Terrestrial Carnivores Research Articles

Sex and species differences of stress markers in sympatric cheetahs and leopards in Namibia

Physiological stress markers may provide valuable insight for our understanding of costs of given life-history strategies or of wildlife health condition, most importantly in case of threatened species. In the last decade, there has been growing interest in the ecological relevance of cellular oxidative stress, which would provide complimentary information to that obtained by the classic analyses of glucocorticoid hormones. In this study, we analysed the sex and species variation of five blood-based markers of oxidative status, both molecular oxidative damage and antioxidant protection, in sympatric cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) and leopards (Panthera pardus) living on Namibian farmlands. Both these terrestrial carnivores are classified as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. We found that female cheetahs had significantly higher serum reactive oxygen metabolites of non-protein origin and lower glutathione peroxidase activity in whole blood than both male and female leopards and male cheetahs. We also found that cheetahs and leopards differed in the association between the two antioxidant enzymes glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase. Correlations among oxidative status markers were stronger in female cheetahs than leopards or male cheetahs. Our results suggest that female cheetahs are more sensitive to local sources of stress. Our work did not corroborate the assumption that two species with different life histories consistently differ in key physiological traits.

Plasma metabolomic analysis in mature female common bottlenose dolphins: profiling the characteristics of metabolites after overnight fasting by comparison with data in beagle dogs

The present study was aimed at determining the characteristics of plasma metabolites in bottlenose dolphins to provide a greater understanding of their metabolism and to obtain information for the health management of cetaceans. Capillary electrophoresis-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (CE-TOFMS) and liquid chromatograph-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-TOFMS) were conducted on plasma samples after overnight fasting from three common bottlenose dolphins as well as three beagle dogs (representative terrestrial carnivores) for comparison. In total, 257 and 227 plasma metabolites were identified in the dolphins and the dogs, respectively. Although a small number of animals were used for each species, the heatmap patterns, a principal component analysis and a cluster analysis confirmed that the composition of metabolites could be segregated from each other. Of 257 compounds detected in dolphin plasma, 24 compounds including branched amino acids, creatinine, urea, and methylhistidine were more abundant than in dogs; 26 compounds including long-chained acyl-carnitines and fatty acids, astaxanthin, and pantothenic acid were detected only in dolphins. In contrast, 25 compounds containing lactic acid and glycerol 3-phosphate were lower in dolphins compared to dogs. These data imply active protein metabolism, differences in usage of lipids, a unique urea cycle, and a low activity of the glycolytic pathway in dolphins.

Carnivory maintains cranial dimorphism between males and females: Evidence for niche divergence in extant Musteloidea.

The evolution and maintenance of sexual dimorphism has long been attributed to sexual selection. Niche divergence, however, serves as an alternative but rarely tested selective pressure also hypothesized to drive phenotypic disparity between males and females. We reconstructed ancestral social systems and diet and used Ornstein-Uhlenbeck (OU) modeling approaches to test whether niche divergence is stronger than sexual selection in driving the evolution of sexual dimorphism in cranial size and bite force across extant Musteloidea. We found that multipeak OU models favored different dietary regimes over social behavior and that the greatest degree of cranial size and bite force dimorphism were found in terrestrial carnivores. Because competition for terrestrial vertebrate prey is greater than other dietary groups, increased cranial size and bite force dimorphism reduces dietary competition between the sexes. In contrast, neither dietary regime nor social system influenced the evolution of sexual dimorphism in cranial shape. Furthermore, we found that the evolution of sexual dimorphism in bite force is influenced by the evolution of sexual dimorphism in cranial size rather than cranial shape. Overall, our results highlight niche divergence as an important mechanism that maintains the evolution of sexual dimorphism in musteloids.

Introduction History of rabies control by vaccination

Since antiquity, rabies has remained one of the deadliest infectious diseases known to humankind, with a case fatality rate approaching 100% following the onset of clinical disease. It is present on all continents where terrestrial mammals exist, with the majority of animal and human cases being reported in the resourcelimited countries of Africa and Asia, with thousands of human rabies deaths being recorded annually. It is likely, however, that the global figure of approximately 59,000 annual human rabies fatalities is an underestimate. The impact of the disease has been reduced substantially across vast regions of the globe since the development of effective rabies vaccines. The success of different vaccines and vaccination policies in the defined 'at risk' populations has been born out of scientific innovation. Mass vaccination campaigns of animals, using parenteral vaccines to immunise companion animals, and advances in oral vaccines for wildlife, have allowed the elimination of rabies in terrestrial carnivores in several regions worldwide, including Western Europe and much of North America. In addition, human vaccines, largely used for post-exposure treatments, have reduced the burden of rabies in endemic areas.

