The spatial distribution relationship between three pheasant species and mutual predator, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), on the Western Sichuan Plateau

doi:10.17520/biods.2020438

Abstract

Abstract:

Aims: Multiple interspecific factors such as predator-prey dynamics and responses to different environmental variables collectively influence the spatial distribution of wildlife species. To be able to understand how these mechanisms influence community aggregation and biodiversity stability, it is crucial to understand role these factors play in impacting the formation of spatial distribution patterns among sympatric species.
Methods: Here, we investigated the spatial distribution correlations and driving factors of three pheasant species commonly seen or surveyed on the Western Sichuan Plateau. We combined a total of 682 independent photos obtained from 84 infrared camera traps from 2016 to 2018 with conditional two-species occupancy model. We then used the model operation to assess the spatial distribution relations on the camera site scale. We used this model operation for each of the three pheasant species (the buff-throated partridge Tetraophasis szechenyii, blood pheasant Ithaginis cruentus, and the white eared-pheasant Crossoptilon crossoptilon) and their predator the red fox which can also be found over a wide area in the Western Sichuan Plateau.
Results: We had two major results from our analyses. First, under the synergic-influence of species interactions and environmental variables, the spatial distribution of the red fox and the blood pheasant (species interaction factor, SIF = 1.31 ± 0.14) was similar to that of the red fox and the buff-throated partridge (SIF = 1.42 ± 0.41). Both these pairs tended to have a great overlap within the study area. Additionally, the spatial distribution between the red fox and the blood pheasant would overlap in some large areas and then spatial distribution overlapped decreased with the increasing distance to rivers. The spatial relationship between the red fox and the buff-throated partridge were exhibited a different trend, which has been a consistently falling overlap ratio tendency since the distance from camera site to rivers began to increase. The red fox and the white eared-pheasant shared independent distribution patterns with each other (SIF = 1). Environmental variables were a strong predictor for the spatial distribution pattern of white-eared pheasants. However, environmental variables hardly had any impact on the distribution strategy for the red fox. The second major result was that the detection probabilities for all three pheasant species was associated with the synergic-influence of species interactions. The presence of red fox practically reduced the detection probability for all three pheasant species on the site scale (pB > rB).
Conclusion: Results from this experiment provide a new up to date case study (with solid scientific basis) that focused on species distribution relationships, and help us understand the importance of species coexistence and biodiversity conservation.

Key words: spatial distribution, predator-prey relationships, camera traps, occupancy model

Boyan Zou, Gai Luo, Bowei Zhu, Jianghong Ran, Chao Fang. The spatial distribution relationship between three pheasant species and mutual predator, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), on the Western Sichuan Plateau[J]. Biodiv Sci, 2021, 29(7): 918-926.

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URL: https://www.biodiversity-science.net/EN/10.17520/biods.2020438

https://www.biodiversity-science.net/EN/Y2021/V29/I7/918

Figures/Tables 6

References 36

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参数 Parameters	描述 Description
psiA	物种A对位点使用的概率 Probability of site use for species A
psiBA	当物种A存在时, 物种B对位点使用的概率 Probability of site use for species B, given species A is present
psiBa	当物种A不存在时, 物种B对位点使用的概率 Probability of site use for species B, given species A is absent
pA	当物种B不存在时, 物种A的探测概率 Probability of detection for species A, given species B is absent
pB	当物种A不存在时, 物种B的探测概率 Probability of detection for species B, given species A is absent
rA	当两物种都存在时, 物种A的探测概率 Probability of detection for species A, given both species are present
rBA	当两物种都存在且物种A被探测到时, 物种B的探测概率 Probability of detection for species B, given both species are present and species A is detected
rBa	当两物种都存在且物种A未被探测到时, 物种B的探测概率 Probability of detection for species B, given both species are present and species A is not detected

参数 Parameters	描述 Description
psiA	物种A对位点使用的概率 Probability of site use for species A
psiBA	当物种A存在时, 物种B对位点使用的概率 Probability of site use for species B, given species A is present
psiBa	当物种A不存在时, 物种B对位点使用的概率 Probability of site use for species B, given species A is absent
pA	当物种B不存在时, 物种A的探测概率 Probability of detection for species A, given species B is absent
pB	当物种A不存在时, 物种B的探测概率 Probability of detection for species B, given species A is absent
rA	当两物种都存在时, 物种A的探测概率 Probability of detection for species A, given both species are present
rBA	当两物种都存在且物种A被探测到时, 物种B的探测概率 Probability of detection for species B, given both species are present and species A is detected
rBa	当两物种都存在且物种A未被探测到时, 物种B的探测概率 Probability of detection for species B, given both species are present and species A is not detected

