Chasms in charismatic species research: Seventy years of carnivore science and its implications for conservation and policy in India

Srivathsa, Arjun; Banerjee, Aditya; Banerjee, Soumya; Chawla, Malaika Mathew; Das, Anshita; Ganguly, Divyajyoti; Rodrigues, Ryan G.; Adhya, Tiasa; Bhatia, Saloni; Kshettry, Aritra; Majgaonkar, Iravatee; Punjabi, Girish Arjun; Puri, Mahi; Singh, Priya; Surve, Nikit

doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2022.109694

Cited by 10 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 100 publications

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“…In flagship species conservation, while ecological significance is essential, the visual appeal that garners public attention and support also matters [65]. Our results show that respondents prefer "Adorable" images, regardless of their prior impressions of the species.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 73%

Ecological and Public Advantages of a Dual Flagship Strategy: Giant Panda and Snow Leopard

Yue,

Wang,

et al. 2024

Diversity

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Flagship species’ conservation strategies hold significant prominence in biodiversity preservation. The giant panda, a globally recognized species, has drawn attention to its benefits and constraints as a flagship species. This study aimed to assess the potential benefits of a dual flagship strategy using both the giant panda and snow leopard, compared to an approach solely using the giant panda. We identified the number of potential beneficiary species based on their habitat overlap with the giant panda and snow leopard in Sichuan and Gansu, China. Subsequently, we examined public preferences for these two flagships and their influencing factors through questionnaire surveys within and outside China. The dual flagship strategy covered the habitats of more species and amplified existing protection for those species already benefiting from giant panda conservation efforts. The giant panda was commonly perceived as “Adorable”, “Innocent”, and “Rare”, while perceptions of the snow leopard leaned towards “Mighty”, “Mysterious”, and “Rare”. Though the giant panda is widely favored, the survey indicates a notable preference for snow leopards among a proportion of respondents. The dual flagship strategy offers expanded wildlife habitat coverage and benefits a broader range of species. Moreover, the combined appeal of the snow leopard and giant panda, each possessing unique charm and symbolism, holds the potential to garner broader societal interest and support. This study may serve as a reference for policy decisions in the Giant Panda National Park and other similar protected areas, optimizing conservation management and outreach initiatives for flagship species strategies. It may also benefit conservation strategies centered on other flagship species.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 73%

Ecological and Public Advantages of a Dual Flagship Strategy: Giant Panda and Snow Leopard

Yue,

Wang,

et al. 2024

Diversity

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“…Such assessments require large data sets or carefully tailored syntheses based on extensive literature (Chapron et al ., 2014; Sévêque et al ., 2020). Conducting such syntheses, systematic reviews or meta‐analyses for regions and countries that are data‐poor, or do not have a long history of conducting quantitative research, can impose challenges and limitations (Srivathsa et al ., 2022). With the advent of smart technology and the widening of access to web‐enabled devices, the internet can serve as a powerful tool for overcoming some of these challenges.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similar endeavours in tropical forest systems, particularly in countries in the Global South, have been far more limited. This may be attributed to the shorter history of systematic research in these countries (Srivathsa et al ., 2022), and the difficulties of conducting observational studies in dense habitats. Hypothesis‐driven quantitative research on large carnivore competition in tropical forests has only recently begun to gain momentum (De Oliveria & Pereira, 2013; Rayan & Linkie, 2016; Santos et al ., 2019; Widodo et al ., 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Topcats and underdogs: intraguild interactions among three apex carnivores across Asia's forestscapes

Srivathsa,

Ramachandran,

Saravanan

et al. 2023

Biological Reviews

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Intraguild interactions among carnivores have long held the fascination of ecologists. Ranging from competition to facilitation and coexistence, these interactions and their complex interplay influence everything from species persistence to ecosystem functioning. Yet, the patterns and pathways of such interactions are far from understood in tropical forest systems, particularly across countries in the Global South. Here, we examined the determinants and consequences of competitive interactions between dholes Cuon alpinus and the two large felids (leopards Panthera pardus and tigers Panthera tigris) with which they most commonly co‐occur across Asia. Using a combination of traditional and novel data sources (N = 118), we integrate information from spatial, temporal, and dietary niche dimensions. These three species have faced catastrophic declines in their extent of co‐occurrence over the past century; most of their source populations are now confined to Protected Areas. Analysis of dyadic interactions between species pairs showed a clear social hierarchy. Tigers were dominant over dholes, although pack strength in dholes helped ameliorate some of these effects; leopards were subordinate to dholes. Population‐level spatio‐temporal interactions assessed at 25 locations across Asia did not show a clear pattern of overlap or avoidance between species pairs. Diet‐profile assessments indicated that wild ungulate biomass consumption by tigers was highest, while leopards consumed more primate and livestock prey as compared to their co‐predators. In terms of prey offtake (ratio of wild prey biomass consumed to biomass available), the three species together harvested 0.4–30.2% of available prey, with the highest offtake recorded from the location where the carnivores reach very high densities. When re‐examined in the context of prey availability and offtake, locations with low wild prey availability showed spatial avoidance and temporal overlap among the carnivore pairs, and locations with high wild prey availability showed spatial overlap and temporal segregation. Based on these observations, we make predictions for 40 Protected Areas in India where temporally synchronous estimates of predator and prey densities are available. We expect that low prey availability will lead to higher competition, and in extreme cases, to the complete exclusion of one or more species. In Protected Areas with high prey availability, we expect intraguild coexistence and conspecific competition among carnivores, with spill‐over to forest‐edge habitats and subsequent prey‐switching to livestock. We stress that dhole–leopard–tiger co‐occurrence across their range is facilitated through an intricate yet fragile balance between prey availability, and intraguild and conspecific competition. Data gaps and limitations notwithstanding, our study shows how insights from fundamental ecology can be of immense utility for applied aspects like large predator conservation and management of human–carnivore interactions. Our findings also highlight potential avenues for future research on tropical carnivores that can broaden current understanding of intraguild competition in forest systems of Asia and beyond.

