Demography of avian scavengers after Pleistocene megafaunal extinction

PERRIG, PAULA L.; FOUNTAIN, EMILY D.; LAMBERTUCCI, SERGIO A.; PAULI, JONATHAN N.

Scientific Reports

Springer Nature

Año: 2019 vol. 9

The late Quaternary megafauna extinctions reshaped species assemblages, yet we know little about how extant obligate scavengers responded to this abrupt ecological change. To explore whether obligate scavengers persisted by depending on contemporary community linkages or via foraging flexibility, we tested the importance of the trophic interaction between pumas (Puma concolor) and native camelids (Vicugna vicugna and Lama guanicoe) for the persistence of Andean condors (Vultur gryphus) in southern South America, and compared the demographic history of three vultures in different continents. We sequenced and compiled mtDNA to reconstruct past population dynamics. Our results suggest that Andean condors increased in population size >10 KYA, whereas vicuñas and pumas showed stable populations and guanacos a recent (