Risk effects in large carnivore-ungulate interactions: relationships between direct predation rates, antipredator responses and the costs of response.

捕食是影响野生动物种群规模的最重要因素之一。 为了管理和保护野生动物种群，我们必须了解捕食是如何限制猎物数量的几十年来，对捕食的研究只集中在直接杀死的影响上，但最近的研究表明，避免捕食的成本（或“风险效应”）也可能产生强烈的影响。 特别是，反捕食者的行为可能导致营养的变化，减少繁殖，很容易错误地将这种反应归因于捕食以外的因素（例如，食物供应的限制）。 这项研究将（1）测量一组广泛的反捕食者对捕食风险变化的反应，（2）测量这些反应的营养成本，（3）测试对繁殖的影响。 通过研究不同环境条件下的几个猎物物种的反应，该研究将确定控制捕食风险影响的大小的因素。总的来说，这项研究将促进我们对大型食肉动物影响有蹄类动物种群的方式的理解。 由于大型食肉动物有蹄类系统在世界范围内正在下降，因此其结果将对保护和管理具有直接价值。该项目还将对本科生和研究生进行动物行为和保护研究方面的培训，并为将在赞比亚研究领域工作的学生提供国际经验。 由于该项目具有国际组成部分，因此得到行为系统集群和国际科学和工程办公室全球风险基金的联合支助。

Predation is one of the most important factors affecting the size of wildlife populations. To manage and conserve wildlife populations, we must understand how predation limits prey numbers For many decades, research on predation has focused solely on the effect of direct killing, but recent studies show that the costs of avoiding predation (or 'risk effects') can also have strong effects. In particular, antipredator behavior can lead to changes in nutrition that reduce reproduction, and it is easy to mistakenly attribute such responses to factors other than predation (for example, limitation by the availability of food). This study will (1) measure a broad set of antipredator responses to variation in the risk of predation for a broad set of species, (2) measure the nutritional costs of these responses, and (3) test for effects on reproduction. By examining the responses of several prey species under varying environmental conditions, the study will identify factors that control the magnitude of predation risk effects. Overall, this study will advance our understanding of the ways that large carnivores affect populations of ungulates. Because large-carnivore ungulate systems are in decline worldwide, the results will be of immediate value for conservation and management. This project will also train undergraduate and graduate students in animal behavior and conservation research and provide international experience for those students who will be working at the research area in Zambia. Due to the international component the project is jointly supported by the Behavioral Systems Cluster and the Office for International Science and Engineering Global Venture Fund.