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“…Meso-carnivores are often deemed ecologically 'plastic' owing to their widespread distribution (Marneweck et al, 2021). This notion has perhaps contributed to many species being classified as 'Least Concern' under the IUCN Red List (Srivathsa et al, 2022). While this status may hold true at a global scale, we show that widely distributed species can still be locally restricted to certain habitats; the occurrence of three of the four focal meso-carnivores was strongly linked to vanishing, fragmented and largely unprotected open savanna habitats.…”

Section: Vulnerable Habitats As Refuges In a Landscape Mosaicmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Tropical countries support high diversities of meso-carnivores, juxtaposed with pronounced impacts of high human population densities on native ecosystems (Di Minin et al 2016; Marneweck et al 2021). India ranks among the highest in terms of global carnivore species richness –– 23% of all mammalian carnivores, most of which are meso-carnivores –– alongside the world’s largest human population (>1.4 billion; Srivathsa et al, 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Three's Company: Anthropogenic factors shape co-occurrence in a meso-carnivore community in a semi-arid shared landscape of western India

Ganguly

2024

Preprint

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1. Human modification of natural landscapes accelerates species extinctions, promotes biological invasions, coerce range shifts, and restructure biotic communities. Mammalian meso-carnivores, considered sentinels of human-use landscapes, may experience increased mortality through road collisions and interactions with free-ranging dogs. Yet they may also benefit through resource subsidisation and decreased competition with larger carnivores. Our understanding of meso-carnivore community structure in modified ecosystems remain severely limited. 2. We examined a meso-carnivore community comprising golden jackal Canis aureus, jungle cat Felis chaus, Indian fox Vulpes bengalensis and desert cat Felis lybica ornata in a semi-arid landscape of Kachchh, western India. First, we mapped their potential habitats and the extent of fragmentation as a measure of vulnerability. We then assessed spatial, temporal and fine-scale spatio-temporal co-occurrence and responses to anthropogenic influences in the meso-carnivore community. We used a combination of camera-trapping and indirect sign surveys within an occupancy modelling framework to generate insights on species space-use and interactions. 3. The most fragmented habitat, open savanna, was positively associated with the occurrence of golden jackal, Indian fox and desert cat. Golden jackal spatially co-occurred with jungle cat and Indian fox with desert cat. Indian fox and desert cat showed spatial avoidance of golden jackal and jungle cat. Meso-carnivores did not show any spatial responses to free-ranging dogs, but showed varied responses to human infrastructure, i.e., settlements, roads and wind turbines, generally co-occurring less with each other in areas with high anthropogenic influence. 4. Spatially co-occurring meso-carnivores also overlapped substantially in the temporal dimension. Golden jackal and jungle cat showed high temporal overlap with free-ranging dogs, while Indian fox and desert cat appeared to avoid them. Temporally overlapping species generally showed fine-scale spatio-temporal aggregation. 5. Our results reveal species-specific responses to anthropogenic factors in the meso-carnivore community, often increasing overlap across space and time in a resource restricted landscape. Future loss of native savanna habitats and an increasing human footprint can elicit competition driven loss of sensitive species leading to homogenization of the meso-carnivore community. Our findings highlight the importance of considering species-specific responses as well the complex interplay amongst species to conserve multi-carnivore systems across shared, resource-constrained landscapes.

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Chasms in charismatic species research: Seventy years of carnivore science and its implications for conservation and policy in India

Cited by 10 publications

References 100 publications

Ecological and Public Advantages of a Dual Flagship Strategy: Giant Panda and Snow Leopard

Ecological and Public Advantages of a Dual Flagship Strategy: Giant Panda and Snow Leopard

Topcats and underdogs: intraguild interactions among three apex carnivores across Asia's forestscapes

Three's Company: Anthropogenic factors shape co-occurrence in a meso-carnivore community in a semi-arid shared landscape of western India

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