Effects of Vegetation Structure on the Location of Lion Kill Sites in African Thicket

PloS One
Andrew B DaviesGregory P Asner

Abstract

Predator-prey relationships are integral to ecosystem stability and functioning. These relationships are, however, difficult to maintain in protected areas where large predators are increasingly being reintroduced and confined. Where predators make kills has a profound influence on their role in ecosystems, but the relative importance of environmental variables in determining kill sites, and how these might vary across ecosystems is poorly known. We investigated kill sites for lions in South Africa's thicket biome, testing the importance of vegetation structure for kill site locations compared to other environmental variables. Kill sites were located over four years using GPS telemetry and compared to non-kill sites that had been occupied by lions, as well as to random sites within lion ranges. Measurements of 3D vegetation structure obtained from Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) were used to calculate the visible area (viewshed) around each site and, along with wind and moonlight data, used to compare kill sites between lion sexes, prey species and prey sexes. Viewshed area was the most important predictor of kill sites (sites in dense vegetation were twice as likely to be kill sites compared to open areas), followed by win...Continue Reading

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Citations

Nov 28, 2017·Ecological Applications : a Publication of the Ecological Society of America·Andrew B DaviesGregory P Asner
Sep 30, 2020·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Nicolas J DeereMatthew J Struebig
Feb 27, 2021·Ecology·Andrew B DaviesGregory P Asner
Apr 11, 2020·Current Biology : CB·Roan D Plotz, Wayne L Linklater
Jun 23, 2021·Scientific Reports·Haley K EpperlyRobert A McCleery

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