RED FOX-LIKE CANIDS

2019 ◽  
pp. 172-273
Keyword(s):  
2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ines Pedro Perpetuo ◽  
Alessandro Felder ◽  
Andrew Pitsillides ◽  
Michael Doube ◽  
Isabel Orriss

2021 ◽  
Vol 66 (4) ◽  
pp. 583-593
Author(s):  
Rocío Cano-Martínez ◽  
David Carricondo-Sanchez ◽  
Olivier Devineau ◽  
Morten Odden

AbstractCyclic fluctuations of prey have profound effects on the functioning of ecosystems, for example, by changing the dynamics, behavior, and intraguild interactions of predators. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of rodent cyclic fluctuations in the interspecific interactions of a guild of small- and medium-sized predators: red fox (Vulpes vulpes), pine marten (Martes martes), and weasels (Mustela erminea and Mustela nivalis) in the boreal ecosystem. We analyzed eight years (2007–2014) of snow tracking data from southeastern Norway using structural equation models to assess hypothesized networks of causal relationships. Our results show that fluctuations in rodent abundance alter the strength of predator’s interactions, as well as the effect of determinant environmental variables. Pine marten and weasel abundances were positively associated with rodent population growth rate, but not red fox abundance. All predators were positively associated with each other; however, the association between red fox and the other predators weakened when rodents increased. Rodent fluctuations had variable effects on the habitat use of the predators. The presence of agricultural land was important for all predators, but this importance weakened for the mustelids as rodent abundance increased. We discuss the shifting role of interference and exploitative competition as possible mechanisms behind these patterns. Overall, we highlight the importance of accounting for the dynamics of prey resources when studying interspecific interactions among predators. Additionally, we demonstrate the importance of monitoring the predator populations in order to anticipate undesirable outcomes such as increased generalist predator abundances to the detriment of specialists.


Author(s):  
Moisés Gonzálvez ◽  
Carlos Martínez-Carrasco ◽  
Marcos Moleón

AbstractHigh infection risk is often associated with aggregations of animals around attractive resources. Here, we explore the behavior of potential hosts of non-trophically transmitted parasites at mesocarnivore carcass sites. We used videos recorded by camera traps at 56 red fox (Vulpes vulpes) carcasses and 10 carcasses of other wild carnivore species in three areas of southeastern Spain. Scavenging species, especially wild canids, mustelids and viverrids, showed more frequent rubbing behavior at carcass sites than non-scavenging and domestic species, suggesting that they could be exposed to a higher potential infection risk. The red fox was the species that most frequently contacted carcasses and marked and rubbed carcass sites. Foxes contacted heterospecific carcasses more frequently and earlier than conspecific ones and, when close contact occurred, it was more likely to be observed at heterospecific carcasses. This suggests that foxes avoid contact with the type of carcass and time period that have the greatest risk as a source of parasites. Overall, non-trophic behaviors of higher infection risk were mainly associated with visitor-carcass contact and visitor contact with feces and urine, rather than direct contact between visitors. Moreover, contact events between scavengers and carnivore carcasses were far more frequent than consumption events, which suggests that scavenger behavior is more constrained by the risk of acquiring meat-borne parasites than non-trophically transmitted parasites. This study contributes to filling key gaps in understanding the role of carrion in the landscape of disgust, which may be especially relevant in the current global context of emerging and re-emerging pathogens. Graphical abstract


Mammal Review ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia A. Fleming ◽  
Heather M. Crawford ◽  
Alyson M. Stobo‐Wilson ◽  
Stuart J. Dawson ◽  
Christopher R. Dickman ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Angelika Nieszała ◽  
Daniel Klich

