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Book Seasonal Sex specific Habitat Selection by a Low Elevation Population of Bighorn Sheep

Download or read book Seasonal Sex specific Habitat Selection by a Low Elevation Population of Bighorn Sheep written by Edward Alan Klinksiek and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 90 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Low-elevation habitats may pose problems for reintroduced bighorn sheep where fire suppression and human presence have altered the landscape. Because male and female bighorn segregate for much of the year, habitat use may differ and impose new management strategies for restoring and maintaining populations of bighorn in these unique habitats. Seasonal, sex-specific habitat use was studied in a northwest Nebraska population of bighorn sheep from January- August, 2002 and 2003. Close proximity to escape terrain was a significant component of habitat selection models for all group types in all seasons, except winter 2002 for mixed-sex groups. Elevation was also important in habitat selection by all group types in all seasons, except males in spring 2003, with bighorn sheep found at lower elevations than random points. Slope was an important component during most seasons with all groups selecting areas with steeper slopes. Although not important in habitat selection by males, aspect was an important component of habitat selection by females and mixed-sex groups in 2003. Habitat type was important to males and females in spring and summer, but not for mixed-sex groups. Mixed-sex groups and female groups in winter and spring were found farther from water than expected. Distance to disturbance, although not important to mixed-sex groups, only appeared important to females in summer, when they were found closer to disturbance, and males in spring 2002, when they were found farther than expected from disturbance features. Sex differences in habitat use included female bighorn using areas closer to escape terrain and disturbance features, and lower in elevation than male bighorn. Although segregation of male and female bighorn sheep occurred during the spring and summer seasons, use of habitat types did not differ. Visibilities did not differ between male and female locations. When segregated, habitat use by male and female bighorn in the Pine Ridge appears to be regulated primarily by escape terrain with habitat type, slope, and elevation also being important factors. Continued survival and expansion of bighorn sheep in the Pine Ridge should focus on protection of current areas of use from disturbance and identification and enhancement of similar habitats.

Book Seasonal Habitat Selection and Impacts of Backcountry Recreation on a Formerly Migratory Bighorn Sheep Population in Northwest Wyoming USA

Download or read book Seasonal Habitat Selection and Impacts of Backcountry Recreation on a Formerly Migratory Bighorn Sheep Population in Northwest Wyoming USA written by Alyson B. Courtemanch and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 105 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The persistence of many migratory ungulate populations worldwide is threatened due to anthropogenic impacts to seasonal ranges and migration routes. Very little is known about the ability of migratory ungulates to adapt to migration disruption or loss. We proposed the Alternative Foraging Strategies Hypothesis (AFSH) as a framework for identifying various seasonal behavioral strategies that ungulates may use to cope with migration loss. We tested the AFSH using the formerly migratory Teton bighorn sheep population in northwest Wyoming, which ceased migrating over 60 years ago, but has persisted as resident. We used global positioning system (GPS) data to evaluate winter and summer habitat selection and seasonal elevational movements for 28 adult female bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) from 2008-2010. Resource selection functions revealed that Teton bighorn sheep have altered their winter foraging strategies to survive as residents by seeking out rugged, high elevation, windswept ridgelines. Seasonal movement analyses indicated that bighorn sheep undergo a newly documented "abbreviated migration" strategy that is closely synchronized with vegetation green-up patterns within their one range. We also investigated the long-term behavioral responses of bighorn sheep to backcountry skiing and snowboarding, which pose an additional challenge to surviving in their new high elevation habitats. We found that bighorn sheep avoided areas of backcountry recreation, even if those areas were otherwise relatively high quality habitat. Avoidance behavior resulted in up to a 30% reduction in available high quality habitat for some individuals. Bighorn sheep avoided areas with both low and high recreation use. Individual bighorn sheep exposed to high levels of recreation exhibited increased daily movement rates and home range sizes compared to sheep exposed to low or no recreation. These results reveal that bighorn sheep appear to be sensitive to forms of recreation which people largely perceive as having minimal impact to wildlife, such as backcountry skiing. The identification of alternative foraging strategies, the habitats that support them and the additional challenges to ungulates after migration loss, such as human recreation, can help reveal the underlying benefits of migration and help conserve ungulate populations after migration loss.

