Females know better : Sex-biased habitat selection by the European wildcat
Oliveira, Teresa (Universidade do Porto)
Urra, Fermín (Gestión Ambiental de Navarra)
López-Martín, Josep Maria (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Grup de Recerca Wildlife Ecology & Health)
Ballesteros-Duperón, Elena (Consejería de Medio Ambiente y Ordenación del Territorio)
Barea-Azcón, José Miguel (Consejería de Medio Ambiente y Ordenación del Territorio)
Moléon, Marcos (University of Granada)
Gil-Sánchez, José María (Universidad de Granada)
Alves, Paulo Celio (University of Montana)
Díaz-Ruíz, Francisco (Universidad de Málaga)
Ferreras, Pablo (Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos)
Monterroso, Pedro (Universidade do Porto)

Date:	2018
Abstract:	The interactions between animals and their environment vary across species, regions, but also with gender. Sex-specific relations between individuals and the ecosystem may entail different behavioral choices and be expressed through different patterns of habitat use. Regardless, only rarely sex-specific traits are addressed in ecological modeling approaches. The European wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris) is a species of conservation concern in Europe, with a highly fragmented and declining distribution across most of its range. We assessed sex-specific habitat selection patterns for the European wildcat, at the landscape and home range levels, across its Iberian biogeographic distribution using a multipopulation approach. We developed resource selection functions in a use-availability framework using radio-telemetry data from five wildcat populations. At the landscape level, we observed that, while both genders preferentially established home ranges in areas close to broadleaf forests and far from humanized areas, females selected mid-range elevation areas with some topographic complexity, whereas males used lowland areas. At the home range level, both females and males selected areas dominated by scrublands or broadleaf forests, but habitat features were less important at this level. The strength of association to habitat features was higher for females at both spatial levels, suggesting a tendency to select habitats with higher quality that can grant them enhanced access to shelter and feeding resources. Based on our results, we hypothesize that sex-biased behavioral patterns may contribute to the resilience of wildcats' genetic integrity through influencing the directionality of hybridization with domestic cats. Our study provides information about European wildcats' habitat use in an Iberian context, relevant for the implementation of conservation plans, and highlights the ecological relevance of considering sex-related differences in environmental preferences.
Grants:	Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad FJCI-2015-24949
Note:	Altres ajuts: FCT/UID/BIA/50027/2013
Note:	Altres ajuts: POCI/01-0145-FEDER-006821
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, fins i tot amb finalitats comercials, sempre i quan es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Subject:	Gats salvatges ; Gats assilvestrats ; European wildcat ; Resource selection ; Sex-biased habitat selection ; Space use ; Spatial behavior
Published in:	Ecology and evolution, Vol. 8 (august 2018) , p. 9464-9477, ISSN 2045-7758

DOI: 10.1002/ece3.4442
PMID: 30377515

14 p, 760.2 KB

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Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Health sciences and biosciences > Research group Wildlife Ecology & Health
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles