Flexible energetics of cheetah hunting strategies provide resistance against kleptoparasitism

David M Scantlebury; Michael G L Mills; Rory P Wilson; John W Wilson; Margaret E J Mills; Sarah M Durant; Nigel C Bennett; Peter Bradford; Nikki J Marks; John R Speakman

doi:10.1126/science.1256424

Flexible energetics of cheetah hunting strategies provide resistance against kleptoparasitism

David M Scantlebury^* (Corresponding Author), Michael G L Mills, Rory P Wilson, John W Wilson, Margaret E J Mills, Sarah M Durant, Nigel C Bennett, Peter Bradford, Nikki J Marks, John R Speakman

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

75 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Population viability is driven by individual survival, which in turn depends on individuals balancing energy budgets. As carnivores may function close to maximum sustained power outputs, decreased food availability or increased activity may render some populations energetically vulnerable. Prey theft may compromise energetic budgets of mesopredators, such as cheetahs and wild dogs, which are susceptible to competition from larger carnivores. We show that daily energy expenditure (DEE) of cheetahs was similar to size-based predictions and positively related to distance traveled. Theft at 25% only requires cheetahs to hunt for an extra 1.1 hour per day, increasing DEE by just 12%. Therefore, not all mesopredators are energetically constrained by direct competition. Other factors that increase DEE, such as those that increase travel, may be more important for population viability.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	79-81
Number of pages	3
Journal	Science
Volume	346
Issue number	6205
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1256424
Publication status	Published - 3 Oct 2014

Bibliographical note

Acknowledgments: The data reported in this paper are presented in the supplementary materials (table S1). This study was supported by the Royal Society (2009/R3 JP090604) and Natural Environment Research Council (NE/I002030/1) to D.M.S. J.R.S. was supported by the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (XDB13030000) and a 1000 Talents professorship. We thank SANParks and the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, Botswana, for allowing our research in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park (Permit Number 2006-05-01 to M.G.L.M.) and the Lewis Foundation, South Africa; The Howard G. Buffet Foundation; National Geographic; Kanabo Conservation Link; Comanis Foundation; Panthera; and the Kruger Park Marathon Club for financial support to M.G.L.M. J.W.W. was funded by NASA grants NNX11AP61G and NNX11AL49H. We thank the management and land owners of Karongwe Game Reserve, as well as the directors of Karongwe Game Association, for supporting this research on their land. We are also grateful to the many Global Vision International field staff and volunteers who conducted the Karongwe fieldwork. We thank I. Capellini for providing additional information on DEE allometry and C. Hambly and P. Thomson for technical assistance with the isotope analysis. Author contributions: D.M.S., M.G.L.M., J.W.W., M.E.J.M., P.B., and N.J.M. collected data; J.R.S. analyzed isotopes; D.M.S., M.G.L.M., R.P.W., and J.W.W. analyzed data; and D.M.S., M.G.L.M., R.P.W., J.W.W., M.E.J.M., S.M.D., N.C.B., P.B., N.J.M., and J.R.S. wrote the manuscript.

Keywords

Acinonyx
Animals
Carnivory
Competitive Behavior
Energy Metabolism
Food Chain
Predatory Behavior

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10.1126/science.1256424Licence: Unspecified

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/346/6205/79/suppl/DC1Licence: Unspecified

John Speakman
- Biological Sciences, Aberdeen Centre For Environmental Sustainability - Chair in Zoology
- Energetics Research Group
Person: Academic

Cite this

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title = "Flexible energetics of cheetah hunting strategies provide resistance against kleptoparasitism",

abstract = "Population viability is driven by individual survival, which in turn depends on individuals balancing energy budgets. As carnivores may function close to maximum sustained power outputs, decreased food availability or increased activity may render some populations energetically vulnerable. Prey theft may compromise energetic budgets of mesopredators, such as cheetahs and wild dogs, which are susceptible to competition from larger carnivores. We show that daily energy expenditure (DEE) of cheetahs was similar to size-based predictions and positively related to distance traveled. Theft at 25% only requires cheetahs to hunt for an extra 1.1 hour per day, increasing DEE by just 12%. Therefore, not all mesopredators are energetically constrained by direct competition. Other factors that increase DEE, such as those that increase travel, may be more important for population viability.",