AbstractThe methods used to assess the significance of land cover in the vicinity of a road for the mortality of mesopredators are diverse. In assessing the effect of land cover along the road on road causalities, scientists use various buffer sizes, or even no buffer along the road. The aim of this study was to verify how results of land cover effects on the mortality of mesopredators on roads may differ when analyzing various buffer sizes from the road. We assessed road causalities in the Warmian-Masurian voivodeship (Poland) from 3 consecutive years: 2015, 2016, and 2017. The roads were divided into equal sections of 2000 m each with buffer size of radius: 10, 250, 500, and 1000 m. We analyzed the number of road kills of red fox and European badger separately in a generalized linear model, whereas explanatory variables we used land cover types (based on the Corine Land Cover inventory) and traffic volume. Mean annual mortality from road collisions amounts to 2.36% of the red fox population and 3.82% of the European badger population. We found that the buffer size determines the results of the impact of land cover on mesocarnivore mortality on roads. The red fox differed from the European badger in response to land cover depending on the buffer size. The differences we have shown relate in particular to built-up areas. Our results indicate a 500-m buffer as best reflecting the land cover effects in road kills of both species. This was confirmed by model evaluation and a tendency to use or avoid the vicinity of human settlements of the analyzed species. We concluded that buffer size will probably affect mostly the significance of cover types that are spatially correlated with roads, positively or negatively. We suggest that the home range size of given species in local conditions should be assessed before determining the size of the buffer for analysis.


Oryx ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 239-243 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justine S. Alexander ◽  
Jeremy J. Cusack ◽  
Chen Pengju ◽  
Shi Kun ◽  
Philip Riordan

AbstractIn high-altitude settings of Central Asia the Endangered snow leopard Panthera uncia has been recognized as a potential umbrella species. As a first step in assessing the potential benefits of snow leopard conservation for other carnivores, we sought a better understanding of the presence of other carnivores in areas occupied by snow leopards in China's Qilianshan National Nature Reserve. We used camera-trap and sign surveys to examine whether other carnivores were using the same travel routes as snow leopards at two spatial scales. We also considered temporal interactions between species. Our results confirm that other carnivores, including the red fox Vulpes vulpes, grey wolf Canis lupus, Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx and dhole Cuon alpinus, occur along snow leopard travel routes, albeit with low detection rates. Even at the smaller scale of our camera trap survey all five carnivores (snow leopard, lynx, wolf, red fox and dhole) were observed. Kernel density estimates suggested a high degree of temporal overlap between the snow leopard and the fox, and the snow leopard and the lynx, as indicated by high overlap coefficient estimates. There is an opportunity to consider protective measures at the local scale that would benefit various species simultaneously. However, it should also be recognized that snow leopard conservation efforts could exacerbate human–wildlife conflicts through their protective effect on other carnivore species.


Parasitology ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 125 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. TSUKADA ◽  
K. HAMAZAKI ◽  
S. GANZORIG ◽  
T. IWAKI ◽  
K. KONNO ◽  
...  

The effect of bait-delivered anthelmintic to reduce the prevalence of Echinococcus multilocularis in wild red foxes was evaluated in Koshimizu, in the eastern part of Hokkaido, Japan. The study area (200 km2) was divided into baited and non-baited sections. The anthelmintic baits were distributed around fox den sites in the baited section every month for 13 months. After 1 year of the anthelmintic bait distribution, the prevalence of E. multilocularis in foxes, evaluated either by the parasite egg examination (from 27.1 to 5.6%) or coproantigen ELISA (from 59.6 to 29.7%), decreased in the baited section contrasting to that in the non-baited section (parasite egg: from 18.8 to 24.2%; ELISA: from 41.9 to 45.8%). The prevalence of E. multilocularis in grey red-backed vole Clethrionomys rufocanus, caught around fox dens, born after bait distribution also decreased and was significantly lower than that in non-baited section. However, within the study periods, the coproantigen-positive rate in fox faeces sporadically increased, while egg-positive rate constantly decreased. Since coproantigen ELISA can detect pre-patent infection, this observation indicates that reinfection pressure in the baited section was still high even after the 13 months of anthelmintic bait distribution. Therefore, the bait distribution longer than our study period is required for the efficient control of E. multilocularis in wild red fox population.


2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 459-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Magdalena Krajcarz ◽  
Maciej Tomasz Krajcarz
Keyword(s):  

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