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Spatial and temporal avoidance of risk within a large carnivore guild.

Egil Dröge¹, Scott Creel¹, Matthew S Becker¹

¹Department of Ecology Montana State University Bozeman MT USA; Zambian Carnivore Programme Mfuwe Eastern Province Zambia.

Ecology and Evolution

|January 11, 2017

Summary

Large carnivores like lions and hyenas coexist with subordinate African wild dogs and cheetahs through niche partitioning. However, African wild dogs face competitive exclusion, unlike cheetahs, impacting conservation strategies.

Keywords:

carnivore conservation interspecific competition intraguild predation niche partitioning risk effect

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Area of Science:

Ecology
Conservation Biology
Wildlife Management

Background:

Large carnivore guilds face competition, influencing species survival.
Subordinate species may mitigate dominant competitor effects through niche partitioning.
Understanding interspecific competition is crucial for effective conservation strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate niche partitioning mechanisms promoting coexistence among large carnivores.
To quantify prey selection, spatial, and temporal patterns in a competitive guild.
To inform conservation by assessing factors influencing species coexistence.

Main Methods:

Studied prey selection, spatial distribution, and temporal activity of lions, hyenas, wild dogs, and cheetahs.
Quantified niche partitioning strategies in Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia.
Analyzed avoidance behaviors and resource use in relation to dominant competitors.

Main Results:

Lions and spotted hyenas specialized on wildebeest; African wild dogs and cheetahs had broader diets.
Cheetahs did not avoid areas used by dominant competitors; wild dogs avoided lion-occupied areas.
Wild dogs and cheetahs shifted activity to avoid nighttime hunting by lions and hyenas.

Conclusions:

Niche partitioning allows coexistence for cheetahs but not African wild dogs.
African wild dogs are more susceptible to competitive exclusion in simple ecosystems.
Conservation strategies must consider species-specific responses to competition and habitat structure.