Mpala Research Centre, Post Office Box 555, Nanyuki 10400, Kenya.
Science. 2011 Sep 23;333(6050):1753-5. doi: 10.1126/science.1208468.
Savannas worldwide are vital for both socioeconomic and biodiversity values. In these ecosystems, management decisions are based on the perception that wildlife and livestock compete for food, yet there are virtually no experimental data to support this assumption. We examined the effects of wild African ungulates on cattle performance, food intake, and diet quality. Wild ungulates depressed cattle food intake and performance during the dry season (competition) but enhanced cattle diet quality and performance during the wet season (facilitation). These results extend our understanding of the context-dependent-competition-facilitation balance, in general, and are critical for better understanding and managing wildlife-livestock coexistence in human-occupied savanna landscapes.
全世界的热带稀树草原对于社会经济和生物多样性都具有重要价值。在这些生态系统中，管理决策基于野生动物和家畜争夺食物的认知，但实际上几乎没有实验数据支持这一假设。我们研究了野生非洲有蹄类动物对牛的性能、食物摄入和饮食质量的影响。野生有蹄类动物在旱季（竞争）会抑制牛的食物摄入和表现，但在雨季（促进）会提高牛的饮食质量和表现。这些结果扩展了我们对依赖于上下文的竞争-促进平衡的理解，对于更好地理解和管理人类占据的热带稀树草原景观中的野生动物与家畜共存至关重要。
