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Nanglu K, de Carle D, Cullen TM, Anderson EB, Arif S, Castañeda RA, Chang LM, Iwama RE, Fellin E, Manglicmot RC, Massey MD, Astudillo‐Clavijo V. The nature of science: The fundamental role of natural history in ecology, evolution, conservation, and education. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e10621. [PMID: 37877102 PMCID: PMC10591213 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2023] [Revised: 09/20/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023] Open
Abstract
There is a contemporary trend in many major research institutions to de-emphasize the importance of natural history education in favor of theoretical, laboratory, or simulation-based research programs. This may take the form of removing biodiversity and field courses from the curriculum and the sometimes subtle maligning of natural history research as a "lesser" branch of science. Additional threats include massive funding cuts to natural history museums and the maintenance of their collections, the extirpation of taxonomists across disciplines, and a critical under-appreciation of the role that natural history data (and other forms of observational data, including Indigenous knowledge) play in the scientific process. In this paper, we demonstrate that natural history knowledge is integral to any competitive science program through a comprehensive review of the ways in which they continue to shape modern theory and the public perception of science. We do so by reviewing how natural history research has guided the disciplines of ecology, evolution, and conservation and how natural history data are crucial for effective education programs and public policy. We underscore these insights with contemporary case studies, including: how understanding the dynamics of evolutionary radiation relies on natural history data; methods for extracting novel data from museum specimens; insights provided by multi-decade natural history programs; and how natural history is the most logical venue for creating an informed and scientifically literate society. We conclude with recommendations aimed at students, university faculty, and administrators for integrating and supporting natural history in their mandates. Fundamentally, we are all interested in understanding the natural world, but we can often fall into the habit of abstracting our research away from its natural contexts and complexities. Doing so risks losing sight of entire vistas of new questions and insights in favor of an over-emphasis on simulated or overly controlled studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karma Nanglu
- Museum of Comparative Zoology and Department of Organismic and Evolutionary BiologyHarvard UniversityCambridgeMassachusettsUSA
| | - Danielle de Carle
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of TorontoTorontoOntarioCanada
- Department of Invertebrate ZoologyRoyal Ontario MuseumTorontoOntarioCanada
| | - Thomas M. Cullen
- Department of GeosciencesAuburn UniversityAuburnAlabamaUSA
- Negaunee Integrative Research CenterField Museum of Natural HistoryChicagoIllinoisUSA
| | - Erika B. Anderson
- The HunterianUniversity of GlasgowGlasgowUK
- Department of Earth and SpaceRoyal Ontario MuseumTorontoOntarioCanada
| | - Suchinta Arif
- Department of BiologyDalhousie UniversityHalifaxNova ScotiaCanada
| | - Rowshyra A. Castañeda
- Ecosystems and Ocean SciencesPacific Region, Fisheries and Oceans CanadaSidneyBritish ColumbiaCanada
| | | | - Rafael Eiji Iwama
- Departamento de Genética e Biologia Evolutiva, Instituto de BiociênciasUniversidade de São PauloSão PauloBrazil
| | - Erica Fellin
- Department of BiologyMcGill UniversityMontrealQuebecCanada
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2
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Plein M, O'Brien KR, Holden MH, Adams MP, Baker CM, Bean NG, Sisson SA, Bode M, Mengersen KL, McDonald‐Madden E. Modeling total predation to avoid perverse outcomes from cat control in a data-poor island ecosystem. CONSERVATION BIOLOGY : THE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR CONSERVATION BIOLOGY 2022; 36:e13916. [PMID: 35352431 PMCID: PMC9804458 DOI: 10.1111/cobi.13916] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2020] [Revised: 12/22/2021] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Data hungry, complex ecosystem models are often used to predict the consequences of threatened species management, including perverse outcomes. Unfortunately, this approach is impractical in many systems, which have insufficient data to parameterize ecosystem interactions or reliably calibrate or validate such models. Here we demonstrate a different approach, using a minimum realistic model to guide decisions in data- and resource-scarce systems. We illustrate our approach with a case-study in an invaded ecosystem from Christmas Island, Australia, where there are concerns that cat eradication to protect native species, including the red-tailed tropicbird, could release meso-predation by invasive rats. We use biophysical constraints (metabolic demand) and observable parameters (e.g. prey preferences) to assess the combined cat and rat abundances which would threaten the tropicbird population. We find that the population of tropicbirds cannot be sustained if predated by 1607 rats (95% credible interval (CI) [103, 5910]) in the absence of cats, or 21 cats (95% CI [2, 82]) in the absence of rats. For every cat removed from the island, the bird's net