Lombardi Jason V, MacKenzie Darryl I, Tewes Michael E, Perotto-Baldivieso Humberto L, Mata José M, Campbell Tyler A
Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute Texas A&M University-Kingsville Kingsville TX USA.
Proteus Outram New Zealand.
Ecol Evol. 2020 Apr 21;10(11):4903-4917. doi: 10.1002/ece3.6242. eCollection 2020 Jun.
Interspecific competition among carnivores has been linked to differences in behavior, morphology, and resource use. Insights into these interactions can enhance understanding of local ecological processes that can have impacts on the recovery of endangered species, such as the ocelot (). Ocelots, bobcats (), and coyotes () share a small geographic range overlap from South Texas to south-central Mexico but relationships among the three are poorly understood. From May 2011 to March 2018, we conducted a camera trap study to examine co-occurrence patterns among ocelots, bobcats, and coyotes on the East Foundation's El Sauz Ranch in South Texas. We used a novel multiseason extension to multispecies occupancy models with ≥2 interacting species to conduct an exploratory analysis to examine interspecific interactions and examine the potential effects of patch-level and landscape-level metrics relative to the occurrence of these carnivores. We found strong evidence of seasonal mutual coexistence among all three species and observed a species-specific seasonal trend in detection. Seasonal coexistence patterns were also explained by increasing distance from a high-speed roadway. However, these results have important ecological implications for planning ocelot recovery in the rangelands of South Texas. This study suggests a coexistence among ocelots, bobcats, and coyotes under the environmental conditions on the El Sauz Ranch. Further research would provide a better understanding of the ecological mechanisms that facilitate coexistence within this community. As road networks in the region expand over the next few decades, large private working ranches will be needed to provide important habitat for ocelots and other carnivore species.
食肉动物之间的种间竞争与行为、形态和资源利用方面的差异有关。深入了解这些相互作用有助于增强对当地生态过程的理解，而这些过程可能会对濒危物种的恢复产生影响，例如豹猫（）。豹猫、短尾猫（）和郊狼（）在从南得克萨斯到墨西哥中南部的一个小地理范围内有重叠，但这三者之间的关系却鲜为人知。从2011年5月到2018年3月，我们在得克萨斯州南部东基金会的埃尔绍斯牧场开展了一项相机陷阱研究，以调查豹猫、短尾猫和郊狼的共存模式。我们对具有≥2个相互作用物种的多物种占有模型进行了一种新颖的多季节扩展，以进行探索性分析，研究种间相互作用，并考察斑块水平和景观水平指标相对于这些食肉动物出现情况的潜在影响。我们发现了所有三个物种季节性相互共存的有力证据，并观察到了一个物种特异性的季节性检测趋势。季节性共存模式也可以通过与高速道路距离的增加来解释。然而，这些结果对于规划得克萨斯州南部牧场的豹猫恢复具有重要的生态意义。这项研究表明，在埃尔绍斯牧场的环境条件下，豹猫、短尾猫和郊狼能够共存。进一步的研究将有助于更好地理解促进该群落内共存的生态机制。随着该地区道路网络在未来几十年的扩展，将需要大型私人运营牧场为豹猫和其他食肉动物物种提供重要栖息地。
