Niche separation in sympatric jackals (Canis mesomelas and Canis adustus)

Abstract

Niche separation (along habitat use, activity and dietary axes) between two sympatric jackal species, Canis adustus and Canis mesomelas, was investigated in north-west Zimbabwe. Diet of the two jackal species was flexible and opportunistic and dietary overlap between the jackal species was high. However, C. mesomelas ate more springhares Pedetes capensis, and C. adustus ate more safari camp refuse. To a large extent, differences in diet reflect availability within home ranges. Although interspecific home ranges overlapped by up to an average of 26%, the two species did not intensively use the same areas, and favoured different habitats. Canis mesomelas defended territories in the grassland habitat, which was also the favoured habitat of springhares, the predominant vertebrate prey species in the area. Canis adustus centred their home ranges on centres of human activity, benefiting from the regular, but low quality, anthropogenic food resources. In this study, C. adustus, with the more generalist dentition, had a broader niche than C. mesomelas (dietary diversity C. adustus = 4.14; C. mesomelas = 3.45). Within sympatric areas, differing activity times may further operate to decrease competition, allowing these canids to co-exist. The activity times of the two species differed, with C. adustus being almost entirely nocturnal. Canis mesomelas, while mostly nocturnal, was also active during the morning and in the late afternoon. The jackals in this study did not have clear-cut niches and it is probable that the extreme flexibility of canids in both diet and behaviour allows these species to co-exist sympatrically over part of their range.

Food preferences of golden jackals and sympatric red foxes in European temperate climate agricultural area (Hungary)

“…from the rodent community (Jędrze-jewska and Jędrzejewski 1998). These data corroborate that the golden jackal (and the red fox) characteristically prefer open habitats for hunting (Gittleman 1989); however, radiotelemetry (Loveridge and Macdonald 2003, Switalski 2003, Jaeger et al 2007) could provide more information on how sympatric jackals and foxes separate in time and space in Central Europe.…”

The Influence of Large Predators on the Feeding Ecology of Two African Mesocarnivores: The Black-Backed Jackal and the Brown Hyaena

“…In this study, both study sites had similar communities of indigenous large herbivores, with MWR having higher densities compared to PNP. Despite this, no significant difference was detected in the frequency of occurrence of large herbivores in the diet of jackals at MWR or PNP, indicating a versatile, generalist foraging strategy, consuming small and large mammals and other food items when available (Loveridge & MacDonald 2003;Klare et al2010;Brassine & Parker, 2012). However, we were unable to determine whether dietary items in the scats were obtained by scavenging or via direct predation.…”

“…It seems likely therefore that jackals foraged opportunistically both in the presence and absence of apex predators by both preying on small mammals and scavenging from the remains of, or hunting, large mammals depending on availability, as seen elsewhere (Rowe-Rowe 1983; Kaunda & Skinner 2003;Loveridge & Macdonald 2003;Klare et al2010). Interestingly, there was a weak positive correlation between the relative frequency of occurrence of herbivores in jackal scats and herbivore abundance at MWR.Although not significant, it suggests that jackals may select prey more in relation to prey availability at MWR than at PNP.…”

“…where n i is the number of times mammalian species ioccurs in diet at one study site and N s is total occurrences of all herbivore species (>1 kg) that density estimates were available for (Loveridge & Macdonald, 2003). A Pearson's product correlation was performed between the relative frequency of occurrence of dietary remains and the relative abundance of each herbivore species at each site to determine whether jackal and brown hyaena diets reflected the relative abundance of those species.…”

An Assessment of Diet Overlap of Two Mesocarnivores in the North West Province, South Africa

“…However, where resources are limited, the strength of competition between sympatric species generally decreases with increased resource partitioning (Pacala & Roughgarden 1985). These interspecific competitive interactions are mediated by inter-specific morphological, physiological and behavioural differences (Loveridge & Macdonald 2003). Despite marked body size differences, brown hyaenas (Parahyaena brunnea; Hyaenidae) and black-backed jackals (Canis mesomelas; Canidae) (hereafter referred to as jackals) can be regarded as either mesocarnivores or apex predators, depending on the presence or absence of larger carnivores (see Ritchie & Johnson 2009).…”