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Testing the threat-sensitive predator avoidance hypothesis: physiological responses and predator pressure in wild rabbits

  • Physiological Ecology - Original Paper
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Abstract

Predation is a strong selective force with both direct and indirect effects on an animal’s fitness. In order to increase the chances of survival, animals have developed different antipredator strategies. However, these strategies have associated costs, so animals should assess their actual risk of predation and shape their antipredator effort accordingly. Under a stressful situation, such as the presence of predators, animals display a physiological stress response that might be proportional to the risk perceived. We tested this hypothesis in wild European rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), subjected to different predator pressures, in Doñana National Park (Spain). We measured the concentrations of fecal corticosterone metabolites (FCM) in 20 rabbit populations. By means of track censuses we obtained indexes of mammalian predator presence for each rabbit population. Other factors that could modify the physiological stress response, such as breeding status, food availability and rabbit density, were also considered. Model selection based on information theory showed that predator pressure was the main factor triggering the glucocorticoid release and that the physiological stress response was positively correlated with the indexes of the presence of mammalian carnivore predators. Other factors, such as food availability and density of rabbits, were considerably less important. We conclude that rabbits are able to assess their actual risk of predation and show a threat-sensitive physiological response.

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Acknowledgments

We are very grateful to J.C. Rivilla, J. Román, and several students, C. Estabillo, J.M. Clavijo, and J. Martínez for their help with the field work and Edith Klobetz-Rassam for assistance on the analysis of the fecal samples. Heiko G. Rödel and Eloy Revilla gave valuable comments on earlier drafts of the manuscript. Jörg Ganzhorn and two anonymous reviewers greatly improved the manuscript. This research was partially funded by the projects CGL2004-00346/BOS of the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science and the Caixa Foundation. The Consejería de Medio Ambiente Junta de Andalucía built the rabbit enclosures under the LIFE 02NAT/8609 conservation program. Land Rover España S.A. provided the four-wheel vehicles used during this study. Z. Tablado was supported by a FPU scholarship from the Spanish Ministry of Education.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departmento de Biología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049, Madrid, Spain

    Raquel Monclús

  2. Departmant of Conservation Biology, Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, Avda. María Luisa s/n, 41013, Sevilla, Spain

    Francisco Palomares, Zulima Tablado & Ana Martínez-Fontúrbel

  3. Department of Natural Sciences, Institute of Biochemistry, University of Veterinary Medicine of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    Rupert Palme

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  1. Raquel Monclús
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  2. Francisco Palomares
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  3. Zulima Tablado
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  4. Ana Martínez-Fontúrbel
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  5. Rupert Palme
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Correspondence to Raquel Monclús.

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Communicated by Jörg Ganzhorn.

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Monclús, R., Palomares, F., Tablado, Z. et al. Testing the threat-sensitive predator avoidance hypothesis: physiological responses and predator pressure in wild rabbits. Oecologia 158, 615–623 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-008-1201-0

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