scholarly journals Intraguild Predation by the Eagle Owl Determines the Space Use of a Mesopredator Carnivore

Diversity ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 359
Author(s):  
Emilio Virgós ◽  
Noemí Baniandrés ◽  
Tamara Burgos ◽  
Mariano R. Recio
Keyword(s):  
Intraguild Predation ◽  
Positive Relationship ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Space Use ◽  
Mediterranean Ecosystem ◽  
Stone Marten ◽  
Landscape Of Fear ◽  
Top Predators ◽  
Eagle Owl ◽  
Conservation And Management

Top predators shape the communities of sympatric predators by killing and displacing smaller predators. Predation risk pushes smaller predators to select enemy-free spaces irrespective of food availability, which results in changes in their behaviour, space use, distribution, and abundance. Although the landscape of fear dynamics are known for top predators such as the eagle owl and its impact on smaller raptors, the effect of the presence and abundance of the eagle owl on the space use of mesopredator carnivores remains poorly understood. Here, we studied this effect on the space use of the stone marten in a Mediterranean ecosystem where it shares rabbits as main prey with the eagle owl. We also accounted for the presence of another sympatric carnivore, the red fox. Using a multi-model inference, we found stone martens avoided areas with a higher abundance of eagle owls and rabbits, which suggested a hyperpredation process and a cognitive association by stone martens between rabbit hotspots and owl presence. We found a positive relationship between the space use of the red fox and the stone marten, which suggested foxes behaved as competitors and not predators of martens. Understanding intraguild predation can assist the conservation and management of predators and their prey.

scholarly journals Diet Composition and Feeding Strategies of the Stone Marten (Martes foina) in a Typical Mediterranean Ecosystem

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dimitrios E. Bakaloudis ◽  
Christos G. Vlachos ◽  
Malamati A. Papakosta ◽  
Vasileios A. Bontzorlos ◽  
Evangelos N. Chatzinikos
Keyword(s):  
Diet Composition ◽  
Niche Breadth ◽  
Interference Competition ◽  
Mediterranean Ecosystem ◽  
Feeding Strategies ◽  
Stone Marten ◽  
Martes Foina ◽  
Dietary Niche ◽  
Individual Specialisation ◽  
The Individual

Stone martens (Martes foina) are documented as generalist throughout their distributional range whose diet composition is affected by food availability. We tested if this occurs and what feeding strategies it follows in a typical Mediterranean ecosystem in Central Greece by analysing contents from 106 stomachs, seasonally collected from three different habitats during 2003–2006. Seasonal variation in diet and feeding strategies was evident and linked to seasonal nutritional requirements, but possibly imposed by strong interference competition and intraguild predation. Fleshy fruits and arthropods predominated in the diet, but also mammals and birds were frequently consumed. An overall low dietary niche breadth (BA=0.128) indicated a fruit specialization tendency. A generalised diet occurred in spring with high individual specialisation, whereas more animal-type prey was consumed than fruits. A population specialization towards fruits was indicated during summer and autumn, whereas insects were consumed occasionally by males. In those seasons it switched to more clumped food types such as fruits and insects. In winter it selectively exploited both adult and larvae insects and partially fruits overwinter on plants. The tendency to consume particular prey items seasonally reflected both the population specialist behaviour and the individual flexibility preyed on different food resources.

scholarly journals Mice and Habitat Complexity Attract Carnivorans to Recently Burnt Forests

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 855
Author(s):  
Roger Puig-Gironès ◽  
Pere Pons
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammal ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Habitat Structure ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Plant Cover ◽  
Fleshy Fruit ◽  
Frequency Of Occurrence ◽  
Stone Marten ◽  
Burnt Area ◽  
Fruit Availability

