Predation risk is a function of seasonality rather than habitat complexity in a tropical semiarid forest

Abstract Predator–prey dynamics are some of the most important species’ interactions in the natural structuring of communities, and are among the more complex ecological processes studied by ecologists. We measured predation risk using artificial lizard replicas to test two competing hypotheses rega...

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Autores principales:	Anthony Santana Ferreira, Renato Gomes Faria
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/0d60e34897fa44b294f8ce8a525a5463
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:0d60e34897fa44b294f8ce8a525a54632021-12-02T18:51:52ZPredation risk is a function of seasonality rather than habitat complexity in a tropical semiarid forest10.1038/s41598-021-96216-82045-2322https://doaj.org/article/0d60e34897fa44b294f8ce8a525a54632021-08-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-96216-8https://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract Predator–prey dynamics are some of the most important species’ interactions in the natural structuring of communities, and are among the more complex ecological processes studied by ecologists. We measured predation risk using artificial lizard replicas to test two competing hypotheses regarding predation pressure in semi-arid environments: (1) predation risk is dependent on the habitat structural complexity; and (2) predation risk is dependent on seasonality. We placed 960 lizard replicas along three sites with different physical structures and in both dry and rainy seasons for seven consecutive days in a caatinga area in northeastern Brazil at Grota do Angico Natural Monument (GANM). Birds were responsible for the majority of attacks and more frequently on artificial lizards placed in trees. Attacks focused on the most vulnerable areas of the body (head and torso), proving that were perceived by predators as true prey items. We found that predation risk is not dependent on the habitat structural complexity, but rather dependent on the caatinga seasonality, with the overall attack rate being 19% higher in the dry season. Our study suggests that potential predation risk is highly context-dependent and that seasonality consistently drives of trophic interactions strength in the caatinga, an important ecological finding that could contribute to better understanding the complex evolution of predator–prey interactions within communities of animals living in different habitats.Anthony Santana FerreiraRenato Gomes FariaNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1-11 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Anthony Santana Ferreira Renato Gomes Faria Predation risk is a function of seasonality rather than habitat complexity in a tropical semiarid forest
description	Abstract Predator–prey dynamics are some of the most important species’ interactions in the natural structuring of communities, and are among the more complex ecological processes studied by ecologists. We measured predation risk using artificial lizard replicas to test two competing hypotheses regarding predation pressure in semi-arid environments: (1) predation risk is dependent on the habitat structural complexity; and (2) predation risk is dependent on seasonality. We placed 960 lizard replicas along three sites with different physical structures and in both dry and rainy seasons for seven consecutive days in a caatinga area in northeastern Brazil at Grota do Angico Natural Monument (GANM). Birds were responsible for the majority of attacks and more frequently on artificial lizards placed in trees. Attacks focused on the most vulnerable areas of the body (head and torso), proving that were perceived by predators as true prey items. We found that predation risk is not dependent on the habitat structural complexity, but rather dependent on the caatinga seasonality, with the overall attack rate being 19% higher in the dry season. Our study suggests that potential predation risk is highly context-dependent and that seasonality consistently drives of trophic interactions strength in the caatinga, an important ecological finding that could contribute to better understanding the complex evolution of predator–prey interactions within communities of animals living in different habitats.
format	article
author	Anthony Santana Ferreira Renato Gomes Faria
author_facet	Anthony Santana Ferreira Renato Gomes Faria
author_sort	Anthony Santana Ferreira
title	Predation risk is a function of seasonality rather than habitat complexity in a tropical semiarid forest
title_short	Predation risk is a function of seasonality rather than habitat complexity in a tropical semiarid forest
title_full	Predation risk is a function of seasonality rather than habitat complexity in a tropical semiarid forest
title_fullStr	Predation risk is a function of seasonality rather than habitat complexity in a tropical semiarid forest
title_full_unstemmed	Predation risk is a function of seasonality rather than habitat complexity in a tropical semiarid forest
title_sort	predation risk is a function of seasonality rather than habitat complexity in a tropical semiarid forest
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/0d60e34897fa44b294f8ce8a525a5463
work_keys_str_mv	AT anthonysantanaferreira predationriskisafunctionofseasonalityratherthanhabitatcomplexityinatropicalsemiaridforest AT renatogomesfaria predationriskisafunctionofseasonalityratherthanhabitatcomplexityinatropicalsemiaridforest
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Predation risk is a function of seasonality rather than habitat complexity in a tropical semiarid forest

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