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41 results for “landscape of fear”
Dynamic landscapes of fear and safety alter prey refuge use in freshwater habitats
The non-consumptive effects of predators on prey behavior have been studied in many different systems. However, predator-prey ecology has placed a bulk of emphasis on how fear alters prey behavior, and new studies have begun to shift focus to the importance that safety in the form of refuges has in structuring prey behavioral responses. This project focuses on changes in the safety landscape as well as changes in the fear landscape and how these changes impact crayfish behavior. Using an established bass-crayfish predator prey system, we altered shelter quality and location in relation to the presence of bass odor signals. We measured shelter use by the crayfish in response to this changing landscape.
Landscape of fear and safety summer 2025 data from University of Michigan Biological Station stream research facilities
Predator prey interactions are often driven by sensory cues and these cues play a role in non-consumptive effects. We are interested in the role that chemical cues (from predators) play in resource use by one of fish common prey, crayfish. We created flow through mesocosms and populated them with crayfish and various configurations of shelters and food. Then we presented to the crayfish predator cues (from large mouth bass) and measured behavioral responses from midnight to 4 am.
Human presence shifts the landscape of fear for a free-living mammal
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Livestock guardian dogs establish a landscape of fear for wild predators: implications for the role of guardian dogs in reducing human-wildlife conflict and supporting biodiversity conservation
<ol> <li>Livestock guardian dogs (LGDs) are increasingly used to protect livestock from predators, but their effects on the distribution and behaviour of wild predators are mostly unknown. A key question is whether LGDs exclude predators from grazing land, or if predators continue to use areas with LGDs but modify their behaviour in ways that reduce impacts on livestock.</li> <li>We studied effects of LGDs (Maremma sheepdogs) on distribution and behaviour of red foxes Vulpes vulpes in north-eastern Victoria, Australia. We mapped the activity of LGDs across the study areas using GPS tracking and measured fox activity using remote cameras. We also measured risk-sensitive foraging in foxes to test if they reduced feeding time at sites regularly used by LGDs.</li> <li>Foxes occurred throughout areas occupied by LGDs, but their probability of detection was negatively related to probability of LGD presence. Foxes extracted fewer food items from experimental food stations in proportion to the intensity of local activity of LGDs. This indicates that though foxes overlapped with LGDs, they responded to risk of encountering LGDs by allocating less time to foraging. </li> <li>While LGDs do not necessarily exclude wild predators from areas used for livestock production, they can have strong effects on predator behaviour. Reduction in time allocated to foraging in areas regularly used by LGDs could lead to suppression of hunting behaviour and therefore a reduction in attacks on livestock. The flexible response of predators to LGDs should facilitate coexistence of wild predators with livestock farming, by allowing predators to continue to use areas occupied by livestock while still preventing attacks on those livestock. Our results therefore strengthen the case for use of LGDs in the conservation of predators threatened by conflict with farming. Suppression of hunting behaviour should also mean that prey species experience reduced rates of predation on farmland with LGDs. This effect could be valuable for conservation of threatened species of prey.</li> </ol>
Cougars, wolves, and humans drive a dynamic landscape of fear for elk
<p>To manage predation risk, prey navigate a dynamic landscape of fear, or spatiotemporal variation in risk perception, reflecting predator distributions, traits, and activity cycles. Prey may seek to reduce risk across this landscape by using habitat at times and in places when predators are less active. In multi-predator landscapes, avoiding one predator could increase vulnerability to another, making the landscape of fear difficult to predict and navigate. Additionally, humans may shape interactions between predators and prey, and induce new sources of risk. Humans can function as a shield, providing a refuge for prey from human-averse carnivores, and as a predator, causing mortality through hunting and vehicle collisions and eliciting a fear response that can exceed that of carnivores. We used telemetry data collected between 2017 and 2021 from 63 GPS-collared elk (Cervus canadensis), 42 cougars (Puma concolor) and 16 wolves (Canis lupus) to examine how elk habitat selection changed in relation to carnivores and humans in northeastern Washington, USA. Using step-selection functions, we evaluated elk habitat use in relation to cougars, wolves, and humans, diel period (daytime vs. nighttime), season (summer calving season vs. fall hunting season), and habitat structure (open vs. closed habitat). The diel cycle was critical to understanding elk movement, allowing elk to reduce encounters with predators where and when they would be the largest threat. Elk strongly avoided cougars at night but had a near neutral response to cougars in the day, whereas elk avoided wolves at all times of day. Elk generally used more open habitat where cougars and wolves were most active, rather than altering use of habitat structure depending on the predator species. Elk avoided humans during the day and ~ 80% of adult female mortality was human caused, suggesting that humans functioned as a "super predator" in this system. Simultaneously, elk leveraged the human shield against wolves but not cougars at night, and no elk were confirmed to have been killed by wolves. Our results add to the mounting evidence that humans profoundly affect predator-prey interactions, highlighting the importance of studying these dynamics in anthropogenic areas.</p>
