Dracula’s menagerie: A multispecies occupancy analysis of lynx, wildcat,
and wolf in the Romanian Carpathians
Abstract
1. The recovery of terrestrial carnivores in Europe is a conservation
success story. Initiatives focused on restoring top predators, require
information on how resident species may interact with the re-introduced
species as their interactions have the potential to alter food webs, yet
such data are scarce for Europe. 2. In this study, we assessed patterns
of occupancy and interactions between three carnivore species in the
Romanian Carpathians. Romania houses one of the few intact carnivore
guilds in Europe, making it an ideal system to assess intraguild
interactions, and serve as a guide for reintroductions elsewhere. 3. We
used camera trap data from two seasons in Transylvanian forests to
assess occupancy and co-occurrence of carnivores using multispecies
occupancy models. 4. Mean occupancy in the study area was highest for
lynx ( winter= 0.76 95% CI: 0.42-0.92; autumn= 0.71 CI: 0.38-0.84)
and wolf (winter= 0.60 CI: 0.34-0.78; autumn= 0.81 CI: 0.25-0.95) and
lowest for wildcat (winter= 0.40 CI: 0.19-0.63; autumn= 0.52 CI:
0.17-0.78) 5. We found that marginal occupancy predictors for carnivores
varied between seasons. We also found differences in predictors of
co-occupancy between seasons for both lynx-wolf and wildcat-wolf
co-occupancy. For both seasons, we found that conditional occupancy
probabilities of all three species were higher when another species was
present. 6. Our results indicate that while there are seasonal
differences in predictors of occupancy and co-occupancy of the three
species, co-occurrence in our study area is high, and is dependent on
the existence of continuous, relatively undisturbed forests. 7.
Terrestrial carnivore recovery efforts are ongoing worldwide. Insights
into interspecific relations between carnivore species are critical when
considering the depauperate communities they are introduced in. Our work
showcases that apex carnivore coexistence is possible, but dependent on
protection afforded to forest habitats and their prey base.