scholarly journals Daily activity pattern of pumas (Puma concolor) and their potential prey in a tropical cloud forest of Colombia

2021 ◽  
pp. 267-278
Author(s):  
J. C. Cepeda–Duque ◽  
B. Gómez–Valencia ◽  
S. Alvarez ◽  
D. R. Gutiérrez–Sanabria ◽  
D. J. Lizcano

Ecosystems in the northern Andes face unprecedented habitat loss. Pumas are the top predators in the region and exert key ecological functions, such as population control and resource facilitation. However, little is known about the temporal niche of the species or its effects on behaviour of prey in the tropics. We hypothesized that there is a link between the activity patterns of pumas and their prey in a cloud forest of the Central Andes of Colombia. We installed 61 camera traps to estimate the degree of overlap between the daily activity curves of pumas and seven potential prey species, using conditional kernel density functions. Pumas, armadillos, mountain pacas, and white–eared opossums were mainly nocturnal, with little crepuscular activity and high temporal overlap. Central American agouti, mountain coati, little red brocket deer, and Cauca guan displayed a predominantly diurnal activity and temporal partitioning with pumas. As opportunistic predators, pumas were able to maximize foraging efficiency by preying on the crepuscular and nocturnal species. Conservation of this highland predator will largely depend on the suitable management of its native prey.

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosane Vera Marques ◽  
Marta Elena Fabián

Camera traps were used to study the daily activity patterns of medium and large mammals (> 1 kg) in an area of Mixed Rain Forest (High Altitude Atlantic Forest) in the South of Brazil. Species that exhibited diurnal tendencies were Dasyprocta azarae, Eira barbara, Nasua nasua and Puma yagouaroundi. The nocturnal species observed were Dasypus novemcinctus, Tamandua tetradactyla and Procyon cancrivorus.  Didelphis aurita, Leopardus pardalis and L. wiedii exhibited nocturnal tendencies. Cerdocyon thous tended to be more crepuscular than nocturnal. Puma concolor exhibited a tendency to nocturnal and crepuscular activity, but diurnal activity was also observed. Finally, the species Mazama gouazoubira and Leopardus tigrinus were defined as cathemeral. While many species exhibited a tendency for the majority of their activity to be concentrated at certain times, there was no time during which medium and large mammal activity entirely ceased, demonstrating a balanced daily distribution of activity in a Mixed Rain Forest. There were differences in activity patterns between different seasons, especially between summer and winter, with nocturnal species exhibiting a tendency to more intense activity during the first half of the night during the winter and diurnal species tending to be more active at the end of the day during the same season.


2008 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Giovanii Estrada Hernández

