title: Hunting on a hot day: effects of temperature on interactions between African wild dogs and their prey.
abstract: As global temperatures increase, interactions between species are affected by changes in distribution, abundance and phenology, but also by changes in behavior. The heat dissipation limitation hypothesis suggests that the ability to dissipate heat commonly limits the activity of endotherms, a problem that should be particularly acute for cursorial predators and their prey in equatorial ecosystems. Allometric relationships suggest that heat dissipation should be a stronger constraint for larger species, so that (smaller) predators should be less affected than (larger) prey. We used data from 266 complete days of direct observation of African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) in five packs over a period of 2 yr to test how deviations of temperature from that expected for the time of day affected eight measures of hunting effort and success. We found that higher temperatures disadvantaged the prey of wild dogs more than the dogs themselves, with increased hunting success and shorter pursuits on warmer days. Broadly, our results demonstrate that effects of temperature on behavior can alter interactions between species, exacerbating or offsetting the direct effects of climate change.
authors.affiliation: Conservation Biology and Ecology Program, Department of Ecology, Montana State University, 310 Lewis Hall, Bozeman, Montana, 59717, USA.|Zambian Carnivore Programme, PO Box 80, Mfuwe, Eastern Province, Zambia.
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Creel
authors.affiliation: Selous Wild Dog Project, Frankfurt Zoological Society, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
authors.forename: Nancy M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Creel
authors.affiliation: Department of Economics and Agricultural Economics, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana, 59717, USA.
authors.forename: Andrea M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Creel
authors.affiliation: Zambian Carnivore Programme, PO Box 80, Mfuwe, Eastern Province, Zambia.|Ecology and Organismal Biology Program, Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, 59812, USA.
authors.forename: Bridget M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Creel
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000349:Africa; D000818:Animals; D046028:Canidae / Q000502:physiology*; D006358:Hot Temperature; D011235:Predatory Behavior / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: 
  Lycaon pictus
  ; African wild dog; hunting; predation; temperature