Savannah L. Bartel

1 Introduction Behavior is a critical determinant of individual growth, survival, and reproductive success (Preisser et al. 2005). Behavior is also an essential component of how species will respond to increasing global change (Guiden et al. 2019), such as the widespread and continued modification and destruction of habitats (Haddad et al. 2015).

Highlights Carrion decomposition is critical for the cycling of nutrients within ecosystems. Carrion is a high-quality resource for a broad diversity of organisms and can be a central arena for competition and facilitation among microbial, invertebrate, and vertebrate consumers. Hence, understanding the factors that affect the trajectory of carrion decomposition enhances broader knowledge of how interkingdom and interspecies interactions shape both communities and ecosystems.

Abstract Mammals that consume fleshy fruit and deposit viable seeds in their scat can be important agents of seed dispersal for plants. Despite the knowledge that the island fox (Urocyon littoralis) consumes large quantities of fleshy fruits, it is unknown whether seeds survive digestion by island foxes and are able to germinate.