» Wildlife Research
Wolverines
and climate change
Understanding the effects of a warming climate on wolverine
habitat is essential to their conservation in the contiguous United States.
The animal’s range includes cold areas, typically arctic
or alpine habitats, with deep snow cover that remains through the
end of the reproductive denning period in mid-May.
In the Western
contiguous United States, wolverine habitat occurs in an archipelago
of alpine meadows and subalpine parklands. However,
continued warming in those regions is expected to cause wolverines
to seek habitat at higher elevations, decreasing its geographic
extent and connectivity. Although large continuous areas of wolverine habitat are likely to persist throughout the 21st century, such
areas will become smaller and more isolated.
Contact: Keith Aubry,
kaubry@fs.fed.us
|
| ---------------------------------------------------------------- |
Monograph provides
spotted owl analysis
Station scientists collaborated with 27 northern spotted owl researchers
associated with 12 institutions or agencies to produce a monograph
that provides the most complete picture of the owl’s population
status to date.
This publication assesses relationships between
reproductive and recruitment rates and related issues such as
habitat, weather,
and the invasive barred owl. Population
Demography of Northern Spotted Owls demonstrates how collaboration among scientists
can provide an analysis template for species assessments and conservation.
A draft version of this analysis was used by the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service to develop its Spotted
Owl Recovery plan.
Contact:
Eric Forsman, eforsman@fs.fed.us
|
| ---------------------------------------------------------------- |
Elk population
management tools
 Photo
by Rachel Cook
Elk are widely distributed across western Oregon and Washington,
and hunting and viewing of this animal contribute substantially
to rural economies. Elk
habitat models and management guidelines
had become outdated, so station scientists updated elk nutrition
and habitat selection models.
An innovative approach incorporates
the latest research on elk nutrition and current spatial data.
Scientists also created maps
of nutritional adequacy for elk to evaluate how public access
and other factors limit the degree to which nutritional resources
are available to elk. Modeling
results are now used to update
and integrate elk habitat and population management among state
and federal agencies, Indian tribes, hunting organizations,
and other interested groups.
Contact: Mary Rowland, mrowland@fs.fed.us
|
| ---------------------------------------------------------------- |
Wildlife
search for food
Many wildlife species must move across the landscape in search
of food throughout the year. As human populations increase and
more land is developed, links between wildlife and habitats are
lost.
To address these issues, the Western Governors Association
Wildlife Corridors Initiative and state wildlife action plans
call for
incorporating wildlife corridors into landscape management
planning. Station scientists were asked to help assess regional
habitat
connectivity patterns for 16 focal species, natural landscape
integrity connectivity patterns, and climate gradient patterns.
The scientists along with the Washington Wildlife Habitat Connectivity
Working Group completed a geographic information system (GIS)
analysis of the habitat conditions in the state.
The Washington
Department of Transportation is using the information and GIS
data in statewide transportation planning. Washington
Department of Fish and Games is also using the information
in planning efforts.
Contact: Peter Singleton, psingleton@fs.fed.us |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------- |
|
Featured Scientist
Peter Singleton studies barred
owl habitat selection and landscape use patterns in Washington state's
eastern Cascades. For over a decade, he also has been exploring
ways to preserve habitat connectivity and landscape permeability in the
Pacific Northwest.
In one collaborative project, Singleton and his colleagues
used geographic information system models that they developed to identify
places where highways
pass through areas that are important for wildlife movement. By taking
into consideration factors like land cover, elevation, slope, and human
population
density, the models allow Singleton and his colleagues to identify
wildlife crossing structures that increase highway safety.
The models
also help managers maintain healthy wildlife populations near crossings
like culverts and grass-covered bridges, and facilitate the rerouting
of animals—ranging from rodents and amphibians to wolverines and bears—across
roadways. Findings from this work are being used along Interstate 90
over Snoqualmie Pass in Washington state.
Contact him at psingleton@fs.fed.us
Tools and Software
--------------------------
Equations quantify nutritional quality of moose forage
In boreal, or far-north, ecosystems, moose are the dominant
plant-eating browsers. Where and what they consume has implications
for the entire landscape, and their own survival. For the first time,
land
managers and wildlife scientists around the world have a method to
predict the nutritional quality of wild, native moose forage. The equations,
based
on laboratory analyses of forage samples, can help to evaluate habitat
quality for moose anywhere in the world. Learn more
|
