Foraging ecology of jaguar (Panthera onca) and puma (Puma concolor) in hunted and non‐hunted sites within the Maya Biosphere Reserve, Guatemala

Abstract

Subsistence hunting and commercial exploitation directly influence wildlife populations in many regions of Central and South America. Where prey populations are exploited, the foraging ecology of top-level predators can be effected negatively. This study assessed the food habits and prey selection of jaguar Panthera onca and puma Puma concolor within hunted and non-hunted segments of the Maya Biosphere Reserve (MBR), Guatemala. Food habits were determined from analysis of 76 jaguar and 145 puma scats collected within hunted and non-hunted areas of the MBR from February 2000 to August 2001. Diets of jaguar and puma were compared (1) within species between areas with and without hunting to evaluate effects of subsistence hunting, and (2) between species to evaluate resource partitioning between these sympatric carnivores. Origin of predator scats was determined from mitochondrial DNA, diets were determined from prey remnants found within scats, and frequency of prey in scats was compared to expected values based on prey density estimates to test the hypothesis that diets of jaguar and puma were selective. Densities of major prey species were estimated using line-transect sampling. White-lipped peccary Tayassu pecari, collared peccary Tayassu tajacu and brocket deer Mazama sp. were less abundant, and coatis Nasua nasua more abundant, in the hunted area than in the non-hunted area. Jaguar and puma in both hunted and non-hunted sites obtained similar dietary contributions from large prey to their respective diets despite differences in the abundance of these prey species. Diets of jaguar and puma, as measured by percentage biomass occurrence of prey species, did not differ between hunted and non-hunted areas. Jaguar diets were dominated by medium-sized prey, particularly armadillos Dasypus novemcinctus and coatis, in both hunted and non-hunted areas. Medium-sized mammals also were prominent in puma diets, but large mammals constituted approximately 50% of prey biomass in both hunted and non-hunted areas. Deer Odocoileus virginianus and Mazama sp. and large rodents Agouti paca and Dasyprocta punctata were the most important prey of puma. Dietary overlap between jaguar and puma in both hunted and non-hunted areas was low.

Phylogenetic Relationships of New World Porcupines (Rodentia, Erethizontidae): Implications for Taxonomy, Morphological Evolution, and Biogeography

“…High in the canopy, Neotropical porcupines are perhaps safe from most nonavian predators, but they are probably more vulnerable on the ground. Swollen nasofrontal sinuses may confer an adaptive advantage for Coendou species that often descend to the ground for geophagy (Montenegro, 2004;Blake et al, 2011) or to cross canopy gaps (Montgomery and lubin, 1978), where they might be exposed to terrestrial predators such as pumas (Chinchilla, 1997;Novack et al, 2005;Foster et al, 2010) and large boas (Cherubini et al, 2003;duarte, 2003).…”

Scavenging on sea turtle carcasses by multiple Jaguars in northwestern Costa Rica

“…As with other elusive carnivores, the scientific community is still learning about the broad diet and hunting strategies of jaguars. New prey species, food habits, hunting strategies, kill rates, and predation patterns are described regularly (Taber et alTaber et al 1997;Núñez et al 2000;Garla et al 2001;Sunquist and Sunquist 2002;Polisar et al 2003;Novack et al 2005;Weckel et al 2006;Azevedo and Murray 2007;Carrillo et al 2009;Cavalcanti and Gese 2010). The hunting strategies of jaguars include scavenging as well as additive and compensatory predation (Schaller and Crawshaw 1980;González and Information on scavenging by jaguars is scarce, since only five scientific publications have reported scavenging behavior (see González and Piña 2002;Cavalcanti and Gese 2010;Castañeda et al 2013;Guilder et al 2015;this work).…”

Mammalian Diversity and Matses Ethnomammalogy in Amazonian Peru Part 2: Xenarthra, Carnivora, Perissodactyla, Artiodactyla, and Sirenia

“…Matses observations are largely consistent with known aspects of puma behavior reported in previous studies, but their description of frugivory is apparently unique. Additionally, Matses assertions that pumas eat caimans and turtles are noteworthy given the absence of these taxa from previous accounts of rainforest puma diets (e.g., Emmons, 1987;Novack et al, 2005;Moreno et al, 2006).…”