Abstract:
aguars (Panthera onca) are opportunistic predators that prey on large profitable prey
items, such as sea turtles at nesting beaches. Here, we use jaguar and sea turtle track-
count surveys, combined with satellite telemetry of one jaguar, to evaluate whether
jaguar hunting behavior and movements are influenced by seasonal sea turtle nesting
in the Sector Santa Rosa of Área de Conservación Guanacaste in northwest Costa
Rica. We used generalized linear models to evaluate the effect of moon phase and sea
surface temperature on olive ridley (Lepidochelis olivacea) and green turtle (Chelonia
mydas) nesting abundance, as well as the combination of these predictors on the fre-
quency of jaguar predation activity (proximity to nesting beaches) and movements.
For home-range size and location analyses, we calculated kernel density estimates
for each season at three different temporal scales. Sea turtle nesting season influ-
enced jaguar activity patterns, as well as sea turtle abundance was related to jaguar
locations and predation events, but jaguar home-range size (88.8 km2 overall) did not
differ between nesting seasons or among temporal scales. Environmental conditions
influenced sea turtle nesting and, as a consequence, also influenced jaguar move-
ments and foraging activity. Our study defined the home range of a female jaguar in
the tropical dry forest and its relationship to seasonally abundant turtles. Additional
information related to the effect of tourism on jaguar–sea turtle interactions would
improve conservation of these species at unique nesting beaches in the area.
