COEXISTENCE IN THE WILD CARNIVORE GUILD OF FAIYUM AGRARIAN ECOSYSTEM IN TERMS OF RESOURCE PARTITIONING

Abstract

The aim of this study is to tests the validity of the theory of resource partitioning when applied to a relatively complex carnivore guild in the Nile Delta of Egypt by investigating mechanisms of resource partitioning along the food selection/feeding habits. The study also aims to assess the validity of Hutchinson's rule in the scaling of sympatric species in a Nile Valley carnivore guild. The complex carnivore guild chosen in this study is: the Egyptian wolf, Canis lupaster, Red fox, Vulpes vulpes, jungle cat, Felis chaus and the Egyptian mongoose, Herpestes ichneumon. The research also seeks to investigate possible character displacement as a coexistence mechanism in a Nile Valley carnivore guild. On the other hand, a guild of four, coexisting carnivores, all belonging to family Canidae occurs in the northern region of the Egyptian western desert. This guild, which consists of Canis aureus, Vulpes vulpes, Vulpes rueppelli, and Vulpes zerda, presents another convenient model to test the validity of Hutchinsonian character displacement hypothesis when applied to a guild of these closely related species.