Leporid social behaviour and social organization

Cowan, David P.; Bell, Diana

doi:10.1111/j.1365-2907.1986.tb00039.x

Cited by 79 publications

(66 citation statements)

References 66 publications

(37 reference statements)

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“…Studies on different taxa have noted that foraging behaviour is not only motivated by maximum acquisition of nutrients but also by predator avoidance, because whether a prey species (like lagomorphs) increases or decreases its vigilance rate, thereby sacrificing or increasing its foraging activity, may depend on how secure the species senses it is in its habitat structure (Barbour and Litvaitis 1993;Kie 1999;Smith and Litvaitis 2000;Bond et al 2001). The two species exhibited contrasting dependence on cover for protection against predators during feeding due to their different anti-predator strategies: hares use long-distance running to escape from terrestrial predators while cottontails run away for short distances to shelter in the nearest dense cover (Cowan and Bell 1986;Fa et al 1992;Althoff et al 1997). In autumn, the substantial overlap in resource use between the two species at both the macro-and the micro-habitat level supports the evidence for the negative effect of resource availability reduction on hare and cottontail spatial distribution within simplified agro-ecosystems.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat overlap between sympatric European hares (Lepus europaeus) and Eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) in northern Italy

et al. 2010

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In northern Italy, the range of the Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) largely overlaps with that of the native European hare (Lepus europaeus) on the Po Plain. Both species appear to have similar habitat requirements. We studied habitat selection by hares and cottontails during feeding activity from September 2006 to August 2007 in two areas where they occur alone (allopatry) and in one area where they occur together (sympatry). The three areas were basically similar, so that shifts in habitat use observed in sympatry should reflect the response to interspecific competition. Habitat selection was examined at micro-and macro-habitat levels throughout seasons. Habitat breadth of both species followed the change of resource availability through seasons in allopatry as well as in sympatry. No shifts in habitat use were evident at macrohabitat level, even during autumn which was the limiting season. Exploitation of shared habitats by the two species seems to be promoted by differential micro-habitat use within macro-habitat types. Cottontails used woods with dense understory in greater proportion than hares, and their present sites were concentrated within the maximum distance of 20 m of the nearest shelter site. Hares were more likely than cottontails to exploit crops, and their sites were distributed even greater than 80 m away from permanent cover patches. The habitat heterogeneity of agricultural ecosystems within the sympatry range could buffer the negative effects of external factors (climate, human disturbance and predation) on hares, and enhance the chances of exploitation of shared habitats by both species.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat overlap between sympatric European hares (Lepus europaeus) and Eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) in northern Italy

et al. 2010

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“…paratuberculosis found by sampling at different spatial scales may be explained by looking at the socioecology of rabbits. Rabbits live in social groups of between 2 and 20 adults (average, 10); each social group inhabits its own warren (8), which is often located near other warrens to form a contiguous area of social groups which is referred to here as a bank. In the course of their daily routine, rabbits will range up to an average of 200 m from their warrens (11) and often will intermingle with individuals from other social groups in their bank but rarely with individuals from other banks.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Clustering of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis in Rabbits and the Environment: How Hot Is a Hot Spot?

Judge

Kyriazakis

Greig

et al. 2005

Appl Environ Microbiol

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Clustering of pathogens in the environment leads to hot spots of diseases at local, regional, national, and international levels. Scotland contains regional hot spots of Johne's disease (caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis) in rabbits, and there is increasing evidence of a link between paratuberculosis infections in rabbits and cattle. The spatial and temporal dynamics of paratuberculosis in rabbits within a hot spot region were studied with the overall aim of determining environmental patterns of infection and thus the risk of interspecies transmission to livestock. The specific aims were to determine if prevalence of paratuberculosis in rabbits varies temporally between seasons and whether the heterogeneous spatial environmental distribution of M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis on a large scale (i.e., regional hot spots) is replicated at finer resolutions within a hot spot. The overall prevalence of M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis in rabbits was 39.7%; the temporal distribution of infection in rabbits followed a cyclical pattern, with a peak in spring of 55.4% and a low in summer of 19.4%. Spatially, M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis-infected rabbits and, thus, the risk of interspecies transmission were highly clustered in the environment. However, this is mostly due to the clustered distribution of rabbits. The patterns of M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis infection in rabbits are discussed in relation to the host's socioecology and risk to livestock.

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“…When the animal reaches this age the musculature of the chewing system, which develops from that used to suckle, is indistinguishable from that of an adult (Weijs et al, 1989;Langenbach et al, 1992Langenbach et al, , 2001) and the young rabbits are able to feed for themselves. At this point they receive no further maternal care, and are expelled from the burrow in which they were born (Cowan and Bell, 1986;Villafuerte, 2007). Remains that show deciduous teeth are therefore those of infant rabbits e individuals that could never have been taken from their burrows by a bird of prey and must therefore have been killed by a terrestrial predator.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lagomorph predation represented in a middle Palaeolithic level of the Navalmaíllo Rock Shelter site (Pinilla del Valle, Spain), as inferred via a new use of classical taphonomic criteria

Arriaza

Huguet

Laplana

et al. 2017

Quaternary International

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a b s t r a c tLagomorph remains at Pleistocene sites may accumulate through the action of hominins, raptors or carnivores. Actualistic studies have described reliable taphonomic indicators that allow human and nonhuman involvement in such accumulations to be distinguished. However, discriminating between possible animal predators is not easy, because the prey remnants they leave may undergo the same kinds of taphonomic transformation. The main aim of the present work was to identify the agent, human or non-human, that accumulated the lagomorph remains at the Navalmaíllo Rock Shelter site (Pinilla del Valle, Madrid). For this, 1) established taphonomic criteria, such as anatomical representation, were taken into account, 2) the presence of infant lagomorphs was examined by determining the age of the individual animals, 3) and coprolite remains adhered to fossils were identified. This new use of the latter two criteria aided in the identification of the predator responsible for the accumulation of remains. The results suggest that this was a small carnivore, probably an Iberian lynx.

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Leporid social behaviour and social organization

Cited by 79 publications

References 66 publications

Habitat overlap between sympatric European hares (Lepus europaeus) and Eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) in northern Italy

Habitat overlap between sympatric European hares (Lepus europaeus) and Eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) in northern Italy

Clustering of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis in Rabbits and the Environment: How Hot Is a Hot Spot?

Lagomorph predation represented in a middle Palaeolithic level of the Navalmaíllo Rock Shelter site (Pinilla del Valle, Spain), as inferred via a new use of classical taphonomic criteria

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