Prey preferences and dietary overlap amongst Africa's large predators

Hayward, Matt W.; Kerley, Graham I. H.

doi:10.3957/0379-4369-38.2.93

Cited by 173 publications

(189 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…Perhaps selection on different behavioural strategies bestows each species with a particular range of colony sizes and a certain degree of cooperative behaviour, which in turn lead to dietary differentiation. Similar means of dietary differentiation may characterize other communities with otherwise potentially competing social predators [10]. Further studies of other social communities and of communities of other social predators are needed, however, before more definite conclusions can be drawn.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differences in group size and the extent of individual participation in group hunting may contribute to differential prey-size use among social spiders

Harwood

Avilés

2013

Biol. Lett.

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We have previously shown that the range of prey sizes captured by co-occurring species of group-hunting social spiders correlates positively with their level of sociality. Here, we show that this pattern is probably caused by differences among species in colony size and the extent to which individuals participate in group hunting. We assess levels of participation for each species from the fraction of individuals responding to the struggling prey that partake as attackers and from the extent to which the number of attackers increases with colony size. Of two species that form equally large colonies, the one that captures on average larger prey engaged as attackers a significantly larger fraction of individuals that responded to struggling prey and also increased its number of attackers in larger colonies when presented with large prey items. Surprisingly, a third co-occurring species previously found to capture smaller insects than the other two exhibited the highest levels of participation. This species, however, typically forms small single-family colonies, thereby being limited in the size of insects it can capture. It is thus a combination of colony size and the extent of individual participation (or cooperation) that probably determines patterns of resource use in this community of co-occurring social predators.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differences in group size and the extent of individual participation in group hunting may contribute to differential prey-size use among social spiders

Harwood

Avilés

2013

Biol. Lett.

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“…An important mode of resource partitioning is the degree of dietary overlap between sympatric species (Hayward & Kerley 2008). This overlap is influenced not only by each species' physical ability to obtain food (Radloff & du Toit 2004;Owen-Smith & Mills 2008), but also by variation in the spatial and temporal availability of food (Azevedo et al 2006).…”

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confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2009

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We used scat analysis to study the diet of two sympatric medium-sized carnivores: brown hyaena and black-backed jackal, in the North West Province of South Africa. Seven major dietary categories were identified from the scats, with mammal remains being most common for both species. Brown hyaena scats contained more large mammal remains, which together with the presence of invertebrates (in 50% of all brown hyaena scats), suggests that they mainly scavenged. Jackal scats contained a higher proportion of small mammal remains, suggesting that jackals actively hunted more often than brown hyaenas did. The diets differed significantly between the two species, even though diet overlap was fairly high (0.79). Further analysis, albeit based on small sample sizes, suggests that diet of these mesopredators differ between protected reserves with apex predators and unprotected areas without apex predators, thus confounding generalizations. Further studies are therefore required to investigate possible mesopredator release when apex predators are absent.

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“…For example, they can forage in similar habitats, use similar structural features to shelter or raise young, and have similar diets. In these cases, resource overlap alone does not necessarily predict the degree of exploitation competition, because species may partition resources spatially or temporally that lead to differences in habitat selection and may facilitate the coexistence between them even if resources are limited (Hurlbert 1978;Feinsinger et al 1981;Pianka 1981;Fa et al 1992;Morris 1996;Katona et al 2004;Hayward and Kerley 2008;Hayward and Slotow 2009). One way to find evidence of exploitation competition between sympatric species is to compare the habitat use of a species in areas where it occurs alone (allopatry) with other areas where it occurs with another competing species (sympatry).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat overlap between sympatric European hares (Lepus europaeus) and Eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) in northern Italy

et al. 2010

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In northern Italy, the range of the Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) largely overlaps with that of the native European hare (Lepus europaeus) on the Po Plain. Both species appear to have similar habitat requirements. We studied habitat selection by hares and cottontails during feeding activity from September 2006 to August 2007 in two areas where they occur alone (allopatry) and in one area where they occur together (sympatry). The three areas were basically similar, so that shifts in habitat use observed in sympatry should reflect the response to interspecific competition. Habitat selection was examined at micro-and macro-habitat levels throughout seasons. Habitat breadth of both species followed the change of resource availability through seasons in allopatry as well as in sympatry. No shifts in habitat use were evident at macrohabitat level, even during autumn which was the limiting season. Exploitation of shared habitats by the two species seems to be promoted by differential micro-habitat use within macro-habitat types. Cottontails used woods with dense understory in greater proportion than hares, and their present sites were concentrated within the maximum distance of 20 m of the nearest shelter site. Hares were more likely than cottontails to exploit crops, and their sites were distributed even greater than 80 m away from permanent cover patches. The habitat heterogeneity of agricultural ecosystems within the sympatry range could buffer the negative effects of external factors (climate, human disturbance and predation) on hares, and enhance the chances of exploitation of shared habitats by both species.

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Prey preferences and dietary overlap amongst Africa's large predators

Cited by 173 publications

References 43 publications

Differences in group size and the extent of individual participation in group hunting may contribute to differential prey-size use among social spiders

Differences in group size and the extent of individual participation in group hunting may contribute to differential prey-size use among social spiders

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

Habitat overlap between sympatric European hares (Lepus europaeus) and Eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) in northern Italy

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