The movement of African ungulates between habitats is determined by diverse factors including forage composition, availability and quality, water availability, topography, the catenary level and the effect of fire on vegetation. We assessed how grass flushes, following dry-season fires, and availability of water influenced seasonal movements of hartebeest, impala, warthog, white rhino, wildebeest and zebra in Ithala Game Reserve, a fenced reserve in South Africa. Over a 6-d period each month for 4 y, road transects covering a representative sample of the reserve's different vegetation types, and 23% of the reserve's total area, were carried out. We recorded the species, number, sex and age class of herbivores, obtaining 8742 records (total herbivores sighted = 47055), and obtained positional data on sightings over the last 2 y of the study. Using a GIS-based approach, we determined that ruminant, but not non-ruminants, were significantly attracted to dry-season grass flushes, and that presence or absence of such flushes significantly affected their mean distance to water and hence seasonal movements on the catena.

Surprisingly little is known about the spatial dimensions of most tropical ungulate migrations, including that of wildebeest Connochaetes taurinus, a species famous for long-distance movements. Using non-invasive photographic identification of 834 adult wildebeest from 8,530 images collected over 4 years we characterize patterns of migratory connectivity throughout the northern Tarangire–Manyara Ecosystem, Tanzania. We document movements between Tarangire and Lake Manyara National Parks and northwards to the shore of Lake Natron, a straight-line distance of > 130 km. Fifty-six percent of observed movements occur outside the ecosystem's three main protected areas. We supplement photographic data with fine-scale movement data from two individuals with global positioning system collars, and identify three narrow bottlenecks, each vulnerable to human development. We discuss the possible consequences for the wildebeest population if these bottlenecks become impeded. Persistence of this migration alongside a growing human population and proposed road improvement will require additional measures to ensure that pathways remain open to wildlife movement and protected from illegal hunting.

Lions Panthera leo are generally thought to prey on medium to large ungulates. Knowledge of which species are actually preferred and which are avoided is lacking, however, as is an understanding of why such preference or avoidance may arise. An analysis of 32 studies over 48 different spatial locations or temporal periods throughout the distribution of the lion shows that it preferentially preys upon species within a weight range of 190–550 kg. The most preferred weight of lion prey is 350 kg. The mean mass of significantly preferred prey species is 290 kg and of all preferred species is 201 kg. Gemsbok, buffalo, wildebeest, giraffe and zebra are significantly preferred. Species outside the preferred weight range are generally avoided. Species within the preferred weight range that are not significantly preferred (such as roan, sable and eland) generally have features that reduce predation either morphologically (e.g. sable horns), ecologically (e.g. roan and sable occurring at low density), or behaviourally (e.g. the large herd size and increased vigilance of eland). Warthog are below the preferred weight range yet are taken in accordance with their availability and this is probably due to their sympatry with lion, their relatively slow evasion speed and their lower level of vigilance. Plots of prey preference against prey body mass follows a bell curve with a right skew that, we argue, is caused by collective hunting by lions of larger-bodied prey. Our methods can be used on all large predators and are likely to be useful in assessing competition in sympatric communities of predators, cooperative hunting and predicting predator diets. This will allow us to move beyond descriptive dietary studies to improve our predictive understanding of the mechanisms underlying predator–prey interactions.