Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) consume free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus) on the Chilcotin plateau, British Columbia
We analyzed 122 Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) scats, collected at all seasons during 2013–2017, to determine what wolves were eating in two adjacent study areas of the Chilcotin region, British Columbia: Brittany Triangle and Nemiah Valley. Free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus), Mule Deer (Odocoileus...
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The Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club
2023
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Online Access: | https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2651 https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v136i3.2651 |
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ftjcfn:oai:canadianfieldnaturalist.ca:article/2651 2023-05-15T15:49:31+02:00 Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) consume free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus) on the Chilcotin plateau, British Columbia Parr, Sadie McCrory, Wayne P. 2023-02-20 application/pdf https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2651 https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v136i3.2651 eng eng The Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2651/2925 https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2651 doi:10.22621/cfn.v136i3.2651 Copyright (c) 2023 The Canadian Field-Naturalist The Canadian Field-Naturalist; Vol. 136 No. 3 (2022); 237-246 0008-3550 Gray wolf Canis lupus scat wolves free-ranging horse Equus ferus caballus predator prey diet hunt scavenge info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion 2023 ftjcfn https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v136i3.2651 2023-02-26T18:46:39Z We analyzed 122 Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) scats, collected at all seasons during 2013–2017, to determine what wolves were eating in two adjacent study areas of the Chilcotin region, British Columbia: Brittany Triangle and Nemiah Valley. Free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus), Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus), Moose (Alces americanus), and small mammals contributed to wolf diet throughout the year. In both study areas, horse appeared more frequently than other species in occurrence-per-faeces (OF) and occurrence-per-item (OI) analyses. Horse occurred in 58 of 97 wolf scats from Brittany (OF 59.8%, OI 52.7%), deer in 26 (OF 26.8%, OI 23.6%), small mammals in 17 (OF 17.5%, OI 17.3%), Moose in four (OF 4.1%, OI 3.6%), and bird and fish minimally (both OF <2.5%, OI <2.5%). The sample size in the more human-developed Nemiah Valley was too small to estimate reliable patterns, but results suggest a similar ranking of dietary items. Domestic Cattle (Bos taurus), available in both study areas, appeared infrequently (combined area OF <3.5%, OI <3.0%). Based on our scat findings, free-ranging horses were a regular dietary item for wolves in the area. Studies elsewhere have found that, where wolves and free-ranging horses are sympatric, a predator–prey relationship exists. Article in Journal/Newspaper Canis lupus gray wolf The Canadian Field-Naturalist (E-Journal) The Canadian Field-Naturalist 136 3 237 246 |
institution |
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The Canadian Field-Naturalist (E-Journal) |
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ftjcfn |
language |
English |
topic |
Gray wolf Canis lupus scat wolves free-ranging horse Equus ferus caballus predator prey diet hunt scavenge |
spellingShingle |
Gray wolf Canis lupus scat wolves free-ranging horse Equus ferus caballus predator prey diet hunt scavenge Parr, Sadie McCrory, Wayne P. Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) consume free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus) on the Chilcotin plateau, British Columbia |
topic_facet |
Gray wolf Canis lupus scat wolves free-ranging horse Equus ferus caballus predator prey diet hunt scavenge |
description |
We analyzed 122 Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) scats, collected at all seasons during 2013–2017, to determine what wolves were eating in two adjacent study areas of the Chilcotin region, British Columbia: Brittany Triangle and Nemiah Valley. Free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus), Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus), Moose (Alces americanus), and small mammals contributed to wolf diet throughout the year. In both study areas, horse appeared more frequently than other species in occurrence-per-faeces (OF) and occurrence-per-item (OI) analyses. Horse occurred in 58 of 97 wolf scats from Brittany (OF 59.8%, OI 52.7%), deer in 26 (OF 26.8%, OI 23.6%), small mammals in 17 (OF 17.5%, OI 17.3%), Moose in four (OF 4.1%, OI 3.6%), and bird and fish minimally (both OF <2.5%, OI <2.5%). The sample size in the more human-developed Nemiah Valley was too small to estimate reliable patterns, but results suggest a similar ranking of dietary items. Domestic Cattle (Bos taurus), available in both study areas, appeared infrequently (combined area OF <3.5%, OI <3.0%). Based on our scat findings, free-ranging horses were a regular dietary item for wolves in the area. Studies elsewhere have found that, where wolves and free-ranging horses are sympatric, a predator–prey relationship exists. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Parr, Sadie McCrory, Wayne P. |
author_facet |
Parr, Sadie McCrory, Wayne P. |
author_sort |
Parr, Sadie |
title |
Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) consume free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus) on the Chilcotin plateau, British Columbia |
title_short |
Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) consume free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus) on the Chilcotin plateau, British Columbia |
title_full |
Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) consume free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus) on the Chilcotin plateau, British Columbia |
title_fullStr |
Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) consume free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus) on the Chilcotin plateau, British Columbia |
title_full_unstemmed |
Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) consume free-ranging horses (Equus ferus caballus) on the Chilcotin plateau, British Columbia |
title_sort |
gray wolves (canis lupus) consume free-ranging horses (equus ferus caballus) on the chilcotin plateau, british columbia |
publisher |
The Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2651 https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v136i3.2651 |
genre |
Canis lupus gray wolf |
genre_facet |
Canis lupus gray wolf |
op_source |
The Canadian Field-Naturalist; Vol. 136 No. 3 (2022); 237-246 0008-3550 |
op_relation |
https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2651/2925 https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2651 doi:10.22621/cfn.v136i3.2651 |
op_rights |
Copyright (c) 2023 The Canadian Field-Naturalist |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v136i3.2651 |
container_title |
The Canadian Field-Naturalist |
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136 |
container_issue |
3 |
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237 |
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246 |
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1766384558887927808 |