Relative Importance of Habitat Characteristics and Interspecific Relations in Determining Terrestrial Carnivore Occurrence

Carnivores act as top-down regulators in terrestrial ecosystems, and their occurrence and relative abundance is a result of complex interactions between food and habitat availability, human pressure (e.g., trapping, hunting, roadkill) and intraguild interactions (competition, predation). Eastern United States has a long history of human impact, which resulted in an altered carnivore community. Specifically, Ohio presents an interesting case for evaluating the relative roles of interspecific relations and habitat characteristics for shaping the carnivore community, as its carnivore community has a unique dynamics and composition: invasive coyote and red fox (Vulpes vulpes), and native bobcat (Lynx rufus), currently recovering and expanding its range, gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) declining at a fast pace, and the generalist raccoon (Procyon lotor) and Virginian opossum (Didelphis virginiana). We used 50 camera traps to collect presence/absence data in southeastern Ohio, USA. We hypothesized potential interactions between the six carnivores, and used land cover variables, as well as occupancy probabilities of interacting species, to parameterize to single-species occupancy models. We found that landscape composition at three different scales (500m and 1000 m buffer around camera locations, and 3x3 km grid cell) had little effect on species occurrence. We identified strong negative interspecific relations between carnivores, with bobcat occurrence being influenced by presence of coyotes, red fox occurrence by gray foxes, and raccoon occurrence by Virginia possums. While these findings cannot discriminate between habitat partitioning (spatial or temporal) and competition (direct or interference), they lend support to complex dynamics between invasive coyotes and red foxes and recovering (bobcat) and declining (gray fox) native carnivore species. In particular, the negative relation between the apex predator in our system, C. latrans, and L. rufus, raise further questions on whether direct competition from coyotes has the potential to slow bobcat population recovery. In the context of regulated trapping (ongoing for gray fox and proposed season for bobcat), a better understanding of the carnivore intraguild relations can inform management and conservation actions targeted at minimizing the impact of competition on at-risk native species from non-native species.

Tetrapod diversity and palaeoecology in the German Middle Triassic (Lower Keuper) documented by tooth morphotypes

Continued excavations during the last decade have yielded large quantities of tetrapod remains from the Middle Triassic (Ladinian) Erfurt Formation (Lower Keuper) in Germany. The temnospondyl dental morphotypes are highly variable but represent low taxonomic diversity. This is in contrast to the reptilian tooth morphotypes, which comprise a minimum of 26 distinct types, only some of which can be referred to taxa based on diagnostic skeletal material. The assemblage includes a taxonomically diverse range of semi-aquatic or aquatic faunivores, in addition to large terrestrial carnivores and many smaller-sized forms that may have subsisted on invertebrates and small vertebrates. With only two taxa known to date, tetrapods with dentitions suitable for oral processing of plant material form the least common faunal element. The Lower Keuper assemblages are dominated by diapsid reptiles, especially archosauriforms. Unlike in the more or less coeval tetrapod communities from Gondwana, gomphodont cynodonts are represented only by a single molariform tooth to date, whereas avemetatarsalian archosaurs are entirely absent. Most remarkable is the virtually total absence of medium- to large-sized herbivores (rhynchosaurs, dicynodont synapsids).

Canis aureus (Carnivore: Canidae)

Canis aureus (Linnaeus, 1758), the golden jackal, is a medium-sized, wide spread, terrestrial carnivore. It is 1 of 7 species found in the genus Canis. It ranges from Africa to Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia. Due to its tolerance of dry habitats and its omnivorous diet, C. aureus can live in a wide variety of habitats. It normally lives in open grassland habitat but also occurs in deserts, woodlands, mangroves, and agricultural and rural habitats in India and Bangladesh. It ranges from sea level in Eritrea to 3,500 m in the Bale Mountains of Ethiopia and 2,000 m in India. C. aureus is listed as “Least Concern” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources Red List of Threatened Species version 2016.1.

