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Linking Predation Risk, Herbivore Physiological Stress and Microbial Decomposition of Plant Litter
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Bottom-Up Space Use With Top-Down Temporal Risk Buffering in Arid Herbivore Communities
John Heydinger1,2, Uakendisa Muzuma3,4, Tammy Hoth-Hanssen5
1Savannah River Ecology Laboratory University of Georgia Aiken South Carolina USA.
Ecology and Evolution
|January 6, 2026
Summary
Large herbivores in arid systems balance resource needs with predator avoidance. They minimize activity overlap with nocturnal predators, showing trait-dependent spatial responses to predation risk.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Behavioral Ecology
- Conservation Biology
Background:
- The landscape of fear (LOF) framework explains prey behavior in response to predation risk.
- Its application in resource-limited, unfenced arid ecosystems with multiple predator and prey species is not well understood.
- Large herbivores face complex interactions between environmental constraints and predation pressure.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how large herbivores in an unfenced arid system navigate environmental constraints and predation risk.
- To test hypotheses regarding the relative influence of bottom-up (resource) and top-down (predator) factors on herbivore space use and temporal activity.
- To refine the LOF framework for arid, multi-predator environments.
Main Methods:
- Utilized camera trap data from northwest Namibia.
- Examined space use and diel activity patterns of seven large herbivore species (gemsbok, giraffe, kudu, zebra, springbok, black rhinoceros, elephant).
- Assessed predation risk from lions and spotted hyenas, incorporating environmental variables like dry-season progression and habitat structure.
Main Results:
- Bottom-up environmental constraints were primary drivers of herbivore space use, more so than predator presence.
- Herbivores primarily reduced temporal overlap with nocturnal predators, maintaining diurnal activity patterns (Δ ≈0.06-0.26).
- Spatial responses to predators were context-dependent and modulated by environmental factors, indicating spatiotemporal plasticity.
Conclusions:
- Herbivore behavior in arid, unfenced systems is structured hierarchically, with resources governing space use and predators influencing temporal activity.
- Prey species prioritize temporal partitioning over spatial avoidance of predators in these landscapes.
- The study suggests modifications to the LOF framework to better account for resource limitations and multiple predators in dryland ecosystems.
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