population growth rate improves, provided that the rats do not increase by more than 77 individuals (95% CI [30, 174]). Thus, in this context, one cat is equivalent to 30-174 rats. Our methods are especially useful for on-the-ground predator control in the absence of knowledge of predator-predator interactions, to assess whether 1) the current abundance of predators threatens the prey population of interest, 2) managing one predator species alone is sufficient to protect the prey species given potential release of another predator, and 3) control of multiple predator species is needed to meet the conservation goal. Our approach demonstrates how to use limited information for maximum value in data-poor systems, by shifting the focus from predicting future trajectories, to identifying conditions which threaten the conservation goal. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michaela Plein
- School of Earth and Environmental ScienceUniversity of QueenslandSt LuciaQueenslandAustralia
- Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation ScienceUniversity of QueenslandSt LuciaQueenslandAustralia
- Administration de la nature et des forêtsDiekirchLuxembourg
| | - Katherine R. O'Brien
- School of Chemical EngineeringUniversity of QueenslandSt LuciaQueenslandAustralia
| | - Matthew H. Holden
- Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation ScienceUniversity of QueenslandSt LuciaQueenslandAustralia
- School of Biological SciencesUniversity of QueenslandBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
- School of Mathematics and PhysicsUniversity of QueenslandBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Matthew P. Adams
- School of Earth and Environmental ScienceUniversity of QueenslandSt LuciaQueenslandAustralia
- Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation ScienceUniversity of QueenslandSt LuciaQueenslandAustralia
- School of Chemical EngineeringUniversity of QueenslandSt LuciaQueenslandAustralia
- School of Mathematical SciencesQueensland University of TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Mathematical and Statistical FrontiersQueensland University of, TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Christopher M. Baker
- School of Mathematics and StatisticsThe University of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Melbourne Centre for Data ScienceThe University of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Centre of Excellence for Biosecurity Risk AnalysisThe University of MelbourneMelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | - Nigel G. Bean
- School of Mathematical SciencesUniversity of AdelaideAdelaideSouth AustraliaAustralia
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Mathematical and Statistical FrontiersUniversity of AdelaideAdelaideSouth AustraliaAustralia
| | - Scott A. Sisson
- School of Mathematics and StatisticsUniversity of New South WalesSydneyNew South WalesAustralia
- UNSW Data Science HubUniversity of New SouthWales, SydneyNew South WalesAustralia
| | - Michael Bode
- School of Mathematical SciencesQueensland University of TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Kerrie L. Mengersen
- School of Mathematical SciencesQueensland University of TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Mathematical and Statistical FrontiersQueensland University of, TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Eve McDonald‐Madden
- School of Earth and Environmental ScienceUniversity of QueenslandSt LuciaQueenslandAustralia
- Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation ScienceUniversity of QueenslandSt LuciaQueenslandAustralia
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3
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Beauchesne D, Cazelles K, Archambault P, Dee LE, Gravel D. On the sensitivity of food webs to multiple stressors. Ecol Lett 2021; 24:2219-2237. [PMID: 34288313 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Evaluating the effects of multiple stressors on ecosystems is becoming increasingly vital with global changes. The role of species interactions in propagating the effects of stressors, although widely acknowledged, has yet to be formally explored. Here, we conceptualise how stressors propagate through food webs and explore how they affect simulated three-species motifs and food webs of the Canadian St. Lawrence System. We find that overlooking species interactions invariably underestimate the effects of stressors, and that synergistic and antagonistic effects through food webs are prevalent. We also find that interaction type influences a species' susceptibility to stressors; species in omnivory and tri-trophic food chain interactions in particular are sensitive and prone to synergistic and antagonistic effects. Finally, we find that apex predators were negatively affected and mesopredators benefited from the effects of stressors due to their trophic position in the St. Lawrence System, but that species sensitivity is dependent on food web structure. In conceptualising the effects of multiple stressors on food webs, we bring theory closer to practice and show that considering the intricacies of ecological communities is key to assess the net effects of stressors on species.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Beauchesne
- Département de biologie, ArcticNet, Québec Océan, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada.,Institut des sciences de la mer, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Rimouski, QC, Canada
