Social Structure And Cohesiveness Of GPS Tracked Wild Pigs In The Southeastern United States
Abstract
The social structure of invasive wild pigs directly affects the risk of disease transmission and other harmful effects. Here, the social structure of wild pigs at four study sites in the United States was measured between individuals and within dyads over time to gain insight into contact heterogeneity and the cohesiveness of social groups using GPS tracking data. A data stream randomization test was used to identify pairwise social associations based on synchronous movement, and contact patterns within social pairs were measured over time. Wild pigs at all four study sites exhibited contact heterogeneity, but more moderate association rates were observed in social pairs as well. It was found that most social pairs had long interruptions in their associations over time characterized by less cohesive movement and space use. Therefore, periods of non-social behaviour and space use should be accounted for within wild pig social groups.