Navigating the landscape of fear: Fruit flies exhibit distinct anti-predator and anti-parasite defensive behaviours
<p>Most organisms are at risk of being consumed by a predator or infected by a parasite at some point in their life. Theoretical constructs such as the landscape of fear (perception of risk) and non-consumptive effects (NCEs, costly responses sans predation or infection) have been proposed to describe and quantify anti-predator and anti-parasite responses. How prey/host species identify and respond to these risks determines their survival, reproductive success and, ultimately, fitness. Most studies to date have focused on either predator-prey or parasite-host interactions, yet habitats and ecosystems contain both parasitic and/or predatory species that represent a complex and heterogenous mosaic of risk factors. Here, we experimentally investigated the behavioural responses of a cactophilic fruit fly, <em>Drosophila nigrospiracula</em>, exposed to a range of species that include parasites (ectoparasitic mite), predators (jumping spiders), as well harmless heterospecifics (non-parasitic mites, ants and weevils). We demonstrate that D. nigrospiracula can differentiate between threat and non-threat species, increase erratic movements and decrease velocity in the presence of parasites, but decrease erratic movements and time spent grooming in the presence of predators. Of particular importance, flies could distinguish between parasitic female mites and non-parasitic male mites of the same species, and respond accordingly. We also show that the direction of these non-consumptive effects differ when exposed to parasitic mites (i.e., risk of infection) versus spiders (i.e., risk of predation). Given the opposing effects of predation versus infection risk on fly behaviour, we discuss potential trade-offs between parasite and predator avoidance behaviours. Our findings illustrate the complexity of risk assessment in a landscape of fear and the fine-tuned non-consumptive effects that arise in response. Moreover, this study is the first to examine these behavioural NCEs in a terrestrial system.</p>
Data from: Prudent burrow-site selection in a landscape of fear
<p>Prey animals should select safer breeding sites over riskier sites of otherwise similar habitats. This preference, however, may differ between conspecifics of different competitive abilities if the costs of intraspecific competition overpower the benefits of breeding in a safer site. Our goal was to test this hypothesis by exploring the burrow site selection of different-sized desert isopod (<em>Hemilepistus reaumuri</em>) females near and away from burrows of a scorpion predator. We found that larger females are more likely to occupy new burrows than smaller females, regardless of whether these burrows were close or away from scorpion burrows. We also found that larger females stayed longer in safer burrows and that smaller females tended to stay longer in riskier sites even in the absence of direct competition, implying a prudent burrow site selection. We found no association between male size and the tendency to occupy or to spend time in a burrow, regardless of whether these burrows were close or away from scorpion burrows. Our work highlights the need to consider intraspecific competition when exploring how predators regulate prey behavior and the consequences of these changes on prey mating patterns.</p>
Navigating the landscape of fear: Fruit flies exhibit distinct anti-predator and anti-parasite defensive behaviours
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Data from: Multiple scales of fear: Foraging behavior of white-naped jays in semiarid landscapes
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Data from: Diel predator activity drives a dynamic landscape of fear
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Cougars, wolves, and humans drive a dynamic landscape of fear for elk
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Data from: Prudent burrow-site selection in a landscape of fear
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Livestock guardian dogs establish a landscape of fear for wild predators: implications for the role of guardian dogs in reducing human-wildlife conflict and supporting biodiversity conservation
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Fear the reaper: ungulate carcasses may generate an ephemeral landscape of fear for rodents
<p>Animal carcasses provide an ephemeral pulse of nutrients for scavengers that utilize them. Carcass sites can increase species interactions and/or ephemeral, localized landscapes of fear for prey within the vicinity. Few studies have applied the landscape of fear to carcasses. Here we use a mass die-off of reindeer caused by lightning in Norway to test whether rodents avoided larger scavengers (e.g. corvids and fox). We used the presence and abundance of faeces as a proxy for carcass use over the course of two years and found that rodents showed the strongest avoidance towards changes in raven abundance (<i>β =</i> -0.469, <i>SE</i> = 0.231, <i>p</i>-value = 0.0429), but not fox, presumably due to greater predation risk imposed by large droves of raven. Moreover, the emergence of rodent occurrence within the carcass area corresponded well with the disappearance of raven during the second year of the study. We suggest that carcasses have the potential to shape the landscape of fear for prey, but that the overall effects of carcasses on individual fitness and populations of species ultimately depends on the carcass regime, e.g., carcass size, count, and areal extent, frequency, and the scavenger guild. We discuss conservation implications and how carcass provisioning and landscapes of fear could be potentially used to manage populations and ecosystems, but that there is a gap in understanding that must first be bridged.</p>
