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AI Summary of Peer-Reviewed Research

This page presents an AI-generated summary of a published research paper. The original authors did not write or review this article. [See full disclosure ↓]

Publishing process signals: STRONG — reflects the venue and review process. — venue and review process.

Human disturbance changes predator-prey overlap only in some body size pairs

A small mammal, likely a rodent or similar creature, on sandy or dusty ground with natural lighting that suggests dusk or twilight conditions, photographed at close range in what appears to be a natural outdoor setting.
Research area:EcologyEcology, Evolution, Behavior and SystematicsWildlife Ecology and Conservation

What the study found

Human disturbance did not have an overall effect on temporal overlap between mammals that interact as predators and prey or as intraguild predators. Instead, the direction of change depended on the body mass ratio between the dominant and subordinate species.

Why the authors say this matters

The authors say these findings suggest that human disturbance can alter the temporal niche, meaning the daily activity timing that species use, in ways that may affect species interactions. They also conclude that expanding human footprint may continue to change animal temporal niches, with consequences for species interactions, population persistence, community structure, and evolutionary dynamics.

What the researchers tested

The researchers carried out a global meta-analysis of 57 studies covering 480 mammalian predator-prey and intraguild predator dyads. They examined how human disturbance affected diel activity, meaning daily activity patterns, and the overlap of those patterns.

What worked and what didn't

Human disturbance showed no overall change in temporal overlap across the full dataset. However, when subordinate species were larger than dominant species, human disturbance compressed the temporal niche, producing higher diel overlap; when dominant species were larger, human disturbance expanded the temporal niche, producing lower diel overlap.

What to keep in mind

The abstract does not describe detailed limitations beyond the scope of the studies included. The results are based on mammalian dyads from 57 studies, so the summary should be read within that sampling frame.

Key points

  • A global meta-analysis covered 480 mammalian predator-prey and intraguild predator dyads from 57 studies.
  • Human disturbance had no overall effect on temporal overlap across all dyads.
  • Body mass ratio changed the direction of the effect of human disturbance.
  • When subordinate species were larger than dominant species, human disturbance increased diel overlap.
  • When dominant species were larger than subordinate species, human disturbance reduced diel overlap.

Disclosure

Research title:
Human disturbance changes predator-prey overlap only in some body size pairs
Authors:
Eamonn I. F. Wooster, Erick J. Lundgren, Dale Grame Nimmo, Mitchell A. Cowan, Evan C. Fricke, Anke S. K. Frank, Alexandra J. R. Carthey, K. Grabowski, Jennifer R. Green, Grant D. Linley, T. McEvoy, Amy Simpson, Dylan M. Westaway, Kwasi Wrensford, Nicholas S. Wright, Shinichi Nakagawa, Kaitlyn M. Gaynor
Institutions:
Charles Sturt University, University of Alberta, The University of Western Australia, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Macquarie University, University of British Columbia, The University of Queensland, Queensland Department of Environment and Science, University of Technology Sydney
Publication date:
2026-02-04
DOI:
10.1038/s41467-026-69113-9
OpenAlex record:
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AI provenance: This post was generated by OpenAI. The original authors did not write or review this post.

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