Species Richness Of Carnivores Research Articles

Bird abundance and diversity in shade coffee and natural forest in Kenya

Coffee, one of the major traded commodities in the world, has economic value for rural livelihood and potentially as habitat for forest wildlife. Previous work in Central Kenya has demonstrated that when cultivated with shade trees, coffee farms can host high levels of bird diversity. However, questions of how the African bird communities in shade coffee farms compares to those in natural forest remained unanswered. Using three visits to each of 160-point count locations in natural forest (80) and shade coffee sites (80) in Central Kenya, we estimated bird abundance and species richness in natural forest and shade coffee. Specifically, we tested hypotheses that the abundance and diversity of birds in shade-coffee and natural forests varies by feeding guilds and forest-association status. We found that, compared to natural forest, shade coffee had higher bird abundance and species richness of carnivores, granivores, omnivores, and insectivores, including understory forest insectivores specifically. Frugivores and nectivores had similar abundance in forest and coffee, but were more species rich in forest and coffee, respectively. The abundance and species richness of forest specialists and forest visitors were higher in natural forest than in shade coffee, whereas forest generalists and birds with no forest association status were more abundant and species rich in shade coffee. Our study confirms the value of remnant native trees within coffee plantations for the persistence and conservation of avian communities, while also clarifying that some groups of birds are reliant on natural forests and unlikely to be conserved in shade coffee farms.

Phylogenetic structure of wildlife assemblages shapes patterns of infectious livestock diseases in Africa

Abstract Host species diversity can affect disease risk, but the precise nature of this effect is disputed. To date, most studies on the diversity–disease relationships have focused on host species richness and single diseases, ignoring phylogenetic diversity and disease richness. We first evaluated the effects of wildlife assemblage variables (i.e. species richness of wild ungulates and carnivores, phylogenetic structure) and livestock host density on the regional occurrence of 19 individual livestock diseases in Africa. We then explored the relationships between wildlife assemblage variables and the total disease burden (measured as disease richness) at regional scale across the entire continent of Africa. Our results suggest that wild ungulate and carnivore species richness had a positive relationship with disease richness, but no relationship with disease occurrence. When controlling for host species richness, standardized phylogenetic divergence was negatively correlated with both disease richness and disease occurrence while standardized phylogenetic richness was positively correlated with disease occurrences. Our results suggest that the phylogenetic structure of the surrounding wildlife assemblage can shape patterns of livestock diseases in Africa. Species richness alone is apparently inadequate for analyses of disease–diversity relationships, and this shortfall might partly account for current disagreements over the importance of the dilution effect. Future studies on this topic should strive to include parameters that take host phylogeny into account. A plain language summary is available for this article.

Land‐use change structures carnivore communities in remaining tallgrass prairie

ABSTRACTThe Flint Hills ecoregion is the largest remaining tract of native tallgrass prairie in North America. Contemporary landscape change (e.g., urbanization, agricultural production) in this region is likely affecting native biodiversity; however, we have a limited understanding of how these changes might affect carnivores. We used camera traps distributed across urban‐rural land‐use gradients, and multiseason occupancy models, to investigate the influence of landscape structure and composition on habitat occupancy dynamics of 3 native carnivores (coyote [Canis latrans]; bobcat [Lynx rufus]; and striped skunk [Mephitis mephitis]) and 1 nonnative carnivore (domestic cat) in the Flint Hills, Kansas, USA, during 2016–2017. Additionally, we assessed the potential for coyotes, the apex predator in the Flint Hills, to mediate habitat occupancy of domestic cats. We also examined the relative influence of landscape factors on native carnivore species richness and diversity. As predicted, coyotes were less likely to occupy and colonize sites, and more likely to leave sites, surrounded by urban landcover. Habitat occupancy by bobcats was positively associated with forest landcover and edge densities; however, bobcats seemed insensitive to urban landcover. Additionally, bobcats were more likely to colonize sites with more grassland and row‐crop agriculture landcover. Surprisingly, striped skunk occupancy and colonization rates at sites were negatively related to urban landcover. As expected, domestic cats were more likely to occur at and colonize sites with increased urban landcover and less likely at sites with high coyote occupancy probabilities. Carnivore species diversity and richness were negatively related to the urban landcover. Our results suggest that urban landcover may limit the spatial distributions of some native carnivores in the Flint Hills and contribute to reduced carnivore diversity. Moreover, urban landcover in the Flint Hills may provide domestic cats with refugia from intraguild pressures by coyotes. Our results provide wildlife managers with insights into how contemporary landscape change in this imperiled ecosystem may affect biodiversity conservation and maintenance. © 2018 The Wildlife Society.

