Diet of wolves in the Bieszczady Mountains, Poland

Śmietana, Wojciech; Klimek, Andrzej

doi:10.4098/at.arch.93-20

Cited by 48 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…In all locations in Europe, wolves killed mainly young wild boar (Gavrin and Donaurov 1954, Lavov 1972, Ryabov 1974, Gatikh 1979, Rusakov 1979b, Kuzmin and Khakhin 1980, Litvinov 1981, Kudaktin 1982, Brtek and Voskâr 1987, Kochetkov 1988, Jędrzejewski et al 1992, Śmietana and Klimek 1993, Kuchmel 1994, Mattioli et al 1995. A similar pattern of wolf predation on wild boar was reported in Asia (Abdunazarov and Taryannikov 1991).…”

Section: Effects Of Wolf Predation On Ungulate Communitiessupporting

confidence: 56%

“…Also Rusakov (1979b), analyzing prey consumption by wolves in the northern part of Pskovskaya oblast (Russia) in 1968(Russia) in -1975, demon strated considerable interannual differences in prey consumption: percentage of occurrence in wolf scats ranged between 31.2-94.6% for moose and 0-10.4% for wild boar. Several authors indicated significant differences in the effect of wolf predation on ungulate communities in various seasons (especially non-snow vs snow period) (Gavrin and Donaurov 1954, Kochetkov 1988, Jędrzejewski et al 1992, Śmietana and Klimek 1993.…”

Section: Core W Olf Populations (Eastern Europe)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1994, Weaver 1994. Nevertheless, there can be considerable seasonal and annual differences in predation by wolves on a given species of ungulate (Gavrin and Donaurov 1954, Kochetkov and Sokolov 1979, Kochetkov 1988, Jędrzejewski et al 1992, Śmietana and Klimek 1993, which has been confirmed in North America (Mech 1970, Fuller 1989, Carbyn et al 1993, Huggard 1993a. Food niche breadth (B) of wolves in Europe, calculated only for ungulates con sidered in this study -European bison, moose, red deer, roe deer, and wild boar (maximum value 5) -increased with increasing number of ungulate species in the community (Fig.…”

Section: Effects Of Wolf Predation On Ungulate Communitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, it could be suggested that the level of predation on livestock does not mainly depend on the density of natural prey, but on husbandry practices (eg using guarding dogs to defend livestock, housing livestock at night) and the location of pastures relative to wolf core areas. Several authors highlighted the effect of climatic conditions during winter on wolf predation (Formozov 1946, Gavrin and Donaurov 1954, Śmietana and Klimek 1993, Okarma et al 1995a. Snow depth influences mobility and behavior of wolves and their prey (Formozov 1946, Nasimovich 1955, Telfer and Kelsall 1984, Fuller 1991.…”

Section: A V a Ila B Ility O F Food O F A N Th Rop Og En Ic O Rig Inmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The trophic ecology of wolves and their predatory role in ungulate communities of forest ecosystems in Europe

Okarma¹

1995

Acta Theriol.

146

125

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H. 1995. The trophic ecology of wolves and their predatory role in ungulate communities of forest ecosystems in Europe. Acta Theriologica 40: 335-386.Predation by wolves Canis lupus Linnaeus, 1758 in ungulate communities in Europe, with special reference to the multi-species system o f Białowieża Primeval Forest (Poland/Belarus), was assessed on the basis results of original research and literature. In historical times (post-glacial period), the geographical range of the w olf and most ungulate species in Europe decreased considerably. Community richness of ungulates and potential prey for wolves, decreased over most o f the continent from 5 -6 species to 2 -3 species. The w olf is typically an opportunistic predator with a highly diverse diet; however, cervids are its preferred prey. Red deer Ceruus elaphus are positively selected from ungulate communities in all localities, moose Alces alces are the major prey only where middle-sized species are scarce. Roe deer Capreolus capreolus are locally preyed on intensively, especially where they have high density, co-exist mainly with moose or wild boar Sus scrofa, and red deer is scarce or absent. Wild boar are generally avoided, except in a few locations; and European bison Bison bonasus are not preyed upon by wolves. W olf predation contributes substantially to the total natural mortality of ungulates in Europe: 42.5% for red deer, 34.5% for moose, 25.7% for roe der, and only 16% for wild boar. Food niche breadth (B) o f wolves in Europe, calculated only for the ungulates considered in this study, increases with the number o f ungulate species in the community. There is also a significant rela tionship between ungulate community breadth and food niche breadth of wolves. Food niche breadth o f wolves, however, does not achieve very high values even in the richest ungulate communities. Wolves easily adapt to locally abundant food of anthropogenic origin (livestock, garbage). The level of predation on livestock may be a result of different husbandry practices (eg use of livestock guarding dogs) rather than of differences in availability of wild and domestic prey. Available data from Europe suggest that wolves likely limit density of red deer and moose in some areas. Roe deer density can be decreased locally by wolves but is limited mainly by lynx Lynx lynx. Wild boar density is more influenced by mast crops of Quercus spp. and Fagus siluatica (and to a lesser extent by snow depth) than by w olf predation.

