Dataset Information

Interactions with humans shape coyote responses to hazing.

ABSTRACT: Medium and large carnivores coexist with people in urban areas globally, occasionally resulting in negative interactions that prompt questions about how to reduce human-wildlife conflict. Hazing, i.e., scaring wildlife, is frequently promoted as an important non-lethal means for urbanites to reduce conflict but there is limited scientific evidence for its efficacy. We used a population of captive coyotes (Canis latrans) to simulate urban human-coyote interactions and subsequent effects of hazing on coyote behavior. Past experiences with humans significantly affected the number of times a coyote approached a human to necessitate hazing. Coyotes that had been hand fed by adults had to be more frequently hazed than coyotes with other or no past experiences with adults. Past experience with children had no impact on the number of hazing events. The number of times a coyote approached an adult or child was reduced across days based on the accumulative number of times hazed, suggesting coyotes learn to avoid behaviors warranting hazing and that this could be used as a non-lethal management tool. However, prior experience and whether the interaction is with an adult or child can alter the outcomes of hazing and must be considered in determining the efficacy of hazing programs.

SUBMITTER: Young JK

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6934508 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Interactions with humans shape coyote responses to hazing.

Young Julie K JK Hammill Edd E Breck Stewart W SW

Scientific reports 20191227 1

Medium and large carnivores coexist with people in urban areas globally, occasionally resulting in negative interactions that prompt questions about how to reduce human-wildlife conflict. Hazing, i.e., scaring wildlife, is frequently promoted as an important non-lethal means for urbanites to reduce conflict but there is limited scientific evidence for its efficacy. We used a population of captive coyotes (Canis latrans) to simulate urban human-coyote interactions and subsequent effects of hazing ...[more]

PMID: 31882751

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Project description:A fundamental tenet of maternal effects assumes that maternal variance over time should have discordant consequences for offspring traits across litters. Yet, seldom are parents observed across multiple reproductive bouts, with few studies considering anthropogenic disturbances as an ecological driver of maternal effects. We observed captive coyote (Canis latrans) pairs over two successive litters to determine whether among-litter differences in behavior (i.e., risk-taking) and hormones (i.e., cortisol and testosterone) corresponded with parental plasticity in habituation. Thus, we explicitly test the hypothesis that accumulating experiences of anthropogenic disturbance reduces parental fear across reproductive bouts, which should have disparate phenotypic consequences for first- and second-litter offspring. To quantify risk-taking behavior, we used foraging assays from 5-15 weeks of age with a human observer present as a proxy for human disturbance. At 5, 10, and 15 weeks of age, we collected shaved hair to quantify pup hormone levels. We then used a quantitative genetic approach to estimate heritability, repeatability, and between-trait correlations. We found that parents were riskier (i.e., foraged more frequently) with their second versus first litters, supporting our prediction that parents become increasingly habituated over time. Second-litter pups were also less risk-averse than their first-litter siblings. Heritability for all traits did not differ from zero (0.001-0.018); however, we found moderate support for repeatability in all observed traits (r = 0.085-0.421). Lastly, we found evidence of positive phenotypic and cohort correlations among pup traits, implying that cohort identity (i.e., common environment) contributes to the development of phenotypic syndromes in coyote pups. Our results suggest that parental habituation may be an ecological cue for offspring to reduce their fear response, thus emphasizing the role of parental plasticity in shaping their pups' behavioral and hormonal responses toward humans.

Dataset Information

Interactions with humans shape coyote responses to hazing.

Publications

Interactions with humans shape coyote responses to hazing.

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