Golden Eagle Predation on Endangered San Joaquin Kit Foxes

Cypher, Brian L.; Spencer, Kenneth A.; Westall, Tory L.; Meade, Daniel E.

doi:10.3398/064.079.0409

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…Eagles are dependent on their powerful talons to capture and kill prey. We did not observe puncture wounds in the skull, as is often seen when Golden eagles kill ungulate prey species (Skåtan & Lorentzen, 2011) or as reported in depredation on other fox species in other ecosystems (Cypher et al, 2019). Instead, puncture wounds were evident across the dorsal shoulder–neck region of the Arctic foxes.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 54%

“…Lorentzen, 2011) or as reported in depredation on other fox species in other ecosystems (Cypher et al, 2019). Instead, puncture wounds were evident across the dorsal shoulder-neck region of the Arctic foxes.…”

Section: Post Mortem Findings -How Are Foxes Killed?mentioning

confidence: 80%

“…Elsewhere, and besides Arctic foxes, Golden eagles have been reported to kill Channel Island gray foxes ( Urocyon littoralis , Roemer and Collins (2020)), swift foxes ( Vulpes velox , Moehrenschlager et al (2007)), and San Joaquin kit foxes ( Vulpes macrotis mutica , Cypher et al (2019)). Golden eagle predation drove the Channel Island fox population to the brink of extinction (Roemer & Collins, 2020), highlighting the significant effect these raptors can have on small carnivore populations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In terrestrial ecosystems, effects such as intraguild killing/predation, landscape of fear, kleptoparasitism, interference competition, and mesopredator release are well documented within mammalian carnivore guilds (Ritchie & Johnson, 2009). What is less well documented are lethal attacks and predation by top avian predators on mammalian carnivores (e.g., Moehrenschlager et al (2007), Clark Jr (2009), Cypher et al (2019)).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Predation of endangered Arctic foxes by Golden eagles: What do we know?

Jackson

Rød‐Eriksen

Mattisson

et al. 2023

Ecology and Evolution

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Dedicated conservation efforts spanning the past two decades have saved the Fennoscandian Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) population from local extinction, and extensive resources continue to be invested in the species' conservation and management. Although increasing, populations remain isolated, small and are not yet viable in the longer term. An understanding of causes of mortality are consequently important to optimize ongoing conservation actions. Golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) are a predator of Arctic foxes, yet little information on this interaction is available in the literature. We document and detail six confirmed cases of Golden eagle depredation of Arctic foxes at the Norwegian captive breeding facility (2019-2022), where foxes are housed in large open-air enclosures in the species' natural habitat. Here, timely detection of missing/dead foxes was challenging, and new insights have been gainedfollowing recently improved enclosure monitoring. Golden eagle predation peaked during the winter months, with no cases reported from June to November. This finding contrasts with that which is reported from the field, both for Arctic and other fox species, where eagle depredation peaked at dens with young (summer). While the seasonality of depredation may be ecosystem specific, documented cases from the field may be biased by higher survey efforts associated with the monitoring of reproductive success during the summer. Both white and blue color morphs were housed at the breeding station, yet only white foxes were preyed upon, and mortality was male biased. Mitigation measures and their effectiveness implemented at the facility are presented. Findings are discussed in the broader Arctic fox population ecology and conservation context.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 54%

Section: Post Mortem Findings -How Are Foxes Killed?mentioning

confidence: 80%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Predation of endangered Arctic foxes by Golden eagles: What do we know?

Jackson

Rød‐Eriksen

Mattisson

et al. 2023

Ecology and Evolution

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“…Kit foxes, like many other desert‐adapted species, also use nocturnality to escape the heat and minimize evaporative water loss (Milton and Dean 2004). In addition, the golden eagle ( Aquila chrysaetos ) is an important predator of kit foxes (Kluever and Gese 2017, Cypher et al 2019) and is diurnal. Determining whether the nocturnal behavior of kit foxes in our study was due to coyotes, golden eagles, or their own physiology is not entirely clear, but does show that in a world of trade‐offs, a single behavior can sometimes have multiple benefits.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The influence of predators, competitors, and habitat on the use of water sources by a small desert carnivore

et al. 2021

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Free water can influence the ecology of desert species. While the use of free water is influenced by physiological factors (e.g., species-specific water requirements, moisture in forage, temperature), nonphysiological factors, such as habitat characteristics and interspecific interactions, are also important. In fact, for species of concern, interspecific interactions and habitat can be important factors influencing their spatial and temporal use of the landscape and its resources. The kit fox (Vulpes macrotis) is a small carnivore considered to be a species of concern over much of its range, and two of the most important conservation challenges it faces are related to (1) habitat and (2) predation/competition by intraguild species. Our objective was to determine the influence of habitat characteristics, predators (bobcats [Lynx rufus], coyotes [Canis latrans]), and potential competitors (badgers [Taxidea taxus], gray foxes [Urocyon cinereoargenteus]) on the use of water by kit foxes. From June to September 2010-2012, we used remote cameras to monitor carnivores at 63 water sources in the Mojave Desert. We used zero-inflated mixed-effects models and a twostage model selection analysis to evaluate the influence of habitat, predators, and competitors on spatial visits to water by kit foxes. We also assessed temporal avoidance of intraguild predators and competitors by kit foxes at water sources using a coefficient of overlap. We found that visual obscurity, overhead canopy cover, badgers, and coyotes influenced spatial visits of kit foxes. In addition, kit foxes exhibited strong temporal overlap with badgers and bobcats, moderate temporal overlap with gray foxes, and weak temporal overlap with coyotes. Taken together, our study demonstrates that the spatial and temporal use of water sources by kit foxes is dynamic, depending on habitat characteristics and the activity of intraguild predators and competitors.

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