Do individual differences in behavior influence wild rodents more than predation risk?

Cremona, Teigan; Mella, Valentina S. A.; Webb, Jonathan K.; Crowther, Mathew S.

doi:10.1093/jmammal/gyv142

Cited by 16 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…feral cats, Doherty et al 2015) and might be driven by differences in responses to predators by rodents and dasyurids (e.g. Cremona et al 2015), as well as in their physiological traits (e.g. Geiser & Turbill 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Resource pulses affect prey selection and reduce dietary diversity of dingoes in arid Australia

et al. 2019

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In Australia, the dingo Canis lupus dingo is the largest terrestrial predator. Dingoes contribute to ecological processes and functions throughout their continental geographic range. Their generalist diet enables daily energetic requirements to be met even in the resource‐limited deserts of central Australia, where irregular rainfall drives extreme fluctuations in mammal assemblages. Given that predation is a primary driver of declining mammal populations and failed reintroductions, it is necessary to understand the dietary intake of the continent's apex predator if conservation outcomes are to be achieved. We performed a meta‐analysis of the mammalian composition of the dingo's diet throughout Australia's arid zone, an area covering c. 5.4 million km2. We used 25 data sets from 11 studies to measure the effects of resource booms and anthropogenic disturbance (pastoralism) on diet. We explored whether the probability of prey species occurring in the diet was related to the size of the prey or to prevailing conditions. We also investigated the similarities in diet between dingo populations from across the arid zone, and how dietary overlap was affected by opposing land uses. Dingoes primarily consumed medium‐sized (35–5500 g) and large (>5500 g) mammals, whereas most small mammals (<35 g) were consumed infrequently, or not at all. The composition of the diet changed dramatically during resource booms to exploit irruptive prey species such as long‐haired rats Rattus villosissimus (native; 144 g) and house mice Mus musculus (introduced; 20 g). During resource booms, the consumption of large mammals decreased significantly, whereas the occurrence in the diet of medium‐sized mammals remained high. The diversity of species consumed by dingoes was significantly lower during boom periods than during non‐boom periods. The dingo's heightened consumption of hyper‐abundant species has the potential to release many non‐target species from direct predation pressure during boom times. This could be advantageous for remnant and reintroduced populations of mammals, which are especially susceptible to predation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Resource pulses affect prey selection and reduce dietary diversity of dingoes in arid Australia

et al. 2019

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“…Such selection could assist with improved survival after exposure to predators. Releases of swift foxes ( Vulpes velox ) found that bolder foxes were more likely to die after translocation because they took more risks (Bremner‐Harrison, Prodohl, & Elwood, ) and wild‐caught brushtail possums that showed most fear during handling had higher survival chances post‐translocation (Cremona, Mella, Webb, & Crowther, ). To our knowledge, this is the first study to test whether FID can be adjusted through training and is an important finding in the application of this technique to other species reintroductions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predator exposure improves anti‐predator responses in a threatened mammal

West

Letnic

Blumstein

et al. 2017

Journal of Applied Ecology

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Abstract1. Incorporating an understanding of animal behaviour into conservation programmes can influence conservation outcomes. Exotic predators can have devastating impacts on native prey species and thwart reintroduction efforts, in part due to prey naïveté caused by an absence of co-evolution between predators and prey.Attempts have been made to improve the anti-predator behaviours of reintroduced native prey by conducting laboratory-based predator recognition training but results have been varied and have rarely led to improved survival in reintroduction programmes.2. We investigated whether in situ predator exposure could improve anti-predator responses of a predator-naïve mammal by exposing prey populations to low densities of introduced predators under controlled conditions. We reintroduced 352 burrowing bettongs to a 26-km 2 fenced exclosure at the Arid Recovery Reserve in South Australia and exposed them to feral cats (density 0.03-0.15 cats/km 2 ) over an 18-month period. At the same time, we translocated a different group of bettongs into an exclosure free of introduced predators, as a control. We compared three behaviours (flight initiation distances, trap docility and behaviour at feeding trays) of cat-exposed and control bettongs before the translocations, then at 6, 12and 18 months post-translocation.3. Cat-exposed bettongs displayed changes in behaviour that suggested increased wariness, relative to control bettongs. At 18 months post-reintroduction, cat-exposed bettongs had greater flight initiation distances and approached feed trays more slowly than control bettongs. Cat-exposed bettongs also increased their trap docility over time. Synthesis and applications.Translocation is recommended as a conservation tool for many threatened species yet success rates are generally low. We demonstrate that controlled levels of in situ predator exposure can increase wariness in the behaviour of naïve prey. Our findings provide support for the hypothesis that in situ predator exposure could be used as a method to improve the anti-predator responses of predator-naïve threatened species populations. K E Y W O R D Santi-predator responses, anti-predator training, burrowing bettong, exotic predator, predator exposure, prey behaviour, prey naïveté, threatened species 148 | Journal of Applied Ecology WEST ET al.

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“…As an example, some individuals of Arnhem rock rats ( Zyzomys maini ; ;Cremona et al. ) and brushtail possum ( Trichosurus vulpecula ; Mella et al. ) are bolder than others in exploring high‐risk but high‐quality patches.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Size dependency of patch departure behavior: evidence from granivorous rodents

Cozzoli

Gjoni

Basset

2019

Ecology

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Citation: Cozzoli, F., V. Gjoni, and A. Basset. 2019. Size dependency of patch departure behavior: evidence from granivorous rodents. Ecology 100(10):Abstract. Individual size is a major determinant of mobile organisms' ecology and behavior. This study aims to explore whether allometric scaling principles can provide an underlying framework for general patterns of resource patch use. To this end, we used giving-up densities (GUDs), that is, the amount of resources remaining in a patch after a forager has quit feeding, as a comparative measure of the amount of resources exploited by a forager of any given size. We specifically tested the hypothesis that size-dependent responses to both internal (energy requirement) and external (risk management) forces may have an effect on GUDs. We addressed this topic by conducting an extensive meta-analysis of published data on granivorous rodents, including 292 GUD measurements reported in 25 papers. The data set includes data on 22 granivorous rodent species belonging to three taxonomic suborders (Castorimorpha, Myomorpha, and Sciuromorpha) and spans three habitat types (desert, grassland, and forest). The observations refer to both patches subject to predation risk and safe patches. Pooling all data, we observed positive allometric scaling of GUDs with average forager size (scaling exponent = 0.45), which explained 15% of overall variance in individual GUDs. Perceived predation risk during foraging led to an increase in GUDs independently of forager size and taxonomy and of habitat type, which explained an additional 12% of overall GUD variance. The size scaling exponent of GUDs is positive across habitat types and taxonomic suborders of rodents. Some variation was observed, however. The scaling coefficients in grassland and forest habitat types were significantly higher than in the desert habitat type. In addition, Sciuromorpha and Myomorpha exhibited a more pronounced size scaling of GUDs than Castorimorpha. This suggests that different adaptive behaviors may be used in different contexts and/or from different foragers. With body size being a fundamental ecological descriptor, research into size scaling of GUDs may help to place patch-use observations in a broader allometric framework.

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Do individual differences in behavior influence wild rodents more than predation risk?

Cited by 16 publications

References 43 publications

Resource pulses affect prey selection and reduce dietary diversity of dingoes in arid Australia

Resource pulses affect prey selection and reduce dietary diversity of dingoes in arid Australia

Predator exposure improves anti‐predator responses in a threatened mammal

Size dependency of patch departure behavior: evidence from granivorous rodents

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