Spatiotemporal overlap among sympatric Pallas’s cat (Otocolobus manul), Tibetan fox (Vulpes ferrilata) and red fox (V. vulpes) in the source region of the Yangtze River

doi:10.17520/biods.2021365

Abstract

Abstract:

Aim: Pallas’s cat (Otocolobus manul), Tibetan fox (Vulpes ferrilata) and red fox (V. vulpes) are small sympatric carnivores inhabiting the Sanjiangyuan region on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. The spatiotemporal overlaps between these species were analyzed in this study.
Methods: From June 2014 to September 2019, we set up 208 infrared cameras along the Tuotuo River and the Tongtian River in the source region of the Yangtze River to collect the daily activity rhythm and spatial distribution data of three carnivores. The spatial overlap coefficient was used to evaluate spatial niche differentiation and the kernel density estimation method was utilized to evaluate daily activity rhythm. Then, the overlap coefficient of rhythms was applied to analyze the temporal niche differentiation among the three carnivores.
Results: The spatial overlap coefficients between Pallas’s cat and Tibetan fox, Pallas’s cat and red fox, and Tibetan fox and red fox were 0.25, 0.48 and 0.17, respectively. This indicated that there were differences in space utilization among the three carnivores. The results of daily activity rhythm demonstrated that Pallas’s cats and Tibetan foxes displayed diurnal behavioral patterns and red foxes were primarily nocturnal. The overlap coefficients of daily activity rhythms of Pallas’s cats, Tibetan foxes, and red foxes between the cold and warm seasons were 0.83, 0.78 and 0.88, respectively. Between any two species, the highest overlap coefficient (0.84) of daily activity rhythm was between the Pallas’s cats and Tibetan foxes, and the lowest overlap coefficient (0.48) was between the Tibetan foxes and red foxes. A lower coefficient meant more significant temporal niche differentiation. Additionally, the overlap coefficients of daily activity rhythm between the two species were smaller in the warm season than those in the cold season.
Conclusion: In the source region of the Yangtze River, the three small sympatric carnivores could reduce interference and competition through spatial or/and temporal niche differentiation and thus achieve coexistence.

Key words: the source region of the Yangtze River, Pallas’s cat, Tibetan fox, red fox, infrared camera, spatiotemporal overlap, difference in resource utilization

Dong Wang, Qinggaowa Sai, Zihan Wang, Hongxiu Zhao, Xinming Lian. Spatiotemporal overlap among sympatric Pallas’s cat (Otocolobus manul), Tibetan fox (Vulpes ferrilata) and red fox (V. vulpes) in the source region of the Yangtze River[J]. Biodiv Sci, 2022, 30(9): 21365.

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URL: https://www.biodiversity-science.net/EN/10.17520/biods.2021365

https://www.biodiversity-science.net/EN/Y2022/V30/I9/21365

Figures/Tables 3

Table 1 Detailed survey information in the Pallas’s cat, Tibetan fox and red fox by infrared cameras

	姜古迪如冰川 The Jianggudiru Glacier	唐古拉山镇及通天河口 The Tanggulashan Town and the mouth of Tongtian River	烟瘴挂大峡谷 The Yanzhanggua Valley	曲麻莱县巴干乡 The Bagan Town in the Qumalai County
海拔范围 Elevation range (m)	5,432-6,393	4,478-4,979	4,125-5,874	3,897-4,900
红外相机网格 Infrared camera grids	1 km × 1 km	1 km × 1 km	5 km × 5 km	5 km × 5 km
红外相机位点数 No. of camera locations	13	60	57	78
调查时间 Survey duration	2015.10-2016.10	2017.09-2018.12	2014.06-2015.12	2018.11-2019.09
调查面积 Survey area (km²)	10	60	300	550
目标物种有效照片数 No. of valid photos of the three species	0	215	712	550
目标物种独立有效照片数 No. of independent photos of the three species	0	78	185	158

Fig. 1 Infrared-camera trapping sites and spatial distribution of Pallas’s cat, Tibetan fox and red fox along the Tuotuo River and Tongtian River in the source region of the Yangtze River. A, Jianggudiru Glacier; B, Tanggulashan Town and mouth of the Tongtian River; C, Yanzhanggua Valley; D, Bagan Town in the Qumalai County.

Fig. 2 Daily activity rhythms of Pallas’s cat, Tibetan fox, and red fox in the source area of the Yangtze River. a, b and c represent the daily activity rhythms of each species throughout the year; d, e and f represent overlaps of daily activity rhythms in each species between cold and warm seasons; g, h and i represent overlaps of the daily activity rhythms throughout the year between 3 species; j, k and l represent overlaps of daily activity rhythms between 3 species in the cold season; m, n and o represent overlaps of daily activity rhythms between 3 species in the warm season. Δ represent the coefficient of overlap.

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