Some mammals shift their schedules in urban environments

coyotes prefer nightlife while deer and squirrel prefer home before dark. Scientists at the University of Utah found that mammals in urban environments shifted the timing of their activities to avoid humans.

The University of Utah's School of Biological Sciences set up a network of more than 300 trail cameras to cover urban sites in the Salt Lake Valley as well as sites in the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest with the help of community volunteers. The most abundant mammals during the summer months are coyote, mule deer, raccoon, squirrel and skunk.

The mammals in the city behaved differently than their country cousins. The activities of coyotes and deer in the city moved into the daytime hours, while the activities of animals in the dark were mostly nocturnal. In the wild, coyote deer and squirrel spent more time in the morning and evening.

There are consequences for interactions between species. The deer increased their human interaction when they shifted their timing. The coyotes had less access to prey because they shifted into the nighttime hours.

Researchers have found that single species change the timing of their behavior in urban environments. With these results, researchers can now learn more about how and why animals change their behavior in response to human activity, and what those changes mean for their environment.

The study was published in a journal.

More information: Austin M. Green et al, Species differences in temporal response to urbanization alters predator-prey and human overlap in northern Utah, Global Ecology and Conservation (2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2022.e02127 Citation: Some mammals shift their schedules in urban environments (2022, April 25) retrieved 25 April 2022 from https://phys.org/news/2022-04-mammals-shift-urban-environments.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.