Temporal shifts in activity of prey following large predator reintroductions

Tambling, Craig J.; Minnie, Liaan; Meyer, Jordana M.; Freeman, Elizabeth W.; Santymire, Rachel M.; Adendorff, John; Kerley, Graham I. H.

doi:10.1007/s00265-015-1929-6

Cited by 98 publications

(91 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…The diel pattern in habitat selection we documented is thus largely consistent with vigilance behavior with respect to the spatio‐temporal variation in risk presented by hunters and one or more natural predators. There is some evidence of behavioral plasticity in ungulates facing predation (Chamaillé‐Jammes et al , Basille et al , Tambling et al ). As we did not investigate a contrasting situation without predation or hunting, it is not clear how flexible the habitat selection patterns are and whether the roe deer would adjust when experiencing a changed predation regime (as seen in e.g.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temporal variation in habitat selection breaks the catch‐22 of spatially contrasting predation risk from multiple predators

Lone

Mysterud

Gobakken

et al. 2016

Oikos

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Predator avoidance depends on prey being able to discern how risk varies in space and time, but this is made considerably more complicated if risk is simultaneously present from multiple predators. This is the situation for an increasing number of mammalian prey species, as large carnivores recover or are reintroduced in ecosystems on several continents. Roe deer Capreolus capreolus in southern Norway illustrate a case in which prey face two predators with contrasting patterns of predation risk. They face a catch‐22 situation: spatially avoiding the risk from one predator (lynx Lynx lynx in dense habitat) implies exposure to the other (hunters in open habitat). Using GPS‐data from 29 roe deer, we tested for daily and seasonal variation in roe deer selection for habitat with respect to the habitats’ year‐round average risk level. Generally, roe deer altered their habitat selection between night and day in a pattern consistent with being able to avoid predicted risk from the nocturnal lynx during night and predicted risk from human hunters during day. However, seasonal variation in habitat selection only partially corresponded with the predicted seasonal variation in risk. Whereas roe deer avoided areas with high risk from hunters more strongly during the hunting season than in other seasons, there was a lack of selection towards areas and time periods lowering the risk of lynx predation during winter. It seems likely that the risk of starvation and thermal stress constrain roe deer habitat selection during this energetically challenging season with cold temperatures, snow cover and limited natural forage. The habitat selection pattern of roe deer fits thus only partly with the two contrasting risk gradients they face. Adjusting risk‐avoidance behavior temporally can be an adaptive response in the case of several predators whose predation patterns differ in space and time.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temporal variation in habitat selection breaks the catch‐22 of spatially contrasting predation risk from multiple predators

Lone

Mysterud

Gobakken

et al. 2016

Oikos

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“…One strategy to reduce interference competition with a dominant predator, or reduce the risk of predation, is to partition activity into times of the day when predators are less active (Lima and Dill 1990, Kronfeld-Schor and Dayan 2003, Kohl et al 2018. Prey species in South Africa, for example, are more diurnal when co-existing with nocturnal top predators (lion Panthera leo and spotted hyaena Crocuta crocuta), compared to a neighbouring area without these predators (Tambling et al 2015). Such niche partitioning can be a mechanism that facilitates coexistence (Carothers and Jaksić 1984).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temporal partitioning of activity: rising and falling top‐predator abundance triggers community‐wide shifts in diel activity

et al. 2019

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Top predators cause avoidance behaviours in competitors and prey, which can lead to niche partitioning and facilitate coexistence. We investigate changes in partitioning of the temporal niche in a mammalian community in response to both the rapid decline in abundance of a top predator and its rapid increase, produced by two concurrent natural experiments: 1) the severe decline of the Tasmanian devil due to a transmissible cancer, and 2) the introduction of Tasmanian devils to an island, with subsequent population increase. We focus on devils, two mesopredators and three prey species, allowing us to examine niche partitioning in the context of intra‐ and inter‐specific competition, and predator–prey interactions. The most consistent shift in temporal activity occurred in devils themselves, which were active earlier in the night at high densities, presumably because of heightened intraspecific competition. When devils were rare, their closest competitor, the spotted‐tailed quoll, increased activity in the early part of the night, resulting in increased overlap with the devil's temporal niche and suggesting release from interference competition. The invasive feral cat, another mesopredator, did not shift its temporal activity in response to either decreasing or increasing devil densities. Shifts in temporal activity of the major prey species of devils were stronger in response to rising than to falling devil densities. We infer that the costs associated with not avoiding predators when their density is rising (i.e. death) are higher than the costs of continuing to adopt avoidance behaviours as predator densities fall (i.e. loss of foraging opportunity), so rising predator densities may trigger more rapid shifts. The rapid changes in devil abundance provide a unique framework to test how the non‐lethal effects of top predators affect community‐wide partitioning of temporal niches, revealing that this top predator has an important but varied influence on the diel activity of other species.

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“…Accumulating evidence suggests that behavioral flexibility in activity patterns (i.e., temporal flexibility) in response to ambient temperatures is common in animals (Shkolnik 1971, Aublet et al 2009). Research indicates that animals may shift their activity patterns on the diel niche axis and may even invert them (night to day and vice versa) in response to ambient temperature (Whitford Boal and Giovanni (2007) Rat Rattus norvegicus N > D predation Fenn and Macdonald (1995) Rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus N > D also diurnal under high predation Bakker et al (2005) Blind Rheingantz et al (2016) Kudu Tragelaphus strepsiceros N > D predation Tambling et al (2015) Warthog Phacochoerus africanus N > D predation Tambling et al (2015) Buffalo Syncerus caffer N > D predation Tambling et al (2015)…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Time and ecological resilience: can diurnal animals compensate for climate change by shifting to nocturnal activity?

Levy

Dayan

Porter

et al. 2018

Ecological Monographs

100

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Considerable research is aimed at developing predictions of ecosystem responses to climate change, focusing on the spatial scale, such as range shifts and contractions, as well as activity restrictions to shaded microhabitats. On the other hand, the ability of species to shift their activity times during the diel cycle, and consequently to alter the environment in which activity occurs, has been largely neglected. Daily activity patterns are perceived as fairly fixed; however, natural changes in activity patterns have been reported in increasing numbers of species. Here, we present a framework that explores how shifts in activity patterns may buffer impacts of climate change. To demonstrate our framework, we simulated costs of activity of diurnal and nocturnal rodents and showed that future summers may decrease the energetic demands of nocturnal mammals while increasing water demands of diurnal mammals. Climate projections suggest that vegetation cover and water availability will decrease under future climate scenarios, especially in areas where water demands are expected to increase the most. These changes are expected to limit the ability of diurnal animals to restrict activity to shaded microhabitats and to keep a positive water balance. Our analysis shows that by shifting to nocturnality, diurnal mammals may mitigate the high water costs of future summers. We suggest that future research should explore the role of the diel time axis as an ecological resource when predicting the impacts of climate change.

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Temporal shifts in activity of prey following large predator reintroductions

Cited by 98 publications

References 51 publications

Temporal variation in habitat selection breaks the catch‐22 of spatially contrasting predation risk from multiple predators

Temporal variation in habitat selection breaks the catch‐22 of spatially contrasting predation risk from multiple predators

Temporal partitioning of activity: rising and falling top‐predator abundance triggers community‐wide shifts in diel activity

Time and ecological resilience: can diurnal animals compensate for climate change by shifting to nocturnal activity?

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