Book Habitat Selection by Mountain Sheep in the Sonoran Desert

Download or read book Habitat Selection by Mountain Sheep in the Sonoran Desert written by Nancy G. Andrew and published by . This book was released on 1999 with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Book Commencement

Download or read book Commencement written by Iowa State University and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 366 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Book The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index

Download or read book The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index written by Nathalie Pettorelli and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2013-10 with total page 205 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a coherent review of NDVI including its origin, its availability, its associated advantages and disadvantages, and its possible applications in ecology, environmental monitoring, wildlife management, and conservation.

Book Desert Bighorn Sheep Adult Female and Lamb Survival Cause specific Mortality and Parturient Female Habitat Selection in the Peloncillo Mountains New Mexico USA

Download or read book Desert Bighorn Sheep Adult Female and Lamb Survival Cause specific Mortality and Parturient Female Habitat Selection in the Peloncillo Mountains New Mexico USA written by Rebekah Catherine Karsch and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 214 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When adult female survival is high and relatively constant from year to year, juvenile survival is the primary demographic rate affecting population growth. Juvenile recruitment in desert bighorn sheep is highly variable from year to year, yet influencing factors are not well understood. The objective of this study was to estimate lamb survival rates. I captures and radiocollared 12 neonatal desert bighorn in 2012 and 14 in 2013 in the Peloncillo Mountains, New Mexico. There were 14 mortalities; 12 of which were due to predation, which was the leading proximate cause of mortality. I used the nest survival model in program MARK to estimate survival to 6 months of age. Model {S1[subscript wk,]>1[subscript wk]} performed the best in 2012, indicating that a 2-stage age interval (1 week and > 1 week) best explained survival. Survival estimate in 2012 for 1 week was 0.92 (SE = 0.08) and average weekly survival for >1 week was 0.99 (SE = 0.006). Survival in 2013 was best explained by a 3-stage age interval model {S1[subscript wk, 2-8 wks, and > 8 wks]}. Survival estimate for 1 week, and average weekly survival for 2-8 weeks and >8weeks were 0.77 (SE = 0.11), 0.89 (SE = 0.04) and 0.89 (SE = 0.016), respectively. Precipitation patterns directly affect plant growth in desert environments, thus influencing forage quality; which past studies have shown effects female condition and survival of young. Precipitation and forage conditions alone, however, do not fully explain the high annual variability in recruitment during this study. The indirect effect of long-term drought on lamb survival may be compounded by the cumulative negative effects of a multi-predator system. Past studies have shown that in multi-predator systems, ungulates may select or avoid particular resources in an attempt to minimize predation risk. Furthermore, prey switching may be especially pronounced in arid systems where drought lowers the abundance of primary prey, and pulses of resources vary dramatically with seasonal fluctuations. Thus, predation should be considered an additive source of mortality, not as a wholly separate factor from forage conditions during periods of drought.

Book Analysis of Wildlife Radio Tracking Data

Download or read book Analysis of Wildlife Radio Tracking Data written by Gary C. White and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2012-12-02 with total page 398 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With the substantial advances in the miniaturization of electronic components, wildlife biologists now routinely monitor the movements of free-ranging animals with radio-tracking devices. This book explicates the many analytical techniques and computer programs available to extract biological information from the radio tracking data. - Presentation of software programs for solving specific problems - Design of radio-tracking studies - Mechanics of data collection - Estimation of position by triangulation - Graphic presentation of animal migration, dispersal, fidelity, and association - Home range estimation, habitat utilization, and estimation of survival rates and population size

