Detection histories of mesocarnivores in agricultural areas of Southern Chile

We obtained mesocarnivore detection/non-detection data from 180 sampling
units (4 km2 each) located in the agricultural landscapes of southern
Chile from January-April of 2019. We used single-species occupancy models
to investigate the associations of forest fragmentation, forest loss, and
private land ownership subdivision (as a measure of human use
intensification) with the occurrence of four mesocarnivores (güiña, grey
fox, culpeo fox, and Molina’s hog-nosed skunk), and extended this
framework to two-species occupancy models to assess patterns of
mesocarnivore co-occurrence with domestic carnivores. We also assessed
whether co-occurrence of native and domestic carnivores led to shifts in
species’ temporal activity. We hypothesized that the occurrence of native
mesocarnivores was largely mediated by human use intensification variables
only, the occurrence of domestic mesocarnivores only, or a combination of
both. Our results largely supported the human use intensification
hypothesis, with some influence of domestic mesocarnivores. Mesocarnivore
occurrence shifted from a native to a domestic species composition as
private land ownership subdivision increased, and native mesocarnivores
shifted their behaviour temporally when co-occurring with domestics. In
addition, the presence of domestic dogs was associated with an absence of
native mesocarnivores, possibly driving a defaunation process in
agricultural areas.