Dyck Marissa A, Iosif Ruben, Promberger-Fürpass Barbara, Popescu Viorel D
Department of Biological Sciences Ohio University Athens Ohio USA.
Foundation Conservation Carpathia Brașov Romania.
Ecol Evol. 2022 May 16;12(5):e8921. doi: 10.1002/ece3.8921. eCollection 2022 May.
The recovery of terrestrial carnivores in Europe is a conservation success story. Initiatives focused on restoring top predators require information on how resident species may interact with the re-introduced species as their interactions have the potential to alter food webs, yet such data are scarce for Europe.In this study, we assessed patterns of occupancy and interactions between three carnivore species in the Romanian Carpathians. Romania houses one of the few intact carnivore guilds in Europe, making it an ideal system to assess intraguild interactions and serve as a guide for reintroductions elsewhere.We used camera trap data from two seasons in Transylvanian forests to assess occupancy and co-occurrence of carnivores using multispecies occupancy models.Mean occupancy in the study area was highest for lynx (Ψ = 0.76 95% CI: 0.42-0.92; Ψ = 0.71 CI: 0.38-0.84) and wolf (Ψ = 0.60 CI: 0.34-0.78; Ψ = 0.81 CI: 0.25-0.95) and lowest for wildcat (Ψ = 0.40 CI: 0.19-0.63; Ψ = 0.52 CI: 0.17-0.78)We found that marginal occupancy predictors for carnivores varied between seasons. We also found differences in predictors of co-occurrence between seasons for both lynx-wolf and wildcat-wolf co-occurrence. For both seasons, we found that conditional occupancy probabilities of all three species were higher when another species was present.Our results indicate that while there are seasonal differences in predictors of occupancy and co-occurrence of the three species, co-occurrence in our study area is high.Terrestrial carnivore recovery efforts are ongoing worldwide. Insights into interspecific relations between carnivore species are critical when considering the depauperate communities they are introduced in. Our work showcases that apex carnivore coexistence is possible, but dependent on protection afforded to forest habitats and their prey base.
欧洲陆生食肉动物的恢复是一个保护成功案例。专注于恢复顶级食肉动物的举措需要了解本地物种与重新引入物种之间可能存在的相互作用，因为它们的相互作用有可能改变食物网，但欧洲缺乏此类数据。在本研究中，我们评估了罗马尼亚喀尔巴阡山脉中三种食肉动物的占据模式和相互作用。罗马尼亚拥有欧洲少数几个完整的食肉动物群落之一，使其成为评估种内相互作用的理想系统，并可为其他地区的物种重新引入提供指导。我们使用特兰西瓦尼亚森林两个季节的相机陷阱数据，通过多物种占据模型评估食肉动物的占据情况和共存情况。研究区域内，猞猁（Ψ = 0.76，95%置信区间：0.42 - 0.92；Ψ = 0.71，置信区间：0.38 - 0.84）和狼（Ψ = 0.60，置信区间：0.34 - 0.78；Ψ = 0.81，置信区间：0.25 - 0.95）的平均占据率最高，野猫（Ψ = 0.40，置信区间：0.19 - 0.63；Ψ = 0.52，置信区间：0.17 - 0.78）的平均占据率最低。我们发现食肉动物的边际占据预测因子在不同季节有所不同。我们还发现，在猞猁 - 狼和野猫 - 狼共存的情况下，不同季节共存的预测因子也存在差异。在两个季节中，我们都发现当另一个物种存在时，所有三个物种的条件占据概率都更高。我们的结果表明，虽然这三个物种的占据和共存预测因子存在季节性差异，但我们研究区域内的共存率很高。全球范围内正在进行陆生食肉动物的恢复工作。在考虑将食肉动物引入已退化的群落时，了解食肉动物物种之间的种间关系至关重要。我们的工作表明，顶级食肉动物有可能共存，但这取决于对森林栖息地及其猎物基础的保护。
