A perceptual trap is an

ecological Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...

scenario in which

environmental change Environmental change is a change or disturbance of the environment most often caused by human influences and natural ecological processes. Environmental changes include various factors, such as natural disasters, human interferences, or animal in ...

, typically

anthropogenic Anthropogenic ("human" + "generating") is an adjective that may refer to: * Anthropogeny, the study of the origins of humanity Counterintuitively, anthropogenic may also refer to things that have been generated by humans, as follows: * Human im ...

, leads an organism to avoid an otherwise high-quality

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

. The concept is related to that of an

ecological trap Ecological traps are scenarios in which rapid environmental change leads organisms to prefer to settle in poor-quality habitats. The concept stems from the idea that organisms that are actively selecting habitat must rely on environmental cues to h ...

, in which environmental change causes preference towards a low-quality habitat.

History

In a 2004 article discussing

source–sink dynamics Source–sink dynamics is a theoretical model used by ecologists to describe how variation in habitat quality may affect the population growth or decline of organisms. Since quality is likely to vary among patches of habitat, it is important to co ...

, James Battin did not distinguish between high-quality habitats that are preferred or avoided, labelling both "sources."Battin, J. (2004
"When good animals love bad habitats: ecological traps and the conservation of animal populations"
(PDF), ''Conservation Biology,'' 18: 1482–1491 The latter scenario, in which a high-quality habitat is avoided, was first recognised as an important phenomenon in 2007 by Gilroy and Sutherland,Gilroy, J. J., and W. J. Sutherland. (2007) "Beyond ecological traps: perceptual errors and undervalued resources," ''Trends in Ecology and Evolution,'' 22: 351–356 who described them as "undervalued resources." The term "perceptual trap" was first proposed by Michael Patten and Jeffrey Kelly in a 2010 article.Patten, M.A., and Kelly, J.F. (2010) "Habitat selection and the perceptual trap," ''Ecological Applications,'' 20: 2148–2156. Hans Van DyckVan Dyck, H. (2012) "Changing organisms in rapidly changing anthropogenic landscapes: the significance of the ‘Umwelt’-concept and functional habitat for animal conservation," ''Evolutionary Applications,'' 5(2): : 144–153. argues that the term is misleading because perception is also a major component in other cases of trapping.

Description

Animals use discrete environmental cues to select habitat.Kristan, W. B. (2003) "The role of habitat selection behavior in population dynamics: source–sink systems and ecological traps," ''Oikos,'' 103: 457–468 A perceptual trap occurs if change in an environmental cue leads an organism to avoid a high-quality habitat. It differs, therefore, from simple habitat avoidance, which may be a correct decision given the habitat's quality. The concept of a perceptual trap is related to that of an

, in which environmental change causes preference towards a low-quality habitat. There is expected to be strong

natural selection Natural selection is the differential survival and reproduction of individuals due to differences in phenotype. It is a key mechanism of evolution, the change in the heritable traits characteristic of a population over generations. Charle ...

against ecological traps, but not necessarily against perceptual traps, as

Allee effect The Allee effect is a phenomenon in biology characterized by a correlation between population size or density and the mean individual fitness (often measured as ''per capita'' population growth rate) of a population or species. History and backgro ...

s may restrict a population’s ability to establish itself.

Examples

To support the concept of a perceptual trap, Patten and Kelly cited a study of the

lesser prairie chicken The lesser prairie chicken (''Tympanuchus pallidicinctus'') is a species in the grouse family. Description It is a medium to large bird, striped white and brown, slightly smaller and paler than its near relative the greater prairie chicken (''T. ...

(''Tympanuchus pallidicinctus''). The species' natural environment,

shinnery oak ''Quercus havardii'' (common names include shinnery oak, shin oak and Havard oak) is a deciduous, low-growing, thicket-forming shrub that occupies some in the southern Great Plains of North America. Clones may reach hundreds to thousands of year ...

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...

, is often treated with the

herbicide Herbicides (, ), also commonly known as weedkillers, are substances used to control undesired plants, also known as weeds.EPA. February 201Pesticides Industry. Sales and Usage 2006 and 2007: Market Estimates. Summary in press releasMain page fo ...

tebuthiuron Tebuthiuron is a nonselective broad spectrum herbicide of the urea class. It is used in a number of herbicides manufactured by Dow AgroSciences, and is sold under several trade names, depending on the formulation. It is used to control weeds, w ...

to increase grass cover for

cattle grazing Pastoral farming (also known in some regions as ranching, livestock farming or grazing) is aimed at producing livestock, rather than growing crops. Examples include dairy farming, raising beef cattle, and raising sheep for wool. In contrast, ar ...

. Herbicide treatment resulted in less shrub cover, a habitat cue that caused female lesser prairie-chickens to avoid the habitat in favour of untreated areas. However, females who nested in herbicide-treated areas achieved comparable nesting successes and

clutch size __NOTOC__ A clutch of egg (biology), eggs is the group of eggs produced by birds, amphibians, or reptiles, often at a single time, particularly those laid in a nest. In birds, destruction of a clutch by predators (or removal by humans, for exam ...

s to those in untreated areas. Patten and Kelly suggest that the adverse effects of tebuthiuron treatment on nesting success are countered by various effects, such as greater nest concealment through increased grass cover. Therefore, female birds are erroneously avoiding a high-quality habitat. Patten and Kelly also cited as a possible perceptual trap the cases of the

spotted towhee The spotted towhee (''Pipilo maculatus'') is a large New World sparrow. The taxonomy of the towhees has been debated in recent decades, and until 1995 this bird and the eastern towhee were considered a single species, the rufous-sided towhee. A ...

(''Pipilo maculatus'') and

rufous-crowned sparrow The rufous-crowned sparrow (''Aimophila ruficeps'') is a small American sparrow. This passerine is primarily found across the Southwestern United States and much of the interior of Mexico, south to the transverse mountain range, and to the Pa ...

(''Aimophila ruficeps''), which tend to avoid habitat fragments, even though birds nesting in habitat fragments achieve increased nesting success due to a reduction in

snake Snakes are elongated, Limbless vertebrate, limbless, carnivore, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales. Ma ...

predation.Patten, M. A., and D. T. Bolger (2003) "Variation in top-down control of avian reproductive success across a fragmentation gradient", ''Oikos,'' 101:479–488

References

{{reflist Environmental terminology Biology terminology Environmental conservation Ecology Landscape ecology

History

Description

Examples

See also

References