Do dholes segregate themselves from their sympatrids? Habitat use and carnivore co-existence in the tropical forest

The dhole or Asiatic wild dog Cuon alpinus is the only endangered social canid in the tropical Indian forests and is considered at high risk of extinction in the wild. Despite this, knowledge about its ecology is still scarce. We investigated relative abundance, habitat utilisation and spatial and temporal ecology of dholes in Manas National Park, North-East India. Camera traps (n = 473) were deployed across forested habitats of Manas for 11,388 trap nights. Independent records and relative abundance index were 163 and 1.431 +/- 0.387 SE per 100 trap nights, respectively. Dhole habitat use exhibited a non-significant relationship with habitat and anthropological variables. The availability of small prey, i.e., rhesus macaque, showed a tendency of a positive association with dhole habitat use and, therefore, intrinsically highlights the potential conservation importance of small prey species. Low temporal overlaps (< 0.50) were observed between dhole and other sympatric carnivores. Dholes showed a positive co-occurrence pattern with tigers and leopards. To coexist, dholes segregate themselves from other sympatric carnivores, primarily by utilising different temporal niches and adjusting their activity peaks when encountering them. This spatio-temporal segregation suggests a partial avoidance of dholes from dominant predators that may decrease competition and the risk of intraguild predation.