Ungulates’ Behavioral Responses to Humans as an Apex Predator in a Hunting-Prohibited Area of China
Large mammals can perceive humans as predators and therefore adjust their behavior to achieve coexistence with humans. However, lack of research at sites with low hunting intensity limits our understanding of how behavioral responses of animals adapt to different predation risks by humans. At Heshun...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2023-02-01
|
| Series: | Animals |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/5/845 |
| _version_ | 1797615877584060416 |
|---|---|
| author | Mingzhang Liu William J. McShea Yidan Wang Fan Xia Xiaoli Shen Sheng Li |
| author_facet | Mingzhang Liu William J. McShea Yidan Wang Fan Xia Xiaoli Shen Sheng Li |
| author_sort | Mingzhang Liu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Large mammals can perceive humans as predators and therefore adjust their behavior to achieve coexistence with humans. However, lack of research at sites with low hunting intensity limits our understanding of how behavioral responses of animals adapt to different predation risks by humans. At Heshun County in North China, where hunting has been banned for over three decades and only low-intensity poaching exists, we exposed two large ungulates (Siberian roe deer <i>Capreolus pygarus</i> and wild boar <i>Sus scrofa</i>) to the sounds of humans, an extant predator (leopard <i>Panthera pardus</i>) and a control (wind), and examined their flight responses and detection probabilities when hearing different type of sounds. Both species showed higher flight probabilities when hearing human vocalization than wind, and wild boar were even more likely to flee upon hearing human vocalization than leopard roar, suggesting the behavioral response to humans can equal or exceed that of large carnivores in these two ungulates even in an area without hunting practices. Recorded sounds had no effect on detection probability of both ungulates. Additionally, with repeated exposure to sounds, regardless of treatment, roe deer were less likely to flee and wild boars were more likely to be detected, indicating a habituation-type response to sound stimuli. We speculate that the immediate flight behavior rather than shifts in habitat use of the two species reflect the low hunting/poaching pressure at our study site and suggest further examination of physiological status and demographic dynamics of the study species to understand human influence on their long-term persistence. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T07:33:13Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b3b07231cdf6485a8294b6326dd177eb |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T07:33:13Z |
| publishDate | 2023-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-b3b07231cdf6485a8294b6326dd177eb2023-11-17T07:13:10ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152023-02-0113584510.3390/ani13050845Ungulates’ Behavioral Responses to Humans as an Apex Predator in a Hunting-Prohibited Area of ChinaMingzhang Liu0William J. McShea1Yidan Wang2Fan Xia3Xiaoli Shen4Sheng Li5School of Life Sciences, Institute of Ecology, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaConservation Ecology Center, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA 22630, USASchool of Life Sciences, Institute of Ecology, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaSchool of Life Sciences, Institute of Ecology, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, ChinaSchool of Life Sciences, Institute of Ecology, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaLarge mammals can perceive humans as predators and therefore adjust their behavior to achieve coexistence with humans. However, lack of research at sites with low hunting intensity limits our understanding of how behavioral responses of animals adapt to different predation risks by humans. At Heshun County in North China, where hunting has been banned for over three decades and only low-intensity poaching exists, we exposed two large ungulates (Siberian roe deer <i>Capreolus pygarus</i> and wild boar <i>Sus scrofa</i>) to the sounds of humans, an extant predator (leopard <i>Panthera pardus</i>) and a control (wind), and examined their flight responses and detection probabilities when hearing different type of sounds. Both species showed higher flight probabilities when hearing human vocalization than wind, and wild boar were even more likely to flee upon hearing human vocalization than leopard roar, suggesting the behavioral response to humans can equal or exceed that of large carnivores in these two ungulates even in an area without hunting practices. Recorded sounds had no effect on detection probability of both ungulates. Additionally, with repeated exposure to sounds, regardless of treatment, roe deer were less likely to flee and wild boars were more likely to be detected, indicating a habituation-type response to sound stimuli. We speculate that the immediate flight behavior rather than shifts in habitat use of the two species reflect the low hunting/poaching pressure at our study site and suggest further examination of physiological status and demographic dynamics of the study species to understand human influence on their long-term persistence.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/5/845human disturbancefear ecologyacoustic cuesAutomated Behavioral Response (ABR) systemplayback experiment |
| spellingShingle | Mingzhang Liu William J. McShea Yidan Wang Fan Xia Xiaoli Shen Sheng Li Ungulates’ Behavioral Responses to Humans as an Apex Predator in a Hunting-Prohibited Area of China Animals human disturbance fear ecology acoustic cues Automated Behavioral Response (ABR) system playback experiment |
| title | Ungulates’ Behavioral Responses to Humans as an Apex Predator in a Hunting-Prohibited Area of China |
| title_full | Ungulates’ Behavioral Responses to Humans as an Apex Predator in a Hunting-Prohibited Area of China |
| title_fullStr | Ungulates’ Behavioral Responses to Humans as an Apex Predator in a Hunting-Prohibited Area of China |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ungulates’ Behavioral Responses to Humans as an Apex Predator in a Hunting-Prohibited Area of China |
| title_short | Ungulates’ Behavioral Responses to Humans as an Apex Predator in a Hunting-Prohibited Area of China |
| title_sort | ungulates behavioral responses to humans as an apex predator in a hunting prohibited area of china |
| topic | human disturbance fear ecology acoustic cues Automated Behavioral Response (ABR) system playback experiment |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/5/845 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mingzhangliu ungulatesbehavioralresponsestohumansasanapexpredatorinahuntingprohibitedareaofchina AT williamjmcshea ungulatesbehavioralresponsestohumansasanapexpredatorinahuntingprohibitedareaofchina AT yidanwang ungulatesbehavioralresponsestohumansasanapexpredatorinahuntingprohibitedareaofchina AT fanxia ungulatesbehavioralresponsestohumansasanapexpredatorinahuntingprohibitedareaofchina AT xiaolishen ungulatesbehavioralresponsestohumansasanapexpredatorinahuntingprohibitedareaofchina AT shengli ungulatesbehavioralresponsestohumansasanapexpredatorinahuntingprohibitedareaofchina |