publications

2025

1. ELE

   Are Human Super-Predators Always Super-Scary? A Meta-Analysis of Wild Animal Behavioural Responses to Human Interactions

   Shawn Dsouza, Kartik Shanker, and Maria Thaker

   Ecology Letters, 2025

   e70287 ELE-00353-2025.R2

   Abs DOI PDF

   ABSTRACT Humans interact with wild animals through lethal and non-lethal activities. While theory predicts that these interactions should alter animal behaviour, the relative magnitude of impact is not well understood. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of the past 30 years of research, focusing on changes in foraging, vigilance and movement behaviours in wild animals. We found that lethal human activities (e.g., hunting) cause significant behavioural changes, with targeted species increasing vigilance and reducing foraging in affected areas. Active non-lethal activities (e.g., tourism) elicited similar but weaker patterns, with many species showing little to no change in their behavioural responses. In contrast, passive non-lethal interactions (e.g., roads) produced highly variable responses. Overall, human-induced fear elicits responses in wild animals that broadly align with predictions from the risk allocation hypothesis. However, the magnitude and direction of animal responses depend on the type of human activity and the ecological context. The most pronounced behavioural changes occur where humans pose a direct lethal threat. Gaps in the literature, uneven data within and across species, and limited information on the history or context of interactions currently limit our ability to better predict when and why animals change their behaviour in response to humans.

2. bioRxiv

   Local extraction of predatory fish may initiate behaviourally mediated trophic cascades in coral reefs in the Andaman Islands

   Shawn Dsouza, A. Joshi, S. Ahmad, and 2 more authors

   bioRxiv, Nov 2025

   Preprint

   DOI
3. bioRxiv

   Does the loss of piscivorous predators in a coral reef alter risk allocation in reef-associated fish?

   Shawn Dsouza, A. Joshi, and Kartik Shanker

   bioRxiv, Nov 2025

   Preprint

   DOI

2024

1. RSMS

   Diet composition and variation in four commonly landed and threatened shark species in Maharashtra, India

   Garima Bora, Shawn Dsouza, and Kartik Shanker

   Regional Studies in Marine Science, 2024

   PDF
2. bioRxiv

   Are super-predators also super-scary? A systematic review and meta-analysis of animal responses to human interactions

   Shawn Dsouza, Kartik Shanker, and Maria Thaker

   bioRxiv, 2024

   PDF
3. SSRN

   Effects of Microplastic Pollution on the Reproductive Organs of the Spadenose Shark, Scoliodon Laticaudus, in Malvan, India

   Haradhan Ruidas, Garima Bora, Shawn Dsouza, and 1 more author

   Oct 2024

   Abs DOI

   Microplastic (MPs) pollution, a major consequence of industrialization and urbanisation, poses significant risks to human and animal health. MPs can accumulate in marine biota through the food chain, leading to significant adverse effects on various physiological processes. Sharks, as apex predators, may exhibit the highest accumulation of MPs. However, the impact of MPs on the reproductive systems of sharks is not well understood. To address this gap, we investigated the effect of MPs on the reproductive biology of S. laticaudus from Malvan, Maharashtra. MPs were detected in water, gastrointestinal (GI) tissue and gonadal tissue samples. The female gonads tissue exhibited significantly higher concentration of MPs compared to the gonadal tissue. However, the effects on GSI were more pronounced in males, suggesting potential physiological impacts. Understanding the risks associated with MPs can help us develop effective mitigation strategies and the organisms and the humans whom consume these species.

2022

1. CS

   A cross-taxonomic comparison of bird and butterfly communities of Tamhini Wildlife Sanctuary, Maharashtra, India, spanning two decades

   Shawn Dsouza and Anand Padhye

   Current Science, 2022

   PDF

2021

1. AQC

   Fisheries induced shift in sea snake community assemblages along the Konkan coast, India

   Chetan Rao, Shawn Dsouza, Trisha Gupta, and 2 more authors

   Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 2021

   Abs DOI HTML PDF

   Abstract The impacts of fisheries on several charismatic marine fauna have been a subject of global concern. Sea snakes share the same habitats as many commercially important fish species and often end up as fisheries bycatch. Previous studies of bycatch from India have been limited to individual reports of mortality, with little information on the regional community structure of sea snakes. This study was carried out along the Konkan coast, off the central west coast of India, between 2016 and 2018, to determine trends in the bycatch of sea snakes in coastal fisheries. In this study, 922 sea snakes were encountered in 916.57 gillnet haul hours and 449.16 trawlers haul hours of fishing, comprising largely of two species: beaked sea snake (Hydrophis schistosus) and spine-bellied sea snake (Hydrophis curtus) (83.05 and 16.94% respectively) which was in stark contrast to a similar study conducted in 2002–03, which recorded a dominance of H. curtus (84%) followed by H. schistosus (14%) in the same region. Both studies, however, indicated higher mortality in H. curtus than in H. schistosus in trawl nets. This study highlights the significant impact of non-selective fishing practices on regional assemblages of other marine organisms such as sea snakes from South Asia, which has been relatively understudied, and the potential consequences for local ecosystems.

2. Mar Bio

   Resource use and the impacts of fisheries on two sympatric sea snake species on the west coast of India

   Shawn Dsouza, Chetan Rao, Muralidharan Manoharakrishnan, and 1 more author

   Marine Biology, 2021

   PDF
3. RSMS

   Demographics and reproductive biology of Hydrophis schistosus may make it more resilient to bycatch effects than other sea snakes

   Shawn Dsouza and Chetan Rao

   Regional Studies in Marine Science, 2021

   PDF

2018

1. EPW

   Critiquing Narrow Critiques of Convention on Biological Diversity

   Alphonsa Jojan, Shawn Dsouza, Prakriti Mukerjee, and 2 more authors

   Economic & Political Weekly, 2018

   HTML PDF