Fig. 1

Presence data (blue points) and pseudo-absence data (red points) for the four pseudo-absence generation techniques a background, b buffer, c Correlated Random Walks (CRWs), d reverse CRW for blue whales (left), elephants (middle), and in theory (right). White represents areas unvisited by tagged individuals or simulated pseudo-absences. Density by latitude (top of panel) and longitude (right side of panel) highlights the difference in pseudo-absence sampling approach (red) from observed habitat using tracking data (blue). The Southern California Bight (top left) and salt pans (middle left) are indicated with blue stars. Study domains of the California Current, U.S. and Etosha National Park, Namibia are shown in the bottom two panels. In the right-most panels, the theory behind calculation of pseudo-absences for each approach is shown with blue being actual positions and red being simulated positions