Dataset Information

Effects of environmental and anthropogenic landscape features on mule deer harvest in Nebraska.

ABSTRACT: Understanding the habitat use of wildlife species is important for effective management. Nebraska has a variety of habitat types, with the majority being covered by rangeland and cropland. These habitat types likely influence the harvest of mule deer (MD; Odocoileus hemionus) in Nebraska, but their specific effects are unknown, and moreover, harvest may also be influenced by the accessibility of deer habitats for hunters. We modeled which environmental and anthropogenic landscape features influenced harvest densities. Spatial analysis in a Geographic Information System was used to determine the mean values of environmental and anthropogenic landscape features at the county level. We then used a generalized linear model to determine which of those factors influenced MD harvest from 2014-2016. We found that NDVI amplitude, hunter effort, road density, terrain roughness, and canopy cover influence MD harvest in Nebraska. According to our model, MD harvest densities are significantly greater areas with NDVI amplitude ?38, increasing hunter effort, road densities near 1,750 m/km2, increasing terrain roughness, and decreasing canopy cover. Understanding increased harvest densities of MD can be beneficial for wildlife managers, allowing for more efficient allocation of efforts and expenses by managers for population management.

SUBMITTER: O'Connor BJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6136395 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Effects of environmental and anthropogenic landscape features on mule deer harvest in Nebraska.

O'Connor Bryan J BJ Fryda Nicolas J NJ Ranglack Dustin H DH

PeerJ 20180910

Understanding the habitat use of wildlife species is important for effective management. Nebraska has a variety of habitat types, with the majority being covered by rangeland and cropland. These habitat types likely influence the harvest of mule deer <i>(</i>MD; <i>Odocoileus hemionus)</i> in Nebraska, but their specific effects are unknown, and moreover, harvest may also be influenced by the accessibility of deer habitats for hunters. We modeled which environmental and anthropogenic landscape f ...[more]

PMID: 30221086

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Project description:Wildlife population dynamics are modulated by abiotic and biotic factors, typically climate, resource availability, density-dependent effects, and predator-prey interactions. Understanding whether and how human-caused disturbances shape these ecological processes is helpful for the conservation and management of wildlife and their habitats within increasingly human-dominated landscapes. However, many jurisdictions lack either long-term longitudinal data on wildlife populations or measures of the interplay between human-mediated disturbance, climate, and predator density. Here, we use a 50-year time series (1962-2012) on mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) demographics, seasonal weather, predator density, and oil and gas development patterns from the North Dakota Badlands, USA, to investigate long-term effects of landscape-level disturbance on mule deer fawn fall recruitment, which has declined precipitously over the last number of decades. Mule deer fawn fall recruitment in this study represents the number of fawns per female (fawn:female ratio) that survive through the summer to October. We used this fawn recruitment index to evaluate the composite effects of interannual extreme weather conditions, energy development, and predator density. We found that density-dependent effects and harsh seasonal weather were the main drivers of fawn fall recruitment in the North Dakota Badlands. These effects were further shaped by the interaction between harsh seasonal weather and predator density (i.e., lower fawn fall recruitment when harsh weather was combined with higher predator density). Additionally, we found that fawn fall recruitment was modulated by interactions between seasonal weather and energy development (i.e., lower fawn fall recruitment when harsh weather was combined with higher density of active oil and gas wells). Interestingly, we found that the combined effect of predator density and energy development was not interactive but rather additive. Our analysis demonstrates how energy development may modulate fluctuations in mule deer fawn fall recruitment concurrent with biotic (density-dependency, habitat, predation, woody vegetation encroachment) and abiotic (harsh seasonal weather) drivers. Density-dependent patterns emerge, presumably due to limited quality habitat, being the primary factor influencing fall fawn recruitment in mule deer. Secondarily, stochastic weather events periodically cause dramatic declines in recruitment. And finally, the additive effects of human disturbance and predation can induce fluctuations in fawn fall recruitment. Here we make the case for using long-term datasets for setting long-term wildlife management goals that decision makers and the public can understand and support.

