10.5061/DRYAD.18NH4
Tallian, Aimee
Utah State University
Ordiz, Andres
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Metz, Matthew C.
University of Montana
Milleret, Cyril
Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences
Wikenros, Camilla
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Smith, Douglas W.
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Stahler, Daniel R.
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Kindberg, Jonas
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
MacNulty, Daniel R.
Utah State University
Wabakken, Petter
Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences
Swenson, Jon E.
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
Sand, Håkan
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Data from: Competition between apex predators? Brown bears decrease wolf
kill rate on two continents
Dryad
dataset
2017
Ursus arctos
Canis lupus
National Science Foundation
https://ror.org/021nxhr62
DGE-1147384
2017-01-18T13:54:33Z
2017-01-18T13:54:33Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2016.2368
101974 bytes
1
CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Trophic interactions are a fundamental topic in ecology, but we know
little about how competition between apex predators affects predation, the
mechanism driving top-down forcing in ecosystems. We used long-term
datasets from Scandinavia (Europe) and Yellowstone National Park (North
America) to evaluate how grey wolf (Canis lupus) kill rate was affected by
a sympatric apex predator, the brown bear (Ursus arctos). We used kill
interval (i.e. the number of days between consecutive ungulate kills) as a
proxy of kill rate. Although brown bears can monopolize wolf kills, we
found no support in either study system for the common assumption that
they cause wolves to kill more often. On the contrary, our results showed
the opposite effect. In Scandinavia, wolf packs sympatric with brown bears
killed less often than allopatric packs during both spring (after bear den
emergence) and summer. Similarly, the presence of bears at wolf-killed
ungulates was associated with wolves killing less often during summer in
Yellowstone. The consistency in results between the two systems suggests
that brown bear presence actually reduces wolf kill rate. Our results
suggest that the influence of predation on lower trophic levels may depend
on the composition of predator communities.
Data from wolf predation studies carried out in Scandinavia (2001-2015)
and Yellowstone National Park (2008-2015).Excel file of data from wolf
predation studies carried out in Scandinavia (2002-2015) and Yellowstone
National Park (2008-2015). Data include: study system (Scandinavia or
Yellowstone), study season (spring or summer), study year, pack ID (pack
name/territory), wolf ID (identity of each wolf followed – Yellowstone
only), unique kill ID (identity number associated with each wolf killed
carcass – Yellowstone only), kill interval (time to next kill in days),
bear presence (Scandinavia – absent or present in the study system;
Yellowstone – absent or present at carcass site), Julian date (date of
wolf kill), prey type (Scandinavia spring study – adult (i.e., > 1
year) or calf (i.e., < 1 year) moose; Scandinavia summer study –
neonate or non-neonate moose (i.e., newborn calf or adult/yearling);
Yellowstone summer study – large (i.e., elk, bison, or moose ≥11 months)
or small (i.e., any neonate, or adult deer, bighorn sheep, or pronghorn)
ungulate), pack size, road (distance from wolf kill to the nearest road in
kilometers), scavenge (the number of carcasses wolves visited between
kills – Yellowstone only), moose density (number of moose harvested/km2
averaged over the territory – Scandinavia only), and snow depth (snow
depth on date of kill, measured in meters, recorded at the meteorological
station closest to each territory – Scandinavia spring study
only).Dryad_Data_Table.xlsx
Yellowstone National Park
Scandinavia