Irruptive dynamics of invasive carnivores and prey populations, and predator control, affect kea survivorship across the Southern Alps

Joshua R. Kemp; Laura Young; Corey Mosen; Liam Bolitho; Tamsin Orr-Walker; Ivor Yockney; Graeme Elliott

doi:10.1080/03014223.2021.2021249

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Irruptive dynamics of invasive carnivores and prey populations, and predator control, affect kea survivorship across the Southern Alps

Journal article

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Irruptive dynamics of invasive carnivores and prey populations, and predator control, affect kea survivorship across the Southern Alps

Joshua R. Kemp, Laura Young, Corey Mosen, Liam Bolitho, Tamsin Orr-Walker, Ivor Yockney and Graeme Elliott

New Zealand journal of zoology, Vol.50(2), pp.279-304

2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03014223.2021.2021249

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Abstract

aerial 1080

control

feral cat

irruption

Predator

prey

program MARK

stoat

Terrestrial ecology

Invasive carnivores are threatening the indigenous fauna of Aotearoa, but impacts vary with time, space and species. Conservation strategies require knowledge of predator-prey dynamics specific to different ecosystems and allowing for long-term guild shifts. To build this knowledge, we model the survivorship of the kea, a long-lived, ground-nesting parrot with an expansive species-range, using a dataset spanning two decades (1998-2021) and spanning several forest-dominated South Island montane ecosystems. Kea survivorship was lower in eastern ecosystems compared to western ones, depressed during carnivore irruptions, and elevated after predator control. Kea of all ages and both sexes fell prey to stoats and feral cats whilst foraging and roosting, not whilst nesting. Stoat depredation happened in all ecosystems, whereas feral cats featured more in eastern ones. Annual survivorship was high in most contexts (adults > 90%, juveniles > 70%), but a peak in stoat and feral cat predation in eastern ecosystems during 2020-2021 reduced adult survival to <60%. This predation peak followed a rodent population crash, the primary prey of carnivores in eastern beech forests. We conclude that predator impacts on kea are concentrated into post-mast years. Recommendations for management are provided.

Details

Title: Irruptive dynamics of invasive carnivores and prey populations, and predator control, affect kea survivorship across the Southern Alps
Creators: Joshua R. Kemp - New Zealand Department of Conservation, Nelson, New Zealand
Laura Young - Kea Conservation Trust
Corey Mosen - Kea Conservation Trust
Liam Bolitho - Southern Cross University
Tamsin Orr-Walker - Kea Conservation Trust
Ivor Yockney - Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research
Graeme Elliott - New Zealand Department of Conservation, Nelson, New Zealand
Publication Details: New Zealand journal of zoology, Vol.50(2), pp.279-304
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Identifiers: 991013073612402368
Copyright: © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License, (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Academic Unit: Faculty of Science and Engineering; Science
Language: English
Resource Type: Journal article

Irruptive dynamics of invasive carnivores and prey populations, and predator control, affect kea survivorship across the Southern Alps

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