Aug 16, 2022 05:18 PM
(This post was last modified: Aug 17, 2022 12:10 AM by C C.)
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-n...180980578/
INTRO: In the Mojave and Sonoran deserts of North America, donkeys roam wild. Also called burros, feral donkeys travel in herds, seeking out water sources in small wetland oases, often trampling vegetation in the process. These critical wetlands include freshwater springs and seeps that many animals rely on to survive in the otherwise bone-dry desert environment.
The National Park Service considers the donkeys an invasive species, and many conservationists advocate for killing or relocating them as they are assumed to lack predators that could keep their populations in check. But in a recent study, a team of ecologists found that these desert-dwelling donkeys have become a favorite snack for hungry cougars.
“We have imagery of a donkey group going by and then a cougar right behind them, like literally walking in their footsteps,” says Erick Lundgren, ecologist at Aarhus University and lead author on the study.
The scientists monitored donkey and cougar activity in wetlands throughout Death Valley National Park in California and published their findings last month in the Journal of Animal Ecology. They found that donkeys spent much less time in wetlands where cougars had previously preyed on other donkeys. The vegetation was also less trampled at sites where cougars killed donkeys. These findings highlight how important apex predators like cougars can influence the stability of an ecosystem... (MORE - details)
INTRO: In the Mojave and Sonoran deserts of North America, donkeys roam wild. Also called burros, feral donkeys travel in herds, seeking out water sources in small wetland oases, often trampling vegetation in the process. These critical wetlands include freshwater springs and seeps that many animals rely on to survive in the otherwise bone-dry desert environment.
The National Park Service considers the donkeys an invasive species, and many conservationists advocate for killing or relocating them as they are assumed to lack predators that could keep their populations in check. But in a recent study, a team of ecologists found that these desert-dwelling donkeys have become a favorite snack for hungry cougars.
“We have imagery of a donkey group going by and then a cougar right behind them, like literally walking in their footsteps,” says Erick Lundgren, ecologist at Aarhus University and lead author on the study.
The scientists monitored donkey and cougar activity in wetlands throughout Death Valley National Park in California and published their findings last month in the Journal of Animal Ecology. They found that donkeys spent much less time in wetlands where cougars had previously preyed on other donkeys. The vegetation was also less trampled at sites where cougars killed donkeys. These findings highlight how important apex predators like cougars can influence the stability of an ecosystem... (MORE - details)