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. 2022 Oct 5;12(10):e9365.
doi: 10.1002/ece3.9365. eCollection 2022 Oct.

Leopard density and interspecific spatiotemporal interactions in a hyena-dominated landscape

Sander Vissia  1 , Julien Fattebert  2 , Frank van Langevelde  1   2
Affiliations

Leopard density and interspecific spatiotemporal interactions in a hyena-dominated landscape

Sander Vissia et al. Ecol Evol. .

Abstract

Scavenging is widespread in the carnivore guild and can greatly impact food web structures and population dynamics by either facilitation or suppression of sympatric carnivores. Due to habitat loss and fragmentation, carnivores are increasingly forced into close sympatry, possibly resulting in more interactions such as kleptoparasitism and competition. In this paper, we investigate the potential for these interactions when carnivore densities are high. A camera trap survey was conducted in central Tuli, Botswana, to examine leopard Panthera pardus densities and spatiotemporal activity patterns of leopard and its most important competitors' brown hyena Parahyaena brunnea and spotted hyena Crocuta crocuta. Spatial capture-recapture models estimated leopard population density to be 12.7 ± 3.2 leopard/100 km2, which is one of the highest leopard densities in Africa. Time-to-event analyses showed both brown hyena and spotted hyena were observed more frequently before and after a leopard observation than expected by chance. The high spatiotemporal overlap of both hyena species with leopard is possibly explained by leopard providing scavenging opportunities for brown hyena and spotted hyena. Our results suggest that central Tuli is a high-density leopard area, despite possible intense kleptoparasitism and competition.

Keywords: Crocuta crocuta; Panthera pardus; Parahyaena brunnea; camera trap; population density; spatial capture–recapture; spatiotemporal overlap.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Map of (a) Botswana and (b) central Tuli (pale gray) including the location of the survey area (delineated area) and the camera trap stations for the leopard density estimation survey (black circles).
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Kernel density estimates of the daily activity patterns of leopard, brown and spotted hyena in central Tuli, Botswana.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Detection probability of brown hyena (left) and spotted hyena (right) in the 48 h before and after a capture of leopard at the same camera trap station, divided into 6‐h bins in central Tuli, Botswana, in the period of September 2018–February 2021. Points indicate the observed detection probability of brown hyena and spotted hyena for each six‐hour bin before and after a leopard capture. Boxplots show the expected probability of detecting brown hyena or spotted hyena in each 6‐h bin before and after leopard capture. Expected detection probabilities were derived by randomly sampling 1000 times from the observed activity pattern probability density function for that species. Observed detection probabilities that differ significantly (p < .05) from the expected probability of detection are shown with red dots; those that do not differ significantly are shown with black dots.
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