Greater prairie-chickens (Tympanuchus cupido pinnatus) are reported to benefit from grasslands created through the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). Prairie-chicken population size increased noticeably in southeastern Nebraska after >15% of county-level landscapes were converted to CRP grasslands. But, the mechanisms behind the increase in population size are not well understood, and managers and policy makers could benefit from evidence of CRP's relative contribution to populations of prairie-chickens. Therefore, our objectives were to characterize the relations of vegetation structure and composition with prairie-chicken nest-site selection and nest survival rates at both the macrohabitat (within landscape of study site) and microhabitat (at the nest) level. We radio-marked female prairie-chickens at a study site with >15% of land enrolled in CRP in Johnson County in southeastern Nebraska. We monitored 90 nests during 2006–2007, 36 (40%) of which were successful. We compared nest sites' macro- and microhabitat characteristics with random points using discrete choice analyses, and we used logistic exposure analyses to assess the effect of habitat and other variables on nest survival. Prairie-chickens were 5.70 (95% CI: 2.60–12.48) times more likely to select cool-season CRP fields, and 5.05 (95% CI: 2.17–11.72) times more likely to select warm-season CRP fields for nesting relative to selecting rangeland. Prairie-chickens selected nest sites, relative to sites available in fields selected for nesting, with abundant grass cover and moderate levels of forb cover and standing litter. Females also selected sites at upper elevations. Nest survival was influenced by macrohabitat, microhabitat, and temporal variables; nest survival was greater in CRP fields and greatest for nests with abundant grass cover and forb cover and moderate levels of residual litter. Nest survival peaked, temporally, with nests initiated in late May. The size of the prairie-chicken population in southeastern Nebraska has increased since the landscape was modified under CRP, and the reproductive benefits that our study demonstrates could support such population-level responses. We would expect the population to continue to benefit from management that provides high quality, diverse grasslands. © The Wildlife Society, 2013

Deer population control is important in wildlife management, because overabundance of deer is a problem worldwide. For practical deer population control, deer population dynamics and the factors that influence them need to be evaluated in low-cost and time-efficient ways. However, in traditional methods of estimation, such as cohort analysis, large numbers of deer need to be caught for many years, and the ages of the deer must be determined. We estimated deer population dynamics by using a Bayesian state-space model with multiple deer abundance indices (seen deer per unit effort, pellet group count, and block count) and numbers of deer hunted and culled in Yamanashi Prefecture, central Japan. In the state process of our state-space model, latent deer abundance at year t in location m (D_t,m), with m being each cell of a grid mesh covering Yamanashi Prefecture, was assumed to decrease annually through hunting and culling, to increase with the population growth rate of each mesh (r_m; which was determined from the percentages of forest, evergreen forest, and artificial grassland), and to fluctuate stochastically. In the observation process, D_t,m was assumed to be correlated with the deer abundance indices and a Gaussian white noise in the deer abundance indices. The estimated D_t,m was correlated with each deer abundance index, but the correlation coefficient was the greatest for pellet group density. The percentage of hunted and culled deer needed to reach 30% to reduce the annual growth rate (D_t,m/D_t−1,m). Increasing the percentage of artificial grassland increased r_m. Our results showed that 1) deer abundance could be estimated by using only deer abundance indices in addition to population growth rate and the percentage of hunted and culled deer; and 2) preventing the intrusion of deer onto artificial grassland and intensive culling on artificial grassland were important to decrease deer abundance. © 2013 The Wildlife Society. © The Wildlife Society, 2013

DNA-based capture-mark-recapture techniques are commonly used to estimate American black bear (Ursus americanus) population abundance (N). Although the technique is well established, many questions remain regarding study design. In particular, relationships among N, capture probability of heterogeneity mixtures A and B (p_A and p_B, respectively, or , collectively), the proportion of each mixture (π), number of capture occasions (k), and probability of obtaining reliable estimates of N are not fully understood. We investigated these relationships using 1) an empirical dataset of DNA samples for which true N was unknown and 2) simulated datasets with known properties that represented a broader array of sampling conditions. For the empirical data analysis, we used the full closed population with heterogeneity data type in Program MARK to estimate N for a black bear population in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee. We systematically reduced the number of those samples used in the analysis to evaluate the effect that changes in capture probabilities may have on parameter estimates. Model-averaged N for females and males were 161 (95% CI = 114–272) and 100 (95% CI = 74–167), respectively (pooled N = 261, 95% CI = 192–419), and the average weekly was 0.09 for females and 0.12 for males. When we reduced the number of samples of the empirical data, support for heterogeneity models decreased. For the simulation analysis, we generated capture data with individual heterogeneity covering a range of sampling conditions commonly encountered in DNA-based capture-mark-recapture studies and examined the relationships between those conditions and accuracy (i.e., probability of obtaining an estimated N that is within 20% of true N), coverage (i.e., probability that 95% confidence interval includes true N), and precision (i.e., probability of obtaining a coefficient of variation ≤20%) of estimates using logistic regression. The capture probability for the larger of 2 mixture proportions of the population (i.e., p_A or p_B, depending on the value of π) was most important for predicting accuracy and precision, whereas capture probabilities of both mixture proportions (p_A and p_B) were important to explain variation in coverage. Based on sampling conditions similar to parameter estimates from the empirical dataset (p_A = 0.30, p_B = 0.05, N = 250, π = 0.15, and k = 10), predicted accuracy and precision were low (60% and 53%, respectively), whereas coverage was high (94%). Increasing p_B, the capture probability for the predominate but most difficult to capture proportion of the population, was most effective to improve accuracy under those conditions. However, manipulation of other parameters may be more effective under different conditions. In general, the probabilities of obtaining accurate and precise estimates were best when  ≥ 0.2. Our regression models can be used by managers to evaluate specific sampling scenarios and guide development of sampling frameworks or to assess reliability of DNA-based capture-mark-recapture studies. Published 2013. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

Among the many causes linked to amphibian declines, habitat loss and alteration remain the most significant. Lack of federal protection for isolated wetlands has resulted in loss of amphibian breeding habitat without subsequent mitigation. Additionally, wetlands built for mitigation often do not replicate lost natural wetlands in structure or ecological processes. The long-term role of constructed wetlands for amphibian conservation is poorly understood because monitoring is often lacking. Our objective was to compare amphibian communities of natural wetlands to 2 types of constructed wetlands in the Daniel Boone National Forest, Kentucky. We measured habitat variables including canopy closure, hydrology, upland coarse woody debris, aquatic vegetation, maximum water depth, and Ohio Wetland Rapid Assessment Score at each wetland and quantified species-specific amphibian capture per unit effort using dip-netting. Wood frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus) and marbled salamanders (Ambystoma opacum) were almost exclusively found in natural, ephemeral wetlands, whereas large frogs (L. clamitans, L. catesbeianus, L. palustris) were primarily found breeding in permanent, constructed wetlands. Permutational analysis of variance indicated significant differences in amphibian communities between constructed and natural wetland types. Redundancy analysis indicated that hydrology and canopy closure best explained the differences in community composition between natural and constructed wetlands. Regression analyses and subsequent model ranking showed that greater captures per unit effort for eastern newts (Notopthalmus viridescens) and green frogs (L. clamitans) were predicted by increasing wetland size and depth, respectively, whereas mole salamanders (Ambystoma sp.) were negatively associated with the amount of aquatic vegetation and positively associated with wetland depth. As amphibian conservation and management become increasingly important in light of recent population declines and habitat loss, the ability to construct wetlands that provide amphibian habitat and to monitor how amphibians respond will be crucial to preservation of species diversity. Our research underscores the need for monitoring constructed wetlands to assess ecological condition. We provide suggestions to land managers who aim to construct isolated wetlands for amphibians. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Monitoring of reintroductions is essential, but often requires significant resources. If data are available from previous reintroductions, they can be used as priors in a Bayesian framework, potentially reducing the amount of data needed from a new reintroduced population before reasonable projections can be made. We applied this approach to the reintroduction of North Island saddlebacks (Philesturnus rufusater) to Bushy Park, New Zealand, an 87-ha forest reserve within a fenced exclosure where exotic mammalian predators had been eradicated. We released 34 birds in June 2006, and conducted intensive monitoring of survival and fecundity until January 2010. We modeled the data in an integrated framework whereby we generated population projections concurrent with estimations of survival and fecundity parameters, meaning estimation of uncertainty was propagated into the projections. We compared projections from 1, 2, and 3 years of monitoring data, using either non-informative priors (i.e., inferences from Bushy Park only) or informative priors generated from 2 previous saddleback reintroductions where 5–8 years of data had been collected. The Bushy Park saddleback population grew rapidly over the monitoring period (approx. 