title: Multidimensional differentiation in foraging resource use during breeding of two sympatric top predators.
abstract: Ecologically-similar species were found to develop specific strategies to partition their resources, leading to niche differentiation and divergence, in order to avoid interspecific competition. Our study determines multi-dimensional differentiation of two sympatric top-predators, long-legged buzzards (LLB) and short-toed eagles (STE), which recently became sympatric during their breeding season in the Judean Foothills, Israel. By combining information from comprehensive diet and movement analyses we found four dimensions of differentiation: (1) Geographic foraging area: LLB tended to forage relatively close to their nests (2.35 ± 0.62 km), while STE forage far from their nest (13.03 ± 2.20 km); (2) Foraging-habitat type: LLBs forage at low natural vegetation, avoiding cultivated fields, whereas STEs forage in cultivated fields, avoiding low natural vegetation; (3) Diurnal dynamics of foraging: LLBs are uniformly active during daytime, whereas STEs activity peaks in the early afternoon; and (4) Food-niche: while both species largely rely on reptiles (47.8% and 76.3% for LLB and STE, respectively), LLB had a more diverse diet and consumed significantly higher percentages of lizards, while STE consumed significantly higher percentages of snakes. Our results suggest that this multidimensional differentiation allows the spatial coexistence of these two dense populations in the study area.
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Israel.
authors.forename: Guilad
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Friedemann
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Israel.
authors.forename: Yossi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Leshem
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Israel.
authors.forename: Lior
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kerem
authors.affiliation: National Natural History Collections, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Boaz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Shacham
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology and Environment, University of Haifa at Oranim, Kiryat Tivon, Israel.
authors.forename: Avi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bar-Massada
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil, Environmental and Geodetic Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
authors.forename: Krystaal M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: McClain
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil, Environmental and Geodetic Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
authors.forename: Gil
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bohrer
authors.affiliation: Department of Evolutionary and Environmental Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Haifa, Israel.
authors.forename: Ido
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Izhaki
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001947:Breeding; D020307:Eagles / Q000502:physiology*; D004463:Ecology; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D040362:Geographic Information Systems; D046428:Hawks / Q000502:physiology*; D011235:Predatory Behavior; D013045:Species Specificity; D061350:Sympatry