Rita Tinoco Torres, a researcher at CESAM/DBIO, is a co-author of a new scientific article published in the journal Landscape Ecology, which analyzes how roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) adjust their habitat use in response to multiple predators in human-dominated environments.
The study, titled “Navigating multi-predator dynamic risk landscapes in anthropogenic environments: spatio-temporal plasticity in roe deer habitat selection,” explores how roe deer respond to complex risk landscapes where natural predators coexist with human-induced pressures such as hunting.
The research shows that roe deer adjust their behavior across time and space to minimize predation risk. According to Rita T. Torres, “this study shows that roe deer are able to flexibly adjust their behavior in response to different sources of risk. Understanding this dynamic is essential to anticipate how species will respond to landscapes increasingly influenced by human activity.”
A large European-scale dataset was used, including 412 GPS-collared individuals across 17 study areas in 8 European countries. The work contributes to a better understanding of the “landscape of fear,” a central concept in ecology that describes how perceived risk influences the distribution and behavior of prey species. In particular, the study shows that human presence can act as an additional risk factor, shaping animal decision-making in ways that are similar to or complementary with natural predators.
In a context of increasing landscape transformation due to human activities, these results have important implications for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management, particularly in the development of strategies that consider both species ecology and human influence on the territory.
This publication reinforces CESAM’s contribution to advancing knowledge in spatial ecology and animal behavior, highlighting the importance of integrated approaches to understanding interactions between humans, predators, and prey in contemporary landscapes.
This work arises from CESAM’s participation in the European EURODEER network.
Full article available here.
News by Rita Torres, researcher at CESAM/DBIO and Vice-Coordinator of the Research Cluster RC4 – Ecosystem Management and Conservation.