| | - Kevin Cazelles
- Department of Integrative Biology, University Of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
| | - Philippe Archambault
- Département de biologie, ArcticNet, Québec Océan, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Laura E Dee
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Dominique Gravel
- Département de biologie, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC, Canada
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4
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Ford AT, Ali AH, Colla SR, Cooke SJ, Lamb CT, Pittman J, Shiffman DS, Singh NJ. Understanding and avoiding misplaced efforts in conservation. Facets (Ott) 2021. [DOI: 10.1139/facets-2020-0058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Conservation relies on cooperation among different interest groups and appropriate use of evidence to make decisions that benefit people and biodiversity. However, misplaced conservation occurs when cooperation and evidence are impeded by polarization and misinformation. This impedance influences actions that directly harm biodiversity, alienate partners and disrupt partnerships, waste resources, misinform the public, and (or) delegitimize evidence. As a result of these actions, misplaced conservation outcomes emerge, making it more difficult to have positive outcomes for biodiversity. Here we describe cases where a failed appreciation for cooperation, evidence, or both have eroded efforts to conserve biodiversity. Generally, these case studies illustrate that averting misplaced conservation requires greater adherence to processes that elevate the role of evidence in decision-making and that place collective, long-term benefits for biodiversity over the short-term gains of individuals or groups. Efforts to integrate human dimensions, cooperation, and evidence into conservation will increase the efficacy and success of efforts to conserve global biodiversity while benefiting humanity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam T. Ford
- Department of Biology, University of British Columbia, Kelowna, BC V1V 1V7, Canada
| | - Abdullahi H. Ali
- Hirola Conservation Programme, PO Box 1774, Garissa 70100, Kenya
| | - Sheila R. Colla
- Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada
| | - Steven J. Cooke
- Fish Ecology and Conservation Physiology Laboratory, Department of Biology and Institute of Environmental and Interdisciplinary Sciences, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON K1S 5B6, Canada
| | - Clayton T. Lamb
- Department of Biology, University of British Columbia, Kelowna, BC V1V 1V7, Canada
| | - Jeremy Pittman
- School of Planning, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - David S. Shiffman
- New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, Arizona State University, Glendale, AZ 85051, USA
| | - Navinder J. Singh
- Department of Wildlife, Fish and Environmental Studies, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, SE-901 83 Umeå, Sweden
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5
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Hallett LM, Hobbs RJ. Thinking systemically about ecological interventions: what do system archetypes teach us? Restor Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.13220] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lauren M. Hallett
- Environmental Studies Program and Department of Biology University of Oregon Eugene OR 97403 U.S.A
| | - Richard J. Hobbs
- Department of Biological Sciences University of Western Australia Crawley WA 6009 Australia
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6
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Raymond CV, McCune JL, Rosner‐Katz H, Chadès I, Schuster R, Gilbert B, Bennett JR. Combining species distribution models and value of information analysis for spatial allocation of conservation resources. J Appl Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13580] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Iadine Chadès
- CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences Ecosciences Precinct Dutton Park Qld Australia
| | | | - Benjamin Gilbert
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology University of Toronto Toronto ON Canada
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7
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Short-term pain before long-term gain? Suppression of invasive primary prey temporarily increases predation on native lizards. Biol Invasions 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s10530-020-02239-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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8
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Brink CW, Santangeli A, Amar A, Wolter K, Tate G, Krüger S, Tucker AS, Thomson RL. Quantifying the spatial distribution and trends of supplementary feeding sites in South Africa and their potential contribution to vulture energetic requirements. Anim Conserv 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/acv.12561] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- C. W. Brink
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DST‐NRF Centre of Excellence University of Cape Town Cape Town South Africa
| | - A. Santangeli
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DST‐NRF Centre of Excellence University of Cape Town Cape Town South Africa
- The Helsinki Lab of Ornithology Finnish Museum of Natural History University of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
