Wildlife across the globe fear the human 'super predator' far more than some of the world’s most famous predators, from lions and leopards to bears and wolves, a number of studies has found.
The latest study in Australia, carried out by researchers from Western University and the University of Tasmania, shows the country’s marsupials fear humans far more than foxes and dogs.
"These results greatly expand the growing experimental evidence that wildlife worldwide perceive humans as the planet's most frightening predator," said lead scientist Liana Zanette, a renowned wildlife ecologist from Western University.
...fear itself can reduce wildlife numbers, and fear of humans can cause cascading impacts on multiple species throughout entire landscapes.
"The very substantial fear of humans demonstrated here, and in comparable recent experiments, can be expected to have dramatic ecological consequences, because other new research has established that fear itself can reduce wildlife numbers, and fear of humans can cause cascading impacts on multiple species throughout entire landscapes."
The Australian team of scientists deployed hidden automated camera-speaker systems that, when triggered by an animal passing within a short distance (approximately 10 meters, or 30 feet), filmed the response to humans speaking calmly, dogs barking, Tasmanian devil's snarling, wolves howling or non-threatening controls, such as sheep bleating.
They found deer were more than twice as likely to flee upon hearing humans than other predators.
This evidence supports many other studies, including a 2022 study carried out by the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute, which exposed white-tailed deer to the vocalisations of humans as well as other predators (coyotes, cougars, dogs, wolves). They found deer were more than twice as likely to flee upon hearing humans than other predators.
The 2022 study said: 'This study reveals that fear of humans has the potential to induce a larger effect on ungulate reproduction than has ever been reported. By demonstrating that deer most fear the human 'super predator', our results point to the fear humans induce in large ungulates having population- and community-level impacts comparable to those caused by the fear humans induce in large carnivores.’