Safety or satiety? Spatiotemporal behaviour of a threatened herbivore

Abstract

Movements, habitat use, and activity of herbivorous species are mainly influenced by trade-offs between food availability and daily/seasonal variation in predation risk. Nevertheless, studies conducted across several seasons and evaluating both spatial and temporal responses of meso-small herbivores are still scanty. Additionally, information on spatiotemporal behaviour is often lacking for cryptic, localised species, which may limit conservation actions. We evaluated how sex, time of day, seasonality, and habitat type—reflecting trade-offs in predation risk and access to food resources—influenced the spatial behaviour and locomotor activity of an herbivorous mammal, the Apennine hare, a threatened species endemic to central-southern Italy. In a 4-year study, we intensively radio-tracked 12 individuals, providing the first insights on the spatiotemporal ecology of this lagomorph. Sex affected neither home range size nor habitat selection. Home range size was larger during the night and in warm months, when hares moved to the most energetically rewarding habitat type for feeding activities, i.e., cultivations. At both study area and home range spatial scales, habitat selection did not vary between the cold and the warm months. At the study area scale, hares avoided deciduous woodland and human settlements, whereas selected the Mediterranean scrubwood and cultivations. Within home ranges, at night, Apennine hares selected risky patches, i.e., cultivations as feeding grounds, whereas in daylight, the safer Mediterranean scrubwood was used for cover and resting. Throughout the year, Apennine hares were mostly nocturnal and were more active in open than in concealed habitats, with no differences between sexes. Bright nights, i.e., with full moon and clear sky, inhibited activity in open areas but not in cover, likely to reduce predation risk. Our findings emphasised the role of feeding/antipredatory requirements in shaping spatiotemporal behaviour of meso-small mammals, with potential consequences for the conservation of threatened species.