Foraging and habitat use of eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) in an urban landscape
Foraging and habitat use of eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) in an urban landscape
复制标题
东部棉尾兔 (Sylvilagus floridanus) 在城市景观中的觅食和栖息地利用
作者：
Mohammad A Abu Baker;Sara E. Emerson;Joel s. Brown
大学校园、树木园和后院等城市景观为动物行为的教育和研究提供了绝佳的栖息地。我们调查了自由放养的东部棉尾（Sylvilagus floridanus）在芝加哥和劳伦斯大学的校园觅食活动的方面。我们使用放弃密度（GUD）来测试栖息地选择和斑块利用行为的棉尾鸭栖息在城市景观的灌木和树木覆盖梯度。此外，我们在饲养盘周围使用了小花园围栏，以测试它们作为棉尾鼠觅食障碍的效果。觅食活动显着高于在开放的覆盖下。GUD显着降低接近覆盖;此外，灌木首选低铺设树木作为覆盖的来源。相机陷阱照片显示，孤独的觅食，最高的下午晚些时候和清晨。我们证明，周围的食物补丁与3或4个围栏增加了棉尾的GUD。与自然栖息地相似，城市景观提供了异质性的环境，迫使居民根据他们感知的压力来分配他们的觅食活动。研究栖息地复杂性对觅食反应的影响为研究生态相互作用提供了有用的工具，并有助于最大限度地减少棉尾鼠在城市公园和私人花园等城市环境中造成的损害。
Urban landscapes such as college campuses, arboretums, and backyards provide excellent habitats for education and research into animal behavior. We investigated aspects of the foraging activity of free-ranging Eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) on the campuses of the University of Illinois at Chicago and Lawrence University. We used giving-up densities (GUD) to test for habitat selection and patch-use behavior by cottontails inhabiting an urban landscape with a gradient of shrub and tree cover. In addition, we used small garden fences around feeding trays to test their effect as obstacles to the foraging of cottontails. Foraging activity was significantly higher under cover than in the open. GUDs were significantly lower in proximity to cover; in addition, shrubs were preferred over low-laying trees as the source of cover. Camera trap photos revealed solitary foraging, highest in the late afternoon and early morning. We demonstrated that surrounding a food patch with 3 or 4 fences increased the cottontails’ GUDs. Similar to natural habitats, urban landscapes offer heterogeneous environments that force their inhabitants to allocate their foraging activity according to their perceived stresses. Studying effect of habitat complexity on foraging responses provides useful tools to study ecological interactions and can help minimize the damage that cottontails cause within urban environments such as city parks and private gardens.