Data from: Trophic rewilding establishes a landscape of fear: Tasmanian devil introduction increases risk-sensitive foraging in a key prey species
Global declines of large carnivores have reduced the 'landscape of fear' that constrains the behaviour of other species. In recent years, active and passive trophic rewilding have potentially begun restoring these lost top-down controls. The Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) has declined severely due to a novel transmissible cancer. In response to extinction fears, devils were introduced to the devil-free Maria Island, where their abundance rapidly increased. We tested how this introduction influenced risk-sensitive foraging in the common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula), a major prey species for devils, using giving-up densities (GUDs). Before the introduction of devils, possum GUDs on Maria Island were indistinguishable from the long-diseased region of Tasmania, where devils have been rare since ~2000. Three years after devil introduction, GUDs were 64% higher on Maria Island than the control region, demonstrating that after an initial period of high mortality, possums quickly adopted risk-sensitive foraging behaviours. Devil activity across Maria Island was variable, leading to a heterogeneous landscape of fear and highlighting that top predators must be at functional densities to elicit behavioural responses from prey. Our study provides strong evidence that top predators modify the behaviour of prey by instilling fear, causing rapid ecological change following recoveries.
Data from: Bearding the scorpion in his den: desert isopods take risks to validate their 'landscape of fear' assessment
Animals balance the risk of predation against other vital needs by adjusting their spatial behavior to match spatiotemporal variation in predation risk. To map this 'landscape of fear', prey use evolutionary rules of thumbs that are associated with the activity and hunting efficiency of predators. In addition, prey acquire perceptual information about the presence, identity, and state of potential predators and use these cues to focus their acute anti-predatory responses. Our goal was to explore if and how prey also use such perceptual information that decays with time to update their spatiotemporal risk assessment. We placed scorpions in freshly dug burrows and recorded the isopods' spatial activity and their defense behavior upon encountering the burrows straight after settling the scorpions and seven days later. To corroborate our understanding, we also examined the isopods' detailed reactions towards deserted scorpion burrows. The isopods reacted defensively to scorpion burrows during their first encounter. After seven days, proportionally more isopods approached the scorpion burrows on their way out for foraging and fewer isopods encountered it on their way back. No changes in the spatial activity were observed towards deserted burrows. In addition, on the eighth day, more isopods entered the risky area near the scorpion burrows when leaving their own burrow than on the first encounter. The results suggest that isopods used predator cues to readjust the 'landscape of fear'. Yet, rather than avoiding the dangerous areas altogether, the isopods implemented risky inspection behavior, validating whether the danger is actual. Our findings imply that inspection behavior toward predators can be used for future planning of prey spatial activity, offsetting possible 'information decay costs'.
Data from: Avian top predator and the landscape of fear: responses of mammalian mesopredators to risk imposed by the golden eagle
Top predators may induce extensive cascading effects on lower trophic levels, for example, through intraguild predation (IGP). The impacts of both mammalian and avian top predators on species of the same class have been extensively studied, but the effects of the latter upon mammalian mesopredators are not yet as well known. We examined the impact of the predation risk imposed by a large avian predator, the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos, L.), on its potential mammalian mesopredator prey, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes, L.), and the pine marten (Martes martes, L.). The study combined 23 years of countrywide data from nesting records of eagles and wildlife track counts of mesopredators in Finland, northern Europe. The predation risk of the golden eagle was modeled as a function of territory density, density of fledglings produced, and distance to nearest active eagle territory, with the expectation that a high predation risk would reduce the abundances of smaller sized pine martens in particular. Red foxes appeared not to suffer from eagle predation, being in fact most numerous close to eagle nests and in areas with more eagle territories. This is likely due to similar prey preferences of the two predators and the larger size of foxes enabling them to escape eagle predation risk. Somewhat contrary to our prediction, the abundance of pine martens increased from low to intermediate territory density and at close proximity to eagle nests, possibly because of similar habitat preferences of martens and eagles. We found a slightly decreasing trend of marten abundance at high territory density, which could indicate that the response in marten populations is dependent on eagle density. However, more research is needed to better establish whether mesopredators are intimidated or predated by golden eagles, and whether such effects could in turn cascade to lower trophic levels, benefitting herbivorous species.
