A comparison of food habits and prey preferences of Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) at the southwest Primorskii Krai in Russia and Hunchun in China

• Published in: Integrative zoology Vol. 13; no. 5; pp. 595 - 603
• Main Authors: GU, Jiayin, YU, Lan, HUA, Yan, NING, Yao, HENG, Bao, QI, Jinzhe, LONG, Zexv, YAO, Mingyuan, HUANG, Chong, LI, Zhilin, LANG, Jianming, JIANG, Guangshun, MA, Jianzhang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Australia Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.09.2018
• Subjects: Amur tiger; Animals; Avoidance behaviour; Deer; Diet; Domestic animals; Endangered species; Feeding; food habitat; Food habits; Food preferences; Foods; New records; Nutritional requirements; Panthera tigris altaica; Polls & surveys; Prey; prey preference; scat analysis; southwest Primorie‐Hunchun; Surveying; Surveys; Winter; China; Russia; scat analysis; Southwest Primorie-Hunchun; food habitat; prey preference; Amur tiger
• ISSN: 1749-4877; 1749-4869; 1749-4877
• DOI: 10.1111/1749-4877.12322

A small, isolated Amur tiger population ranges across the southwest Primorskii Krai region in Russia and Hunchun region in China. Many individuals, with “dual nationality,” cross the border frequently. Formulating effective conservation strategies requires a clear understanding of tiger food requirements in both countries. While the diets of tigers ranging in Russia is clearly understood, little is known of the tigers' feeding habits in China.. We used scat analysis combined with data on the abundance of 4 prey species to examine Amur tiger diet and prey preferences in Hunchun. We examined 53 tiger scat samples from 2011 to 2016 and found that tigers preyed on 12 species (11 species in winter), 4 of which were domestic animals with 33.58% biomass contribution; this was the first record of Amur tigers eating lynx in this area. Tigers showed a strong preference for wild boar (Jacobs index: +0.849), which were also the most frequently consumed prey, and a strong avoidance of roe deer (Jacobs index: −0.693). On the Russian side, domestic animals (just dog) were rarely found in tiger scat, and tigers did not show strong avoidance of roe deer, but of sika deer. We also found red deer footprints during winter surveys and that tigers ate red deer on the Chinese side, while there was no record of red deer feeding on the Russian side. Reducing or eliminating human disturbance, such as grazing, is essential to recovering tiger prey and habitat in this area and the Sino‐Russian joint ungulate annual survey is indispensable for prey estimates of this small, isolated Amur tiger population.