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Scheel, D.
Profitability, encounter rates, and prey choice in African lions
1993 Behavioral Ecology (4): 90-97
The prey preferences of African lions (_Panthera leo_) in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania, were examined in three ways. First, lion encounter rates with prey types were measured and compared with a random sample of the prey population. Lions encountered more wart hogs (_Phacochoerus aethiopicus_), Grant's gazelles (_Gazella granti_), wildebeests (ConnochaeUs taurinus), and zebras (_Equus burchelli_) than expected. Second, preferred prey types of lions were identified using conditional logit analysis. Lions preferred to hunt small prey groups, groups that were closer than 200 m, and groups that contained wart hogs, wildebeests, or zebras. Third, a risk-minimization optimal foraging model and a rate-maximization model were used to predict lion preferences. The foraging theory models predict that preferences should change with season and with lion group size. Qualitative support was found for most of these predictions.
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