Journal
CONDOR
Volume 114, Issue 3, Pages 523-531Publisher
COOPER ORNITHOLOGICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1525/cond.2012.100196
Keywords
aggregation; coexistence; competition; food availability; resource partitioning; scavengers; vulture
Categories
Funding
- Peregrine Fund
- Mara Conservancy
- neighboring group ranches-Koiyaki
- Lemek
- Siana
- Olaro Orok-plus
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Because of the high, albeit seasonal, availability of carcasses, the Mara-Serengeti ecosystem, Kenya, has a high diversity of scavengers, leading to considerable competition between species. From patterns of occurrence of vultures at 163 carcasses over an 8-year period in the Masai Mara National Reserve, we were able to identify some mechanisms that may reduce competition. Species are associated on the basis of similar dietary needs and beak morphology, and they are highly interdependent, showing little evidence of disassociation. Social vultures (genus Gyps) dominated the vulture scene at the reserve; they were more abundant at carcasses when migratory ungulates were present in the dry season, when more carcasses are likely to be available, than when migratory ungulates were absent. In addition, regardless of the predator's identity, presence of a predator reduced the number of vultures, suggesting that vultures prefer carrion not killed by predators where available. Comparisons between past and current counts of carcasses suggest a substantial shift in Gyps vultures with an increase in the relative abundance of Ruppell's Vulture (G. rueppellii) with respect to that of the White-backed Vulture (G. africanus). In addition, our findings suggest that as changing land use in
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