Intraguild competition mediates human avoidance in an endangered African large carnivore

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Behavioral Ecology
• Conservation Biology

Background:

• The anthropogenic refuge effect describes how species use human-dominated areas to avoid predators.
• This effect is well-documented for prey and mesopredators but not extensively studied in top predator guilds.
• Intraguild competition's role in mediating carnivore responses to human disturbance is poorly understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if intraguild competition influences large carnivore responses to human disturbance.
• To test the anthropogenic refuge hypothesis within a guild of competing top predators.
• To examine the spatial behavior of lions and African wild dogs in relation to human activity and each other.

Main Methods:

• Studied the spatial behavior of sympatric lions and African wild dogs.
• Assessed responses to human-dominated areas and lion-encounter risk.
• Analyzed how intraguild competition mediates responses to anthropogenic disturbance.

Main Results:

• Lions consistently avoided human-dominated areas.
• Wild dogs generally avoided human areas, but this behavior shifted in areas with high lion-encounter risk.
• Intraguild competition significantly influenced wild dog spatial decisions regarding human-dominated areas.

Conclusions:

• The anthropogenic refuge hypothesis applies to competing top predators, extending the ecology of fear.
• Intraguild variation in responses to human disturbance can facilitate coexistence among competing species.
• Human-dominated areas can act as ecological refuges within large carnivore guilds due to intraguild interactions.