Figure 2
From: Proximity among protected area networks promotes functional connectivity for wintering waterfowl
Predicted functional connectivity of mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) represented as daily sanctuary transition probabilities (p) among sanctuary nodes within the west Tennessee and surrounding sanctuary network of Arkansas, Kentucky, and Missouri. Individual mallards were captured and monitored with GPS transmitters from November through February 2019–2023. Sanctuary nodes included 4 National Wildlife Refuges: Big Lake National Wildlife Refuge (BLNWR) in Arkansas, Reelfoot Lake NWR north unit (RLNWR_N) in Kentucky and Tennessee, and Reelfoot Lake NWR south unit (RLNWR_S), Lake Isom NWR (LINWR), and Chickasaw NWRs in Tennessee. Additional smaller sanctuary nodes included state-owned waterfowl sanctuaries: Lake Lauderdale (LL), Horns Bluff (HB), White Lake (WL), Bean Switch (BS), Maness Swamp (M), Hop-in (HI), Black Bayou (BB), and Phillipy Waterfowl Refuges (P). Greatest functional connectivity was clearly within the Reelfoot Lake sanctuary complexes that included Black Bayou, Phillipy, and Reelfoot NWR north and south units. State sanctuary nodes in the upper Obion River Complex including Hop-in, Bean Switch, and Maness Swamp Waterfowl Refuges also were more connected nodes illustrating distance, not size, as a primary driver of functional connectivity for wintering mallards. Figure was produced in R version 4.3.3. https://www.r-project.org/.
