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108 results for “apex predation”
Data from: Jaguar Movement Database: a GPS-based movement dataset of an apex predator in the Neotropics
The field of movement ecology has rapidly grown during the last decade, with important advancements in tracking devices and analytical tools that have provided unprecedented insights into where, when, and why species move across a landscape. Although there has been an increasing emphasis on making animal movement data publicly available, there has also been a conspicuous dearth in the availability of such data on large carnivores. Globally, large predators are of conservation concern. However, due to their secretive behavior and low densities, obtaining movement data on apex predators is expensive and logistically challenging. Consequently, the relatively small sample sizes typical of large carnivore movement studies may limit insights into the ecology and behavior of these elusive predators. The aim of this initiative is to make available to the conservation-scientific community a dataset of 134,690 locations of jaguars (Panthera onca) collected from 117 individuals (54 males and 63 females) tracked by GPS technology. Individual jaguars were monitored in five different range countries representing a large portion of the species' distribution. This dataset may be used to answer a variety of ecological questions including but not limited to: improved models of connectivity from local to continental scales; the use of natural or human-modified landscapes by jaguars; movement behavior of jaguars in regions not represented in this dataset; intraspecific interactions; and predator-prey interactions. In making our dataset publicly available, we hope to motivate other research groups to do the same in the near future. Specifically, we aim to help inform a better understanding of jaguar movement ecology with applications towards effective decision making and maximizing long-term conservation efforts for this ecologically important species.
Data from: Isotopic niche partitioning between two apex predators over time
1. Stable isotope analyses have become an important tool in reconstructing diets, analyzing resource use patterns, elucidating trophic relations among predators and understanding the structure of food webs. 2. Here, we use stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in bone collagen to reconstruct and compare the isotopic niches of adult South American fur seals (Arctocephalus australis); n = 86) and sea lions (Otaria flavescens); n = 49) –two otariid species with marked morphological differences– in the Río de la Plata estuary (Argentina - Uruguay) and the adjacent Atlantic Ocean during the second half of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century. Samples from the middle Holocene (n = 7 fur seals and n = 5 sea lions) are also included in order to provide a reference point for characterizing resource partitioning before major anthropogenic modifications of the environment. 3. We found that the South American fur seals and South American sea lions had distinct isotopic niches during the middle Holocene. Isotopic niche segregation was similar at the beginning of the second half of the 20th century, but has diminished over time. 4. The progressive convergence of the isotopic niches of these two otariids during the second half of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century is most likely due to the increased reliance of South American fur seals on demersal prey. 5. This recent dietary change of South American fur seals can be explained by at least two non-mutually exclusive mechanisms: (i) the decrease in the abundance of sympatric South American sea lions as a consequence of small colony size and high pup mortality resulting from commercial sealing; and (ii) the decrease in the average size of demersal fishes due to intense fishing of the larger class sizes, which may have increased their accessibility to those eared seals with a smaller mouth gape, i.e., South American fur seals of both sexes and female South American sea lions.
Data from: Satellite telemetry reveals higher fishing mortality rates than previously estimated, suggesting overfishing of an apex marine predator
Overfishing is a primary cause of population declines for many shark species of conservation concern. However, means of obtaining information on fishery interactions and mortality, necessary for the development of successful conservation strategies, are often fisheries-dependent and of questionable quality for many species of commercially exploited pelagic sharks. We used satellite telemetry as a fisheries-independent tool to document fisheries interactions, and quantify fishing mortality of the highly migratory shortfin mako shark (Isurus oxyrinchus) in the western North Atlantic Ocean. Forty satellite-tagged shortfin mako sharks tracked over 3 years entered the Exclusive Economic Zones of 19 countries and were harvested in fisheries of five countries, with 30% of tagged sharks harvested. Our tagging-derived estimates of instantaneous fishing mortality rates (F = 0.19–0.56) were 10-fold higher than previous estimates from fisheries-dependent data (approx. 0.015–0.024), suggesting data used in stock assessments may considerably underestimate fishing mortality. Additionally, our estimates of F were greater than those associated with maximum sustainable yield, suggesting a state of overfishing. This information has direct application to evaluations of stock status and for effective management of populations, and thus satellite tagging studies have potential to provide more accurate estimates of fishing mortality and survival than traditional fisheries-dependent methodology.
