Do coyotes Canis latrans influence occupancy of prey in suburban forest fragments?

ABSTRACT: With the extirpation of apex predators from many North American systems, coyotes Canis latrans have become the de facto top predator and are ubiquitous members of most ecosystems. Keystone predators aid in maintaining ecosystem function by regulating the mammal community through direct predation and instilling the landscape of fear, yet the value of coyotes regulating systems to this capacity is understudied and likely variable across environments. Since coyotes are common in the Midwestern United States, we utilized camera traps and occupancy analyses to assess their role in regulating the distribution of mammalian herbivores in a fragmented suburban ecosystem. Forest cover was a strong positive predictor of white-tailed deer Odocoileus virginianus detection, while co

SUBMITTER: Jones BM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5804128 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature