Rob Slotow

Bio: Rob Slotow is an academic researcher from University of KwaZulu-Natal. The author has contributed to research in topics: Population & African elephant. The author has an hindex of 55, co-authored 285 publications receiving 10097 citations. Previous affiliations of Rob Slotow include University College London & University of Natal.

Social Media Data Can Be Used to Understand Tourists’ Preferences for Nature‐Based Experiences in Protected Areas

Abstract: Can social media data be used as an alternative to traditional surveys to understand tourists´ preferences for nature-based experiences in protected areas? We explored this by comparing preferences for biodiversity obtained from a traditional survey conducted in Kruger National Park, South Africa, with observed preferences assessed from over 13,600 pictures shared on Instagram and Flickr by tourists visiting the park in the same period. We found no significant difference between the preferences of tourists as stated in the surveys and the preferences revealed by social media content. Overall, large-bodied mammals were found to be the favorite group, both in the survey and on social media platforms. However, Flickr was found to better match tourists’ preference for less-charismatic biodiversity. Our findings suggest that social media content can be used as a cost-efficient way to explore, and for more continuous monitoring of, preferences for biodiversity and human activities in protected areas. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

Conserving large carnivores: dollars and fence

Abstract: Conservationists often advocate for landscape approaches to wildlife management while others argue for physical separation between protected species and human communities, but direct empirical comparisons of these alternatives are scarce. We relate African lion population densities and population trends to contrasting management practices across 42 sites in 11 countries. Lion populations in fenced reserves are significantly closer to their estimated carrying capacities than unfenced populations. Whereas fenced reserves can maintain lions at 80% of their potential densities on annual management budgets of $500 km 2 , unfenced populations require budgets in excess of $2000 km 2 to attain half their potential densities. Lions in fenced reserves are primarily limited by density dependence, but lions in unfenced reserves are highly sensitive to human population densities in surrounding communities, and unfenced populations are frequently subjected to density-independent factors. Nearly half the unfenced lion populations may decline to near extinction over the next 20–40 years.

Minimizing predation risk in a landscape of multiple predators: effects on the spatial distribution of African ungulates

Abstract: Studies that focus on single predator-prey interactions can be inadequate for understanding antipredator responses in multi-predator systems. Yet there is still a general lack of information about the strategies of prey to minimize predation risk from multiple predators at the landscape level. Here we examined the distribution of seven African ungulate species in the fenced Karongwe Game Reserve (KGR), South Africa, as a function of predation risk from all large carnivore species (lion, leopard, cheetah, African wild dog, and spotted hyena). Using observed kill data, we generated ungulate-specific predictions of relative predation risk and of riskiness of habitats. To determine how ungulates minimize predation risk at the landscape level, we explicitly tested five hypotheses consisting of strategies that reduce the probability of encountering predators, and the probability of being killed. All ungulate species avoided risky habitats, and most selected safer habitats, thus reducing their probability of being killed. To reduce the probability of encountering predators, most of the smaller prey species (impala, warthog, waterbuck, kudu) avoided the space use of all predators, while the larger species (wildebeest, zebra, giraffe) only avoided areas where lion and leopard space use were high. The strength of avoidance for the space use of predators generally did not correspond to the relative predation threat from those predators. Instead, ungulates used a simpler behavioral rule of avoiding the activity areas of sit-and-pursue predators (lion and leopard), but not those of cursorial predators (cheetah and African wild dog). In general, selection and avoidance of habitats was stronger than avoidance of the predator activity areas. We expect similar decision rules to drive the distribution pattern of ungulates in other African savannas and in other multi-predator systems, especially where predators differ in their hunting modes.

Temporal Partitioning of Activity in Large African Carnivores: Tests of Multiple Hypotheses

Abstract: Africa's large predator guild (lion, Panthera leo; leopard, Panthera pardus; spotted hyaena, Crocuta crocuta; cheetah, Acinonyx jubatus, and African wild dog, Lycaon pictus) occurs sympatrically with high dietary overlap Temporal partitioning could facilitate coexistence, but there has been no study testing this or the factors that may Influence the evolution of predator activity patterns The activity patterns of Africa's large predators were reviewed, using published sources, and the degree of activity overlap was assessed Six hypotheses were made based on three hypotheses of factors driving the evolution of predator activity patterns: Increased foraging success, and scramble and Interference competition All predators exhibited a degree of crepuscular behaviour, supporting hypotheses relating to increased hunting success Nocturnal predators exhibit decreased activity at the darkest times of night due to visual limitations There was no support for the hypothesis that predators would be active at the same time as their main prey species Although all members of the guild suffer intraguild predation, only subordinate members exhibited scramble competition avoidance by minimizing activity at the same times as their intraguild predators Subordinate predators (wild dogs and cheetahs), frequently reported as suffering from kleptoparasitism, minimize simultaneous activity with major kleptoparasites (lions and spotted hyaenas) These latter top predators have high dietary overlap; however, they do not avoid Interference competition by minimizing activity overlap Thus, optimal activity patterns evolved to satisfy a diverse range of factors that differ amongst species Competition avoidance is the primary cause of the temporal partitioning in activity between subordinate and top predators Africa's carnivores have also evolved morphological adaptations to their activity patterns reflecting the length of time they have occurred in sympatry

