For 2 months, researchers collected accelerometer and high-resolution GPS data from 13 collared, wild pumas in California, and found that energetic costs of movement significantly increased when pumas navigated physically difficult terrain or areas where they were at high risk of human disturbance; the cumulative effects of such costs resulted in up to a 68% decrease in daily distance traveled and total area traversed over 2 months, with the most notable impact on male pumas navigating high-risk landscapes, suggesting that pumas' fear of humans can exacerbate energetic demands and reduce space use, according to the authors.
Article #20-04592: "Energetics and fear of humans constrain the spatial ecology of pumas," by Barry A. Nickel, Justin P. Suraci, Anna C. Nisi, and Christopher C. Wilmers.
MEDIA CONTACT: Barry A. Nickel, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA; tel: 415-350-1995; email: bnickel@ucsc.edu
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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences