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Using predator feces as a repellent for free-ranging urban capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris)

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Abstract

Biological repellents have been used as a control method to mitigate human-wildlife conflict worldwide. We aimed to evaluate the effect of jaguar (Panthera onca) feces as a repellent for a free-living urban population of capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris), which are considered a vertebrate pest in some regions of their range. Observational data were collected during two consecutive 5-day periods: control and treatment. Scan samples within a 2-h observational session were carried out, recording capybara incursions into a 15 m × 15 m marked perimeter and alertness behavioral state. During the treatment period, 30 g of jaguar feces were added daily every 5.0 m around the perimeter in four selected areas (around Lake Paranoa, Brasilia, Brazil) frequented by capybara. The presence of predator feces induced changes in capybaras’ behavior as there was a decrease in actual presence at the sites as a whole with the presence of jaguar feces. Of those capybaras that did continue to visit a site, incursions into the marked perimeter were initially greatly reduced, but did rebound relatively rapidly over the trial period. Although our results showed that capybaras recognize jaguar’s feces as a predator threat, odor habituation may limit the repellent’s efficacy at a local level, but appeared to have a longer term effect on the overall numbers of capybara visiting a site in general. Improvements in this technique will be required for it to become practicable, to reinforce capybaras’ aversion to predators, to decrease their habituation to predator’s feces, and to provide more humanitarian control.

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Availability of data and material

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available as supplementary file of this manuscript and from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

Special thanks to the Brasília Zoological Garden Foundation, the Brasilia Golf Club, the Brasilia Touristic Police Battalion from Lago Sul, and the Brasília Military Environmental Police for providing assistance during the field work. We also thank Alejandra Calisto de Carvalho, owner of a residence in Lake Paranoa; Marineiva Vidoti, manager of the Brasilia Golf Club; Captain Cristiano Dousaldo Rocha from/and the Brasília Environmental Police for their comments; and Estefany Justiniano Davila, owner of a residence in Bolivia. We thank Suzanne Held and Nicola Rooney for their support throughout the study. We are also grateful for a UK BBSRC Brazil Partnering Award (BB/R021112/1; PI: Prof Michael Mendl) for supporting the collaborative work described here.

Funding

Selene Siqueira da Cunha Nogueira and Sérgio Luiz Gama Nogueira-Filho received a grant from Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel—Brazil (CAPES) (Process #88881.119854/2016–01 and #88881.119838/2016–01, respectively). Selene Siqueira da Cunha Nogueira and Sérgio Luiz Gama Nogueira-Filho also received a grant from National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) (Process # 303448/2019–9 and # 04226/2019–0, respectively).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Veterinary Science, University of Bristol, Langford, Bristol, BS40 5DU, UK

    Natalia Méndez Ruiz-Tagle & Toby G. Knowles

  2. Department of Biological Sciences, State University of Santa Cruz, Rod. Jorge Amado km 16, Ilhéus, Bahia, 45662-900, Brazil

    Sérgio Luiz Gama Nogueira-Filho & Selene Siqueira da Cunha Nogueira

  3. National Institute of Science and Technology in Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Studies in Ecology and Evolution (INCT IN-TREE), Bahia, Brazil

    Sérgio Luiz Gama Nogueira-Filho & Selene Siqueira da Cunha Nogueira

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  1. Natalia Méndez Ruiz-Tagle
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  2. Sérgio Luiz Gama Nogueira-Filho
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  3. Toby G. Knowles
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  4. Selene Siqueira da Cunha Nogueira
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Natalia Méndez Ruiz-Tagle performed the field data collection. All authors contributed to the data analysis. Natalia Méndez Ruiz-Tagle wrote the first draft of the manuscript, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Selene Siqueira da Cunha Nogueira.

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Ethical approval

The study was approved by the System of Authorization and Information in Biodiversity (SISBIO 62358–1), to enable a scientific study in an Environmental Protected Area. In addition, all methods used were approved by the Animal Welfare and Ethical Review Body at the University of Bristol (UB/18/032) in accordance with the U.K. Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act, 1986 and associated guidelines, EU Directive 2010/63/EU for animal experiments. Additionally, it was approved by the Brasilia Zoological Garden Foundation Ethical Protocol (process number 0019600001637/2018–10).

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Communicated by Brigitte Weiß.

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Ruiz-Tagle, N.M., Nogueira-Filho, S.L.G., Knowles, T.G. et al. Using predator feces as a repellent for free-ranging urban capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris). acta ethol 24, 205–216 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10211-021-00377-8

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