Title
Habitat factors affecting site occupancy and relative abundance of four-horned antelope
Author(s)
Krishna, Y. C.; Krishnaswamy, J.; Kumar, N. S.
Published
2008
Publisher
Journal of Zoology
Abstract
The four-horned antelope is endemic to the Indian sub-continent. It was formerly distributed widely in deciduous forests throughout its range, but the current distributional patterns of this low-density species are largely unknown and conservation efforts are hampered by the lack of information on species-habitat relationships. We investigated the habitat factors influencing four-horned antelope occurrence and abundance in Bandipur National Park, an important four-horned antelope conservation site in India. Detection/non- detection data, collected under a systematic sampling framework, were used to test a priori hypotheses incorporating covariates believed to influence occurrence and abundance. The best fitting models for four-horned antelope occurrence and relative abundance reveal that the tree-savanna deciduous habitat sub-type, characterized by relatively open habitats with a lower tree density and a high degree of deciduousness, is most preferred by the species. Four-horned antelope conservation efforts in Bandipur National Park and other reserves should be focused on areas typified by tree-savanna habitats. Four-horned antelope occurrence was negatively related to the alien weed Lantana camara. The prolific spread of this weed in Indian deciduous forests is a likely threat.
Keywords
deciduous forest, deer, detection method, environmental factor, habitat quality, habitat use, probability, relative abundance, species occurrence, species-area relationship, Asia, Bandipur National Park, Eurasia, India, Karnataka, South Asia, Lantana, Lantana camara, Tetracerus quadricornis
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PUB10528