Contrasting risk patterns from humans and a large carnivore influence
the habitat selection of shared prey
Abstract
Spatial patterns of human hunting and predation risk are mediated by the
physical landscape, with human hunting risk often associated with
habitat features contrasting those linked to risk from large carnivores.
Risk patterns from hunters and large carnivores can also vary in time,
which may allow prey species to adjust anti-predator strategies not only
in risky places but also during risky times. We examined whether moose
(Alces alces) in south-central Scandinavia adjusted diel habitat
selection during and after the hunting season in response to contrasting
human hunting and wolf (Canis lupus) predation risks. We found evidence
for a diel and seasonal shift in habitat selection of moose consistent
with a behavioural adaptation to no human hunting risk at night and
after the hunting season. We found no evidence that moose responded to
the spatiotemporal variation in wolf predation risk since moose selected
habitats of high wolf predation risk both day and night during and after
the hunting season. Human hunting risk was therefore the main driver of
moose habitat selection during the hunting season while decreasing in
importance during times when hunting did not occur. However, since we
did not find evidence for a diel or seasonal shift in habitat selection
consistent with an increase in the importance of wolf predation risk
during the night and after the hunting season, our study is in line with
the notion that moose in Scandinavia are currently naïve to wolves. Our
findings show the importance of including the effects of humans in
studies of predator-prey dynamics within anthropogenic landscapes. An
increased understanding of the risk effects arising from humans and
large carnivores and the responses of prey might be important for
managing ungulate populations, since behaviours aimed at reducing
exposure to risk may also affect crucial demographic traits like growth
and reproduction.