Forest cover influences occurrence of mammalian carnivores within Brazilian Atlantic Forest

Habitat fragmentation reduces biodiversity and affects ecological processes that are fundamental for maintaining ecosystem services. We investigated how landscape structure—percent forest cover, patch density, percent cover by edge, perimeter-area ratio, and spatial heterogeneity—affects the diversity of mammalian carnivores at multiple extents within 22 Atlantic Forest landscapes. We hypothesized that 1) species richness of carnivores is positively related to forest cover; and 2) the occurrence of species will vary according to its sensitivity to forest loss and its preference for forest or open areas. Species richness, composition, and occurrence of mammalian carnivores were correlated with several landscape structure metrics. Due to a high correlation among the metrics, we adopted forest cover as the principal predictor variable. We compared a forest cover model to a null model using Akaike Information Criterion (AICc), and evaluated other fragmentation metrics using a redundancy analysis. Carnivore species richness was positively related to forest cover and negatively associated with other fragmentation metrics. However, the responses to landscape structure differed among species, possibly due to their differences in habitat use. Landscape configuration is an important factor influencing carnivore species composition. Forest cover can explain some, but not all, carnivore species occurrence. Our results reinforce the protection of forests as fundamental to the conservation of carnivore species and the ecological processes in which they participate.

Does primary productivity modulate the indirect effects of large herbivores? A global meta-analysis.

Indirect effects of large mammalian herbivores (LMH), while much less studied than those of apex predators, are increasingly recognized to exert powerful influences on communities and ecosystems. The strength of these effects is spatiotemporally variable, and several sets of authors have suggested that they are governed in part by primary productivity. However, prior theoretical and field studies have generated conflicting results and predictions, underscoring the need for a synthetic global analysis. We conducted a meta-analysis of the direction and magnitude of large mammalian herbivore-initiated indirect interactions using 67 published studies comprising 456 individual responses. We georeferenced 41 of these studies (comprising 253 responses from 33 locations on five continents) to a satellite-derived map of primary productivity. Because predator assemblages might also influence the impact of large herbivores, we conducted a similar analysis using a global map of large carnivore species richness. In general, LMH reduced the abundance of other consumer species and also tended to reduce consumer richness, although the latter effect was only marginally significant. There was a pronounced reduction in the strength of negative (i.e. suppressive, due e.g., to competition) indirect effects of LMH on consumer abundance in more productive ecosystems. In contrast, positive (facilitative) indirect effects were not significantly correlated with productivity, likely because these comprised a more heterogeneous array of mechanisms. We found no effect of carnivore species richness on herbivore-initiated indirect effect strength. Our findings help to resolve the fundamental problem of ecological contingency as it pertains to the strength of an understudied class of multitrophic interactions. Moreover, these results will aid in predicting the indirect effects of anthropogenic wildlife declines and irruptions, and how these effects might be mediated by climatically driven shifts in resource availability. To the extent that intact ungulate guilds help to suppress populations of small animals that act as agricultural pests and disease reservoirs, the negative impacts of large mammal declines on human well-being may be relatively stronger in low-productivity areas.

Predictors of mammal species richness in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

The management of multi-functional landscapes warrants better knowledge of environment-richness associations at varying disturbance levels and habitat gradients. Intensive land-use patterns for agricultural purposes lead to fragmentation of natural habitat resulting in biodiversity loss that can be measured using landscape metrics to assess mammalian richness. Since carnivores and herbivores are likely to show different responses to disturbance, we calculated carnivore, non-carnivore, and total mammal species richness from camera surveys using a first order Jackknife Estimator. Richness was compared along a habitat gradient comprising coastal forest, Acacia thicket, and highland in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. We used standardized OLS regression models to identify climatic and disturbance variables, and landscape metrics as predictors of species richness. The estimated total and non-carnivore species richness were highest in coastal forest, while carnivore species richness was highest in highland followed by coastal forest and Acacia thicket. Average monthly maximum temperature was a significant predictor of all richness groups, and precipitation of the wettest month and isothermality determined total and non-carnivore species richness, respectively. These climatic variables possibly limit species distribution because of physiological tolerance of the species. Total mammal richness was determined by mean shape (+) and habitat division (−) while diversity (+) and patch richness (−) explained carnivore species richness. Mean shape index (+) influenced non-carnivore richness. However, habitat division and patch richness negatively influenced total mammal richness. Though habitat patch size and contiguity had a weak positive prediction, these metrics demonstrated the importance of habitat connectivity for maintaining mammal richness. The identification of these climatic and landscape patterns is important to facilitate future landscape management for mammal conservation in forest-mosaics.

