Data from: Multiple scales of fear: Foraging behavior of white-naped jays in semiarid landscapes

Animals must constantly balance the need to find resources with the risk
of predation. Not only avoiding direct encounters with predators but also
assessing the overall risk of their environment using cues, social
information, or habitat traits at multiple spatial and temporal scales.
Although such a multiscale understanding of the landscape of fear has been
recognized, few studies have simultaneously measured how habitat traits at
different scales affect risk perception. We used a set of field-based
giving-up density experiments to study risk perception of white-naped jays
across 20 foraging patches in two semi-arid thorn forests in northeastern
Brazil. We recorded data from 23 groups of jays, ranging from 2 to 15
individuals per group. Foraging jays were exposed to a simulated predator
(rubber snake), and patches varied in local and landscape-scale
complexity. Jays consumed less food and increased vigilance in the
presence of a predator, with this effect amplified in more complex patches
with dense canopy cover. Vigilance was directly influenced by canopy cover
and forest type (managed vs. regenerated). These findings underscore the
dependency of risk perception on habitat complexity across various scales,
indicating that simplifying habitats may create a less fearful
environment, thereby increasing prey vulnerability by diminishing
antipredator behaviours.