Behavioral responses to ecological disturbances influence predation risk for a capital breeder

Context Predation-risk and ecological disturbance regimes can both influence behavioral decisions by prey, yet few studies have simultaneously considered responses to these ecological pressures. Elucidating relationships between predation risk and the costs and benefits associated with multiple natural disturbances can contribute to a better understanding of how prey adapt to varied predator and disturbance regimes. Objectives We quantified spatial variation in predation risk and resource selection strategies of female white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus ) with different fate outcomes during the fawning season across a landscape with poor-quality, heterogeneous food resources. Methods We quantified resource selection relative to ecological disturbance regimes and vulnerability to Florida panther ( Puma concolor coryi ) predation and linked these behavioral patterns to mortality outcomes. Results We found that female deer that were killed by panthers selected flooded areas that contained higher quality forage, but these areas also conferred higher relative predation risk. Females that survived the fawning season selected frequently and recently burned areas that had both high-quality forage and lower panther predation risk. Conclusions The interplay between predation risk and ecological disturbance regimes appeared to drive behavioral strategies by deer. Females exhibited different strategies relative to the forage-predation risk trade-off, which led to different fitness outcomes. These behavioral strategies may affect maternal care, adding additional complexity to tradeoffs involving adult survival and recruitment.