The effect of supplementary food on home range of the southern brown bandicoot,Isoodon obesulus (Marsupialia: Peramelidae)

The study investigated the relationship between home range and food abundance in a population of the southern brown bandicoot. Isoodon obesulus, in Western Australia. Home range areas were estimated seven times between 1986 and 1988 by live-trapping, spool-and-line devices and fluorescent pigment tracking. The abundance of invertebrate food was measured simultaneously by placing pitfall traps within the home ranges of individual animals, and by sampling invertebrates in topsoil and litter. Home range areas tended to be negatively correlated with food abundance, especially in the autumn and winter of 1986 and 1987. The influence of food on home range was investigated further in September 1988 by providing eight individual I. obesulus with a supplementary food mixture. Contrary to expectation, the added food caused an increase in home range area, home range overlap and displacement, as well as an influx of new individuals to food stations. In contrast, home range parameters in control (non-fed) individuals changed little during the experiment. The shuffling of home ranges due to feeding suggests that the home range system of I. obesulus is relatively flexible, with individuals monitoring and exploiting resources in an opportunistic manner. In contrast to previous studies, we found no evidence that I. obesulus was territorial. We speculate that individuals may be territorial at low population density if resources are defendable and intruder pressure is low, but occupy overlapping ranges if population density is high.