Data for: Predator co-occurrence in alpine and Arctic tundra in relation to fluctuating prey ...

• Main Authors: Rød-Eriksen, Lars, Killengreen, Siw, Ehrich, Dorothee, Ims, Rolf, Herfindal, Ivar, Landa, Arild, Eide, Nina
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2022
• Subjects: Carnivores; competition; co-occurrence; intraguild interaction; occupancy; Predation; resource availability; Tundra; FOS Natural sciences; Arctic; Norway; Arctic Fox; golden eagle
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.63xsj3v66; https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.63xsj3v66

Large carnivores influence ecosystem dynamics in multiple ways, e.g. by suppressing meso-carnivores and providing carrions for smaller scavengers. Loss of large carnivores is suggested to cause meso-carnivore increase and expansion. Moreover, competition between meso-carnivores may be modified by the presence of larger carnivores. In tundra ecosystems, the smallest meso-carnivore, the Arctic fox, has experienced regional declines, whereas its larger and competitively superior congener, the red fox, has increased, potentially due to changes in the abundance of apex predators. We explored if variation in occurrence of wolverine and golden eagle impacted the occurrence and co-occurrence of Arctic fox and red fox in relation to varying abundances of small rodents within the Scandinavian tundra. We applied multi-species occupancy models to an extensive wildlife camera dataset from 2011-2020 covering 98 sites. Daily detection/non-detection of each species per camera trap site and study period (late winter; ... : Data was collected using a network of wildlife cameras in four alpine and one Arctic region of Norway in the period 2011-2020. Cameras were active during late winter each year (March-May) and was baited with scraps and trimmings from from slaughtered reindeer (15-20 kg), simulating a carcass. Cameras were checked and baits replaced once after approximately three weeks. The cameras were set to a time-lapse interval of 5 minutes, and the final data set was aggregated into daily presence/absence of each species. ...