Assessing sloth bears as surrogates for carnivore conservation in Sri Lanka

Bears are large, charismatic mammals whose presence often garners conservation attention. Because healthy bear populations typically require large, contiguous areas of habitat, land conservation actions often are assumed to benefit co-occurring species, including other mammalian carnivores. However, we are not aware of an empirical test of this assumption. We used remote camera data from 2 national parks in Sri Lanka to test the hypothesis that the frequency of detection of sloth bears (Melursus ursinus) is associated with greater richness of carnivore species. We focused on mammalian carnivores because they play a pivotal role in the stability of ecological communities and are among Sri Lanka's most endangered species. Seven of Sri Lanka's carnivores are listed as endangered, vulnerable, or near threatened, and little empirical information exists on their status and distribution. During 2002–03, we placed camera traps at 152 sites to document carnivore species presence. We used Poisson regression to develop predictive models for 3 categories of dependent variables: species richness of (1) all carnivores, (2) carnivores considered at risk, and (3) carnivores of least conservation concern. For each category, we analyzed 8 a priori models based on combinations of sloth bear detections, sample year, and study area and used Akaike's information criterion (AICc) to test our research hypothesis. We detected sloth bears at 55 camera sites and detected 13 of Sri Lanka's 14 Carnivora species. Species richness of all carnivores showed positive associations with the number of sloth bear detections, regardless of study area. Sloth bear detections were also positively associated with species richness of carnivores at risk across both study years and study areas, but not with species richness of common carnivores. Sloth bears may serve as a valuable surrogate species whose habitat protection would contribute to conservation of other carnivores in Sri Lanka.

Effects of Management of Domestic Dogs and Recreation on Carnivores in Protected Areas in Northern California

In developed countries dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) are permitted to accompany human visitors to many protected areas (e.g., >96% of protected lands in California, U.S.A.), and protected-area management often focuses on regulating dogs due to concerns about predation, competition, or transmission of disease and conflicts with human visitors. In 2004 and 2005, we investigated whether carnivore species richness and abundance were associated with management of domestic dogs and recreational visitation in protected areas in northern California. We surveyed for mammalian carnivores and human visitors in 21 recreation areas in which dogs were allowed offleash or onleash or were excluded, and we compared our observations in the recreation areas with observations in seven reference sites that were not open to the public. Carnivore abundance and species richness did not differ among the three types of recreation areas, but native carnivore species richness was 1.7 times greater (p < 0.01) and the relative abundances of native coyotes (Canis latrans) and bobcats (Lynx rufus) were over four times greater (p < 0.01) in the reference sites. Abundances of bobcats and all carnivores declined as the number of visitors increased. The policy on domestic dogs did not appear to affect species richness and abundance of mammalian carnivores. But the number of dogs we observed was strongly associated with human visitation (R(2) = 0.54), so the key factors associated with recreational effects on carnivores appear to be the presence and number of human visitors to protected areas.

The impact of forest logging and fragmentation on the species richness and density of Malagasy rainforest carnivores

AbstractDespite significant efforts to understand and conserve Madagascar’s unique biodiversity, relatively little is known about the island’s carnivore populations. We sampled four rainforest sites to explore the effects of forest logging and fragmentation on carnivore species richness and the density of the two largest endemic carnivores, the Fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox) and Malagasy Civet (Fossa fossana). Our rainforest sites were selected across a gradient of increasing anthropogenic disturbance from primary to selectively-logged to fragmented forest &lt; 2.5 km from primary forest, to fragmented forest &gt; 20 km from primary forest. We deployed a minimum of 26 passive infrared camera stations at each forest site to non-invasively sample carnivores. By identifying C. ferox and F. fossana individuals based on unique pelage patterns, we were able to apply capture-recapture analyses using the Huggins model in Program MARK and Program DENSITY. We used a buffer of full mean-maximum-distance-moved (MMDM) and a spatially-explicit capture-recapture (SECR) method to estimate density. A total of 5,579 camera-trap nights yielded detections of five endemic carnivores (C. ferox, F. fossana, ring-tailed mongoose Galidia elegans, broad-striped mongoose Galidictus fasciata, small-toothed civet Eupleres goudotii). We found variation in carnivore species richness among the four sites. All endemic carnivores were present in the primary and selectively-logged rainforest, while overall endemic species richness was greatly reduced in the fragmented forests. Density also varied significantly among the rainforest sites. F. fossana density (individuals/km-2 ± SE) decreased significantly between the primary rainforest (SECR 3.19 ±0.55, MMDM 2.47 ±0.13) and selectively-logged rainforest (SECR 1.38 ± 0.223, MMDM 1.22 ± 0.055). F. fossana was absent from both fragmented sites. C. ferox density also decreased significantly between the primary rainforest (SECR 0.12 ± 0.05, MMDM 0.14 ± 0.001) and the selectively-logged rainforest (SECR 0.09 ±0.04, MMDM 0.09 ±0.002). C. ferox was absent from the fragmented rainforest &gt; 20 km from primary forest, yet we did detect a single individual at the fragmented rainforest &lt; 2.5 km from the primary forest. Our results suggest that forest logging and fragmentation negatively impact C. ferox and F. fossana populations in Malagasy rainforests. Unlike F. fossana, C. ferox appears to be able to occupy rainforest fragments near primary forest. Our study provides the first assessment of carnivore population parameters in the eastern rainforests of Madagascar and will be of importance to Malagasy governmental and non-governmental agencies seeking to more accurately assess the status of these species and to best set management goals.

