The influence of climate and the presence of predators on the daily activity pattern of collared peccaries ( Dicotyles tajacu, Cetartiodactyla)

• Published in: Austral Ecology
• Main Authors: dos Santos, Debora Bohrer, Viana Junior, Arleu Barbosa, Duarte, Gabriela Teixeira, Pires, Maria Rita Silvério, de Azevedo, Cristiano Schetini
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2024
• Subjects: Canis lupus
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/aec.13498; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/aec.13498

Abstract Collared peccaries ( Dicotyles tajacu , Cetartiodactyla) adjust their daily activity patterns in response to different factors, such as the presence of predators or climatic factors (temperature and rainfall), as a way of ensuring survival. The knowledge of these patterns allows us to understand the interspecific interactions of the community. This study measured daily activity of the collared peccary, and evaluated how different climatic conditions, and the presence of predators influenced their activity patterns. Data were obtained from eight camera traps over 13 months in the Municipality of Ouro Preto, Brazil. The daily activity periods of collared peccaries and their predators were evaluated and the animals classified as diurnal, nocturnal, crepuscular, or cathemeral. Camera‐trap records were used to assess whether temperature and rainfall affected daily activity patterns in peccaries. We found that neither rainfall nor temperature influence the activity pattern. Peccary activity overlapped with the activity of local predators. A low level of overlap was recorded with the activity of Puma concolor and high level of overlap with the activity of Leopardus pardalis , Canis lupus familiaris , and human activity. The low activity overlap of collared peccaries with P. concolor may be related to an attempt to decrease predation risk, while the high activity overlaps with domestic dogs and humans may be related to the low hunting pressure exerted in the region and also to the foraging opportunities for peccaries in areas closer to human settlements, where orchards are present. The high activity overlap with L. pardalis can be related to the smaller size of this predator and the aggressive group anti‐predator behaviour of the collared peccary. Our results show that collared peccaries can adjust their daily activity when an apex predator is present, but this adjustment is not generalized to all predators.