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Proximity-sensors on GPS collars reveal fine-scale predator-prey behavior during a predation event: A case study from Scandinavia

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Nov 16, 2023 version files 19.92 KB

Abstract

Although the advent of high-resolution GPS tracking technology has helped increase our understanding of individual and multi-species behavior in wildlife systems, detecting and recording direct interactions between free-ranging animals remains difficult. In 2023, we deployed GPS collars equipped with proximity sensors (GPS proximity collars) on brown bears (Ursus arctos) and moose (Alces alces) as part of a multi-species interaction study in central Sweden. On 6 June, 2023, a collar on an adult female moose and a collar on an adult male bear triggered on each other’s UHF signal and started collecting fine-scale GPS positioning data. The moose collar collected positions every 2 minutes for 89 minutes and the bear collar collected positions every 1 minute for 41 minutes. On 8 June, field personnel visited the site and found a female neonate moose carcass with clear indications of bear bite marks on the head and neck. During the predation event, the bear remained at the carcass while the moose moved back and forth, moving towards the carcass site about 5 times. The moose was observed via drone with 2 calves on 24 May and with only one remaining calf on 9 June. This case study describes, to the best of our knowledge, the first instance of a predation event between two free-ranging, wild species recorded by GPS proximity collars. Both collars successfully triggered and switched to finer-scaled GPS fix rates when the individuals were in close proximity producing detailed movement data for both predator and prey during and after a predation event. We suggest that, combined with standard field methodology, GPS proximity collars placed on free-ranging animals offer the ability for researchers to observe direct interactions between multiple individuals and species in the wild without the need for direct visual observation.