Data from: Resource exploitation collapses the home range of an apex predator
<p>Optimizing energy acquisition and expenditure is a fundamental trade-off for consumers, strikingly reflected in how mobile organisms use space. Several studies have established that home range size decreases as resource density increases, but the balance of costs and benefits associated with exploiting a given resource density is unclear. We evaluate how the ability of consumers to exploit their resources through movement (termed "resource exploitation") interacts with resource density to influence home range size. We then contrast two hypotheses to evaluate how resource exploitation influences home range size across a vast gradient of productivity and density of human-created linear features (roads and seismic lines) that are known to facilitate animal movements. Under the Diffusion Facilitation Hypothesis, linear features are predicted to lead to more diffuse space use and larger home ranges. Under the Exploitation Efficiency Hypothesis, linear features are predicted to increase foraging efficiency, resulting in less space being required to meet energetic demands and therefore smaller home ranges. Using GPS telemetry data from 142 wolves (<i>Canis lupus</i>) distributed over more than 500,000 km<sup>2</sup>, we found that wolf home range size was influenced by the interaction between resource density and exploitation efficiency. Home range size decreased as linear feature density increased, supporting the Exploitation Efficiency Hypothesis. However, the effect of linear features on home range size diminished in more productive areas, suggesting that exploitation efficiency is of greater importance when resource density is low. These results suggest that smaller home ranges will occur where both linear feature density and primary productivity are higher, thereby increasing regional wolf density.</p>
Distribution. Llamas are found at 3800-5000 m above sea level in the Central Andes, from C Peru to W Bolivia and N Argentina. Llama distribution reached its apex during the expansion of the Inca Empire (1470-1532 ap), when pack trains were used to carry supplies for the royal armies to S Colombia and C Chile. Although originally indigenous and endemic to South America, Llamas have now been exported to countries around the world as a companion animal, featured in livestock shows, used for trekking and backpacking, cottage industry and home use ofits wool, and in North America increasingly utilized as a guard animal for protecting sheep and goats from canid predators. in Camelidae
Distribution. Llamas are found at 3800-5000 m above sea level in the Central Andes, from C Peru to W Bolivia and N Argentina. Llama distribution reached its apex during the expansion of the Inca Empire (1470-1532 ap), when pack trains were used to carry supplies for the royal armies to S Colombia and C Chile. Although originally indigenous and endemic to South America, Llamas have now been exported to countries around the world as a companion animal, featured in livestock shows, used for trekking and backpacking, cottage industry and home use ofits wool, and in North America increasingly utilized as a guard animal for protecting sheep and goats from canid predators.
Density survey of apex predators, their main prey and human disturbance in the eastern Central African Republic
<p>Summary of all density estimates as described in Aebischer et al. 2020, Biological Conservation.</p>
Data from: Evolution mediates the effects of apex predation on aquatic food webs
Ecological and evolutionary mechanisms are increasingly thought to shape local community dynamics. Here, I evaluate if the local adaptation of a meso-predator to an apex predator alters local food webs. The marbled salamander (Ambystoma opacum) is an apex predator that consumes both the spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) and shared zooplankton prey. Common garden experiments reveal that spotted salamander populations which co-occur with marbled salamanders forage more intensely than those that face other predator species. These foraging differences, in turn, alter the diversity, abundance and composition of zooplankton communities in common garden experiments and natural ponds. Locally adapted spotted salamanders exacerbate prey biomass declines associated with apex predation, but dampen the top-down effects of apex predation on prey diversity. Countergradient selection on foraging explains why locally adapted spotted salamanders exacerbate prey biomass declines. The two salamander species prefer different prey species, which explains why adapted spotted salamanders buffer changes in prey composition owing to apex predation. Results suggest that local adaptation can strongly mediate effects from apex predation on local food webs. Community ecologists might often need to consider the evolutionary history of populations to understand local diversity patterns, food web dynamics, resource gradients and their responses to disturbance.
