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. 2024 Dec 3;14(12):e70654.
doi: 10.1002/ece3.70654. eCollection 2024 Dec.

Daily Activity Patterns and Overlap Activity of Medium-Large Mammals in Sülüklü Lake Nature Park, Western Black Sea Region, Türkiye

Fehmi Yildiz  1 , Ali Uzun  1
Affiliations

Daily Activity Patterns and Overlap Activity of Medium-Large Mammals in Sülüklü Lake Nature Park, Western Black Sea Region, Türkiye

Fehmi Yildiz et al. Ecol Evol. .

Abstract

Türkiye, due to its position as a bridge between Asia and Europe, encompassing three distinct biogeographic regions and its diverse climatic conditions and geographical features, exhibits the characteristics of a small continent in terms of biodiversity, hosting a very high number of mammalian species. However, information on these mammals' activity patterns and co-occurrence, specifically in Türkiye, is limited. Our study aimed to reveal the daily activity patterns and temporal overlaps of mammalian species detected using camera traps in Sülüklü Lake Nature Park. The white-breasted hedgehog was strictly nocturnal, while the European badger, gray wolf, European hare, wild boar, and beech marten tended to be nocturnal. The Caucasian squirrel was strictly diurnal, and the roe deer tended to be diurnal. The highest temporal overlap was found between the white-breasted hedgehog and the beech marten (∆4 = 0.84, 95% CI), followed by the red fox and roe deer (∆1 = 0.77, 95% CI). The lowest temporal overlap (∆1 = 0.081, 95% CI) was found between the white-breasted hedgehog and the Caucasian squirrel. The second lowest overlap (∆1 = 0.136, 95% CI) occurred between the Caucasian squirrel and the European badger. Our findings have provided new and detailed insights into the diversity of mammalian species within the nature park located in Northwestern Anatolia. These data will support and facilitate future research aimed at understanding the mechanisms of species coexistence in this ecosystem. The results obtained will enable a deeper examination of ecosystem dynamics and contribute to developing strategies for biodiversity conservation.

Keywords: Türkiye; camera‐trapping; large mammals; monitoring; overlapping activity; relative abundance.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
(a) Location of Sülüklü Lake Natural Park in Türkiye (Western Blacksea Region of Türkiye). (b) Sülüklü Lake and Sülüklü Lake Natural Park boundaries. (c) General view of the study area.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
The daily activity frequencies of terrestrial mammal species detected by camera trap method in Sülüklü Lake Nature Park. The density graphs of the species' daily activity patterns are additionally presented in Appendix D.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Temporal overlap (painted area) between 11 mammalian species in Sülüklü Lake Nature Park. Each pair overlap coefficient (Δ1 or Δ4) is given in the upper right corner of the graph (Appendix B).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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