Narrow Dietary Niche With High Overlap Between Snow Leopards and Himalayan Wolves Indicates Potential for Resource Competition in Shey Phoksundo National Park, Nepal

Kód výsledku v IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F86652079%3A_____%2F25%3A00605623" target="_blank" >RIV/86652079:_____/25:00605623 - isvavai.cz</a>

Výsledek na webu

<a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.70873?msockid=334325ca732561fb1b2b307972d4605f" target="_blank" >https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.70873?msockid=334325ca732561fb1b2b307972d4605f</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70873" target="_blank" >10.1002/ece3.70873</a>

Jazyk výsledku

angličtina

Název v původním jazyce

Narrow Dietary Niche With High Overlap Between Snow Leopards and Himalayan Wolves Indicates Potential for Resource Competition in Shey Phoksundo National Park, Nepal

Popis výsledku v původním jazyce

Understanding species' dietary ecology and interspecific interactions is crucial for multi-species conservation planning. In Central Asia and the Himalayas, wolves have recolonized snow leopard habitats, raising considerable concern about resource competition between these apex predators. Using micro-histological analysis of prey species remains (e.g., hair) in their fecal samples, we determined the prey composition, dietary niche breadth, and the extent of diet overlap between these two apex predators in Shey Phoksundo National Park, Nepal. We analyzed 152 scat samples collected along 89 survey transects from April to June 2021. Our findings reveal a significant overlap in their diets (Pianka's index = 0.93), with snow leopard and wolf scats containing the remains of 11 and 10 prey species, respectively. However, the interspecific difference in prey selection was apparent, with significant deviations between observed and expected prey use indicating non-random prey selection relative to availability: Snow leopards exhibited a higher occurrence of wild prey items in their diet (55.28%), primarily blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur) (24.83%), whereas wolves relied predominantly on domestic livestock (67.89%), with goats (Capra hircus) accounting for over one-fourth of their diet (29.15%). Yaks (Bos grunniens) comprised a significant portion of the biomass consumed by both predators, with higher for wolves (43.68%) than snow leopards (36.47%). Overall, the narrow dietary niche breadth with high overlap indicates potential resource competition between snow leopards and wolves. However, a comprehensive understanding of resource competition will require further study on other axes of niche partitioning, including habitat and time. Nevertheless, the region's low prey richness means that, with increasing human influence, any reduction in wild prey or increase in livestock could intensify competition between snow leopards and wolves, which could have implications for livestock depredation.

Název v anglickém jazyce

Narrow Dietary Niche With High Overlap Between Snow Leopards and Himalayan Wolves Indicates Potential for Resource Competition in Shey Phoksundo National Park, Nepal

Popis výsledku anglicky

Understanding species' dietary ecology and interspecific interactions is crucial for multi-species conservation planning. In Central Asia and the Himalayas, wolves have recolonized snow leopard habitats, raising considerable concern about resource competition between these apex predators. Using micro-histological analysis of prey species remains (e.g., hair) in their fecal samples, we determined the prey composition, dietary niche breadth, and the extent of diet overlap between these two apex predators in Shey Phoksundo National Park, Nepal. We analyzed 152 scat samples collected along 89 survey transects from April to June 2021. Our findings reveal a significant overlap in their diets (Pianka's index = 0.93), with snow leopard and wolf scats containing the remains of 11 and 10 prey species, respectively. However, the interspecific difference in prey selection was apparent, with significant deviations between observed and expected prey use indicating non-random prey selection relative to availability: Snow leopards exhibited a higher occurrence of wild prey items in their diet (55.28%), primarily blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur) (24.83%), whereas wolves relied predominantly on domestic livestock (67.89%), with goats (Capra hircus) accounting for over one-fourth of their diet (29.15%). Yaks (Bos grunniens) comprised a significant portion of the biomass consumed by both predators, with higher for wolves (43.68%) than snow leopards (36.47%). Overall, the narrow dietary niche breadth with high overlap indicates potential resource competition between snow leopards and wolves. However, a comprehensive understanding of resource competition will require further study on other axes of niche partitioning, including habitat and time. Nevertheless, the region's low prey richness means that, with increasing human influence, any reduction in wild prey or increase in livestock could intensify competition between snow leopards and wolves, which could have implications for livestock depredation.

Druh

J_imp - Článek v periodiku v databázi Web of Science

CEP obor

—

OECD FORD obor

10618 - Ecology

Projekt

<a href="/cs/project/LM2023048" target="_blank" >LM2023048: Česká infrastruktura sledování uhlíku</a><br>

Návaznosti

I - Institucionalni podpora na dlouhodoby koncepcni rozvoj vyzkumne organizace

Rok uplatnění

2025

Kód důvěrnosti údajů

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Název periodika

Ecology and Evolution

ISSN

2045-7758

e-ISSN

2045-7758

Svazek periodika

15

Číslo periodika v rámci svazku

1

Stát vydavatele periodika

US - Spojené státy americké

Počet stran výsledku

14

Strana od-do

e70873

Kód UT WoS článku

001401246600001

EID výsledku v databázi Scopus

2-s2.0-85215770142