80% per annum), and projections from 3 years of data with non-informative priors gave a median equilibrium breeding population of 255 with a 95% prediction interval of 122–1,238. Projections from 2 years of data gave a lesser mean equilibrium population of 93 (50–360). Projections from 1 year of data revealed uncertainty about the success of the reintroduction at this stage (8.4% of simulated populations declined), and equilibrium population size could not be projected without the density effect. Using informative priors eliminated the uncertainty about whether the population would grow, allowed equilibrium population size to be projected from 1 year of Bushy Park data, and made the projections from 2 years of data more consistent with those from the full 3-year dataset. We discuss the implications of monitoring requirements on decision making. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Although domestic cattle and mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) share bluebunch wheatgrass (Pseudoroegneria spicata) communities throughout western United States and Canada, no study has yet evaluated the effects of cattle grazing on the nutrient intake of mule deer and the nutritional carrying capacity in these semi-arid rangelands. We expected that spring cattle grazing would decrease plant biomass available to deer but increase the nutritional quality of forage by arresting the phenology of grasses, reducing the proportion of standing dead biomass of grasses and promoting forbs. Using 0.4-ha exclosures, we created 3 replicates of paired grazed and non-grazed treatments within 3 pastures ranging from 64 to 509 ha in bluebunch wheatgrass communities on dry-stony ecological sites in southeastern Washington, USA. After cattle had grazed 1 of each pair of 0.4-ha plots to 40% utilization from 10 April to 29 May 2009, we sampled the biomass and measured the digestible energy (DE; kJ/g) and digestible protein (g/100 g feed) of plants that spring and fall. Using hand-raised, tractable mule deer, bite count methods, and behavioral observations, we measured daily DE and digestible protein intake within each plot. When compared to non-grazed plots, grazed plots had half the total and 3 times less live plant biomass in spring, and 25% less biomass in fall, whereas DE content of bluebunch wheatgrass and mule deer diets did not differ between grazing treatments. However, daily DE intake of deer was 39% less in spring and 13% less in fall in grazed than non-grazed plots. Nutritional carrying capacity (deer days/ha) did not vary between grazing treatments except for 1 pasture in fall, indicating that spring grazing by cattle in bluebunch wheatgrass communities did not improve the nutritional quality of deer diets enough to offset the overall loss of live forage biomass. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Translocation of mountain quail (Oreortyx pictus) to restore viable populations to their former range has become a common practice. Because differences in post-release vital rates between animals from multiple source populations has not been well studied, wildlife and land managers may arbitrarily choose the source population or base the source population on immediate availability when planning translocation projects. Similarly, an understanding of the optimal proportion of individuals from different age and sex classes for translocation would benefit translocation planning. During 2006 and 2007, we captured and translocated 125 mountain quail from 2 ecologically distinct areas: 38 from southern California and 87 from southwestern Oregon. We released mountain quail in the Bennett Hills of south-central Idaho. We radio-marked and monitored a subsample of 58 quail and used them for a 2-part survival analysis. Cumulative survival probability was 0.23 ± 0.05 (SE) at 150 days post-release. We first examined an a priori hypothesis (model) that survival varied between the 2 distinct source populations. We found that source population did not explain variation in survival. This result suggests that wildlife managers have flexibility in selecting source populations for mountain quail translocation efforts. In a post hoc examination, we pooled the quail across source populations and evaluated differences in survival probabilities between sex and age classes. The most parsimonious model indicated that adult male survival was substantially less than survival rates of other mountain quail age and sex classes (i.e., interaction between sex and age). This result suggests that translocation success could benefit by translocating yearling males rather than adult males, perhaps because adult male breeding behavior results in vulnerability to predators. Published 2013. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

