| competition and coexistence in a small carnivore guild. | the potential for strong competition among small sympatric carnivores results in a need for coexistence strategies whereby competitors partition along spatial, temporal and dietary axes as a means to reduce ecological overlaps. we determined spatial and temporal partitioning patterns of a guild of small african carnivores: the african wildcat felis silvestris lybica, grey mongoose galerella pulverulenta, small-spotted genet genetta genetta, striped polecat ictonyx striatus, and the yellow mongoo ... | 2017 | 28733835 |
| widespread anticoagulant poison exposure in predators in a rapidly growing south african city. | anticoagulant rodenticides (ars) are used worldwide to control rodent populations. ars bioaccumulate across trophic levels and threaten non-target wildlife. we investigated the prevalence of ar exposure in seven predator species in the rapidly developing greater cape town region of south africa - a mosaic of natural, urban, and agricultural areas within a global biodiversity hotspot. we focused sampling on caracals (caracal caracal, n = 28) as part of a larger caracal ecology study, but also opp ... | 2019 | 30807948 |
| the effect of clothing on decomposition and vertebrate scavengers in cooler months of the temperate southwestern cape, south africa. | with research providing conflicting results from different habitats across the globe, the effect of clothing on decomposition is unclear; some studies indicate clothing increases decomposition rate by facilitating increased insect activity, and others conclude clothing prolongs the decay process. in south africa, such research is lacking, with no data for the western cape province, which suffers from a high murder rate with many unclaimed, unidentified bodies. improving post-mortem interval (pmi ... | 2020 | 32114190 |
| forensic taphonomy: vertebrate scavenging in the temperate southwestern cape, south africa. | vertebrate scavenging can significantly accelerate the rate of decomposition, which can hinder estimating the post-mortem interval (pmi). patterns of decomposition and scavenging are highly specific to different environments in a forensic context, with no known data for south africa. a better understanding of local decomposition patterns, taking scavenging into account, could increase the accuracy of pmi estimation and improve identification of human remains. using a porcine model in the forensi ... | 2018 | 30015281 |
| forensic taphonomy: scavenger-induced scattering patterns in the temperate southwestern cape, south africa - a first look. | the effect of vertebrate scavenging can drastically alter the rate of decomposition and cause skeletal scatter, which hinders human forensic recovery and identification. patterns of scavenging, disarticulation and scatter in a forensic context are specific to different environments with no known data for south africa. a better understanding of these patterns can increase the chances of full body recovery and improve identification of human remains. in this preliminary study, the effect of wild v ... | 2018 | 29979979 |