RESUMEN: La Selva Maya es el bosque tropical de hoja ancha más extenso de Centroamérica, se extiende entre México, Guatemala y Belice. El jaguar y el puma, son los felinos más grandes de América. En esta zona viven simpátricamente por lo que se presupone segregación en alguno de los componentes de su nicho ecológico. En este estudio se analizaron y compararon tres de los componentes principales del nicho: dieta, uso de hábitat y patrones de actividad, con el objetivo de evaluar si existe segregación entre el jaguar y el puma. Para la obtención de los datos se colectaron excrementos de manera oportunista, y se utilizaron trampas de cámaras automáticas en cuatro áreas protegidas. Se analizo la zona de estudio, a través de sistemas de información geográfica para determinar las proporciones de distintos tipos de hábitat presentes, y se colectaron datos de abundancias de las presas. Se analizaron los patrones y en la dieta, en el hábitat utilizado y en el horario de actividad. Se determino que el jaguar tuvo una dieta diferente y mas amplia comparada con la del puma, así también que este consume en promedio, presas más pequeñas. Las presas preferidas por elpuma fueron, tres especies de venados y tepezcuintles. Para el jaguar fueron coches de monte, pizotes y armadillos. Ambas especies presentaron un patrón similar de uso de hábitat, donde el "bosque alto" fue utilizado proporcionalmente a su abundancia, y el puma evitó el "bosque bajo". En cuanto a los patrones de actividad, ambos prefirieron horas nocturnas para desplazarse, aunque el puma presento mayor variabilidad. Se observo que ambas especies no se segregan mutuamente, espacial ni temporalmente. La frecuente utilización del "bosque bajo" y su relación con las aguadas y arroyos, es un factor importante en el mantenimiento de poblaciones de grandes felinos en la Selva MayaPALABRAS CLAVE: Felidae, Panthera onca, Puma concolor, coexistencia, nicho ecológico, Selva Maya, segregación ecológica.ABSTRACT: The Mayan Forest is the largest tropical broad-leaf forest remainder in Central America which extends between Mexico, Guatemala and Belize. Jaguar and puma are the biggest American wild cats. In this area both live sympatric which suggest segregation in at least one of its ecological niche components. In this study I analyzed and compared three of the principal niche components: diet, habitat use and activity patterns, with the main objective of assess if occurs ecological segregation among jaguar and puma. To obtain the data it was collected  jaguar and puma’s scats in an opportunistic way, and was used automatic camera traps in four protected areas. I analyzed the study area by geographic information system (GIS) to determine proportions of different habitat types, and also I used  previous collected prey abundance data. I analyzed patterns in diet, in habitat use and temporal activity. I found that jaguar had a wider prey spectrum than puma; jaguar took (in average) smallest preys, consequently, diets were significantly different. Puma preferred deer, brocket deer and paca as main prey; in contrast, jaguar preferred collared pecari, coati and armadillo. Both predator species presented a similar pattern in habitat usage, in which "highland forest" was used accordingly with its availability and puma avoided "lowland forest". About activity patterns, both were more active in the night time, however, puma was more variable in this aspect. Both species did not show segregation spatially or temporally. KEYWORDS: Felidae, Panthera onca, Puma concolor, coexistence, ecologic niche, Mayan forest, ecologic segregation.


Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 2200
Author(s):  
Fructueux G. A. Houngbégnon ◽  
Daniel Cornelis ◽  
Cédric Vermeulen ◽  
Bonaventure Sonké ◽  
Stephan Ntie ◽  
...  

The duiker community in Central African rainforests includes a diversity of species that can coexist in the same area. The study of their activity patterns is needed to better understand habitat use or association between the species. Using camera traps, we studied the temporal activity patterns, and quantified for the first time the temporal overlap and spatial co-occurrence between species. Our results show that: (i) Two species are strongly diurnal: Cephalophus leucogaster, and Philantomba congica, (ii) two species are mostly diurnal: C.callipygus and C. nigrifrons, (iii) one species is strongly nocturnal: C.castaneus, (iv) and one species is mostly nocturnal: C.silvicultor. Analyses of temporal activities (for five species) identified four species pairs that highly overlapped (Δ^≥ 0.80), and six pairs that weakly overlapped (Δ^ between 0.06 and 0.35). Finally, co-occurrence tests reveal a truly random co-occurrence (plt > 0.05 and pgt > 0.05) for six species pairs, and a positive co-occurrence (pgt < 0.05) for four pairs. Positive co-occurrences are particularly noted for pairs formed by C.callipygus with the other species (except C. nigrifrons). These results are essential for a better understanding of the coexistence of duikers and the ecology of poorly known species (C. leucogaster and C. nigrifrons), and provide clarification on the activity patterns of C. silvicultor which was subject to controversy. Camera traps proved then to be a powerful tool for studying the activity patterns of free-ranging duiker populations.


Check List ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 1190 ◽  
Author(s):  
André L. M. Botelho ◽  
Armando M. Calouro ◽  
Luiz H. M. Borges ◽  
Willandia A. Chaves

Large and medium-sized mammals are essential to forest ecosystems as they are responsible for prey population control, seed dispersal and predation. A mammal survey was conducted in the Humaitá Forest Reserve (HFR), a 20 km² forest fragment located in the southeastern part of the state. The survey was carried out using census transects, camera traps, and occasional records such as bones and footprints. In all, 27 species of large to medium-sized mammals were recorded for the RFH, representing 48% of those expected for the region. Dasyprocta fuliginosa, Pecari tajacu and Didelphis marsupialis were the species with the highest number of records with camera traps. The occurrence of two species of cats (Leopardus pardalis and Puma concolor) and three endangered species (Callimico goeldii, Myrmecophaga tridactyla and Priodontes maximus) are important records for the RFH. The results may aid future research on the ecology, biogeography and conservation of mammals in the region.


