Habitat use and movements of plains zebra in response to predation

Prey species must adapt their behavior to avoid predation while meeting resource needs. In East Africa savannah, plains zebra are a key prey for lions. We study a population of 600 plains zebra in Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Kenya. We test how zebra movements change in response to variation in lion threat, using GPS radiocollar data from zebras and direct observations of zebras and lions. We find that zebras move away from a grassland patch when lions are present on that patch. Changes in zebra habitat use between day and night are consistent with avoiding lions. Further, zebras move faster and take sharper turns at night in grassland. We argue that these habitat shifts and movements may assist zebras in avoiding detection or capture by lions.