Dracula’s ménagerie: A multispecies occupancy analysis of lynx, wildcat, and wolf in the Romanian Carpathians

The recovery of terrestrial carnivores in Europe is a conservation success story. Initiatives focused on restoring top predators, require information on how resident species may interact with the re-introduced species as their interactions have the potential to alter food webs, yet such data are scarce for Europe.
In this study, we assessed patterns of occupancy and interactions between three carnivore species in the Romanian Carpathians. Romania houses one of the few intact carnivore guilds in Europe, making it an ideal system to assess intraguild interactions, and serve as a guide for reintroductions elsewhere.
We used camera trap data from two seasons in Transylvanian forests to assess occupancy and co-occurrence of carnivores using multispecies occupancy models.
Mean occupancy in the study area was highest for lynx ( Ywinter= 0.76 95% CI: 0.42-0.92; Yautumn= 0.71 CI: 0.38-0.84) and wolf (Ywinter= 0.60 CI: 0.34-0.78;  Yautumn= 0.81 CI: 0.25-0.95) and lowest for wildcat (Ywinter= 0.40...