41 Results Found

The analysis of activity patterns is a valuable tool for understanding the temporal organization of mammal communities, which is determined by biological requirements, resource availability, and competitive pressures both within and between species....

Understanding how prey and predator species partition activity patterns across time and space is essential for elucidating behavioral adaptation and ecological coexistence. In this study, we examined the diel and seasonal activity rhythms of two symp...

Coexistence between species with similar ecological niches implies species must segregate along one or more niche axes to survive. Space, time, and trophic resources are regarded as the principal axes upon which species segregate. We examined segrega...

(1) Background: Bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus) and Apodemus mice are of exceptional importance as prey for predators in temperate mixed forests. We hypothesized that overall prey availability would increase linearly with prey frequency, an...

Competition, predation, and diseases are key factors shaping animal communities. In recent decades, lagomorphs in Europe have been impacted by virus-borne diseases that have caused substantial declines in their populations and, subsequently, in many...

Habitat use and the temporal activities of wildlife can be largely modified by livestock encroachment. Therefore, identifying the potential impacts of livestock on the predator–prey interactions could provide essential information for wildlife...

Combining explicit modelling of predator movements with the Kostitzin demo-genetic equations, we study conditions promoting natural selection of consumer motility. The model is a system of partial differential equations describing spatial movements o...

The restoration of ecosystems through trophic rewilding has become increasingly common worldwide, but the effects on predator–prey and ecosystem dynamics remain poorly understood. For example, predation pressure may impose spatiotemporal behavi...

Despite growing evidence of the widespread impacts of human activities on carnivores and their prey, it remains unclear how different types and intensities of human disturbance reshape predator–prey interactions. In this study, we conducted a s...

Trace metals and metalloids pose persistent threats to freshwater ecosystems, yet their trophic transfer and sublethal effects across food webs remain poorly understood. We investigated bioaccumulation patterns and biomarker responses in a predator&n...

Spatiotemporal pattern formation in integro-differential equation models of interacting populations is an active area of research, which has emerged through the introduction of nonlocal intra- and inter-specific interactions. Stationary patterns are...

Revealing the behavioral relationships between predators and their prey is fundamental in understanding the community structure and ecosystem functions of such animals. This study aimed at detecting the population size and activity patterns of Eurasi...

The interplay between predator and prey has catalyzed the evolution of venom systems, with predators honing their venoms in response to the evolving resistance of prey. A previous study showed that the African varanid species Varanus exanthematicus h...

Natural disturbances are an integral part of forested ecosystem function and successional pathways. In many forested ecosystems, wildfires are critical to shaping composition and structure, which, in turn, has major implications for wildlife usage an...

Fragrances and malodors are ubiquitous in the environment, arising from natural and artificial processes, by the generation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Although VOCs constitute only a fraction of the metabolites produced by an organism, the...

Better knowledge of food webs and related ecological processes is fundamental to understanding the functional role of biodiversity in ecosystems. This is particularly true for pest regulation by natural enemies in agroecosystems. However, it is gener...

Analyses of temporal partitioning and overlaps in activity rhythms are pivotal to shed light on interspecific coexistence between similar species or prey and predators. In this work, we assessed the overlap of activity rhythms between the Eurasian be...

A simple mathematical model capable of reproducing formation of small-scale spatial structures in prey–predator system is presented. The migration activity of predators is assumed to be determined by the degree of their satiation. The hungrier...

Temporal and spatial factors regulate the interactions between apex predators, mesocarnivores, and herbivores. Prey adjust their activity patterns and spatial utilization based on predator activities; in turn, predators also adapt to the activities o...

The impact of avian predation on a declining population of the spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumifereana (Clem.), was measured using single-tree exclosure cages in a mature stand of balsam fir, Abies balsamea (L.), and white spruce, Picea glauca (Moe...

The field of bioacoustics is rapidly developing and characterized by diverse methodologies, approaches and aims. For instance, bioacoustics encompasses studies on the perception of pure tones in meticulously controlled laboratory settings, documentat...

