Detection histories of mesocarnivores in agricultural areas of Southern Chile

<p>We obtained mesocarnivore detection/non-detection data from 180 sampling units (4 km² each) located in the agricultural landscapes of southern Chile from January-April of 2019. We used single-species occupancy models to investigate the associations of forest fragmentation, forest loss, and private land ownership subdivision (as a measure of human use intensification) with the occurrence of four mesocarnivores (güiña, grey fox, culpeo fox, and Molina's hog-nosed skunk), and extended this framework to two-species occupancy models to assess patterns of mesocarnivore co-occurrence with domestic carnivores. We also assessed whether co-occurrence of native and domestic carnivores led to shifts in species' temporal activity.</p> <p>We hypothesized that the occurrence of native mesocarnivores was largely mediated by human use intensification variables only, the occurrence of domestic mesocarnivores only, or a combination of both. Our results largely supported the human use intensification hypothesis, with some influence of domestic mesocarnivores. Mesocarnivore occurrence shifted from a native to a domestic species composition as private land ownership subdivision increased, and native mesocarnivores shifted their behaviour temporally when co-occurring with domestics. In addition, the presence of domestic dogs was associated with an absence of native mesocarnivores, possibly driving a defaunation process in agricultural areas.</p>