Research overview: kill-site investigation methods and biases

A survey of how researchers locate and interpret felid kill sites and the biases that affect the resulting estimates of kill rate and prey composition. Field investigation of GPS clusters, snow-tracking and opportunistic carcass finds each detect prey differently, with small prey, scavenged carcasses and rapid consumption all prone to underdetection that distorts diet and kill-rate estimates. This overview synthesizes the trade-offs among methods, correction approaches such as cluster-detection modeling and consumption-based metrics, and how investigator effort and timing influence results. It connects methodology to the reliability of conclusions about felid predation impact. The topic is essential for critically evaluating kill-rate and diet studies, since unrecognized biases can substantially misrepresent how much and what cats actually kill.