Urbanization impacts apex predator gene flow but not genetic diversity across an urban-rural divide
<p>Apex predators are important indicators of intact natural ecosystems. They are also sensitive to urbanization because they require broad home ranges and extensive contiguous habitat to support their prey base. Pumas (<i>Puma concolor</i>) can persist near human developed areas, but urbanization may be detrimental to their movement ecology, population structure, and genetic diversity. To investigate potential effects of urbanization in population connectivity of pumas, we performed a landscape genomics study of 130 pumas on the rural Western Slope and more urbanized Front Range of Colorado, USA. Over 12,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms were genotyped using double-digest, restriction site-associated DNA sequencing (ddRADseq). We investigated patterns of gene flow and genetic diversity, and tested for correlations between key landscape variables and genetic distance to assess the effects of urbanization and other landscape factors on gene flow. Levels of genetic diversity were similar for the Western Slope and Front Range, but effective population sizes were smaller, genetic distances were higher, and there was more admixture in the more urbanized Front Range. Forest cover was strongly positively associated with puma gene flow on the Western Slope, while impervious surfaces restricted gene flow and more open, natural habitats enhanced gene flow on the Front Range. Landscape genomic analyses revealed differences in puma movement and gene flow patterns in rural versus urban settings. Our results highlight the utility of dense, genome-scale markers to document subtle impacts of urbanization on a wide-ranging carnivore living near a large urban center.</p>
Genomic assessment of global population structure in a highly migratory and habitat versatile apex predator, the tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier)
<p>Understanding the population dynamics of highly mobile, widely distributed, oceanic sharks, many of which are overexploited, is necessary to aid their conservation management. We investigated the global population genomics of tiger sharks (<i>Galeocerdo cuvier</i>), a circumglobally distributed, apex predator displaying remarkable behavioral versatility in its diet, habitat use (near coastal, coral reef, pelagic), and individual movement patterns (spatially resident to long-distance migrations). We genotyped 242 tiger sharks from 10 globally distributed locations at more than 2000 single nucleotide polymorphisms. Although this species often conducts massive distance migrations, the data show strong genetic differentiation at both neutral (<i>F</i><sub>ST</sub>=0.125-0.144) and candidate outlier loci (<i>F</i><sub>ST</sub>=0.570-0.761) between western Atlantic and Indo-Pacific sharks, suggesting the potential for adaptation to the environments specific to these oceanic regions. Within these regions, there was mixed support for population differentiation between northern and southern hemispheres in the western Atlantic, and none for structure within the Indian Ocean. Notably, the results demonstrate a low level of population differentiation of tiger sharks from the remote Hawaiian archipelago compared to sharks from the Indian Ocean (<i>F</i><sub>ST</sub>=0.003-0.005, <i>P</i><0.01). Given concerns about biodiversity loss and marine ecosystem impacts caused by overfishing of oceanic sharks in the midst of rapid environmental change, our results suggest it imperative that international fishery management prioritize conservation of the evolutionary potential of the highly genetically differentiated Atlantic and Indo-Pacific populations of this unique apex predator. Furthermore, we suggest targeted management attention to tiger sharks in the Hawaiian archipelago based on a precautionary biodiversity conservation perspective.</p>
Urbanization impacts apex predator gene flow but not genetic diversity across an urban-rural divide
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Data from: Evolution mediates the effects of apex predation on aquatic food webs
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Data from: Jaguar Movement Database: a GPS-based movement dataset of an apex predator in the Neotropics
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Data from: Stream community richness predicts apex predator occupancy dynamics in riparian systems
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Data from: Juvenile survival, competing risks, and spatial variation in mortality risk of a marine apex predator
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Data from: Genetic population structure and demography of an apex predator, the tiger shark Galeocerdo cuvier
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Data from: Behavioral responses by an apex predator to urbanization
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Data from: Life at the top: lake ecotype influences the foraging patterns, metabolic costs and life history of an apex fish predator
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Archive data for: Loss of predation risk from apex predators can exacerbate marine tropicalization caused by extreme climatic events
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Data from: Isotopic niche partitioning between two apex predators over time
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Reintroduced wolves and hunting limit the abundance of a subordinate apex predator in a multi-use landscape
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Allen Brain Atlas
Allen Brain Atlas is an Allen Institute collection of brain map atlases, datasets, APIs, and analysis tools covering mouse, human, and non-human primate brain resources.
Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)
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DANDI Archive for NWB datasets
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International Brain Laboratory public data
The International Brain Laboratory public data releases expose standardized mouse decision-making experiments, including Neuropixels recordings, widefield calcium imaging, behavior, and session metadata accessed through the ONE API.
OpenNeuro
OpenNeuro is a free, open platform for sharing neuroimaging datasets, with public search, dataset pages, and download paths for web, S3, DataLad, and the OpenNeuro CLI.