The predator-prey relationship from a zoogeomorphic perspective: A study of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and bank swallow (Riparia riparia) in eastern Canada

Abstract

In eastern Canada, the retreat of the Laurentide Ice Sheet over the last ~12,000 years, corresponding to the present interglacial period known as the Holocene, has distributed immense quantities of surficial sediments over the entire territory with great variation over time and space. Today, these legacies represent an abundant source of fine and coarse sediments for fluvial and coastal systems and, to a lesser extent, for mass movements. Although the geomorphological dynamics of landscapes have been studied for a long time, biotic factors and particularly animals have not yet been deeply studied in terms of their interactions with the abiotic world. The present contribution sheds new light on the geomorphological impact of the trophic relationship between the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and the bank swallow (Riparia riparia). Indeed, the predator-prey relationship between these two species and their behaviours accentuate the erosion of sandy cliffs where swallows nest. Red foxes dig foraging pits to reach the deep burrows built by bank swallows to protect their eggs and young. While our data, based on a four-year survey, indicate low rates of cliff recession related to biotic effects as compared to the impacts of extreme hydrological events, biotic effects do contribute to the sediment budget in the short and long term. Over a period of four years, we documented a common predator-prey relationship from an original geomorphic perspective and discuss our findings based on a significant field dataset.