Humans and urban development mediate the sympatry of competing carnivores

Humans can profoundly shape animal community dynamics, but such effects have rarely been evaluated for terrestrial carnivores. Humans affect carnivores in both spatial and temporal dimensions via the chance of human encounter and alteration of the landscape through urban development. We investigated three hypotheses regarding how humans mediate the sympatry of larger, dominant carnivores with their smaller, subordinate counterparts. We tested these hypotheses by examining the spatio-temporal dynamics of a dominant carnivore (coyote Canis latrans) and its subordinate competitor (red fox Vulpes vulpes) across an extensive urban park system. We found that dominant and subordinate carnivores exhibited strong and often opposing spatio-temporal responses to the probability of human encounter and urban development. Spatially, coyotes visited more highly developed sites less frequently while red foxes exhibited an opposing response. Temporally, both species avoided humans via nocturnal activity. Spatio-temporally, red foxes avoided coyotes at all sites and avoided humans at highly developed sites, whereas coyotes showed a positive association with humans at such sites. Our analysis indicates that areas with higher urban development might act as spatial refugia for some subordinate carnivores against interference from larger, dominant carnivores (a “human shield” effect). Our findings also reveal that broad-scale spatial avoidance is likely a crucial component of coexistence between larger, dominant carnivores and humans, whereas finer-scale spatio-temporal avoidance is likely a key feature of coexistence between humans and smaller, subordinate carnivores. Overall, our study underscores the complex and pervasive nature of human influence over the sympatry of competing carnivores inhabiting urban systems.

Compensatory mortality in a recovering top carnivore: wolves in Wisconsin, USA (1979–2013)

Populations of large terrestrial carnivores are in various stages of recovery worldwide and the question of whether there is compensation in mortality sources is relevant to conservation. Here, we show variation in Wisconsin wolf survival from 1979 to 2013 by jointly estimating the hazard of wolves' radio-telemetry ending (endpoint) and endpoint cause. In previous analyses, wolves lost to radio-telemetry follow-up (collar loss) were censored from analysis, thereby assuming collar loss was unconfounded with mortality. Our approach allowed us to explicitly estimate hazard due to collar loss and did not require censoring these records from analysis. We found mean annual survival was 76% and mean annual causes of mortality were illegal killing (9.4%), natural and unknown causes (9.5%), and other human-caused mortality such as hunting, vehicle collisions and lethal control (5.1%). Illegal killing and natural mortality were highest during winter, causing wolf survival to decrease relative to summer. Mortality was highest during early recovery and lowest during a period of sustained population growth. Wolves again experienced higher risk of human-caused mortality relative to natural mortality as wolves expanded into areas with more human activity. We detected partial compensation in human- and natural-caused mortality since 2004 as the population saturated more available habitat. Prior to 2004, we detected additivity in mortality sources. Assessments of wolf survival and cause of mortality rates and the finding of partial compensation in mortality sources will inform wolf conservation and management efforts by identifying sources and sinks, finding areas of conservation need, and assessing management zone delineation.

Antigenic analysis of genetic variants of Canine distemper virus

Canine distemper virus (CDV) is an RNA virus of the genus Morbillivirus within the family Paramyxoviridae. CDV produces multi-systemic disease in dogs and other terrestrial carnivores. With the development of modified live vaccines in the 1950s and 1960s, the disease, with a few exceptions, has been successfully controlled. However, recently the cases of CDV in vaccinated dogs have been increasing throughout the world, including the United States. There are many reasons that can lead to vaccine failure, including antigenic differences between the vaccine strains and the currently circulating wild-type strains. Currently, there are at least three genetically different CDV lineages circulating in the US. Therefore, in this study, we evaluated various wild-type CDV and vaccine isolates to determine if the genetic differences observed among various strains result in significant antigenic differences based on changes to the neutralizing epitopes. The results of a cross-neutralization assay revealed that there are antigenic differences among the tested CDV wild-type isolates as well as between the tested isolates and the vaccine strains currently used in the US. Therefore, these results suggest the need to develop an updated CDV vaccine.

