Abstract
Habitat loss, fragmentation and urban expansion may drive some species to marginal habitats while others succeed in exploiting urban areas. Species that show dietary flexibility are more able to take advantage of human activities to supplement their diet with anthropogenically abundant and accessible resources. The Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus) is an endangered species due to the loss of its habitat, and human pressure. The population of Gouraya National Park (Algeria) lives in a relictual habitat that constitutes about 0.6% of the species range. In addition, this population is a unique case where urban expansion favours contact zones between Barbary macaque habitats and a big city (Bejaia). We quantified the dietary composition of Gouraya macaques over an annual cycle with the objective to understand how diet flexibility of this species may help it adapt to a relictual habitat or cope with urban expansion. We recorded the phenology of plant species every month. This study shows that Gouraya macaques, compared to those living in other forest types of the distribution area, are under lower seasonal constraints. They consume a greater amount of fruit and seeds that are available throughout much of the year, and a lesser amount of costly to find and extract subterranean foods. Therefore the Gouraya relictual habitat appears as a favourable environment compared to other major habitats of that species. This study also shows that colonizing peri-urban zones increases the availability and species richness of diet resources for Barbary macaques as they consume more human foods and exotic plants than in farther sites. Adult males eat more human foods than adult females and immatures do. The exploitation of high-energy anthropogenic food could favour macaque population growth and expansion towards the city center associated with human/macaque conflicts. We recommend applying management actions to restore macaques back to their natural habitat.
Highlights
The global expansion of human populations is associated with more intense land use and zones of more frequent contact between urbanites and wildlife
The main objectives of this study are to better understand how the ecological flexibility of the Barbary macaque may help it live in marginal habitats, and potentially cope with urban expansion
Mean annual rainfall is 968mm and mean monthly temperatures vary from 11.8°C in January to 25.2°C in August. It is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and, due to its endemic and rare flora, it is one of the 22 Important Plant Areas (IPAs) in Algeria that have been identified as priority sites for conservation [46,47]
Summary
The global expansion of human populations is associated with more intense land use (agriculture, presence of domestic livestock) and zones of more frequent contact between urbanites and wildlife. The consequences for wildlife in terms of reduced quality, loss and fragmentation of habitat are well-documented [1]. One of the main consequences of habitat alteration is decreased availability of resources. To deal with such changes, wild animals may show flexibility in how they exploit resources (e.g. diets, home ranges) [2,3]. Species that are specialists, regarding diet and/or habitat use, are more vulnerable to habitat modifications than generalists because they are less able to adapt [4,5]. Forest-specialists, which avoid exploiting matrix habitats and are relatively unable to disperse among forest patches, may be vulnerable [6]
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