Project description:BackgroundMigration is an adaptive strategy that enables animals to enhance resource availability and reduce risk of predation at a broad geographic scale. Ungulate migrations generally occur along traditional routes, many of which have been disrupted by anthropogenic disturbances. Spring migration in ungulates is of particular importance for conservation planning, because it is closely coupled with timing of parturition. The degree to which oil and gas development affects migratory patterns, and whether ungulate migration is sufficiently plastic to compensate for such changes, warrants additional study to better understand this critical conservation issue.Methodology/principal findingsWe studied timing and synchrony of departure from winter range and arrival to summer range of female mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) in northwestern Colorado, USA, which has one of the largest natural-gas reserves currently under development in North America. We hypothesized that in addition to local weather, plant phenology, and individual life-history characteristics, patterns of spring migration would be modified by disturbances associated with natural-gas extraction. We captured 205 adult female mule deer, equipped them with GPS collars, and observed patterns of spring migration during 2008-2010.Conclusions/significanceTiming of spring migration was related to winter weather (particularly snow depth) and access to emerging vegetation, which varied among years, but was highly synchronous across study areas within years. Additionally, timing of migration was influenced by the collective effects of anthropogenic disturbance, rate of travel, distance traveled, and body condition of adult females. Rates of travel were more rapid over shorter migration distances in areas of high natural-gas development resulting in the delayed departure, but early arrival for females migrating in areas with high development compared with less-developed areas. Such shifts in behavior could have consequences for timing of arrival on birthing areas, especially where mule deer migrate over longer distances or for greater durations.

Project description:BackgroundConservation and management of migratory animals has gained attention in recent years, but the majority of research has focused on stereotypical 'migrant' and 'resident' behaviors, often failing to incorporate any atypical behaviors or characterize migratory behaviors beyond distance and timing of the migration. With migration threatened by anthropogenic development and climate change, it is crucial that we understand the full range of migratory behaviors. Our objective was to demonstrate and characterize the variation in migration strategies, including typical and atypical migratory behaviors for mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) in Utah, USA.MethodsBecause calculation of common metrics such as distance, timing, and use of stopovers during migration did not adequately describe the variation we observed in migratory behavior for this species-particularly when animals visited multiple (> 3) ranges for extended lengths of time-we developed additional methods and categories to describe observed variation in migratory behavior. We first categorized trajectories based on the number of discrete, separate ranges and range shifts between them. Then, we further characterized the variation in migration strategies by examining the timing, duration, and distance traveled within each of the categories. We also examined if and how frequently individual deer switched among categories from year to year.ResultsWe classified 1218 movement trajectories from 722 adult female mule deer, and found that 54.4% were dual-range migrants, who made one round-trip to one distinct range. Multi-range migrants (23.6%) made one round-trip during which they stayed at multiple discrete ranges. Commuters (1.0%) traveled to the same range multiple times, and poly migrants (1.5%) made multiple round-trips to different ranges. Gradual movers (2.5%) did not show a discrete range shift but moved gradually between ranges, whereas residents (12.6%) never left their home ranges, and dispersers (4.4%) left but never returned. Of the deer that we monitored for multiple years, 51.2% switched among categories.ConclusionWe conclude that the substantial number of atypical migratory strategies, as well as the number of deer that switched categories, underlines the importance of studying these less-stereotyped behaviors that may be exhibited by large proportions of populations. Acknowledging and investigating the full complexity and diversity in migratory strategies might uncover unknowns with respect to underlying factors and drivers of migration, and can help shape effective conservation strategies.

Dataset Information

Effects of environmental and anthropogenic landscape features on mule deer harvest in Nebraska.

Publications

Effects of environmental and anthropogenic landscape features on mule deer harvest in Nebraska.

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