DOI
https://doi.org/10.25772/DXNP-TK06
Defense Date
2019
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science
Department
Biology
First Advisor
Dr. Salvatore Agosta
Second Advisor
Dr. Lesley Bulluck
Third Advisor
Dr. Derek Johnson
Fourth Advisor
Dr. Daniel McGarvey
Fifth Advisor
Dr. James Vonesh
Abstract
Lethal interactions between carnivorans (interspecific killing) may influence their population dynamics, behavior, and other important aspects of their ecology. In this study, I expand upon previous research on the broad-scale patterns of interspecific killing in Carnivora (Palomares & Caro 1999, Donadio & Buskirk 2006) with a greatly expanded dataset (inclusion of scat and stomach data and more intensive sampling of the literature), and suggest avenues for future research. While like previous studies, I found a positive effect of relative body size between killer species and killed species on the likelihood of forming a killing interaction, I failed to find evidence that this effect had a body size ratio threshold above which interactions become less common, suggesting a greater role of non-competitive killing than previously believed. I also found evidence for a positive influence of range overlap and dietary overlap on species interactions, but found mixed effects of phylogeny. This study suggests that our previous understanding of the broad-scale dynamics interspecific killing in Carnivora was, due to limited sampling, incomplete in scope. Incidental killing, whereby killing interactions occur as a byproduct of opportunistic lethal encounters caused by the hyperpredatory behavior of carnivorans, has a number of interesting implications for our understanding of interspecies aggression, including research on intraguild predation and its effects.
Rights
© The Author
Is Part Of
VCU University Archives
Is Part Of
VCU Theses and Dissertations
Date of Submission
11-29-2019