Therefore, an understanding of the site-specific feeding habits is of high conservation value as it shapes population structure, and determines ecosystem interactions. Additionally, an assessment of the dietary niche breadth may reflect geographical differences among populations 12. From an applied perspective, livestock depredation and perceived competition with humans have driven the global decline and local extinction of carnivore species 10, 11, emphasizing the need for rigorous identification of carnivore diets 6. Findings from carnivore diet studies may have far-reaching impacts on management plans of endangered species in particular 4 and even assist in structuring and implementing relevant conservation measures 7, 8, 9. As carnivore populations are closely associated with prey density and biomass 5, understanding ecosystem effects must begin with accurate knowledge of predator diets 6. Our study can potentially help manage and conserve this important population of an endangered carnivore.ĭiet analyses by investigating faecal remains of an animal have been a fundamental part of carnivore ecology and natural history studies 1, 2, 3, 4. An analysis of kill data also suggested that dholes strongly preferred the two deer species and differential selection of age classes was observed at the 2 study sites. Overall, wild ungulates like sambar and chital were the principal prey in terms of biomass (sambar 61.08% chital 19.08%) and number of prey consumed (sambar 39.28% chital 13.83%).
We estimated the relative contribution of various prey, utilising non-linear biomass models of prey consumption. We analysed 861 scats, and 191 dhole kills to identify species and age class of prey. We conducted scat analysis using a subset of genetically identified scats and collected additional data from kills observed while tracking radio-collared dholes and other known packs from 2 study sites. Our study presents insights into dhole feeding ecology across multiple sites from the central Indian landscape of Maharashtra, India, for the first time. Therefore, it is essential to examine their diet across their range. Globally, prey depletion is one of the primary causes of declining Asiatic wild dog (dhole) populations. Studies on resource utilisation by carnivores are essential as they aid in assessing their role in a community, by unravelling predator–prey relationships.
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