A small cat saving food for later: caching behavior in the European wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris)

Ruiz‐Villar, Héctor; López‐Bao, José Vicente; Palomares, Francisço

doi:10.1007/s10344-020-01413-x

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…This may be related with varying habitat use by wildcats in mosaic landscapes, preferring certain habitats in relation to prey and shelter availability regardless of their proportion in the landscape (Lozano, 2010; Oliveira et al., 2018). As wildcats exploit predictable and profitable food resources (Krofel et al., 2021; Ruiz‐Villar et al., 2020) they may frequently visit reliable feeding grounds such as the pastoral fields of the Cantabrian Mountains, where they predate upon Arvicola monticola . Our results agree with previous research on wildcats (Lozano, 2010; Oliveira et al., 2018) and other felid species (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Consequently, we established a buffer with the size of the area potentially used by wildcats during 24 h previous to defecation. We used data from 40 intensive GPS-tracking datasets from 12 wildcats from the study area and period (6 individuals followed by the authors and 6 provided by TRAGSATEC S.A. (Ruiz-Villar, H., Jubete, F. & Palomares, F., unpublished data); further details on animal capture and handling are provided in Ruiz-Villar et al (2020) and in Appendix S3). Mean maximum distance between estimated predation and defecation sites was 1574.5 AE 1035.2 m. Therefore, we created buffers with a radius of 1500 m.…”

Section: Estimation Of Landscape Composition Surrounding Wildcat Scatsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Presence of pastoral fields in mountain landscapes influences prey consumption by European wildcats

Ruiz‐Villar

Urra²,

Jubete³

et al. 2022

Journal of Zoology

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Traditional agro‐pastoral practices are more beneficial for biodiversity than intensified agricultural systems. Promotion of the growth of natural herbaceous vegetation in pastoral fields can enhance rodent populations and consequently influence ecological aspects of carnivores with rodent‐based diets, like prey consumption in the European wildcat (Felis silvestris). In this article, we investigated the effects of pastoral field extent, season and prey abundance on wildcat consumption of several prey species in the Cantabrian Mountains (NW Spain). Prey consumption in areas with presence of pastoral fields (even in low proportions) was dominated by profitable field‐dwelling rodent species such as Arvicola monticola. Consumption of Arvicola was not correlated with its abundance and was higher during summer and autumn. Apodemus dominated the wildcat diet in areas with higher forest proportion and far from pastoral fields, particularly during spring. Our results suggest that varying habitat use and seasonal changes in prey accessibility may determine wildcat prey consumption in pastoral landscapes. Our results can contribute to highlight the potential benefits of traditional and sustainable pastoral activities for the conservation of the European wildcat across its distribution range.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Estimation Of Landscape Composition Surrounding Wildcat Scatsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Presence of pastoral fields in mountain landscapes influences prey consumption by European wildcats

Ruiz‐Villar

Urra²,

Jubete³

et al. 2022

Journal of Zoology

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“…For example, bears will cover the carcasses of ungulates or other large prey they kill or scavenge in order to consume over a period of days (Allen, Wittmer, Ingaki, Yamazaki, & Koike, 2020) and similar behavior is used by several felid species, especially for remains of the prey they have killed (Hunter, 2015). There is very limited literature available about the caching behavior of European wildcats, for example, Macdonald (1976) reported probable caching in captive conditions and Ruiz‐Villar, López‐Bao, and Palomares (2020) recently reported about a wildcat scavenging and caching a road‐killed deer. Most of the previously documented incidents actually refer to the African wildcats (L. Hunter, pers.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Scavenging and carcass caching behavior by European wildcat (Felis silvestris)

Krofel

Južnič

Allen

2021

Ecological Research

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While scavenging has been repeatedly reported for several felid species, surprisingly little information is available on scavenging behavior of the European wildcat (Felis silvestris). To fill this knowledge gap, we used camera traps to document scavenging behavior at the 48 experimentally set deer carcasses at random locations throughout the year. We recorded European wildcats scavenging on 38% of the eight carcasses set in winter and on none set in the other parts of the year. Wildcats fed on two carcasses for extended periods (up to 22 days) with an average of 3.3 visits per day and 7.8‐h interval between the visits. We recorded scavenging throughout the day, but analysis indicated a crepuscular pattern. We also recorded caching behavior on 7% of the visits (n = 105), when wildcats used leaves or snow to partly or completely cover the carcasses. Beside wildcats, 12 other vertebrate species of scavengers were recorded at the carcasses. We recorded agonistic interaction with European badger (Meles meles) and despite its smaller size, the wildcat managed to defend the carcass. The extensive feeding, frequent caching behavior and active defense from scavengers indicate that the wildcats recognized the ungulate carcasses as an important food source in winter and that scavenging could be a neglected aspect of the European wildcat ecology. We also suggest that caching behavior could be regularly used by the European wildcat when feeding on larger carcasses, but was likely previously missed due to limited research effort to record scavenging and caching behavior.

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“…However, like big cats, domestic cats prefer more frequent, smaller meals and often fail to completely consume their kills. 20 Furthermore, like their direct ancestor, the European wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris), 21 domestic cats have also been observed caching food for later, 22 which requires them to remember where prey is stashed. 23,24 Thus, both spatial memory and motor coordination appear to be essential for cats' normal feeding behaviours.…”

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confidence: 99%

Understanding the impact of feline immunodeficiency virus on cats' cognitive performance

Vonk

2022

Veterinary Record

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A small cat saving food for later: caching behavior in the European wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris)

Cited by 7 publications

References 19 publications

Presence of pastoral fields in mountain landscapes influences prey consumption by European wildcats

Presence of pastoral fields in mountain landscapes influences prey consumption by European wildcats

Scavenging and carcass caching behavior by European wildcat (Felis silvestris)

Understanding the impact of feline immunodeficiency virus on cats' cognitive performance

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