Competitively dominant carnivore species can limit the population sizes and alter the behavior of inferior competitors. Established mechanisms that enable carnivore coexistence include spatial and temporal avoidance of dominant predator species by subordinates, and dietary niche separation. However, spatial heterogeneity across landscapes could provide inferior competitors with refuges in the form of areas with lower competitor density and/or locations that provide concealment from competitors. Here, we combine temporally overlapping telemetry data from dominant lions (Panthera leo) and subordinate African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) with high‐resolution remote sensing in an integrated step selection analysis to investigate how fine‐scaled landscape heterogeneity might facilitate carnivore coexistence in South Africa’s Hluhluwe‐iMfolozi Park, where both predators occur at exceptionally high densities. We ask whether the primary lion‐avoidance strategy of wild dogs is spatial avoidance of lions or areas frequented by lions, or if wild dogs selectively use landscape features to avoid detection by lions. Within this framework, we also test whether wild dogs rely on proactive or reactive responses to lion risk. In contrast to previous studies finding strong spatial avoidance of lions by wild dogs, we found that the primary wild dog lion‐avoidance strategy was to select landscape features that aid in avoidance of lion detection. This habitat selection was routinely used by wild dogs, and especially when in areas and during times of high lion‐encounter risk, suggesting a proactive response to lion risk. Our findings suggest that spatial landscape heterogeneity could represent an alternative mechanism for carnivore coexistence, especially as ever‐shrinking carnivore ranges force inferior competitors into increased contact with dominant species.

中文翻译：

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空间异质性促进食肉动物共存

具有竞争优势的食肉动物可以限制种群数量并改变劣等竞争者的行为。使食肉动物共存的既定机制包括下属在空间和时间上避开优势捕食者的物种，以及饮食上的生态位分离。但是，跨景观的空间异质性可能以较低的竞争者密度和/或提供对竞争者隐瞒的位置的形式向劣等竞争者提供庇护所。在这里，我们结合了来自优势狮子（Panthera leo）和从属非洲野狗（Lycaon pictus）的时间重叠遥测数据）在集成的阶梯选择分析中使用高分辨率遥感技术，以研究精细的景观异质性如何促进食肉动物共存的南非Hluhluwe-iMfolozi公园，这两个食肉动物都以极高的密度发生。我们询问野狗的主要避狮子策略是对狮子或狮子经常出没的区域进行空间避让，还是野狗是否有选择地利用景观特征来避免被狮子发现。在此框架内，我们还测试了野狗是否依赖于对狮子风险的主动或被动反应。与以前的研究发现野狗对狮子的空间规避性强的研究相反，我们发现，主要的野狗避狮子策略是选择有助于避免对狮子进行探测的景观特征。野狗通常会使用这种栖息地选择，尤其是在遇到狮子的高风险地区和期间，这表明人们对狮子的风险做出了积极反应。我们的发现表明，空间景观异质性可以代表食肉动物共存的另一种机制，尤其是随着食肉动物范围的不断缩小，劣等竞争者越来越多地与优势物种接触。