Faunal responses to wildfire depend on the fire effects on direct mortality, habitat structure, and resource availability for animals. Despite the importance of large predators in terrestrial trophic webs, little is still known about how fire affects carnivorans (the mammalian order Carnivora). To evaluate the responses of the carnivoran community to fire, we studied three recently burnt forest areas in the western Mediterranean basin. Line transects were used to quantify evidence of carnivorans (mainly feces) and to measure environmental variables and resources (small mammal abundance, fleshy fruit availability, and plant cover). Throughout the study, we found 212 carnivoran field signs, 93% of them produced by red fox and stone marten. Immediately after fire, carnivoran occurrence was more frequent close to the perimeter of the burnt area, where fire severity was low, and in places with greater small mammal abundance. Small mammal abundance and plant cover had the greatest effect on the frequency of occurrence of red fox in the burnt area surroundings, and this increased with time-since-fire in the burnt area. Furthermore, the presence of red fox did not affect stone marten occurrence. Stone martens were found around the burnt area perimeter, probably because of their preference for high plant cover, and they were not significantly affected by small mammal abundance. The scat frequency of occurrence of both species was not significantly related to fleshy fruit availability. Accordingly, rodents and carnivorans were more abundant where the habitat was more complex. Our results show that the responses of some carnivorans to fire are influenced, directly and indirectly, by habitat structure and resource availability.

scholarly journals “Reversed” intraguild predation: red fox cubs killed by pine marten

2014 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 473-477 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcin Brzeziński ◽  
Łukasz Rodak ◽  
Andrzej Zalewski
Keyword(s):  
Intraguild Predation ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Pine Marten

scholarly journals Assessing Genetic Structure in Common but Ecologically Distinct Carnivores: The Stone Marten and Red Fox

PLoS ONE ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. e0145165 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mafalda P. Basto ◽  
Margarida Santos-Reis ◽  
Luciana Simões ◽  
Clara Grilo ◽  
Luís Cardoso ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Structure ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Stone Marten

The good, the bad, and the ugly: space use and intraguild interactions among three opportunistic predators—cat (Felis catus), dog (Canis lupus familiaris), and red fox (Vulpes vulpes)—under human pressure

2012 ◽  
Vol 90 (12) ◽  
pp. 1402-1413 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Krauze-Gryz ◽  
J.B. Gryz ◽  
J. Goszczyński ◽  
P. Chylarecki ◽  
M. ̇Zmihorski
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Space Use ◽  
Felis Catus ◽  
Probability Of Detection ◽  
The Other ◽  
Canis Lupus Familiaris ◽  
Modeling Framework ◽  
Intraguild Interactions

Examples of interspecific interactions have been described for mammalian predators, but less is known regarding disturbances of native predator guilds by domestic predators. We investigated intraguild interactions among three opportunistic predators (dog ( Canis lupus familiaris L., 1758), cat ( Felis catus L., 1758), and red fox ( Vulpes vulpes (L., 1758)) co-occurring in the extensive farmlands of central Poland. Their space use was monitored using tracking stations distributed in field and forest plots along a distance gradient from buildings and analyzed using the occupancy-modeling framework. For all three species occupancy decreased with increased distance from buildings, although for the fox the pattern was relatively weak. The occurrence of cats at the stations was higher in the forest than in the field; for fox and dog, there was a strong variation between study plots. For all three predators, the probability of detection was higher during the night than during the day and varied between the seasons; however, the exact patterns were species-specific. The presence of one predator was also linked to the presence of the other two species—generally, a given species was detected more frequently in the absence of the other two species. We recorded spatiotemporal niche segregation among the three species. We conclude that interspecific antagonistic interactions and differences in foraging ecology are the main drivers shaping co-occurrence of the three species in the agriculture landscape.

Concentrations of Trace Elements in Tissues of Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) and Stone Marten (Martes foina) from Suburban and Rural Areas in Croatia

2010 ◽  
Vol 85 (5) ◽  
pp. 486-491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nina Bilandžić ◽  
Danko Dežđek ◽  
Marija Sedak ◽  
Maja Đokić ◽  
Božica Solomun ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Trace Elements ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Stone Marten ◽  
Martes Foina
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