Data from: Climate and the landscape of fear in an African savanna
1.Herbivores frequently have to make tradeoffs between two basic needs: the need to acquire forage and the need to avoid predation. One manifestation of this tradeoff is the "landscape of fear" phenomenon – wherein herbivores avoid areas of high perceived predation risk even if forage is abundant or of high quality in those areas. Although this phenomenon is well-established among invertebrates, its applicability to terrestrial large herbivores remains debated, in part because experimental evidence is scarce. 2.This study was designed to (a) experimentally test the effects of tree density – a key landscape feature associated with predation risk for African ungulates – on herbivore habitat use, and (b) establish whether habitat use patterns could be explained by tradeoffs between foraging opportunities and predation risk-avoidance. 3.In a Kenyan savanna system, replicate plots dominated by the tree Acacia drepanolobium were cleared, thinned, or left intact. Ungulate responses were measured over four years, which included years of moderate rainfall as well as a severe drought. 4.Under average rainfall conditions, most herbivores (primarily plains zebra, Grant's gazelle, and hartebeest) favored sites with fewer trees and higher visibility – regardless of grass production – while elephants (too large to be vulnerable to predation) favored sites with many trees. During the drought, however, herbivores favored sites that had high grass biomass, but not high visibility. Thus, during the drought, herbivores sought areas where food was more abundant, despite probable higher risk of predation. 5.These results illustrate that the "landscape of fear", and the associated interactions between top-down and bottom-up effects, is not static, but rather shifts markedly under different conditions. Climate thus has the potential to alter the strength and spatial dynamics of behaviorally-mediated cascades in large herbivore systems.
Data from: Environmental controls on African herbivore responses to landscapes of fear
<p>Herbivores balance forage acquisition with the need to avoid predation, often leading to tradeoffs between forgoing resources to avoid areas of high predation risk, or tolerating increased risk in exchange for improved forage. The outcome of these decisions is likely to change with varying resource levels, with herbivores altering their response to predation risk across heterogeneous landscapes. Such contrasting responses will alter the strength of non-consumptive predation effects, but are poorly understood in multiple- predator/multiple-prey systems. We combined fine-scaled spatial information on two predator and 11 herbivore species with remotely-sensed measurements of forage quantity and vegetation structure to assess variation in herbivore response to predation risk with changing environmental context, herbivore body size, herbivore foraging strategy (browsers versus grazers), predator type (ambush versus coursing hunters) and group size across a South African savanna landscape. Medium-sized herbivore species were more likely to adjust their response to risk with a changing resource landscape: warthog, nyala and wildebeest tolerated increased long-term predator encounter risk in exchange for abundant (warthog and nyala) or preferred (wildebeest) forage, and nyala selected areas with higher visibility only in landscapes where food was abundant. Impala were more likely to be observed in areas of high visibility where wild dog risk was high. In addition, although buffalo did not avoid areas of high lion encounter risk, large buffalo groups were more frequently observed in open areas where lion encounter risk was high, whereas small groups did not alter their space use across varying levels of risk. Our findings suggest that risk effects are not uniform across landscapes for medium-sized herbivores and large buffalo groups, instead varying with environmental context and leading to a dynamic landscape of fear. However, responses among these and other prey species were variable and not consistent, highlighting the complexities inherent to multi-predator/multi-prey systems.</p>
The landscape of fear has individual layers: an experimental test of among-individual differences in perceived predation risk during foraging
<p>Perceived predation risk varies in space and time creating a landscape of fear. This key feature of an animal's environment is classically studied as a species-specific property. However, individuals differ in how they solve the trade-off between safety and reward and may, hence, differ consistently and predictively in perceived predation risk across landscapes. To test this hypothesis, we quantified among-individual differences in boldness and activity and exposed behaviourally phenotyped male bank voles (<em>Myodes glareolus</em>) individually to two different experimental landscapes of risks in large outdoor enclosures and provided resources as discrete food patches. We manipulated perceived predation risk via vegetation height between 2 and >30 cm and quantified patch use indirectly via RFID-logging and giving-up densities. We statistically disentangled among-individual differences in microhabitat use from spatially varying perceived risk, i.e. landscape of fear. We found that individuals varied in mean vegetation height of their foraging microhabitats and that this microhabitat selection matched the intrinsic individual differences in perceived risk. As predicted by the patch use model, all individual's perceived higher risks when foraging in lower vegetation. However, individuals differed in their reaction norm slopes of perceived risk to vegetation height, and these differences in slopes were consistent across two different landscapes of risks and resources. We interpret these results as evidence for individual landscapes of fear, which could be predicted by among-individual differences in activity and boldness. Since perceived predation risk affects when and where to forage, among-individual differences in fear responses could act as a mode of intraspecific niche complementarity (i.e. individual niche specialization), help explain behavioural type by environment correlations, and will likely have cascading indirect effects on lower trophic levels.</p>
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