Assessing resource and predator effects on habitat use of tropical small carnivores

Wildlife hunting practices of the Santal and Oraon communities in Rajshahi, Bangladesh

Humans have been depending on wild animals from ancient times for food, medicine, economy, tools, and others. Santal and Oraon are two of the indigenous communities present in the Rajshahi district of Bangladesh. They practice wildlife hunting as part of their traditions. We investigated the wildlife hunting practice of these indigenous communities using a closed-ended questionnaire survey.  We interviewed 100 households of both communities from four villages. The study indicated that 76% of respondents hunted (88% Santal and 67% Oraon); and they usually hunt mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians, of which the bird is the most preferred (73%) and snake the least (1%). The response of hunting among the two communities significantly differed for tortoise, bird, rabbit, mongoose, jackal, and the Jungle Cat. Eighteen sets of animal taxa were significantly correlated indicating that households exercised preferences in terms of prey. The result also showed that only 14% of Santal and 7% of Oraon were familiar with the Bangladesh Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act, 2012.  Although the impact of wildlife hunting of these indigenous groups is still ambiguous, the present study provides a preliminary database of hunting practices of these communities for future conservation management.

Human disturbance has contrasting effects on niche partitioning within carnivore communities

Among species, coexistence is driven partly by the partitioning of available resources. The mechanisms of coexistence and competition among species have been a central topic within community ecology, with particular focus on mammalian carnivore community research. However, despite growing concern regarding the impact of humans on the behaviour of species, very little is known about the effect of humans on species interactions. The aim of this review is to establish a comprehensive framework for the impacts of human disturbance on three dimensions (spatial, temporal and trophic) of niche partitioning within carnivore communities and subsequent effects on both intraguild competition and community structure. We conducted a systematic review of the literature on carnivore niche partitioning (246 studies) and extracted 46 reported effects of human disturbance. We found evidence that human disturbance impacts resource partitioning, either positively or negatively, in all three niche dimensions. The repercussions of such variations are highly heterogeneous and differ according to both the type of human disturbance and how the landscape and/or availability of resources are affected. We propose a theoretical framework of the three main outcomes for the impacts of human disturbance on intraguild competition and carnivore community structure: (i) human disturbance impedes niche partitioning, increasing intraguild competition and reducing the richness and diversity of the community; (ii) human disturbance unbalances niche partitioning and intraguild competition, affecting community stability; and (iii) human disturbance facilitates niche partitioning, decreasing intraguild competition and enriching the community. We call for better integration of the impact of humans on carnivore communities in future research on interspecific competition.