Using host associations to predict spatial patterns in the species richness of the parasites of North American carnivores

Despite the central theme in ecology of evaluating determinants of species richness, little effort has been focused on parasites. Here, we developed a parasite diversity model based on known host associations with 29 North American carnivores to investigate the spatial heterogeneity of parasite richness, its relationship to carnivore richness, and how host composition and specificity influenced these patterns. Patterns in parasite species richness closely tracked carnivore species richness across space and this relationship was robust to deviations from the assumption that parasites match the distribution of their hosts. Because wide-ranging hosts disproportionately contributed to total and specialist parasite species richness, conservation programmes that focus on these common hosts may capture not only much of biological diversity, but also unwittingly sources of human diseases. We supply the first parasite diversity model to understand broad-scale patterns in species richness patterns for North American carnivores, which can inform both future parasite conservation and disease management.

MOLLUSK SPECIES AT A PLIOCENE SHELF WHALE FALL (ORCIANO PISANO, TUSCANY)

Abstract The recovery of an intact, 10 m long fossil baleen whale from the Pliocene of Tuscany (Italy) offers the first opportunity to study the paleoecology of a fully developed, natural whale-fall community at outer shelf depth. Quantitative data on mollusk species from the whale fall have been compared with data from the sediments below and around the bones, representing the fauna living in the muddy bottom before and during the sinking of the carcass, but at a distance from it. Although the bulk of the fauna associated with the fossil bones is dominated by the same heterotrophs as found in the surrounding community, whale-fall samples are distinguishable primarily by the presence of chemosymbiotic bivalves and a greater species richness of carnivores and parasites. Large lucinid clams (Megaxinus incrassatus) and very rare small mussels (Idas sp.) testify to the occurrence of a sulphophilic stage, but specialized, chemosymbiotic vesicomyid clams common at deep-sea whale falls are absent. The Orciano wh...

Rodent species richness is correlated with carnivore species richness in Spain

Résumé. — La richesse spécifique des rongeurs et celle des carnivores sont corrélées en Espagne. — La diversité des niches écologiques favorise la coexistence des espèces, accroissant la richesse spécifique. La richesse spécifique des carnivores devrait donc croître avec celle de leurs proies, en raison des niches trophiques ainsi ouvertes. Cette hypothèse a été évaluée à l’aide de modèles linéaires généralisés utilisant des données de l’Espagne péninsulaire. Cinq facteurs susceptibles de générer une corrélation positive entre la richesse spécifique des carnivores et celle de leurs principales proies, les rongeurs, ont été contrôlés : le climat, l’activité humaine, l’autocorrélation spatiale, l’hétérogénéité de l’habitat et les effets du hasard. Les résultats montrent que la richesse spécifique des rongeurs et celle des carnivores sont positivement corrélées (r = 0,62) et que cette corrélation n’est due ni au climat, ni à l’activité humaine, ni à l’autocorrélation spatiale, ni à l’hétérogénéité de l’habitat. Ensemble, ces facteurs n’expliquent que 13,6 % de la variation de la richesse spécifique des carnivores alors que les rongeurs en expliquent 26,2 % (soit 50,4 % de la variance expliquée). De plus, la richesse spécifique des carnivores s’avère plus corrélée à celle des rongeurs qu’à celle de 28 autres taxons de vertébrés, la probabilité que ce soit le produit du hasard n’étant que de 0,034. En conclusion, cette étude met en évidence qu’une plus forte richesse spécifique des proies engendrerait une plus forte richesse spécifique des carnivores. La conservation de la densité des proies contribuerait ainsi à celle des carnivores.

