Feeding dynamics of sympatric large carnivores in an anthropogenic landscape of the Indian Terai

An important challenge for large carnivore conservation is negative human-wildlife interaction. Livestock depredation by carnivores is one important aspect of this negative interaction. Hence, it is critical to understand the extent of livestock depredation by large carnivores through their diet profiles and feeding habits for managing and strategizing conservation measures. We investigated the food habits and dietary patterns of two large sympatric carnivores, the Tiger Panthera tigris and the Leopard Panthera pardus based on scat samples collected in wildlife corridors outside protected areas (PAs) in the Indo-Nepal transboundary and Corbett landscape in Uttarakhand, India. The frequency of occurrence of prey items in the scat samples was used to estimate the relative prey biomass and number of preys consumed by the Tigers and Leopards using a generalised biomass model. Scat analysis revealed the presence of mainly wild prey species, encompassing 12 species in tiger scat and 14 species in Leopard scat. The results show that Tigers and Leopards primarily depend on medium-sized prey, with relative prey biomass consumption of 53% and 60%, respectively. Tigers preyed most frequently on Wild Boar Sus scrofa, followed by Spotted Deer Axis axis, and Leopards preyed mostly on Spotted Deer, followed by Wild Boar. The relative biomass of livestock species in Tiger and Leopard diets is 14.2% and 15.7%, respectively. Dietary overlap between Tiger and Leopard was high, with the Leopard exhibiting a broader dietary niche breadth than the Tiger. Augmenting wild prey population through habitat improvement and protection outside PAs can significantly limit human-large carnivore conflict by decreasing livestock contribution in their diet. Studies on dietary habits need to expand to wildlife corridors and outside PAs in human-dominated landscapes to understand the ecological dynamics of human-wildlife negative interaction for future conservation strategies.