wild pigs in Alabama, USA following trapping-induced isolations events. Daily movement segments were classified into six behaviors—encamped, round-trip, partial trip, ranging, wandering, and exploring—using a net square displacement framework. We modeled the daily proportion of time allocated to each behavior as a function of time since isolation and original sounder composition using multinomial mixed-effects regression with individual as a random factor. Isolated wild pigs exhibited dynamic behavioral reorganization following sounder removal. Encamped behavior accounted for a substantial proportion of movement allocation immediately after isolation, indicating short-term spatial caution and anchoring to familiar areas. Partial-trip and ranging behaviors also comprised major components of post-trapping movement allocation throughout the monitoring period. Multinomial mixed-effects model identified significant temporal and adult-composition effects for several movement behaviors, with behavioral trajectories differing according to the adult composition of the original sounder. Wild pig originating from adult-rich sounders exhibited earlier shifts towards wandering and exploratory movement behaviors, whereas individuals from sounders with fewer adults maintained greater encamped allocation later into the monitoring period. Social disruption triggered predictable temporal shifts in movement behavior in invasive wild pigs. Rather than immediate dispersal, isolated individuals initially exhibited spatial caution followed by gradual behavioral restructuring influenced by prior social composition. Integrating spatial behavioral dynamics into invasive species management can improve predictions of post-removal responses and strengthen control and disease preparedness strategies.

Source: Movement Ecology

DOI: 10.1186/s40462-026-00697-z

Authors: Sebastian Gomez-Maldonado, Jonathon J. Valente, Matthew T. McDonough, Mark D. Smith, Stephen S. Ditchkoff

Institutions: Auburn University, United States Geological Survey

Language: English

Topic: Wildlife Ecology and Conservation

Subfield: Ecology

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Life on land

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,790