Coexistence of two sympatric predators in a transitional ecosystem under constraining environmental conditions: a perspective from space and habitat use ...

• Main Authors: Warret Rodrigues, Chloé, Roth, James D.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: figshare 2024
• Subjects: Ecology; FOS: Biological sciences; Arctic; Vulpes lagopus
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6862462; https://springernature.figshare.com/collections/Coexistence_of_two_sympatric_predators_in_a_transitional_ecosystem_under_constraining_environmental_conditions_a_perspective_from_space_and_habitat_use/6862462

Abstract Background Range expansion of species, a major consequence of climate changes, may alter communities substantially due to competition between expanding and native species. Methods We first quantified size differences between an expanding habitat generalist, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), and a circumpolar habitat specialist, the Arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus), at the edge of the Arctic, where climate-related changes occur rapidly, to predict the likelihood of the larger competitor escalating interference to intraguild killing. We then used satellite telemetry to evaluate competition in a heterogeneous landscape by examining space use early during the foxes' reproductive period, when resource scarcity, increased-food requirements and spatial constraints likely exacerbate the potential for interference. We used time-LoCoH to quantify space and habitat use, and Minta's index to quantify spatio-temporal interactions between neighbors. Results Our morphometric comparison involving 236 foxes found that the ...