We estimated fall (10 Sep–8 Nov) survival rates, cause-specific mortality rates, and determined the magnitude and sources of mortality of 1,035 radio-marked American woodcock (Scolopax minor) in Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin during 2001–2004. In all 3 states, we radio-marked woodcock on paired study areas; 1 of which was open to hunting and expected to receive moderate to high hunter use and the other of which was either closed to hunting (Michigan and Minnesota) or was relatively inaccessible to hunters (Wisconsin). We used Program MARK to estimate fall survival rates, to evaluate a set of candidate models to examine the effects of hunting and several covariates (sex, age, year, state) on survival, and to examine the relationship between survival rates and kill rates due to hunting. Hunting accounted for 70% of the 86 woodcock deaths in the hunted areas, followed by predation (20%) and various other sources of mortality (10%). Woodcock deaths that occurred in the non-hunted and lightly hunted areas (n = 50) were caused by predators (46%), hunting (32%), and various other sources (22%). Based on small-sample corrected Akaike's Information Criterion values, variation in fall survival of woodcock was best explained by treatment (i.e., hunted vs. non-hunted), year, and period (pre-hunting season intervals vs. hunting season intervals). The average fall survival estimate from our best model for woodcock in the non-hunted areas (0.893, 95% CI = 0.864–0.923) was greater than the average for the hunted areas (0.820, 95% CI = 0.786–0.854 [this estimate includes data from the lightly hunted area in Wisconsin]), and the average treatment effect (i.e., greater survival rates in non-hunted areas) was 0.074 (95% CI = 0.018–0.129). The kill rate due to hunting was 0.120 (95% CI = 0.090–0.151) when data were pooled among states and years. We detected a negative relationship between hunting kill rates and survival in our hunted areas, which suggests that hunting mortality was at least partially additive during fall. Our results illustrate the influence of hunting relative to other sources of mortality in Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, and indicate that managers may be able to influence fall survival rates by manipulating hunting regulations or access on public land. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Identifying vegetation types that result in the highest quality habitat will help direct management and conservation activities designed to recover endangered species. Shrubland is considered to result in high quality habitat for black-capped vireos (Vireo atricapilla), whereas deciduous and oak-juniper woodlands are considered to result in marginal habitat (i.e., lower quality). We investigated differences in nest and fledgling survival among shrubland and woodland vegetation types. We monitored 302 black-capped vireo nests in 259 territories from 2008 to 2010 in Kerr County, Texas and collected vegetation data at each nest. We also resighted 350 fledglings to estimate individual survival. Nest survival and fecundity did not differ statistically among vegetation types. Although nest-site characteristics differed among vegetation types, none affected nest survival. Nests that were parasitized were less likely to survive and parasitism was the only variable to affect survival of those measured. Parasitism frequency was nearly twice as great in shrubland (22%) than in either woodland type (12% in each) and varied by year (31% in 2008 to 0% in 2010). Vegetation type and proximity of the nest to oak-juniper woodland did not affect fledgling survival. Our results suggest woodlands may result in good quality habitat in areas with large populations of black-capped vireos. Recognizing woodlands as non-typical, yet good quality, habitat will allow managers to incorporate these vegetation types into management plans and make recommendations for conservation incentive programs directed at private landowners. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Matrix model population viability analyses (PVAs) are commonly used to assess extinction risk, but their accuracy is rarely tested, especially using long-term data sets. Because the few studies that have assessed matrix models indicate that PVAs can have limited predictive power and are sensitive to model choice and assumptions, model choice can affect management decisions. We used 12 years of demographic data (1997–2009) from an introduction of a federally listed, threatened dune thistle, Cirsium pitcheri, to parameterize and test the accuracy of 5 matrix models. Models differed in their method of incorporating environmental stochasticity (matrix selection vs. element selection) as well as their correlation structure of vital rates. We compared 5-year model projections to observed population growth rate, size, and persistence in 2009. We found that all models tended to over-project population growth, size, and stage distributions, but median projections were rarely significantly different from observed values. Projected population growth simulated from the matrix selection model differed significantly from observed, likely because of greater precision compared to large variances in projections produced by element selection models. Incorporating within-year correlations or eliminating correlation structure among vital rates were modeling strategies that correctly predicted the probability of persistence of the restored population. Element selection models incorporating between-year correlations consistently underestimated persistence. Since precision was low for all models, projections should be interpreted qualitatively rather than quantitatively. Differences in PVA model projections can affect management and restoration decisions when estimating reintroduction success and determining the required number of individuals to transplant to obtain a viable population. