A comparison of shark and wolf research reveals similar behavioral responses by prey

Abstract

Marine and terrestrial ecologists rarely exchange information, yet comparing research from both sides of the land–sea boundary holds great potential for improving our understanding of ecological processes. For example, by comparing the interaction between tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier) and dugongs (Dugong dugon) to that between gray wolves (Canis lupus) and elk (Cervus elaphus), we show that top predators in marine and terrestrial ecosystems trigger three similar types of anti‐predator behavior: (1) encounter avoidance, (2) escape facilitation, and (3) increased vigilance. By implication, the ecological roles of top predators in both ecosystems may be more similar than previously thought, and studies that fail to account for multiple modes of anti‐predator behavior are likely to underestimate these roles and the consequences of eliminating predators from ecosystems. We encourage more communication between marine and terrestrial ecologists, in the interest of generating further insights into ecosystem dynamics and conservation.

Sizing up the ecological role of sharks as predators

“…As stated above, the logistics of observing wide-ranging, large-bodied predatory sharks are difficult. One of the few examples of the pertinence of the behavioural role of sharks highlights similarities in predation pressure by tiger sharks and wolves -suggesting application of the behavioural definition can be appropriate (Wirsing & Ripple 2011). The authors showed that tiger sharks and wolves elicited similar prey responses including: encounter avoidance, escape facilitation, and increased vigilance.…”

“…Specifically, the seasonal presence of tiger sharks in Shark Bay, Australia, was found to limit the habitat use and abundance of dolphins and dugongs in productive, shallow areas (Heit haus & Dill 2002. Wirsing & Ripple (2011) concluded that similarities exist between predators in marine and terrestrial systems, and recommended greater exchange of concepts between researchers in these communities. One additional example is the presence of sleeper sharks in Alaska, which has been shown to alter the diving behaviour of seals (Frid et al 2007).…”

Generalities in grazing and browsing ecology: using across-guild comparisons to control contingencies

“…another approach is to make comparisons across similar ecosystem types on different continents (Knapp et al 2004) or even across marine and terrestrial ecosystems (webb 2012), with the one ecosystem serving as the "control" for the other. For example, it has been found helpful to compare marine and terrestrial predatorprey systems to identify universal behavioral responses by which prey animals reduce their risk of predation (wirsing and Ripple 2011). here we propose that contingencies can also be controlled within ecosystems by making Abstract In community ecology, broad-scale spatial replication can accommodate contingencies in patterns within species groups, but contingencies in processes across species groups remain problematic.…”

The Plight of Reptiles as Ecological Actors in the Tropics

“…"Cross-pollination" between stablished research field of megafauna effects in ecosystems and herpetologists working with large reptiles, as well as with excellent research programs running on some reptilian megafauna (e.g., Everglades pythons, Komodo dragons, sea turtles). This strategy has proven successful in other ecological research fields (Wirsing and Ripple, 2011). c. Increasing research effort on anthropogenic reptile extinctions and their potential to predict the nature of future losses.…”