The ecology of wildlife in remote arid regions with free-range livestock farming activities remains largely unexplored. We studied the temporal activity patterns of African leopards (Panthera pardus) in relation to prey in Namaqualand, South Africa, a semi-desert ecosystem with extensive livestock farming and a protected area. Camera trapping in winter and summer 2014–2015 (n = 95 stations) showed that leopards had high temporal overlap with aardvark (Orycteropus afer) and lagomorphs, and partial overlap with red hartebeest (Alcelaphus buselaphus), the only reintroduced ungulate present in leopard diet (n = 82 scats). Goats (Capra hircus) had the lowest temporal overlap with leopard but comprised most biomass in leopard scat. Sheep (Ovis aries) and cattle (Bos sp.) also had generally low temporal overlap with leopards, with cattle contributing less biomass to leopard diet than sheep. Leopards were active primarily at night across seasons (n = 103 photos). These results suggest that leopards hunted at night when prey were resting and presumably less vigilant, or that they effectively predated some species during daylight. We recommend research on leopard hunting behaviour and habitat selection, and broad-scale implementation of livestock management such as guardian dogs, herders, and protective enclosures to minimize livestock-carnivore interactions and facilitate coexistence.

偏远干旱地区开展自由放牧的牲畜活动的野生动植物生态在很大程度上尚未得到开发。我们研究了非洲豹（Panthera pardus）与猎物有关的时间活动模式，该动物与南非纳马夸兰（Namaqualand）是一个半沙漠化的生态系统，拥有广泛的畜牧业和一个保护区。2014-2015年冬季和夏季（n  = 95个站位）的照相机诱捕表明，豹子与土豚（Orycteropus afer）和兔形目高度重叠，并且与红色羚羊（Alcelaphus buselaphus）部分重叠，这是豹子饮食中唯一重新引入的有蹄类动物（n  = 82小便）。山羊（Capra hircus）与豹的时间重叠最少，但豹粪中的生物量最多。绵羊（Ovis aries）和牛（Bos sp。）的时间重叠通常也较低，与牛相比，牛对豹饮食的生物量较少。豹子主要在各个季节的晚上活跃（n  = 103张照片）。这些结果表明，豹在猎物休息时夜间捕猎，可能警惕性较低，或者它们在白天有效捕食了某些物种。我们建议开展有关豹子狩猎行为和栖息地选择的研究，并广泛实施家畜管理，例如监护犬，牧民和保护性围栏，以最大程度地减少家畜与食肉动物的互动并促进共存。