A study examines the impact of human activity on carnivore niches. Niche partitioning is crucial for limiting competition and diet overlap among carnivores in the wild. However, the extent to which human activity alters carnivore niche partitioning in disturbed landscapes is unclear. Using isotopic analysis of bone and hair samples, Philip Manlick and Jonathan Pauli examined the diets of bobcats, coyotes, fishers, foxes, martens, and wolves living across the Great Lakes Region of the United States. The authors also examined the human footprint index of the studied areas to assess anthropogenic disturbance. In landscapes highly disturbed by human activity, more than a quarter of the average carnivore diet was composed of human food. Human activity and consumption of human food were positively correlated with increased trophic niche overlap among carnivore species, and obligate carnivores exhibited the greatest overlap. However, the niche width of carnivore communities did not increase due to anthropogenic disturbance. The findings suggest that human disturbance of ecosystems may lead to significant dietary changes among carnivores in the wild and increase conflict among species, according to the authors.
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Article #20-12774: "Human disturbance increases trophic niche overlap in terrestrial carnivore communities," by Philip J. Manlick and Jonathan N. Pauli.
MEDIA CONTACT: Philip J. Manlick, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM; tel: 920-327-9660; e-mail: < pmanlick@unm.edu >
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences