Effect of ecological and anthropogenic factors on grouping patterns in African lions across Kenya
Abstract Social carnivores frequently live in fission–fusion societies, where individuals that share a common territory or home range may be found alone, in subgroups, or altogether. Absolute group size and subgroup size is expected to vary according to resource distribution, but for species that ar...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10982 |
| _version_ | 1797290893059817472 |
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| author | Mumbi Chege Laura D. Bertola Geert R. De Snoo Shadrack Ngene Tobias Otieno Irene Amoke Maarten van't Zelfde Stephanie Dolrenry Femke Broekhuis Will Tamis Hans H. De Iongh Nicholas B. Elliot |
| author_facet | Mumbi Chege Laura D. Bertola Geert R. De Snoo Shadrack Ngene Tobias Otieno Irene Amoke Maarten van't Zelfde Stephanie Dolrenry Femke Broekhuis Will Tamis Hans H. De Iongh Nicholas B. Elliot |
| author_sort | Mumbi Chege |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Social carnivores frequently live in fission–fusion societies, where individuals that share a common territory or home range may be found alone, in subgroups, or altogether. Absolute group size and subgroup size is expected to vary according to resource distribution, but for species that are susceptible to anthropogenic pressures, other factors may be important drivers. African lions (Panthera leo) are the only truly social felid and lion prides are characterized by fission–fusion dynamics with social groups frequently splitting and reforming, and subgroup membership can change continuously and frequently. The number of individuals in a group can be reflective of social, ecological, and anthropogenic conditions. This dynamic behavior makes understanding lion grouping patterns crucial for tailoring conservation measures. The evolution of group living in lions has been the topic of numerous studies, and we drew on these to formulate hypotheses relating to group size and subgroup size variation. Based on data collected from 199 lion groups across eight sites in Kenya, we found that group sizes were smaller when lions were closer to human settlements, suggesting that edge effects are impacting lions at a national scale. Smaller groups were also more likely when they were far from water, and were associated with very low and very high levels of non‐tree vegetation. We found significant differences between the study sites, with the Maasai Mara having the largest groups (mean ± SD = 7.7 ± 4.7, range = 1–19), and Amboseli conservation area the smallest (4.3 ± 3.5, range = 1–14). While long‐term studies within a single site are well suited to thoroughly differentiate between absolute group size and subgroup size, our study provides unique insight into the correlates of grouping patterns in a vulnerable species at a national scale. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T19:28:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4ee76e8e1fe74b519e5755d1653c3763 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T19:28:50Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-4ee76e8e1fe74b519e5755d1653c37632024-02-29T08:56:40ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582024-02-01142n/an/a10.1002/ece3.10982Effect of ecological and anthropogenic factors on grouping patterns in African lions across KenyaMumbi Chege0Laura D. Bertola1Geert R. De Snoo2Shadrack Ngene3Tobias Otieno4Irene Amoke5Maarten van't Zelfde6Stephanie Dolrenry7Femke Broekhuis8Will Tamis9Hans H. De Iongh10Nicholas B. Elliot11Wildlife Research and Training Institute Naivasha KenyaDepartment of Biology University of Copenhagen Copenhagen DenmarkInstitute of Environmental Sciences CML Leiden University Leiden The NetherlandsWildlife Research and Training Institute Naivasha KenyaEwaso Lions Nairobi KenyaKenya Wildlife Trust Nairobi KenyaInstitute of Environmental Sciences CML Leiden University Leiden The NetherlandsLion Guardians Nairobi KenyaWildlife Ecology and Conservation Group Wageningen University and Research Wageningen The NetherlandsInstitute of Environmental Sciences CML Leiden University Leiden The NetherlandsInstitute of Environmental Sciences CML Leiden University Leiden The NetherlandsWildlife Counts Nairobi KenyaAbstract Social carnivores frequently live in fission–fusion societies, where individuals that share a common territory or home range may be found alone, in subgroups, or altogether. Absolute group size and subgroup size is expected to vary according to resource distribution, but for species that are susceptible to anthropogenic pressures, other factors may be important drivers. African lions (Panthera leo) are the only truly social felid and lion prides are characterized by fission–fusion dynamics with social groups frequently splitting and reforming, and subgroup membership can change continuously and frequently. The number of individuals in a group can be reflective of social, ecological, and anthropogenic conditions. This dynamic behavior makes understanding lion grouping patterns crucial for tailoring conservation measures. The evolution of group living in lions has been the topic of numerous studies, and we drew on these to formulate hypotheses relating to group size and subgroup size variation. Based on data collected from 199 lion groups across eight sites in Kenya, we found that group sizes were smaller when lions were closer to human settlements, suggesting that edge effects are impacting lions at a national scale. Smaller groups were also more likely when they were far from water, and were associated with very low and very high levels of non‐tree vegetation. We found significant differences between the study sites, with the Maasai Mara having the largest groups (mean ± SD = 7.7 ± 4.7, range = 1–19), and Amboseli conservation area the smallest (4.3 ± 3.5, range = 1–14). While long‐term studies within a single site are well suited to thoroughly differentiate between absolute group size and subgroup size, our study provides unique insight into the correlates of grouping patterns in a vulnerable species at a national scale.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10982African lionbehaviorfission‐fusiongroup sizeKenyasociality |
| spellingShingle | Mumbi Chege Laura D. Bertola Geert R. De Snoo Shadrack Ngene Tobias Otieno Irene Amoke Maarten van't Zelfde Stephanie Dolrenry Femke Broekhuis Will Tamis Hans H. De Iongh Nicholas B. Elliot Effect of ecological and anthropogenic factors on grouping patterns in African lions across Kenya Ecology and Evolution African lion behavior fission‐fusion group size Kenya sociality |
| title | Effect of ecological and anthropogenic factors on grouping patterns in African lions across Kenya |
| title_full | Effect of ecological and anthropogenic factors on grouping patterns in African lions across Kenya |
| title_fullStr | Effect of ecological and anthropogenic factors on grouping patterns in African lions across Kenya |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effect of ecological and anthropogenic factors on grouping patterns in African lions across Kenya |
| title_short | Effect of ecological and anthropogenic factors on grouping patterns in African lions across Kenya |
| title_sort | effect of ecological and anthropogenic factors on grouping patterns in african lions across kenya |
| topic | African lion behavior fission‐fusion group size Kenya sociality |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10982 |
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