Raining feral cats and dogs? Implications for the conservation of medium-sized wild mammals in an urban protected area

Abstract

Mammals are one of the most negatively affected groups by urbanization, nevertheless, urban reserves can help their conservation. The study of wildlife within the reserves is important for the persistence of these populations, but stressors factors as feral fauna might endanger the conservation of wildlife. Therefore, our objective was to analyze the patterns of temporal and spatial activity of wild and feral mammals within the San Angel Pedregal Ecological Reserve, UNAM, Mexico City, using trap cameras. We found five species of wild mammals and two feral ones. All mammals were primarily nocturnal, except for the Rock Squirrel which changes their behavior in comparison with individuals in natural habitats. All wildlife species showed a high temporal overlap of activity with feral fauna particularly, Rock Squirrel, Eastern Cottontail, and Gray Fox. The analysis of spatial co-occurrence showed that the probability of an encounter between species at a certain point of the reservation is random. Although, due to the reduced area of the reserve, species may overlap spatially. In general, our results indicate that feral fauna has a high overlap of activity with wildlife, however, the studied reserve protects wildlife populations. Therefore, to reduce this overlap, we recommend creating a dog and cat management program for urban protected areas and surrounding areas. Particularly in REPSA, we encourage to continue with the control program of feral species in the long term and change the management of waste within the UNAM.