Edge effects and the impact of non-protected areas in carnivore conservation: leopards in the Phinda–Mkhuze Complex, South Africa

Abstract: Although high rates of anthropogenic mortality are often reported for carnivores near reserve borders, the resulting edge effects are rarely quantified, and the consequences on conservation goals are usually unknown. Here, we assess the extent and impact of edge effects on a protected leopard Panthera pardus population in the Phinda-Mkhuze Complex (PMC), South Africa. We compared the spatial and demographic characteristics of leopards in two areas of the PMC, one closer to the border than the other. Leopard density declined from the core of the reserve (11.11 ± 1.31 leopards 100 km−2) to the border (7.17 ± 1.12 leopards 100 km−2), and was the lowest in non-protected areas adjoining the PMC (2.49 ± 0.87 leopards 100 km−2), but was not related to prey abundance or interspecific competition. Radiotelemetry showed that leopards near the border spent a greater proportion of their time outside the reserve and suffered higher annual mortality rates (0.358 ± 0.075) than those closer to the core (0.122 ± 0.065). A Cox proportional hazards model further demonstrated the negative effect of time spent outside the reserve on the survival probability of leopards. Despite an increased risk of mortality, leopards did not avoid non-protected areas, which may have functioned as an ecological trap for predators. Although the overall conservation outcome of the reserve was positive, edge effects clearly weakened the potential of the PMC to protect leopards. Our findings show that high mortality rates of carnivores in areas bordering reserves can extend to protected populations. Management approaches that control human activities on both sides of administrative borders are therefore essential if reserves are to conserve large carnivores effectively.

Modern Applied Statistics With S

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Animal species diversity driven by habitat heterogeneity/diversity: the importance of keystone structures

Abstract: Aim In a selected literature survey we reviewed studies on the habitat heterogeneity–animal species diversity relationship and evaluated whether there are uncertainties and biases in its empirical support. Location World-wide. Methods We reviewed 85 publications for the period 1960–2003. We screened each publication for terms that were used to define habitat heterogeneity, the animal species group and ecosystem studied, the definition of the structural variable, the measurement of vegetation structure and the temporal and spatial scale of the study. Main conclusions The majority of studies found a positive correlation between habitat heterogeneity/diversity and animal species diversity. However, empirical support for this relationship is drastically biased towards studies of vertebrates and habitats under anthropogenic influence. In this paper, we show that ecological effects of habitat heterogeneity may vary considerably between species groups depending on whether structural attributes are perceived as heterogeneity or fragmentation. Possible effects may also vary relative to the structural variable measured. Based upon this, we introduce a classification framework that may be used for across-studies comparisons. Moreover, the effect of habitat heterogeneity for one species group may differ in relation to the spatial scale. In several studies, however, different species groups are closely linked to ‘keystone structures’ that determine animal species diversity by their presence. Detecting crucial keystone structures of the vegetation has profound implications for nature conservation and biodiversity management.

The ODD protocol: A review and first update

Abstract: The ‘ODD’ (Overview, Design concepts, and Details) protocol was published in 2006 to standardize the published descriptions of individual-based and agent-based models (ABMs). The primary objectives of ODD are to make model descriptions more understandable and complete, thereby making ABMs less subject to criticism for being irreproducible. We have systematically evaluated existing uses of the ODD protocol and identified, as expected, parts of ODD needing improvement and clarification. Accordingly, we revise the definition of ODD to clarify aspects of the original version and thereby facilitate future standardization of ABM descriptions. We discuss frequently raised critiques in ODD but also two emerging, and unanticipated, benefits: ODD improves the rigorous formulation of models and helps make the theoretical foundations of large models more visible. Although the protocol was designed for ABMs, it can help with documenting any large, complex model, alleviating some general objections against such models.

Remote Sensing And Image Interpretation

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