Relationship Between Small-game Hunting and Carnivore Diversity in Central Spain

Small-game hunting plays an important economic role in central Spain and some game species are key food resources for threatened predators. Small carnivores may reduce numbers of important game species. To alleviate predation pressure on game populations, management is often focused on predator control. Control methods can be non-selective, and so could potentially have a negative impact on non-target carnivore species, affecting carnivore guild composition and diversity. Using data on carnivore diversity in 70 quadrants (5 × 5 km) in a large area of central Spain with two main land uses (small-game hunting and a mixture of big-game hunting and forestry), we assessed how game management was related to carnivore diversity. Carnivore species richness was significantly lower in those areas managed for small-game hunting than in areas where other land uses predominated. The apparently least affected species by predator control was the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), the main target species of predator control. Results suggested that low carnivore species richness was linked to small-game hunting activities, which was probably associated with non-selective predator control practices. Therefore, in order to reconcile carnivore conservation and economic goals it is imperative to develop and to evaluate selective predator control techniques.

Anthropogenic determinants of primate and carnivore local extinctions in a fragmented forest landscape of southern Amazonia

Habitat fragmentation has been shown to influence the abundance, movements and persistence of many species. Here, we examine the effects of forest patch and landscape metrics, and levels of forest disturbance on the patterns of local extinction of five primate and 14 carnivore species within 129 forest patches in a highly fragmented forest landscape of southern Brazilian Amazonia. Classic habitat area effects were the strongest predictors of species persistence, explaining between 42% and 55% of the overall variation in primate and carnivore species richness. Logistic regression models showed that anthropogenic disturbance, including surface wildfires, timber extraction and hunting pressure, had detrimental effects on the persistence of some species over and above those of fragment size. Different species ranged in their responses from highly sensitive to highly tolerant to forest fragmentation. Patterns of local extinction documented here were by no means chance events, and the nestedness of the overall species-by-site matrix was highly nonrandom in terms of the sets of species extirpated from the most to the least species-rich forest patches.

The carnivore community in a dry tropical forest mosaic in Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary, Thailand

ABSTRACTAn assessment of carnivore species richness and food habits was carried out in a 100 km2 area of dry tropical forest in Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary, Thailand. Twenty-one carnivore species of five families were found to be feeding on at least 34 mammal species, as well as birds, lizards, snakes, crabs, fish, insects, and fruits. Forty-four percent of the prey identified in faeces of larger carnivores, primarily leopards, consisted of barking deer, Muntiacus muntjak. Sambar deer, macaques, wild boar, porcupine, and hog badger were important secondary prey items. In faeces from small carnivores (&lt; 10kg), murid rodents accounted for 33% of identified food items. The two most frequently encountered mammalian prey species were the yellow rajah rat, Maxomys surifer, and the bay bamboo rat, Cannomys badius. Non-mammal prey accounted for 21.3%, and fruit seeds for 12.4%, of all food items found in small carnivore faeces.

Patterns of Mammalian Species Richness in Relation to Temperature, Productivity, and Variance in Elevation

In Texas, the relationship between environmental factors and species richness of all mammals, bats, rodents, and carnivores was investigated by multiple-regression methods. Variance in elevation was a strong, positive predictor of species richness for all mammals, bats (Chiroptera), and rodents (Rodentia). It was a significant but weak predictor for carnivores (Carnivora). Productivity had significant, negative regression coefficients for all mammals, bats, and rodents. Productivity was positive, significant, and relatively stronger for carnivores. Species richness of all mammals, rodents, and carnivores may follow a hump-shaped curve along a gradient of increasing environmental productivity. Mean-annual temperature range was significant with a negative sign for carnivores and with a positive sign for rodents. Mean intermonthly variability of precipitation had a positive and significant relationship to carnivores, but significant, negative coefficients for bats and rodents. Variation in all mammals and carnivore species richness, and in all mammals and bat richness, was significant, with positive signs, for maximum and minimum temperatures, of record, respectively. All mammals, bat, and rodent richness varied significantly, with negative signs, with the coefficient of variation of mean January temperature. Overall, the climatic-variability indices exhibited only weak control over density of mammalian species. With the exception of productivity their influence on current ecological hypotheses of species richness was complex. Statistical support, contradiction, and statistical lack of significance depended upon the particular combination of environmental factors and taxa under consideration. Results suggest that current ecological hypotheses of species richness often function in directions not concordant with predictions and are not satisfactory as general explanations of biotic richness for these vertebrate groups.