Relative impact of human harvest and wolf predation on two ungulate species in Central Italy
Abstract Data collected from 2000 to 2010 on a predator–prey system in eastern Tuscany (central Italy) were used to investigate the relative impact of human harvest and natural predation by wolves ( Canis lupus ) on the local populations of their main prey: wild boar ( Sus scrofa ) and roe deer ( Ca...
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crwiley:10.1111/1440-1703.12130 2024-09-30T14:33:34+00:00 Relative impact of human harvest and wolf predation on two ungulate species in Central Italy Bassi, Elena Gazzola, Andrea Bongi, Paolo Scandura, Massimo Apollonio, Marco Provincial Administration of Arezzo Regional Administration of Tuscany 2020 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1440-1703.12130 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2F1440-1703.12130 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1440-1703.12130 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/1440-1703.12130 en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Ecological Research volume 35, issue 4, page 662-674 ISSN 0912-3814 1440-1703 journal-article 2020 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/1440-1703.12130 2024-09-17T04:44:16Z Abstract Data collected from 2000 to 2010 on a predator–prey system in eastern Tuscany (central Italy) were used to investigate the relative impact of human harvest and natural predation by wolves ( Canis lupus ) on the local populations of their main prey: wild boar ( Sus scrofa ) and roe deer ( Capreolus capreolus ). We estimated the percent composition of wolf diet from scat analysis ( n = 2,150) and converted it into ingested biomass and number of killed individuals by quantifying the energy requirement of the resident wolf pack based on the field metabolic rate formula. Moreover, we collected data on hunting bags, and investigating the age/weight class preferences of both wolves and hunters compared their impacts on the two ungulate populations. In both prey species, losses due to hunting resulted to be eight to nine times higher than those due to wolf predation. In terms of number of individuals removed per year, the wild boar was the main prey species for wolves (mean ± SD : 83 ± 23) and the most harvested by hunters (mean ± SD : 609 ± 241). Wolves targeted the intermediate weight class (10–35 kg) in wild boar and showed no preference for a specific class of roe deer, while hunters targeted the largest classes in both species. The combined removal by hunters and wolf predation did not exceed the recruitment of both ungulate populations. We can therefore argue that a top‐down force is unlikely to contrast the population growth of the two ungulate species in Central Italy. Article in Journal/Newspaper Canis lupus Wiley Online Library Ecological Research 35 4 662 674 |
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crwiley |
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English |
description |
Abstract Data collected from 2000 to 2010 on a predator–prey system in eastern Tuscany (central Italy) were used to investigate the relative impact of human harvest and natural predation by wolves ( Canis lupus ) on the local populations of their main prey: wild boar ( Sus scrofa ) and roe deer ( Capreolus capreolus ). We estimated the percent composition of wolf diet from scat analysis ( n = 2,150) and converted it into ingested biomass and number of killed individuals by quantifying the energy requirement of the resident wolf pack based on the field metabolic rate formula. Moreover, we collected data on hunting bags, and investigating the age/weight class preferences of both wolves and hunters compared their impacts on the two ungulate populations. In both prey species, losses due to hunting resulted to be eight to nine times higher than those due to wolf predation. In terms of number of individuals removed per year, the wild boar was the main prey species for wolves (mean ± SD : 83 ± 23) and the most harvested by hunters (mean ± SD : 609 ± 241). Wolves targeted the intermediate weight class (10–35 kg) in wild boar and showed no preference for a specific class of roe deer, while hunters targeted the largest classes in both species. The combined removal by hunters and wolf predation did not exceed the recruitment of both ungulate populations. We can therefore argue that a top‐down force is unlikely to contrast the population growth of the two ungulate species in Central Italy. |
author2 |
Provincial Administration of Arezzo Regional Administration of Tuscany |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Bassi, Elena Gazzola, Andrea Bongi, Paolo Scandura, Massimo Apollonio, Marco |
spellingShingle |
Bassi, Elena Gazzola, Andrea Bongi, Paolo Scandura, Massimo Apollonio, Marco Relative impact of human harvest and wolf predation on two ungulate species in Central Italy |
author_facet |
Bassi, Elena Gazzola, Andrea Bongi, Paolo Scandura, Massimo Apollonio, Marco |
author_sort |
Bassi, Elena |
title |
Relative impact of human harvest and wolf predation on two ungulate species in Central Italy |
title_short |
Relative impact of human harvest and wolf predation on two ungulate species in Central Italy |
title_full |
Relative impact of human harvest and wolf predation on two ungulate species in Central Italy |
title_fullStr |
Relative impact of human harvest and wolf predation on two ungulate species in Central Italy |
title_full_unstemmed |
Relative impact of human harvest and wolf predation on two ungulate species in Central Italy |
title_sort |
relative impact of human harvest and wolf predation on two ungulate species in central italy |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1440-1703.12130 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2F1440-1703.12130 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1440-1703.12130 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/1440-1703.12130 |
genre |
Canis lupus |
genre_facet |
Canis lupus |
op_source |
Ecological Research volume 35, issue 4, page 662-674 ISSN 0912-3814 1440-1703 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/1440-1703.12130 |
container_title |
Ecological Research |
container_volume |
35 |
container_issue |
4 |
container_start_page |
662 |
op_container_end_page |
674 |
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1811637415052312576 |