keywords = "Acinonyx, Animals, Carnivory, Competitive Behavior, Energy Metabolism, Food Chain, Predatory Behavior",

author = "Scantlebury, {David M} and Mills, {Michael G L} and Wilson, {Rory P} and Wilson, {John W} and Mills, {Margaret E J} and Durant, {Sarah M} and Bennett, {Nigel C} and Peter Bradford and Marks, {Nikki J} and Speakman, {John R}",

note = "Acknowledgments: The data reported in this paper are presented in the supplementary materials (table S1). This study was supported by the Royal Society (2009/R3 JP090604) and Natural Environment Research Council (NE/I002030/1) to D.M.S. J.R.S. was supported by the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (XDB13030000) and a 1000 Talents professorship. We thank SANParks and the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, Botswana, for allowing our research in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park (Permit Number 2006-05-01 to M.G.L.M.) and the Lewis Foundation, South Africa; The Howard G. Buffet Foundation; National Geographic; Kanabo Conservation Link; Comanis Foundation; Panthera; and the Kruger Park Marathon Club for financial support to M.G.L.M. J.W.W. was funded by NASA grants NNX11AP61G and NNX11AL49H. We thank the management and land owners of Karongwe Game Reserve, as well as the directors of Karongwe Game Association, for supporting this research on their land. We are also grateful to the many Global Vision International field staff and volunteers who conducted the Karongwe fieldwork. We thank I. Capellini for providing additional information on DEE allometry and C. Hambly and P. Thomson for technical assistance with the isotope analysis. Author contributions: D.M.S., M.G.L.M., J.W.W., M.E.J.M., P.B., and N.J.M. collected data; J.R.S. analyzed isotopes; D.M.S., M.G.L.M., R.P.W., and J.W.W. analyzed data; and D.M.S., M.G.L.M., R.P.W., J.W.W., M.E.J.M., S.M.D., N.C.B., P.B., N.J.M., and J.R.S. wrote the manuscript.",

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AU - Scantlebury, David M

AU - Mills, Michael G L

AU - Wilson, Rory P

AU - Wilson, John W

AU - Mills, Margaret E J

AU - Durant, Sarah M

AU - Bennett, Nigel C

AU - Bradford, Peter

AU - Marks, Nikki J

AU - Speakman, John R

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N2 - Population viability is driven by individual survival, which in turn depends on individuals balancing energy budgets. As carnivores may function close to maximum sustained power outputs, decreased food availability or increased activity may render some populations energetically vulnerable. Prey theft may compromise energetic budgets of mesopredators, such as cheetahs and wild dogs, which are susceptible to competition from larger carnivores. We show that daily energy expenditure (DEE) of cheetahs was similar to size-based predictions and positively related to distance traveled. Theft at 25% only requires cheetahs to hunt for an extra 1.1 hour per day, increasing DEE by just 12%. Therefore, not all mesopredators are energetically constrained by direct competition. Other factors that increase DEE, such as those that increase travel, may be more important for population viability.

AB - Population viability is driven by individual survival, which in turn depends on individuals balancing energy budgets. As carnivores may function close to maximum sustained power outputs, decreased food availability or increased activity may render some populations energetically vulnerable. Prey theft may compromise energetic budgets of mesopredators, such as cheetahs and wild dogs, which are susceptible to competition from larger carnivores. We show that daily energy expenditure (DEE) of cheetahs was similar to size-based predictions and positively related to distance traveled. Theft at 25% only requires cheetahs to hunt for an extra 1.1 hour per day, increasing DEE by just 12%. Therefore, not all mesopredators are energetically constrained by direct competition. Other factors that increase DEE, such as those that increase travel, may be more important for population viability.

KW - Acinonyx

KW - Animals

KW - Carnivory

KW - Competitive Behavior

KW - Energy Metabolism

KW - Food Chain

KW - Predatory Behavior

U2 - 10.1126/science.1256424

DO - 10.1126/science.1256424

M3 - Article

C2 - 25278609

SN - 0036-8075

VL - 346

SP - 79

EP - 81

JO - Science

JF - Science

IS - 6205

ER -

Flexible energetics of cheetah hunting strategies provide resistance against kleptoparasitism

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

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