caa a22 4500 469096683 CHVBK 20180323133033.0 cr unu---uuuuu 170328e19920101xx s 000 0 eng 10.1007/BF00319021 doi (NATIONALLICENCE)springer-10.1007/BF00319021 Limits to predator regulation of rabbits in Australia: evidence from predator-removal experiments [Elektronische Daten] [R. Pech, A. Sinclair, A. Newsome, P. Catling] Summary: Predator-prey studies in semi-arid eastern Australia demonstrated that populations of rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) could be regulated by predators. The functional, numerical and total responses of foxes (Vulpes vulpes) to rabbits and the numerical response of feral cats (Felis catus) to rabbits, are described. Measurement of the rabbit component of foxes' stomach contents indicates a Type III functional response. The size of the fox population in summer was dependent on the availability of rabbits over the immediately preceding rabbit breeding season but there appeared to be no density-dependent aggregation of young foxes in areas of surplus food. The total response of foxes, estimated using the short-term numerical response of dispersing foxes, was directly density-dependent for low rabbit densities and inversely density-dependent for high rabbit densities. Two states are possible with this form of total response: a state with low rabbit densities regulated by predators and a state with high rabbit densities which occurs when rabbits escape predator regulation. The boundary between regulation and non-regulation by predators was demonstrated by a predator-removal experiment. In the treated areas, predators were initially culled and rabbits increased to higher densities than in an untreated area where predators were always present. When predators were allowed back into the treated areas, rabbit populations continued to increase and did not decline to the density in the untreated area. This is the critical evidence for a two-state system. When predators were present, rabbits could be maintained at low densities which were in the density-dependent part of the total response curve for foxes. Exceptionally high rabbit recruitment, or artificially reduced predation, could result in rabbits escaping predator-regulation. Under these circumstances, rabbits could move into the inversely density-dependent region of the total response curve for foxes. Springer-Verlag, 1992 Predator removal nationallicence Predator regulation nationallicence Functional response nationallicence Numerical response nationallicence Pech R. Division of Wildlife and Ecology, CSIRO, PO Box 84, 2602, Lyneham, ACT, Australia aut Sinclair A. The Ecology Group, Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, V6T 1Z4, Vancouver, Canada aut Newsome A. Division of Wildlife and Ecology, CSIRO, PO Box 84, 2602, Lyneham, ACT, Australia aut Catling P. Division of Wildlife and Ecology, CSIRO, PO Box 84, 2602, Lyneham, ACT, Australia aut Oecologia Springer-Verlag 89/1(1992-01-01), 102-112 0029-8549 89:1<102 1992 89 442 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00319021 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI 1 research-article jats NATIONALLICENCE 856 40 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00319021 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Pech R. Division of Wildlife and Ecology, CSIRO, PO Box 84, 2602, Lyneham, ACT, Australia aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Sinclair A. The Ecology Group, Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, V6T 1Z4, Vancouver, Canada aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Newsome A. Division of Wildlife and Ecology, CSIRO, PO Box 84, 2602, Lyneham, ACT, Australia aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Catling P. Division of Wildlife and Ecology, CSIRO, PO Box 84, 2602, Lyneham, ACT, Australia aut NATIONALLICENCE 773 0- Oecologia Springer-Verlag 89/1(1992-01-01), 102-112 0029-8549 89:1<102 1992 89 442 Metadata rights reserved Springer special CC-BY-NC licence nationallicence BK010053 XK010053 XK010000 NATIONALLICENCE NATIONALLICENCE NL-springer