Author: Kevin A. Gardner
Animal migration and distribution have always been fascinating and never fully explained phenomenon’s. From the scientist down to the casual observer, the question has always remained as to why some animals truly migrate, while others may be or become intent to live out their lives in a particular area, and in some cases, take on the appearance of migration.
To help better understand animal movement activity, it may be best to start by gaining an understanding of movement as it is actually categorized. True migration can be either long-range movement or very short distanced depending on factors such as the species of animal and the animal’s physical or geographic constraints. We tend to label some activity as migration, when indeed there may be a better or more appropriate category to place this activity in, which is called “redistribution.” This redistribution process may be defined as a spreading-out, to better help visualize it as a type of movement. Therefore, in an effort to cover just the basics, we will limit ourselves in focus to true migration and local redistribution as our two primary categories.
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