Abstract
Variability in habitat selection can lead to differences in fitness; however limited research exists on how habitat selection of mid-ranking predators can influence population-level processes in multi-predator systems. For mid-ranking, or mesopredators, differences in habitat use might have strong demographic effects because mesopredators need to simultaneously avoid apex predators and acquire prey. We studied spatially-explicit survival of cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) in the Mun-Ya-Wana Conservancy, South Africa, to test hypotheses related to spatial influences of predation risk, prey availability, and vegetation complexity, on mesopredator survival. For each monitored cheetah, we estimated lion encounter risk, prey density, and vegetation complexity within their home range, on short-term (seasonal) and long-term (lifetime) scales and estimated survival based on these covariates. Survival was lowest for adult cheetahs and cubs in areas with high vegetation complexity on both seasonal and lifetime scales. Additionally, cub survival was negatively related to the long-term risk of encountering a lion. We suggest that complex habitats are only beneficial to mesopredators when they are able to effectively find and hunt prey, and show that spatial drivers of survival for mesopredators can vary temporally. Collectively, our research illustrates that individual variation in mesopredator habitat use can scale-up and have population-level effects.
Highlights
Variability in habitat selection can lead to differences in fitness; limited research exists on how habitat selection of mid-ranking predators can influence population-level processes in multi-predator systems
We investigated support for three competing hypotheses of spatial drivers on mesopredator survival: (1) mesopredator survival would be driven by the risk of encountering top predators, (2) mesopredator survival would be driven by prey densities, and (3) mesopredator survival would be driven by vegetation complexity
We evaluated support for effects of spatial influences of top-down predation risk, bottom-up prey availability, and habitat complexity on cheetah survival, and found the most consistent support for survival being influenced by habitat complexity across multiple temporal scales
Summary
Variability in habitat selection can lead to differences in fitness; limited research exists on how habitat selection of mid-ranking predators can influence population-level processes in multi-predator systems. Apex predators and mesopredators occur in the same general habitats, but mesopredators use fine-scale spatial or temporal partitioning to reduce encounter rates[10,11]. This partitioning might reduce short-term mortality risk for mesopredators, the longer-term risk of co-occurring with apex predators could reduce the fitness of the mesopredator through non-consumptive effects, such as reduced foraging opportunities or shifts into non-optimal habitats[12]. But considerably less research has focused on how mesopredator-apex predator cooccurrence can scale-up and affect mesopredator demographic rates, especially across longer-term time scales Habitat characteristics such as vegetation complexity can modulate the habitat-survival relationship in systems with multiple predators. A greater understanding of how habitat characteristics such as vegetation complexity can influence mesopredator survival, is critical
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