Spatial isolation from the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot influences caterpillar predation in sacred groves and multi‐storied home gardens

Forest fragmentation is a major driver of biodiversity change. By scattering and isolating species pools into smaller islets separated from source habitats, fragmentation alters ecological dynamics. While its impacts on biodiversity have received considerable attention, much less is known about how biotic interactions—particularly antagonistic processes such as predation—respond in cultural landscapes of the Old‐World tropics.

Sacred groves, relics of natural forests and multi‐storied home gardens play pivotal roles in conserving biodiversity within anthropogenic landscapes. In southern India, these habitats occur at varying distances from the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot, a potential source habitat. Using sentinel prey (dummy caterpillars and frozen mealworms), we examined whether habitat type and spatial distance from the Western Ghats influence prey–predator interactions.

Predation was consistently higher in sacred groves than in home gardens. Habitat effects interacted with distance. Predation increased with distance in home gardens but declined in sacred groves. Arthropod predation was greater in sacred groves and decreased with increasing distance from the Western Ghats. Bird predation was also higher in sacred groves, but while it remained independent of distance within groves, it increased with distance in home gardens. Predation outcomes were further shaped by caterpillar traits and microhabitat position.

Synthesis and Conclusion . Our findings reinforce broader evidence that structurally complex habitats sustain ecological processes, whereas isolation from source habitats erodes them. Despite their small size, sacred groves function as vital biodiversity reserves and deliver key ecosystem services. Their conservation can enhance the ecological quality of anthropogenic landscapes, support metapopulations and movement, and potentially serve as wildlife corridors.