2016 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rogelio Carrera-Treviño ◽  
Ivan Lira-Torres ◽  
Luis Martínez-García ◽  
Martha López-Hernández

Information on the ecology of jaguars (Panthera onca) in “El Cielo” Biosphere Reserve in Tamaulipas, Mexico is scant and limited to anecdotic records in a handful of publications. The objectives of our study were to: a) determine population density and structure of jaguars, b) compare their activity patterns with that of pumas (Puma concolor), c) ascertain potential prey relative abundance, and d) evaluate local resident’s perception on loss of domestic animals due to jaguar predation. Between April 2013 and April 2014 we conducted camera trapping in Gomez Farias Township with a total sampling effort of 8 580 camera trap days. Besides, we completed 136 semi-structured interviews among local residents of Gomez Farias and Llera Townships to gather information on domestic animal losses attributed to jaguars and other carnivores. We identified eight different jaguar individuals during a complete year of camera-trapping, composed of four adult females, one juvenile female, two adult males and one juvenile male. We estimated a jaguar density of 5.9 ± 1.3 jaguars/100 km². Activity patterns for jaguars and pumas were similar as both were nocturnal and crepuscular in nature. The most abundant potential prey species for jaguars in the study site were Crax rubra, Cuniculus paca, Mazama temama, Odocoileus virginianus and Didelphis virginiana; while the rarest were Mephitis macroura and Procyon lotor. Interview results suggested that chickens, dogs, and house cats were the most consumed domestic animals from all reported losses by local residents (n= 107). This study represents the first attempt to describe jaguar ecology in “El Cielo” Biosphere Reserve; however, there is a need of additional monitoring efforts to determine the current status of jaguars in a larger area in order to establish conservation strategies. Finally, this jaguar population may have an important role in maintaining the species in the Sierra Madre Oriental biological corridor connecting populations in Nuevo Leon and San Luis states in Northeastern Mexico.


Oryx ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 474-479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne-Marie C. Hodge ◽  
Brian S. Arbogast

AbstractEcuador harbours a diverse assemblage of tropical mammals, yet the natural history and local-scale distributions of many species remain poorly understood. We conducted the first systematic camera-trap survey of terrestrial mammalian carnivores at Wildsumaco Wildlife Sanctuary, a mid-elevation (1,250–1,450 m), montane rainforest site on the slopes of Sumaco Volcano, in the heart of the Tropical Andes biodiversity hotspot. We quantified trap success, latency to detection and temporal activity patterns for each species detected. We recorded nine carnivore species (four felids, two procyonids and three mustelids), including the first verified record of the jaguarundi Puma yagouaroundi in the region. These species comprise one-third of all terrestrial carnivore species known to occur in Ecuador and 82% of those thought to occur at mid-elevation. All except one of the carnivores we detected have reported elevational ranges ≤ 1,500 m; the one exception, the puma Puma concolor, occurs throughout mainland Ecuador at 0–4,500 m. No cloud forest or highland species (i.e. those with a reported lower elevational limit of ≥ 1,500 m) were detected. Trap success was highest, and latency to detection smallest, for the margay Leopardis wiedii, and temporal activity patterns for all species were consistent with those reported previously in the literature. Our results demonstrate that the mid-elevation montane rainforests of Sumaco Volcano support an exceptionally high diversity of co-existing mammalian carnivores, many of which appear to be near their upper elevational limits, and emphasize the conservation value of this area.