Trophic structure of coastal freshwater stream fishes from an Atlantic rainforest: evidence of the importance of protected and forest-covered areas to fish diet

The role of riparian forests in the functioning of aquatic ecosystems is well known, and they are recognized as an important food source for riverine fauna. This study investigates the trophic structure of coastal freshwater stream fishes from a large conservation area in an Atlantic rainforest using stomach content and food availability analyses. Four samples were collected from 19 sample sites. Fishes were caught with electrofishing. Prey were sampled with trays, Surber, traps, and electrofishing to evaluate the availability of food resources. The diets of 20 fish species were determined from the stomach contents of 1691 individuals. Terrestrial and aquatic insects and detritus were the most consumed items. Fish diet and prey availability were not seasonally dependent. A cluster analysis showed five trophic functional groups: terrestrial insectivores, aquatic insectivores, detritivores, carnivores, and omnivores. Insectivores predominated in species richness (60%), abundance (47%) and biomass (39%). Allochthonous and autochthonous items were found in similar proportions in the environment; however, allochthonous items were representative for insectivores and detritivores, whereas autochthonous items were important for primarily aquatic insectivores. The preference for certain insects by insectivorous fishes was associated with food selectivity rather than the availability of the resource and demonstrated the strong relationship between feeding behavior and food preference. The absence of seasonal variation in the diets of the fishes was possibly related to the consistent food supply. Our results confirm the role of the forest as a food provider for stream fishes, such as terrestrial insects and plant debris/detritus (also consumed by aquatic insects, which subsequently serve as food for fish), highlighting the importance of conserving the Brazilian Atlantic rainforests.

Mannitol oxidase and polyol dehydrogenases in the digestive gland of gastropods: Correlations with phylogeny and diet.

Mannitol oxidase and polyol dehydrogenases are enzymes that convert polyalcohols into sugars. Mannitol oxidase was previously investigated in terrestrial snails and slugs, being also present in a few aquatic gastropods. However, the overall distribution of this enzyme in the Gastropoda was not known. Polyol dehydrogenases are also poorly studied in gastropods and other mollusks. In this study, polyalcohol oxidase and dehydrogenase activities were assayed in the digestive gland of 26 species of gastropods, representing the clades Patellogastropoda, Neritimorpha, Vetigastropoda, Caenogastropoda and Heterobranchia. Marine, freshwater and terrestrial species, including herbivores and carnivores were analyzed. Ultrastructural observations were undertake in species possessing mannitol oxidase, in order to investigate the correlation between this enzyme and the presence of tubular structures known to be associated with it. Mannitol oxidase activity was detected in the digestive gland of herbivores from the clades Caenogastropoda and Heterobranchia, but not in any carnivores or in herbivores from the clades Patellogastropoda, Neritimorpha and Vetigastropoda. In most of the species used in this study, dehydrogenase activities were detected using both D-mannitol and D-sorbitol as substrates. Nevertheless, in some carnivores these activities were not detected with both polyalcohols. Ultrastructural observations revealed tubular structures in digestive gland cells of some species having mannitol oxidase activity, but they were not observed in others. Based on our results, we suggest that mannitol oxidase first occurred in a herbivorous or omnivorous ancestor of Apogastropoda, the clade formed by caenogastropods and heterobranchs, being subsequently lost in those species that shifted towards a carnivorous diet.

Rewilding the world's largecarnivores.

Earth's terrestrial large carnivores form a highly endangered group of species with unique conservation challenges. The majority of these species have experienced major geographical range contractions, which puts many of them at high risk of extinction or of becoming ecologically ineffective. As a result of these range contractions and the associated loss of intact predator guilds, the ecological effects of these species are now far less widespread and common, with inevitable consequences for ecosystem function. Rewilding—which includes reintroducing species into portions of their former ranges—is an important carnivore conservation tool and means for restoring top-down ecological regulation. We conducted a global analysis of potential reintroduction areas. We first considered protected areas where one or more large carnivore species have been extirpated, identifying a total of 130 protected areas that may be most suitable for carnivore reintroduction. These protected areas include sites in every major world region, and are most commonly found in Mongolia (n = 13), Canada (n = 11), Thailand (n = 9), Namibia (n = 6), Indonesia (n = 6) and Australia (n = 6). We considered the sizes of protected areas, their levels of protection, the extent of human impacts within and around the protected areas, and the status of prey species in the protected areas. Finally, we used the ‘last of the wild’ approach to identify contiguous low human footprint regions within the former ranges of each species, identifying an additional 150 areas which could be the focus of conservation efforts to create conditions conducive to reintroductions. These low footprint regions were most commonly found in the USA (n = 14), Russia (n = 14), Canada (n = 10), China (n = 9) and Mauritania (n = 8). Together, our results show the global-scale potential for carnivore rewilding projects to both conserve these species and provide critical ecological and social benefits.