| | - A. Amar
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DST‐NRF Centre of Excellence University of Cape Town Cape Town South Africa
| | | | - G. Tate
- Birds of Prey Programme Endangered Wildlife Trust Modderfontein South Africa
| | - S. Krüger
- Ezemvelo KwaZulu‐Natal Wildlife Cascades South Africa
| | | | - R. L. Thomson
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DST‐NRF Centre of Excellence University of Cape Town Cape Town South Africa
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9
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Abstract
Adaptive management is a powerful means of learning about complex ecosystems, but is rarely used for recovering endangered species. Here, we demonstrate how it can benefit woodland caribou, which became the first large mammal extirpated from the contiguous United States in recent history. The continental scale of forest alteration and extended time needed for forest recovery means that relying only on habitat protection and restoration will likely fail. Therefore, population management is also needed as an emergency measure to avoid further extirpation. Reductions of predators and overabundant prey, translocations, and creating safe havens have been applied in a design covering >90,000 km2 Combinations of treatments that increased multiple vital rates produced the highest population growth. Moreover, the degree of ecosystem alteration did not influence this pattern. By coordinating recovery involving scientists, governments, and First Nations, treatments were applied across vast scales to benefit this iconic species.
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10
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Elbroch LM, Lowrey B, Wittmer HU. The importance of fieldwork over predictive modeling in quantifying predation events of carnivores marked with GPS technology. J Mammal 2017. [DOI: 10.1093/jmammal/gyx176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | - Blake Lowrey
- Systems Ecology Program, Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, USA
| | - Heiko U Wittmer
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
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11
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Serrouya R, McLellan BN, van Oort H, Mowat G, Boutin S. Experimental moose reduction lowers wolf density and stops decline of endangered caribou. PeerJ 2017; 5:e3736. [PMID: 28875080 PMCID: PMC5580390 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.3736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2017] [Accepted: 08/04/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The expansion of moose into southern British Columbia caused the decline and extirpation of woodland caribou due to their shared predators, a process commonly referred to as apparent competition. Using an adaptive management experiment, we tested the hypothesis that reducing moose to historic levels would reduce apparent competition and therefor recover caribou populations. Nested within this broad hypothesis were three specific hypotheses: (1) sport hunting could be used to substantially reduce moose numbers to an ecological target; (2) wolves in this ecosystem were primarily limited by moose abundance; and (3) caribou were limited by wolf predation. These hypotheses were evaluated with a before-after control-impact (BACI) design that included response metrics such as population trends and vital rates of caribou, moose, and wolves. Three caribou subpopulations were subject to the moose reduction treatment and two were in a reference area where moose were not reduced. When the moose harvest was increased, the moose population declined substantially in the treatment area (by 70%) but not the reference area, suggesting that the policy had the desired effect and was not caused by a broader climatic process. Wolf numbers subsequently declined in the treatment area, with wolf dispersal rates 2.5× greater, meaning that dispersal was the likely mechanism behind the wolf numerical response, though reduced recruitment and starvation was also documented in the treatment area. Caribou adult survival increased from 0.78 to 0.88 in the treatment area, but declined in the reference. Caribou recruitment was unaffected by the treatment. The largest caribou subpopulation stabilized in the treatment area, but declined in the reference area. The observed population stability is comparable to other studies that used intensive wolf control, but is insufficient to achieve recovery, suggesting that multiple limiting factors and corresponding management tools must be addressed simultaneously to achieve population growth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Serrouya
- Columbia Mountains Caribou Research Project, Revelstoke, British Columbia, Canada.,Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Bruce N McLellan
- Columbia Mountains Caribou Research Project, Revelstoke, British Columbia, Canada.,Research Branch, Ministry of Forests, Lands, and Natural Resource Operations, D'Arcy, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Harry van Oort
- Columbia Mountains Caribou Research Project, Revelstoke, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Garth Mowat
- Natural Resource Science Section, Ministry of Forests, Lands, and Natural Resource Operations, Nelson, British Columbia, Canada.,Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of British Columbia Okanagan Campus, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Stan Boutin
