Human Activity Helps Prey Win the Predator-Prey Space Race

نویسندگان

  • Tyler B. Muhly
  • Christina Semeniuk
  • Alessandro Massolo
  • Laura Hickman
  • Marco Musiani
چکیده

Predator-prey interactions, including between large mammalian wildlife species, can be represented as a "space race", where prey try to minimize and predators maximize spatial overlap. Human activity can also influence the distribution of wildlife species. In particular, high-human disturbance can displace large carnivore predators, a trait-mediated direct effect. Predator displacement by humans could then indirectly benefit prey species by reducing predation risk, a trait-mediated indirect effect of humans that spatially decouples predators from prey. The purpose of this research was to test the hypothesis that high-human activity was displacing predators and thus indirectly creating spatial refuge for prey species, helping prey win the "space race". We measured the occurrence of eleven large mammal species (including humans and cattle) at 43 camera traps deployed on roads and trails in southwest Alberta, Canada. We tested species co-occurrence at camera sites using hierarchical cluster and nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMS) analyses; and tested whether human activity, food and/or habitat influenced predator and prey species counts at camera sites using regression tree analysis. Cluster and NMS analysis indicated that at camera sites humans co-occurred with prey species more than predator species and predator species had relatively low co-occurrence with prey species. Regression tree analysis indicated that prey species were three times more abundant on roads and trails with >32 humans/day. However, predators were less abundant on roads and trails that exceeded 18 humans/day. Our results support the hypothesis that high-human activity displaced predators but not prey species, creating spatial refuge from predation. High-human activity on roads and trails (i.e., >18 humans/day) has the potential to interfere with predator-prey interactions via trait-mediated direct and indirect effects. We urge scientist and managers to carefully consider and quantify the trait-mediated indirect effects of humans, in addition to direct effects, when assessing human impacts on wildlife and ecosystems.

برای دانلود متن کامل این مقاله و بیش از 32 میلیون مقاله دیگر ابتدا ثبت نام کنید

ثبت نام

اگر عضو سایت هستید لطفا وارد حساب کاربری خود شوید

منابع مشابه

Stability analysis of a fractional order prey-predator system with nonmonotonic functional response

In this paper, we introduce fractional order of a planar fractional prey-predator system with a nonmonotonic functional response and anti-predator behaviour such that the adult preys can attack vulnerable predators. We analyze the existence and stability of all possible equilibria. Numerical simulations reveal that anti-predator behaviour not only makes the coexistence of the prey and predator ...

متن کامل

Space race functional responses.

We derive functional responses under the assumption that predators and prey are engaged in a space race in which prey avoid patches with many predators and predators avoid patches with few or no prey. The resulting functional response models have a simple structure and include functions describing how the emigration of prey and predators depend on interspecific densities. As such, they provide ...

متن کامل

LIMITED GROWTH PREY MODEL AND PREDATOR MODEL USING HARVESTING

In this paper, we have proposed a study on controllability and optimal harvestingof a prey predator model and mathematical non linear formation of the equation equilibriumpoint of Routh harvest stability analysis. The problem of determining the optimal harvestpolicy is solved by invoking Pontryagin0s maximum principle dynamic optimization of theharvest policy is studied by taking the combined h...

متن کامل

The Lotka-Volterra Predator-Prey Equations

One may find out the application‎ ‎of mathematics in the areas of ecology‎, ‎biology‎, ‎environmental‎ ‎sciences etc‎. ‎Mathematics is particulary used in the problem of‎ ‎predator-prey known as lotka-Volterra predator-prey equations.‎ ‎Indeed‎, ‎differential equations is employed very much in many areas‎ ‎of other sciences‎. ‎However‎, ‎most of natural problems involve some‎ ‎unknown functions...

متن کامل

Dynamics of an eco-epidemic model with stage structure for predator

The predator-prey model with stage structure for predator is generalized in the context of ecoepidemiology, where the prey population is infected by a microparasite and the predator completely avoids consuming the infected prey. The intraspecific competition of infected prey is considered. All the equilibria are characterized and the existence of a Hopf bifurcation at the coexistence equilibriu...

متن کامل

ذخیره در منابع من


  با ذخیره ی این منبع در منابع من، دسترسی به آن را برای استفاده های بعدی آسان تر کنید

برای دانلود متن کامل این مقاله و بیش از 32 میلیون مقاله دیگر ابتدا ثبت نام کنید

ثبت نام

اگر عضو سایت هستید لطفا وارد حساب کاربری خود شوید

عنوان ژورنال:

دوره 6  شماره 

صفحات  -

تاریخ انتشار 2011