Circadian rhythm overlap between felids (Carnivora: Felidae) and their prey in a Subtropical Atlantic Forest protected area

When morphologically similar species, such as felids, coexist, resource sharing occurs across various niche dimensions-temporal, spatial, and trophic-to reduce competition. This study evaluated the circadian rhythm overlap between five Neotropical felid species and their most frequently recorded prey. Circadian rhythms were determined using Kernel density estimation based on camera-trap records. Pairwise comparisons between each felid and its prey were performed using overlap coefficients (Δ), and differences in activity patterns were tested using the Mardia-Watson-Wheeler test. Overlap values between felids and their main prey were high for Puma concolor, Leopardus pardalis, and Leopardus wiedii. In contrast, Leopardus guttulus did not exhibit high overlap with its prey, and Herpailurus yagouaroundi did not yield the minimum records required for overlap analysis. The three larger felids synchronize their activity with the peak periods of their prey, suggesting that the benefits of successful foraging outweigh the costs of potential antagonistic encounters. The two larger species were influenced by the bottom-up effect, as expected. However, only one of the smaller species was influenced by the top-down effect, which may be related to the broader use of forest strata by L. wiedii, reducing its vulnerability to predation by larger felids.