Dietary patterns of a versatile large carnivore, the puma (<i>Puma concolor</i>)

Karandikar, Harshad; Serota, Mitchell W.; Sherman, Wilson C.; Green, Jennifer R; Verta, Guadalupe; Kremen, Claire; Middleton, Arthur D.

doi:10.1002/ece3.9002

Cited by 13 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 93 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…For example, after a megafire in California, USA, pumas avoided burned areas and increased their diurnal activity and home range (Blakey et al., 2022). However, pumas have well‐known behavioral and dietary plasticity in other regions (Karandikar et al., 2022; Magioli et al., 2014; Monroy‐Vilchis et al., 2009). The reduction in vegetation heterogeneity by fires may reduce pumas' ability to stalk prey (Blakey et al., 2022).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neotropical mammal responses to megafires in the Brazilian Pantanal

Bardales,

Boron,

Passos Viana

et al. 2024

Global Change Biology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The increasing frequency and severity of human‐caused fires likely have deleterious effects on species distribution and persistence. In 2020, megafires in the Brazilian Pantanal burned 43% of the biome's unburned area and resulted in mass mortality of wildlife. We investigated changes in habitat use or occupancy for an assemblage of eight mammal species in Serra do Amolar, Brazil, following the 2020 fires using a pre‐ and post‐fire camera trap dataset. Additionally, we estimated the density for two naturally marked species, jaguars Panthera onca and ocelots Leopardus pardalis. Of the eight species, six (ocelots, collared peccaries Dicotyles tajacu, giant armadillos Priodontes maximus, Azara's agouti Dasyprocta azarae, red brocket deer Mazama americana, and tapirs Tapirus terrestris) had declining occupancy following fires, and one had stable habitat use (pumas Puma concolor). Giant armadillo experienced the most precipitous decline in occupancy from 0.431 ± 0.171 to 0.077 ± 0.044 after the fires. Jaguars were the only species with increasing habitat use, from 0.393 ± 0.127 to 0.753 ± 0.085. Jaguar density remained stable across years (2.8 ± 1.3, 3.7 ± 1.3, 2.6 ± 0.85/100 km2), while ocelot density increased from 13.9 ± 3.2 to 16.1 ± 5.2/100 km2. However, the low number of both jaguars and ocelots recaptured after the fire period suggests that immigration may have sustained the population. Our results indicate that the megafires will have significant consequences for species occupancy and fitness in fire‐affected areas. The scale of megafires may inhibit successful recolonization, thus wider studies are needed to investigate population trends.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neotropical mammal responses to megafires in the Brazilian Pantanal

Bardales,

Boron,

Passos Viana

et al. 2024

Global Change Biology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…NDVI represented variation in vegetation greenness and is a proxy for primary productivity (Pettorelli et al, 2005). We considered primary productivity a proxy for the potential distribution of cougar prey, such as mule deer ( O. hemionus ), other ungulates, and small mammals, which occur in productive, vegetated areas that provide sufficient forage (Karandikar et al, 2022; Torstenson et al, 2006). Further, productive vegetated areas may provide ambush cover for cougars, which often use tall grasses, shrubs, and other vegetation cover to stalk and successfully capture prey (Williams et al, 2014).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

An integrated spatial capture–recapture approach reveals the distribution of a cryptic carnivore in a protected area

Martin

Green

Garrison³

et al. 2023

Ecosphere

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Quantifying animal abundance, density, and distributions affords the opportunity to understand the effects of landscape structure and change on species of conservation interest, but estimating these parameters can be difficult for rare and cryptic species. Noninvasive sampling methods, such as remote cameras or scat DNA, can mitigate the challenges of studying rare and cryptic species while also minimizing effects on species of conservation interest or concern. Data derived from these methods can be integrated into robust, contemporary quantitative methods, including spatial capture–recapture (SCR) models, which provide a hierarchical framework for jointly estimating animal abundance, distribution, and, consequently, density. Herein, we developed an integrated SCR model to estimate the abundance, density, and distribution of a large carnivore of conservation interest, the cougar (Puma concolor), in a rugged and remote protected area, Yosemite National Park, California, USA. We combined spatial encounter data from DNA‐based individual identification of scats with detection count data derived from remote cameras to estimate cougar density and detection probability in Yosemite. We further estimated how cougar density and detection probability varied as a result of vegetation, topography, anthropogenic and natural linear features, and survey effort. Using data collected in 2019 and 2020, we estimated a median of 31 (SD = 3.96, 95% credible intervals = 24–39) cougars in Yosemite across the two years, with higher densities associated with productive, vegetated areas. We found detection probability by scent detection teams was higher for females than males and positively correlated with survey effort, proximity to trails, and distance farther from roads and streams. Our study illustrates the utility of noninvasive survey methods that yield individual identities in rugged and remote environments, where capture and handling of cryptic, low‐density animals is logistically challenging and cost prohibitive. Integrated modeling approaches, as used here, allow ecologists to leverage empirical data using a robust quantitative framework that can effectively address conservation objectives. Through this work, we demonstrate the importance of large, contiguous, and heterogeneous ecosystems to the ecology of wide‐ranging species that occur in dynamic landscapes.

show abstract

“…To provide as comprehensive a search as possible for our review, we used the Clarivate Analytics Web of Science Core collection, the Elsevier Scopus database and Google Scholar to search for combinations of key words and terms periodically between May 2021 and July 2022. These three databases were used collectively in other ecological reviews of predatorprey relationships (e.g., [41][42][43]) and their combined use facilitates a broad overview of the target research topic. Specifically, Web of Science and Elsevier can produce search outputs that might be more specific to the search terms used, whereas Google Scholar supplements output by bringing in additional results from the peer-reviewed as well as grey literature [35,36].…”

Section: Search Methodology For Comprehensive Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bush Encroachment and Large Carnivore Predation Success in African Landscapes: A Review

Atkinson

Cristescu

Marker

et al. 2022

Earth

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Bush encroachment is a habitat change phenomenon that threatens savanna and grassland ecosystems worldwide. In Africa, large carnivores in bush encroached landscapes must adjust to increasing woody plant cover and biomass, which could affect predation success at multiple stages through complex and context-dependent pathways. We highlight, interpret, and compare studies that assessed how bush encroachment or related habitat parameters affect the predation stages of large African carnivores. Bush encroachment may directly or indirectly affect predation success in various ways, including by: (1) altering habitat structure, which may affect hunting efficiency and prey accessibility; (2) changing prey abundance/distribution, with smaller species and browsers being potentially favoured; (3) influencing interference competition within the carnivore guild. For habitat or dietary specialists, and subordinate predators that are vulnerable to both top-down and bottom-up ecosystem effects, these alterations may be detrimental and eventually incur population fitness costs. As the threat of bush encroachment continues, future studies are required to assess indirect effects on competitive interactions within the large African carnivore guild to ensure that conservation efforts are focused. Additionally, to better understand the effects of bush encroachment across Africa, further research is necessary in affected areas as overall little attention has been devoted to the topic.

show abstract

Dietary patterns of a versatile large carnivore, the puma (Puma concolor)

Cited by 13 publications

References 93 publications

Neotropical mammal responses to megafires in the Brazilian Pantanal

Neotropical mammal responses to megafires in the Brazilian Pantanal

An integrated spatial capture–recapture approach reveals the distribution of a cryptic carnivore in a protected area

Bush Encroachment and Large Carnivore Predation Success in African Landscapes: A Review

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About