Analysis of spatiotemporal partitioning is pivotal to shed light on interspecific coexistence. Most research effort has involved large-sized carnivores and their prey, whereas little attention has been devoted to lagomorphs. We assessed spatiotempora...

Previously, using plankton tows, and emergence and settlement traps, we documented persistent widespread nocturnal emergence, and planktonic redistribution, of benthic macroinvertebrates along the coral reef–seagrass interface at two geographic...

Nonconsumptive effects of predators potentially have negative fitness consequences on prey species through changes in prey behavior. Coyotes (Canis latrans) recently expanded into the eastern United States, and raccoons (Procyon lotor) are a common m...

Even though behavioural and physiological reactions to predation risk exhibited by prey species have received considerable attention in scientific journals, there are still many questions still unsolved. Our aim was to broaden the knowledge on one sp...

Turing’s instability has been widely introduced to explain the formation of several biological and ecological patterns, such as the skin patterning of fish or animals, wings of butterflies, pigmentation, and labyrinth patterns of the cerebral c...

We report a landscape-scale natural experiment that followed the abundance and demography of forest-floor small mammals and the activity of small mustelids over a 4-year period of an extreme heat wave and abundant coniferous cone crops. Deer mice (Pe...

Lion predation on cattle causes severe human–wildlife conflict that results in retaliatory persecution throughout the lion’s geographic range. Cattle closely resemble the body size, shape, and herding patterns of preferred lion prey speci...

Venoms produced by arthropods act as chemical weapons to paralyze prey or deter competitors. The utilization of venom is an essential feature in the biology and ecology of venomous arthropods. Solenopsis fire ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) are medica...

The species richness of major clades and functional groups among gastropods, a key element of Modern Evolutionary Fauna (MEF), underlines the dominant role of carnivorous Caenogastropoda and Heterobranchia, including small ectoparasites and micrograz...

Temporal niche partitioning is an important strategy for sympatric species or populations when utilizing limited resources while minimizing competition. Different resource availability across seasons may also influence the intensity of competition, r...

Artificial light at night (ALAN) can have negative consequences for a wide range of taxa. However, the effects on nocturnal mammals other than bats are poorly understood. A citizen science camera trapping experiment was therefore used to assess the e...

Marine invertebrates are promising sources of novel bioactive secondary metabolites, and organisms like sponges, ascidians and nudibranchs are characterised by possessing potent defensive chemicals. Animals that possess chemical defences often advert...

Scorpions, an ancient group of venomous invertebrates, have existed for over 430 million years. Their toxins, important for predation and defense, exhibit a variety of biological and pharmacological activities. Research on scorpion toxins has spanned...

Marine cone snails are predatory gastropods characterized by a well-developed venom apparatus and highly evolved hunting strategies that utilize toxins to paralyze prey and defend against predators. The venom of each species of cone snail has a large...

Fish predation is restricted in areas with high aquatic macrophyte coverage; however, bluegill sunfish (Lepomis macrochirus), an exotic fish species, can consume prey even in such spaces. Here, we hypothesized that the cladoceran community structures...

Marine plastic pollution is currently an issue of mounting concern around the world. Stomach content of marine fish has been increasingly used as a valid proxy for detecting the presence of such a pollutant in marine biota, both for coastal and deep-...

During a late-winter field survey in Baihuashan National Nature Reserve, Beijing, several noctuid moths were observed flying during the daytime at low temperatures and being actively preyed upon by Marsh tits, which removed the heads and wings of cap...

The Pacific sleeper shark (Somniosus pacificus) is a long-lived, deep-water, sub-polar species that exhibits flexible foraging strategies, likely combining scavenging with active predation on a broad range of prey, yet their role in marine food webs...

Pastoralist–wolf conflict over livestock depredation is the main factor affecting conservation of grey wolf worldwide. Very limited research has been carried out to evaluate the pattern and nature of livestock depredation by wolf. This study ai...

Snow leopards (Panthera uncia) are elusive predators inhabiting high-altitude and mountainous rugged habitats. The current study was conducted in the Yanchiwan National Nature Reserve, Gansu Province, China, to assess the habitat suitability of snow...