Diversity and disparity of sparassodonts (Metatheria) reveal non-analogue nature of ancient South American mammalian carnivore guilds.

This study investigates whether terrestrial mammalian carnivore guilds of ancient South America, which developed in relative isolation, were similar to those of other continents. We do so through analyses of clade diversification, ecomorphology and guild structure in the Sparassodonta, metatherians that were the predominant mammalian carnivores of pre-Pleistocene South America. Body mass and 16 characters of the dentition are used to quantify morphological diversity (disparity) in sparassodonts and to compare them to extant marsupial and placental carnivores and extinct North American carnivoramorphans. We also compare trophic diversity of the Early Miocene terrestrial carnivore guild of Santa Cruz, Argentina to that of 14 modern and fossil guilds from other continents. We find that sparassodonts had comparatively low ecomorphological disparity throughout their history and that South American carnivore palaeoguilds, as represented by that of Santa Cruz, Argentina, were unlike modern or fossil carnivore guilds of other continents in their lack of mesocarnivores and hypocarnivores. Our results add to a growing body of evidence highlighting non-analogue aspects of extinct South American mammals and illustrate the dramatic effects that historical contingency can have on the evolution of mammalian palaeocommunities.

Utilisation of stranded marine fauna washed ashore on K’gari (Fraser Island), Australia, by dingoes

Stranded marine fauna have been identified as a potentially significant food resource for terrestrial carnivores, but how such subsidisation influences terrestrial species ecology is not well understood. We describe the dietary and behavioural responses of dingoes (Canis familiaris) to the occurrence of large-animal marine strandings (e.g. dead cetaceans, marine turtles and pinnipeds) between 2006 and 2016 on K’gari (Fraser Island), Australia, to better understand the trophic links between marine and terrestrial systems. A total of 309 strandings were recorded during this period (~3.1 strandings per month), yielding an annual average of 30.3 tons of available carrion to the 100–200 dingoes present on the island. Carcass monitoring with camera traps showed that dingoes used carcasses almost daily after a short period of decomposition. Whole packs of up to seven dingoes of all age classes at a time were observed visiting carcasses for multiple successive days. These data demonstrate that large-animal marine subsidies can be a common, substantial and important food source for dingoes, and that the estimated daily dietary needs of roughly 5–10% of the island’s dingo population were supported by this food source. Our data suggest that marine subsidisation can influence terrestrial carnivore diet, behaviour and abundance, which may produce cascading indirect effects for terrestrial ecosystems in contexts where subsidised carnivores interact strongly with other species.

Effect of competition and landscape characteristics on mesocarnivore cohabitation in badger setts

AbstractMesocarnivores are becoming increasingly influential in ecosystems due to the ongoing loss of large carnivores. However, interactions within mesocarnivore communities remain poorly understood. We studied how competitive coexistence influences cohabitation of badgers (Meles meles) with other European mesocarnivores, and badger habitat selection at sett site and sett environ scales (within a 700 m radius buffer). We used data on the location and use of 234 badger setts in a 39 000 km2 area of mainland Estonia (Northern Europe) to assess the importance of sett occupancy by badgers, the regional abundance of other mesocarnivores (fox/raccoon dog), bedrock complex and landscape in explaining the presence of other mesocarnivores at badger setts. We also compared data from observed setts and random locations to study sett site selection. Setts where foxes or raccoon dogs were present had a lower proportion of active badger entrances and were more likely to be found in forests of agricultural areas, compared with setts where these species were absent. Sett locations tended to occur more frequently in older meso‐ and eutrophic forests on sandy soils. Badgers tended to avoid human infrastructure at sett locations and in the sett environ when selecting sett locations. Our results reveal the influence of habitat fragmentation and competitive relationships on cohabitation between terrestrial carnivores.

Regulated hunting re-shapes the life history of brown bears.

