We investigated the role of water features as focal attractors for gray foxes (Urocyon cinereoargenteus), coyotes (Canis latrans), and bobcats (Felis rufus) in west Texas to determine if they were foci for interspecific interaction. Mixed effects models indicated that species partitioned use of water features spatially and temporally. Linear models indicated factors influencing relative activity at water features varied by species. For coyotes and bobcats, the water availability model, containing days since last rainfall and nearest‐neighbor distance to water was best supported by the data, with relative activity increasing with time between rainfall and distance between waters. For gray foxes, the best approximating model indicated that relative activity was inversely correlated to coyote and bobcat activity indices, and positively correlated to topographical complexity. Encounters between carnivore species were low, with most occurring between coyotes and gray foxes, followed by coyotes and bobcats, and bobcats and gray foxes. These findings suggest a behavioral‐environmental mechanism that may function to modulate resource partitioning by carnivores in the arid West. © 2011 The Wildlife Society.

Feral swine (Sus scrofa) impact resources through their destructive feeding behavior, competition with native wildlife, and impacts to domestic animal agriculture. We studied aerial gunning on feral swine to determine if aerial gunning altered home range and core area sizes, distances between home range centroids, and distances moved by surviving individuals. We collected data before, during, and after aerial gunning in southern Texas. Using Global Positioning System collars deployed on 25 adult feral swine at 2 study sites, we found home range and core area sizes did not differ before and after aerial gunning. However, feral swine moved at a greater rate during the aerial gunning phase than during the before and after periods. We concluded that aerial gunning had only minor effects on the behavior of surviving swine and that this removal method should be considered a viable tool in contingency planning for a foreign animal disease outbreak.