Book Determinants of Habitat Selection by Bighorn Sheep in the Lytle Creek Drainage of the San Gabriel Mountains

Download or read book Determinants of Habitat Selection by Bighorn Sheep in the Lytle Creek Drainage of the San Gabriel Mountains written by Richard Alan Harlacher and published by . This book was released on 1980 with total page 92 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Book Spatial Ecology and Resource Selection of Bighorn Sheep ovis Canadensis Ewes in a Prairie Badlands Population

Download or read book Spatial Ecology and Resource Selection of Bighorn Sheep ovis Canadensis Ewes in a Prairie Badlands Population written by Erin Wood and published by . This book was released on 2020 with total page 90 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The basic spatial ecology and habitat relationships of female bighorn sheep in Nebraska are poorly understood. Establishing seasonal patterns of space use and resource selection for this population at the margin of their historical and current range addresses a key knowledge gap and provides important baseline information for ongoing conservation efforts in Nebraska. We deployed GPS radio-collars on 56 adult ewes in western Nebraska to quantify seasonal space use, movements, and resource selection of ewes. To investigate spatial ecology, we quantified movements of ewes and the factors that influence home range size, seasonal use, and spatial stability across seasons. Home range behavior and seasonal movements within this population appear to differ from others that have strong migratory tendencies. Multivariate modeling highlighted seasonal differences in space use and predicted a generally positive, non-linear relationship between home range size and road density. We also quantified resource selection patterns of female bighorn sheep within their home ranges and inferred factors that influence resource selection with a focus on predation risk, forage efficiency, and human disturbance. We used mixed-effects logistic regression with used and available locations for each individual to evaluate selection of topographical features, escape terrain, an index of high quality forage, and natural and anthropogenic landscape features. Ewes selected escape terrain, more rugged terrain, higher elevations, and water in all seasons. Selection of roads, development, and crops varied by season and subpopulation. Our work elucidates behavioral patterns of female bighorn sheep in Nebraska that may influence their survival and reproductive success. Our results should contribute to improved understanding of the factors limiting population growth for this declining population of conservation concern.

Book Habitat Changes and Visual Obscurity in a Low Elevation Population of Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep Ovis Canadensis Canadensis in Southwestern New Mexico

Download or read book Habitat Changes and Visual Obscurity in a Low Elevation Population of Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep Ovis Canadensis Canadensis in Southwestern New Mexico written by Rachelle L. Huddleston-Lorton and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 58 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Book Ural Tweed Bighorn Sheep Investigation

Download or read book Ural Tweed Bighorn Sheep Investigation written by Gerald W. Brown and published by . This book was released on 1979 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Seven bighorn sheep were captured and equipped with telemetry collars, Two hundred and six relocations of radiocollared sheep provided information on seasonal distribution and movements, key use areas, home range size, habitat selection and population dynamics. The sheep population, estimated at fewer than 25 animals, was found to be a contiguous herd which made recurrent use of specific key areas throughout the range. Ural-Tweed bighorns were consistent in their use of exposed oversteepened terrain along the east escarpment of Lake Koocanusa, Five habitat types, received 100 percent of the sheep use annually, based on telemetry relocations, Grassy openings andd open forest cover types characterized sites selected by sheep during most seasons of the year. Rough fescue was found to be an important dietary constituent throughout the year, while browse, as a forage class, was important during periods of heavy-crusted snow conditions and also during spring flowering. Endoparasite loads were low, but the possibility of a population crash due to the lungworm-pneumonia complex during the 1960's is discussed. Thirty-five hundred acres of bighorn sheep habitat lost to Libby Dam Project and degeneration of residual habitat due to ecological succession in the absence of natural fires continues to reduce the carrying capacity of the range. Natural as well as human-caused decimating factors are discussed in relation to their overall influence on the sheep population. Recommendations for management of the Ural-Tweed sheep herd and its habitat are forwarded.