2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 39
Author(s):  
Alejandra Buenrostro-Silva ◽  
Daniela Sigüenza Pérez ◽  
Jesús García-Grajales

RESUMENLos mamíferos carnívoros desempeñan un rol importante en la estructura de las comunidades; sin embargo, los estudios sobre este grupo son complicados debido a sus estilos de vida, por lo que aún existen vacíos de información biológica. En este estudio se utilizaron trampas cámara en cuatro localidades de la costa central de Oaxaca, México. El trabajo se efectuó de septiembre de 2009 a agosto de 2010, con un esfuerzo total de 1012 días/trampa. Se obtuvieron 160 registros fotográficos independientes de ochos especies de mamíferos carnívoros y respecto a las presas potenciales se registraron cinco especies de mamíferos, dos especies de reptiles y dos grupos (aves y ratones). De acuerdo al Índice de Abundancia Relativa obtenido, los carnívoros más abundantes fueron Spilogale pygmaea, Urocyon cinereoargenteus y Nasua narica, mientras que las presas potenciales más abundantes fueron Didelphis virginiana, Dasypus novemcinctus y el grupo de los ratones. El patrón de actividad de las especies registradas mostró que el 73.8% son de hábitos nocturnos. El ganado vacuno de libre pastoreo mostró una abundancia que podría tener impactos en el ambiente natural y el nivel de recursos disponibles para la fauna silvestre de la región.Palabras clave: Cámaras-trampa, Carnívora, Oaxaca, patrón de actividad, Tututepec.ABSTRACTCarnivorous mammals play an important role on the community structure, however information gaps exist on their current situation debt to their nocturnal habits, evasive behavior and low population densities. In this study, we used camera traps to obtain records of mammal carnivores and their potential prey in four localities in the coastal central of Oaxaca, Mexico. The study was conducted from September 2009 to August 2010, with a total sampling effort of 1,012 trap/days. We obtained 160 independent photographs records of eights carnivorous mammal species and regarding potential prey we obtained five mammals species, two reptile species and two groups (birds and mice). According with the two Relative Abundance Index obtained Spilogale pygmaea, Urocyon cinereoargenteus y Nasua narica were the most abundant carnivorous mammals while that Didelphis virginiana, Dasypus novemcinctus and the mice group were the most abundant potential prey. The activity patterns of the species showed that 73.8% of them are nocturnal. The free range cattle showed an abundance that could have impacts in the natural environment and the level of resources available for the wildlife in the region.Key words: Camera-traps, Carnivora, Oaxaca, activity patterns, Tututepec.


2021 ◽  
Vol 134 (4) ◽  
pp. 353-360
Author(s):  
Ronny Steen

Animals display a range of diurnal and nocturnal activity patterns and, among mammals, a high proportion of species are crepuscular or nocturnal. Daily activities are often endogenous and oscillate on a light:dark regime. Such cycles are referred to as ‘circadian’ and are generally influenced by biotic and abiotic factors. I investigated the daily activity of urban Woodchucks (Marmota monax) by using 24-hour camera traps at backyard burrows in London, Ontario, Canada, in June. Cameras enabled the collection of data that would otherwise have been labour intensive by direct observation. Statistical modelling showed that Woodchucks exhibited a strictly diurnal activity pattern. The unimodal activity pattern started at sunrise and ended before sunset. The general daily activity trend was similar to the pattern described by others who used direct observations and telemetry to monitor Woodchucks in more rural settings. Temperature and wind were not included in the best-fit model. Camera trapping is a non-invasive method that could give insight to diel activity as it can easily monitor extended periods and reduce the effort required by direct observation.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Alejandro Hernández-Sánchez ◽  
Antonio Santos-Moreno

Abstract Several species of neotropical felines are morphologically and ecologically similar, and are sympatric along large areas of their distribution. This requires mechanisms to allow their coexistence, such as temporal segregation of their activities. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relation between activity patterns of felines and their prey using camera trapping data and their seasonal variation in two tropical environments in south-western Mexico. Excepting Puma concolor, activity patterns for each feline species did not differ significantly between seasons nor between vegetation types. Activity patterns did not differ significantly between species of similar size: mid-sized species had high activity pattern overlaps in the medium forest while large-sized species overlapped to a lesser extent in the cloud forest. Leopardus wiedii differed from large-sized predators in its activity patterns. We recorded a relatively high temporal overlap between felines and their main prey species, particularly in the periods of maximum activity. We found no evidence of temporal segregation between the felines of the Sierra Norte region of Oaxaca and we suggest their coexistence is mediated by the selection of prey with different activity patterns.


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