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
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12
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Predicting the potential distribution of the Endangered huemul deer Hippocamelus bisulcus in North Patagonia. ORYX 2016. [DOI: 10.1017/s0030605315001106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
AbstractHabitat loss is one of the main threats to wildlife, particularly large mammals. Estimating the potential distribution of threatened species to guide surveys and conservation is crucial, primarily because such species tend to exist in small fragmented populations. The Endangered huemul deer Hippocamelus bisulcus is endemic to the southern Andes of Chile and Argentina. Although the species occurs in the Valdivian Ecoregion, a hotspot for biodiversity, we have no information on its occupancy and potential distribution in this region. We built and compared species distribution models for huemul using the maximum entropy approach, using 258 presence records and sets of bioclimatic and geographical variables as predictors, with the objective of assessing the potential distribution of the species in the Valdivian Ecoregion. Annual temperature range and summer precipitation were the predictive variables with the greatest influence in the best-fitting model. Approximately 12,360 km2 of the study area was identified as suitable habitat for the huemul, of which 30% is included in the national protected area systems of Chile and Argentina. The map of potential distribution produced by our model will facilitate prioritization of future survey efforts in other remote and unexplored areas in which huemul have not been recorded since the 1980s but where there is a high probability of their occurrence.
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13
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Marescot L, Forrester TD, Casady DS, Wittmer HU. Using multistate capture–mark–recapture models to quantify effects of predation on age-specific survival and population growth in black-tailed deer. POPUL ECOL 2014. [DOI: 10.1007/s10144-014-0456-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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14
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Gervasi V, Nilsen EB, Odden J, Bouyer Y, Linnell JDC. The spatio-temporal distribution of wild and domestic ungulates modulates lynx kill rates in a multi-use landscape. J Zool (1987) 2013. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- V. Gervasi
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research; Trondheim Norway
| | - E. B. Nilsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research; Trondheim Norway
| | - J. Odden
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research; Trondheim Norway
| | - Y. Bouyer
- University of Liège; Liège Belgium
- Royal Institute for Natural Sciences; Brussels Belgium
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15
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Elbroch LM, Jansen BD, Grigione MM, Sarno RJ, Wittmer HU. Trailing hounds vs foot snares: comparing injuries to pumasPuma concolorcaptured in Chilean Patagonia. WILDLIFE BIOLOGY 2013. [DOI: 10.2981/12-114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
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16
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Elbroch LM, Wittmer HU. Nuisance ecology: do scavenging condors exact foraging costs on pumas in Patagonia? PLoS One 2013; 8:e53595. [PMID: 23301093 PMCID: PMC3536754 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0053595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2012] [Accepted: 12/03/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Predation risk describes the energetic cost an animal suffers when making a trade off between maximizing energy intake and minimizing threats to its survival. We tested whether Andean condors (Vultur gryphus) influenced the foraging behaviors of a top predator in Patagonia, the puma (Puma concolor), in ways comparable to direct risks of predation for prey to address three questions: 1) Do condors exact a foraging cost on pumas?; 2) If so, do pumas exhibit behaviors indicative of these risks?; and 3) Do pumas display predictable behaviors associated with prey species foraging in risky environments? Using GPS location data, we located 433 kill sites of 9 pumas and quantified their kill rates. Based upon time pumas spent at a carcass, we quantified handling time. Pumas abandoned >10% of edible meat at 133 of 266 large carcasses after a single night, and did so most often in open grasslands where their carcasses were easily detected by condors. Our data suggested that condors exacted foraging costs on pumas by significantly decreasing puma handling times at carcasses, and that pumas increased their kill rates by 50% relative to those reported for North America to compensate for these losses. Finally, we determined that the relative risks of detection and associated harassment by condors, rather than prey densities, explained puma "giving up times" (GUTs) across structurally variable risk classes in the study area, and that, like many prey species, pumas disproportionately hunted in high-risk, high-resource reward areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Mark Elbroch
- Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America.
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