To Eat or Not To Eat? The Diet of the Endangered Iberian Wolf (Canis lupus signatus) in a Human-Dominated Landscape in Central Portugal.

Rita Tinoco Torres,Nicole Silva,Gonçalo Brotas,Carlos Fonseca

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0129379

Abstract

Livestock predation by large carnivores and their persecution by local communities are major conservation concerns. In order to prevent speculations and reduce conflicts, it is crucial to get detailed and accurate data on predators’ dietary ecology, which is particularly important in human dominated landscapes where livestock densities are high. This is the case of the endangered Iberian wolf in Portugal, an endemic subspecies of the Iberian Peninsula, which has seen its population distribution and abundance decline throughout the 20th century. Accordingly, the diet of the Iberian wolf was analyzed, using scat analysis, in a humanized landscape in central Portugal. From 2011 to 2014, a total of 295 wolf scats were collected from transects distributed throughout the study area, prospected on a monthly basis. Scat analysis indicated a high dependence of Iberian wolf on livestock. Domestic goat predominated the diet (62% of the scats), followed by cow (20%) and sheep (13%); the only wild ungulate present in the scat analysis was the wild boar (4% of the scats). Our results show that even though livestock constitute most part of wolves diet, different livestock species may represent different predation opportunities. We conclude that the high levels of livestock consumption may be a result of low diversity and density of wild ungulates that settles livestock as the only abundant prey for wolves. Our findings help on the understanding of the Iberian wolf feeding ecology and have implications for conflict management strategies. Finally, management implications are discussed and solutions are recommended.

Highlights

Top predators are often considered flagship species and conservation tools for the whole biological diversity of its supporting ecosystem [1]
This study aims to answer the following questions about the Iberian wolf population: i) does livestock constitute the main part of the Iberian wolf diet? and ii) does the Iberian wolf show diet selection towards any livestock species? Since adequate knowledge of dietary habits is essential to understand the ecology of this species and for the development of an appropriate scientific based management plan, we discuss the general implications of our findings
Hitherto, no other study has reported such a extreme preference/dependence on domestic animals, with livestock constituting more than 90% of this species’ diet. Such fact is the reason for the rooted human-predator conflict in our study area, which can jeopardize the Iberian wolf conservation, resulting in some local extinctions

Summary

Introduction

Top predators are often considered flagship species and conservation tools for the whole biological diversity of its supporting ecosystem [1]. The grey wolf (Canis lupus) is an important top predator and can play a key role in maintaining biodiversity in ecosystems [2]. The Iberian wolf (Canis lupus signatus), an endemic subspecies of the Iberian Peninsula, has seen its population distribution and abundance decline throughout the 20th century, mostly in Portugal, where its numbers have plummeted and its range has massively contracted [4]. This subspecies is protected in Portugal by law since 1988 being listed as “Endangered” in the Portuguese Red Data Book [5]. Primary threats to wolf survival include habitat degradation and fragmentation, scarcity of wild prey with consequent livestock predation, and illegal persecution primarily in retaliation for predation on livestock [4]

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