Commensal black rats Rattus rattus select wild vegetation over urbanised habitats
Human commensal species are thought to depend so closely on resources provided by humans that they are effectively ‘natives' of urban environments. However, while their adaptations to urban existence are well understood, their ecology and habitat choices have not been closely examined. This stu...
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crwiley:10.1111/oik.09671 2024-06-23T07:56:23+00:00 Commensal black rats Rattus rattus select wild vegetation over urbanised habitats Adams, Maxim W. D. Grant, Laura S. Kovacs, Toby G. L. Liang, Stephanie Q. T. Norris, Nicholas Wesley, Hannah E. Alessi, Megan M. Banks, Peter B. 2022 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/oik.09671 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/oik.09671 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/oik.09671 en eng Wiley http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Oikos volume 2023, issue 3 ISSN 0030-1299 1600-0706 journal-article 2022 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.09671 2024-06-06T04:24:03Z Human commensal species are thought to depend so closely on resources provided by humans that they are effectively ‘natives' of urban environments. However, while their adaptations to urban existence are well understood, their ecology and habitat choices have not been closely examined. This study investigated the habitat preferences of the archetypal commensal species, the invasive black rat Rattus rattus , at the urban–bushland interface in Sydney, Australia, and modelled the results using isodar analysis. Unexpectedly, we found evidence that rats perceived bushland as a more resource‐rich habitat compared to urban areas, resulting in higher rat abundance in bushland areas. Resultant spillover of commensal species into native vegetation may pose acute ecological risks in the future, yet management of commensal pests remains focused on urban areas. Ultimately, these findings highlight the complex nature of commensal ecology, suggesting that adaptation to human coexistence does not necessarily lead to a preference for human‐modified landscapes. We suggest that inter‐specific interactions with competitors, or the lack thereof, likely modulate the habitat preferences of commensals. Article in Journal/Newspaper Rattus rattus Wiley Online Library Oikos 2023 3 |
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Wiley Online Library |
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crwiley |
language |
English |
description |
Human commensal species are thought to depend so closely on resources provided by humans that they are effectively ‘natives' of urban environments. However, while their adaptations to urban existence are well understood, their ecology and habitat choices have not been closely examined. This study investigated the habitat preferences of the archetypal commensal species, the invasive black rat Rattus rattus , at the urban–bushland interface in Sydney, Australia, and modelled the results using isodar analysis. Unexpectedly, we found evidence that rats perceived bushland as a more resource‐rich habitat compared to urban areas, resulting in higher rat abundance in bushland areas. Resultant spillover of commensal species into native vegetation may pose acute ecological risks in the future, yet management of commensal pests remains focused on urban areas. Ultimately, these findings highlight the complex nature of commensal ecology, suggesting that adaptation to human coexistence does not necessarily lead to a preference for human‐modified landscapes. We suggest that inter‐specific interactions with competitors, or the lack thereof, likely modulate the habitat preferences of commensals. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Adams, Maxim W. D. Grant, Laura S. Kovacs, Toby G. L. Liang, Stephanie Q. T. Norris, Nicholas Wesley, Hannah E. Alessi, Megan M. Banks, Peter B. |
spellingShingle |
Adams, Maxim W. D. Grant, Laura S. Kovacs, Toby G. L. Liang, Stephanie Q. T. Norris, Nicholas Wesley, Hannah E. Alessi, Megan M. Banks, Peter B. Commensal black rats Rattus rattus select wild vegetation over urbanised habitats |
author_facet |
Adams, Maxim W. D. Grant, Laura S. Kovacs, Toby G. L. Liang, Stephanie Q. T. Norris, Nicholas Wesley, Hannah E. Alessi, Megan M. Banks, Peter B. |
author_sort |
Adams, Maxim W. D. |
title |
Commensal black rats Rattus rattus select wild vegetation over urbanised habitats |
title_short |
Commensal black rats Rattus rattus select wild vegetation over urbanised habitats |
title_full |
Commensal black rats Rattus rattus select wild vegetation over urbanised habitats |
title_fullStr |
Commensal black rats Rattus rattus select wild vegetation over urbanised habitats |
title_full_unstemmed |
Commensal black rats Rattus rattus select wild vegetation over urbanised habitats |
title_sort |
commensal black rats rattus rattus select wild vegetation over urbanised habitats |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/oik.09671 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/oik.09671 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/oik.09671 |
genre |
Rattus rattus |
genre_facet |
Rattus rattus |
op_source |
Oikos volume 2023, issue 3 ISSN 0030-1299 1600-0706 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.09671 |
container_title |
Oikos |
container_volume |
2023 |
container_issue |
3 |
_version_ |
1802649440292438016 |