Native forest and proximity to humans are stronger drivers of Brazilian cottontail habitat use than invasive European hare

Human activities and biological invasions have caused unprecedented biodiversity loss over the past 500 years. Proximity to humans drives the spatial distribution of species toward less disturbed habitats. Invasive species can competitively exclude native species, but species may coexist due to different habitat preferences. Here, we investigated how proximity to farms and the presence of the non-native European hare (Lepus europaeus) influence the habitat use by the Brazilian cottontail (Sylvilagus minensis) in southeastern Brazil. We found that the probability of cottontail site use increased with native forest cover and decreased with farmhouse proximity, ranging from 0.05 (SE = 0.02) at sites close to farmhouses (≅ 900 m) with no native forest to 0.70 (SE = 0.15) at sites far from farmhouses (≅ 2500 m) dominated by native forest. Higher risk of harassment and predation by free-roaming dogs and cats may explain the negative effect of farmhouse proximity on cottontail habitat use. We ..., , , # Native forest and proximity to humans are stronger drivers of Brazilian cottontail habitat use than invasive European hare

Brazilian cottontail (*Sylvilagus minensis*) detection obtained in 205 sites located in southeastern Brazil and covariates used to model species habitat use and detection probabilities. This dataset was obtained after sampling each site with a camera trap and a 200-m transect.

## Description of the data and file structure

The dataset (.inp file) has 209 lines. The heading (non-readable information placed within /* */) is stored in the first four lines. The remaining 205 lines represent each sampled site. The line of each site starts with site name (e.g., / * JES - B11 */), followed by species detection (0) or non-detection (1) in each of the eight sampling occasions, a dummy covariate describing sampling months (from April to September), and all covariates used to model the Brazilian cottontail habitat use and detection probabilities. Each sampling month was...