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Section: Effects Of Wolf Predation On Ungulate Communitiessupporting

confidence: 56%

Section: Core W Olf Populations (Eastern Europe)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Effects Of Wolf Predation On Ungulate Communitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: A V a Ila B Ility O F Food O F A N Th Rop Og En Ic O Rig Inmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The trophic ecology of wolves and their predatory role in ungulate communities of forest ecosystems in Europe

Okarma¹

1995

Acta Theriol.

146

125

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“…In contrast, red deer was generally positively selected in central-eastern Europe (Okarma 1995;Jędrzejewski et al 2000;Andersone and Ozolins 2004;Nowak et al 2005) and in the western Alps (Gazzola et al 2005), on the contrary roe deer was selected in fewer locations of Sweden (Olsson et al 1997), Saxony (Ansorge et al 2006), Russia and Belarus (Okarma 1995). Apart from Italy, wild boar was selected as secondary prey in the Bieszczady Mountains, Poland, during winter (Smietana and Klimek 1993;Gula 2004), in two locations of central Russia and Caucasus (Okarma 1995), and as main prey only in Estonia (Valdmann et al 1998).…”

Section: Prey Selectionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Prey selection and dietary response by wolves in a high-density multi-species ungulate community

Mattioli¹,

Capitani

Gazzola

et al. 2011

Eur J Wildl Res

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Studies on predation by the wolf (Canis lupus) have often reported contradictory results about the role of prey density and vulnerability on wolf prey use. We investigated dietary response and prey selection by wolves in a high-density and multi-species ungulate community, analysing scats collected over a period of 11 years in the Casentinesi Forests, Italy. The second most abundant species, wild boar (Sus scrofa), was found to be the main wolf prey, and we did not observe any dietary response of wolves to variations in the density of either primary or secondary prey species. Selection patterns were uniform throughout the study period. Wolves strongly selected for wild boar piglets, while roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) fawns and adults, red deer (Cervus elaphus) adults and fallow deer (Dama dama) adults were avoided. Wolf preference for wild boar was inversely density dependent. Within each species, juveniles were preferred to adults. Medium-sized, young individuals of both wild boar and roe deer were optimal prey, although with different selection patterns related to the different anti-predator strategies adopted by each prey species. The results of this study suggest that in productive ecosystems with high density and high renewal rates of prey, selection patterns by wolves are determined by prey vulnerability, which is connected to prey age and body size. The different patterns of wild boar versus cervids use by wolf across Europe seems to be related to their relative abundances, while the strong selection of wild boar in Italian Apennines with respect to the more frequent avoidance in central-eastern Europe is better explained by higher piglet productivity and smaller body size of adults boar in Mediterranean temperate forests.

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Wolves in the borderland – changes in population and wolf diet in Romincka Forest along the Polish–Russian–Lithuanian state borders

Nowak,

Szewczyk,

Stępniak

et al. 2024

Wildlife Biology

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We assessed changes in the population size, density, and diet composition of wolves inhabiting the Romincka Forest (RF), an area of 480 km2 situated along the state border between Poland, Russian Federation (Kaliningrad), and Lithuania. We compared the results of our research in 2020–2021 with data from other projects conducted since 1999. We found that both packs living in RF had transboundary territories. The number of packs was stable over 21 years; the average pack size almost doubled (from 4–4.5 to 7.5–8 wolves per pack); the total wolf numbers increased 1.8 times, reaching 15–16 wolves; and the density increased 1.5 times up to 3.1–3.3 wolves/100 km2 in winter 2020/2021. Our analyses of 165 scats revealed that beavers Castor fiber made up 45.6% of food biomass in the wolf diet in 2020, which was 3.4 times more than in 1999–2004 (n = 84 scats,13.4%). Wild ungulates constituted 44.8% of the wolf food biomass in 2020, 1.6 times less than before (71.1%). In our study, among wild ungulates, wolves primarily consumed roe deer Capreolus capreolus (22.6% of food biomass), then wild boars Sus scrofa (13.7%), and red deer Cervus elaphus (5.0%), while moose Alces alces was eaten rarely (0.4%). We also recorded domestic dogs (4.9% of food biomass) and cattle (3.1%). The food niche breadth was wider (B = 2.31) than in the earlier period (B = 1.84), and the Pianka index showed moderate similarity in food composition between both periods (α = 0.816). In November 2022, due to the migration crisis, a 199 km impermeable fence along the state border with Kaliningrad was erected, which blocked access to 48% of the RF area that was regularly used by the resident wolf packs. This may cause wolf numbers to decrease and isolation from the central part of the Baltic wolf population to which they belong, according to our DNA analyses.

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Diet of wolves in the Bieszczady Mountains, Poland

Cited by 48 publications

References 10 publications

The trophic ecology of wolves and their predatory role in ungulate communities of forest ecosystems in Europe

The trophic ecology of wolves and their predatory role in ungulate communities of forest ecosystems in Europe

Prey selection and dietary response by wolves in a high-density multi-species ungulate community

Wolves in the borderland – changes in population and wolf diet in Romincka Forest along the Polish–Russian–Lithuanian state borders

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