Management of large carnivores is among the most controversial topics in natural resource administration. Regulated hunting is a centrepiece of many carnivore management programmes and, although a number of hunting effects on population dynamics, body-size distributions and life history in other wildlife have been observed, its effects on life history and demography of large carnivores remain poorly documented. We report results from a 30-year study of brown bears (Ursus arctos) analysed using an integrated hierarchical approach. Our study revealed that regulated hunting has severely disrupted the interplay between age-specific survival and environmental factors, altered the consequences of reproductive strategies, and changed reproductive values and life expectancy in a population of the world's largest terrestrial carnivore. Protection and sustainable management have led to numerical recovery of several populations of large carnivores, but managers and policymakers should be aware of the extent to which regulated hunting may be influencing vital rates, thereby reshaping the life history of apex predators.

Foraging constraints reverse the scaling of activity time in carnivores.

The proportion of time an animal spends actively foraging in a day determines its long-term fitness. Here, we derive a general mathematical model for the scaling of this activity time with body size in consumers. We show that this scaling can change from positive (increasing with size) to negative (decreasing with size) if the detectability and availability of preferred prey sizes is a limiting factor. These predictions are supported by a global dataset on 73 terrestrial carnivore species from 8 families spanning >3 orders of magnitude in size. Carnivores weighing ∼5 kg experience high foraging costs because their diets include significant proportions of relatively small (invertebrate) prey. As a result, they show an increase in activity time with size. This shifts to a negative scaling in larger carnivores as they shift to foraging on less costly vertebrate prey. Our model can be generalized to other classes of terrestrial and aquatic consumers and offers a general framework for mechanistically linking body size to population fitness and vulnerability in consumers.

The evolution of male infanticide in relation to sexual selection in mammalian carnivores

The evolution of infanticide by males has often been explained by the sexual selection hypothesis, which posits that infanticide improves male reproductive success by shortening the interbirth intervals of the mothers of the killed offspring. In Carnivora, however, the fitness advantages assumed in this hypothesis have been shown in only a few species, and it has been argued that male infanticide may be nonadaptive in pinniped carnivores. According to the sexual selection hypothesis, male infanticide is expected to be more prevalent in species in which males are subjected to stronger sexual selection through intrasexual competition over mates. We examined a phylogenetically corrected relationship between male infanticide and sexual size dimorphism (SSD) as a measure of the intensity of sexual selection in carnivores. Our analyses failed to detect a significant association between the occurrence of male infanticide and SSD across carnivores, although they showed that, among fissipeds (typically terrestrial carnivores), males in species with stronger male-biased SSD are significantly more likely to commit infanticide. This suggests that the evolution of male infanticide is correlated with intense sexual selection in fissipeds. In pinnipeds (Odobenidae, Otariidae, and Phocidae), there was no significant association between male infanticide and SSD. Assuming that SSD represents the intensity of sexual selection on males, this result is consistent with the argument that infanticide by male pinnipeds is not a sexually selected behaviour.

Carnivore conservation under land use change: the status of Zimbabwe’s cheetah population after land reform

Large terrestrial carnivores especially have experienced substantial declines in range and numbers. Changes in land use are a main driver of such declines, yet various developing countries have accelerated land use change through state-led land reform programmes. One of the most renowned land reform programmes is Zimbabwe’s fast track land reform programme (FTLRP), which resulted in fast and compulsory subdivision of large commercial farms into indigenized small scale commercial and subsistence farms. Several case studies have shown an impact of the FTLRP on wildlife, however, its effect on wildlife populations at a nationwide scale remains largely unknown. Due to its wide-ranging nature, the cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) is particularly vulnerable to changes in land use. In this study I used questionnaire survey and citizen science data to determine the population status and distribution of the cheetah 15 years after introduction of the FTLRP. I also assessed the level of human-cheetah conflict, and attitudes of commercial and subsistence farmers towards cheetah. I found dramatic range contractions and population declines, particularly in the landscape outside protected areas. Despite minimal conflict, subsistence farmers were less tolerant to cheetah than commercial farmers. Consequently, land reform is likely to have increased the hostility of the cheetah landscape outside protected areas. This study is one of the most comprehensive species assessments to date. It provides valuable empirical data on the implications of land use change and emphasizes how a lack of knowledge impedes our ability to recognize a species vulnerability to (local) extinction risk.