Baboon carnivory and raptor interspecific competition in the Namib Desert

This paper reports an unusual observation of predation by chacma baboonsPapio cynocephalus ursinuson a klipspringer antelope calfOreotragus oreotragusand subsequent aggression between the baboons and black kitesMilvus migransover the calf remains. The observation took place in the Namib Desert, Namibia, during the austral summer; no other cases of vertebrate carnivory or interspecific competition were recorded over a year of study of the baboons. This interaction should be considered active competition rather than passive scavenging, since the behaviour of the kites led to the direct displacement of the baboons from their feeding site and from several scraps of flesh.