模型 Models	参数数量 Number of parameters	AIC	ΔAIC	AIC Wt
赤狐 + 白马鸡 Vulpes vulpes + Crossoptilon crossoptilon
psiA, psiB (ELE + DTR); pA, pB, rB	7	1,120.73	0	0.9731
psiA, psiB; pA, pB, rB	5	1,128.81	8.08	0.0171
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB, rB	6	1,130.8	10.07	0.0063
psiA, psiB (ELE + DTR); pA, pB	6	1,132.21	11.48	0.0031
psiA, psiBA (ELE + DTR), psiBa (ELE + DTR); pA, pB	9	1,137.12	16.39	0.0003
psiA, psiB; pA, pB	4	1,141.3	20.57	0
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB	5	1,142.01	21.28	0
psiA, psiBA (ELE + DTR), psiBa (ELE + DTR); pA, pB, rB	10	1,151.45	30.72	0
赤狐 + 黄喉雉鹑 Vulpes vulpes + Tetraophasis szechenyii
psiA, psiBA (DTW), psiBa (DTW); pA, pB, rB	8	814.35	0	0.9847
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB, rB	6	823.13	8.78	0.0122
psiA, psiB (DTW); pA, pB, rB	6	826.47	12.12	0.0023
psiA, psiB; pA, pB, rB	5	829.01	14.66	0.0006
psiA, psiBA (DTW), psiBa (DTW); pA, pB	7	833.91	19.56	0.0001
psiA, psiB (DTW); pA, pB	5	833.97	19.62	0.000
psiA, psiB; pA, pB	4	836.53	22.18	0
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB	5	837.41	23.06	0
赤狐 + 血雉 Vulpes vulpes + Ithaginis cruentus
psiA, psiBA (DTW), psiBa (DTW); pA, pB, rB	8	935.01	0	0.773
psiA, psiB (DTW); pA, pB, rB	6	937.74	2.73	0.1974
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB, rBa	6	942.00	6.99	0.0235
psiA, psiB; pA, pB, rBa	5	944.68	9.67	0.0061
psiA, psiB (DTW); pA, pB	5	968.95	33.94	0
psiA, psiBA (DTW), psiBa (DTW); pA, pB	7	972.72	97.71	0
psiA, psiB; pA, pB	4	975.74	40.73	0
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB	5	977.74	42.73	0

模型 Models	参数数量 Number of parameters	AIC	ΔAIC	AIC Wt
赤狐 + 白马鸡 Vulpes vulpes + Crossoptilon crossoptilon
psiA, psiB (ELE + DTR); pA, pB, rB	7	1,120.73	0	0.9731
psiA, psiB; pA, pB, rB	5	1,128.81	8.08	0.0171
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB, rB	6	1,130.8	10.07	0.0063
psiA, psiB (ELE + DTR); pA, pB	6	1,132.21	11.48	0.0031
psiA, psiBA (ELE + DTR), psiBa (ELE + DTR); pA, pB	9	1,137.12	16.39	0.0003
psiA, psiB; pA, pB	4	1,141.3	20.57	0
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB	5	1,142.01	21.28	0
psiA, psiBA (ELE + DTR), psiBa (ELE + DTR); pA, pB, rB	10	1,151.45	30.72	0
赤狐 + 黄喉雉鹑 Vulpes vulpes + Tetraophasis szechenyii
psiA, psiBA (DTW), psiBa (DTW); pA, pB, rB	8	814.35	0	0.9847
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB, rB	6	823.13	8.78	0.0122
psiA, psiB (DTW); pA, pB, rB	6	826.47	12.12	0.0023
psiA, psiB; pA, pB, rB	5	829.01	14.66	0.0006
psiA, psiBA (DTW), psiBa (DTW); pA, pB	7	833.91	19.56	0.0001
psiA, psiB (DTW); pA, pB	5	833.97	19.62	0.000
psiA, psiB; pA, pB	4	836.53	22.18	0
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB	5	837.41	23.06	0
赤狐 + 血雉 Vulpes vulpes + Ithaginis cruentus
psiA, psiBA (DTW), psiBa (DTW); pA, pB, rB	8	935.01	0	0.773
psiA, psiB (DTW); pA, pB, rB	6	937.74	2.73	0.1974
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB, rBa	6	942.00	6.99	0.0235
psiA, psiB; pA, pB, rBa	5	944.68	9.67	0.0061
psiA, psiB (DTW); pA, pB	5	968.95	33.94	0
psiA, psiBA (DTW), psiBa (DTW); pA, pB	7	972.72	97.71	0
psiA, psiB; pA, pB	4	975.74	40.73	0
psiA, psiBA, psiBa; pA, pB	5	977.74	42.73	0

物种对 Species pairs	psiA ± SE	psiBA ± SE	psiBa ± SE	pA ± SE	pB ± SE	rB ± SE	SIF ± SE
赤狐 + 白马鸡 Vulpes vulpes + Crossoptilon crossoptilon	0.50 ± 0.10	0.68 ± 0.20	0.68 ± 0.20	0.10 ± 0.02	0.32 ± 0.03	0.14 ± 0.02	1.00
赤狐 + 黄喉雉鹑 Vulpes vulpes + Tetraophasis szechenyii	0.56 ± 0.07	0.70 ± 0.08	0.31 ± 0.38	0.09 ± 0.01	0.42 ± 0.07	0.09 ± 0.02	1.42 ± 0.41
赤狐 + 血雉 Vulpes vulpes + Ithaginis cruentus	0.62 ± 0.07	0.81 ± 0.30	0.29 ± 0.17	0.08 ± 0.01	0.59 ± 0.05	0.11 ± 0.01	1.31 ± 0.14