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Many wildlife species living in sagebrush-steppe habitats of the Intermountain West of the United States have experienced population declines. Effective management of such species, especially restoration efforts, is contingent on understanding relationships between habitat characteristics and population densities of the target species. Unfortunately, even such basic information is often lacking. The goal of this 2-year study was to determine the relationship between southern Idaho ground squirrel (Urocitellus endemicus) population densities and habitat variables: soils (texture), topography (slope, aspect), and vegetation (canopy cover, species diversity). We measured population density indirectly through burrow entrance counts and categorized them into high-burrow and low-burrow densities. We used logistic regression and Akaike's Information Criterion to identify a best subset of models. We employed model averaging and calculated odds ratios for averaged parameter estimates found in the best models. A high density of burrows was associated with greater percentages of silt; east-facing aspects; greater plant species diversity; and greater cover of perennial grasses, perennial grasses and forbs, and native perennial forbs. Low burrow density was associated with greater percentages of sand; south-facing aspects; greater cover of exotic annuals; and lesser plant species diversity. Management of southern Idaho ground squirrel habitat should focus on protecting areas with existing native vegetation and restoring native, perennial vegetation in areas that are infested with exotic annuals, especially in areas possessing suitable soil types and topographic features. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

The effect of human disturbance on wildlife is of increasing interest because of the growing use of wildlands by humans for recreation. Few studies have documented the effect of human disturbance on behavior and physiology simultaneously, with no studies existing for any turtle species. Turtles are one of the most endangered taxonomic groups and many are of conservation concern, including the yellow-blotched sawback (Graptemys flavimaculata), a freshwater turtle of the Pascagoula River system, Mississippi, USA. We studied G. flavimaculata individual- and population-level basking behavior, while also documenting the effects of human disturbance on basking behavior at recreationally disturbed and control sites. We also assessed the physiological response of turtles to human disturbance by measuring heterophil/lymphocyte levels (H:L; higher levels indicate increased stress) and shell condition of captured turtles at the 2 sites. At the individual level, disturbed turtles at the recreationally disturbed site basked for significantly shorter durations than undisturbed turtles at the same site and undisturbed turtles at the control site; disturbed turtles at the control site basked longer than all groups possibly because the few instances of disturbances all occurred during a time of year when basking durations were longest. At the population level, we detected significantly lesser basking percentages at the recreationally disturbed site relative to the control site, possibly because of natural differences among the sites (i.e., a more stable thermal environment) or because of the higher level of human disturbance. At the recreationally disturbed site, more disturbances occurred on weekend and weekend bordering days relative to weekdays, and larger and slower boats disturbed significantly greater percentages of basking turtles compared to smaller and faster watercraft. Further, turtles from the disturbed site had significantly higher H:L levels relative to the undisturbed site, and an index of shell condition was significantly poorer at the disturbed site. Boating records indicate that the impact of recreational boating at the disturbed site likely has grown over the last 22 years because of an increase in the number and size of boats using the river; this trend will likely continue unless restrictions are enacted by managers and/or state entities to limit the number and size of boats that access the river. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Agriculture and wildlife conservation programs have converted vast amounts of cropland into grasslands planted with exotic species. Understanding how landscape context influences avian use of native and planted grasslands is essential for developing effective conservation strategies in agricultural landscapes. Our primary objective was to determine the extent to which the amount and type of grassland in the surrounding landscape influences the abundance of grassland songbird species on native and planted grassland parcels in southern Saskatchewan and Alberta, Canada. Bird abundance was more strongly influenced by the amount and type of grassland within 400 m of breeding parcels than at larger spatial scales. Grassland specialists responded similarly to habitat and landscape type over both years and provinces. Sprague's pipit (Anthus spragueii) and Baird's sparrow (Ammodramus bairdii) were most common in native grassland parcels surrounded by native grassland and were more likely to occur in planted grasslands surrounded by native grassland. Bobolinks (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) were most common in planted grassland parcels, but their abundance increased with the amount of native grassland surrounding these parcels. Our findings indicate that the suitability of planted grasslands for these species is influenced by their proximity to native grassland. Grassland generalists showed mixed responses to habitat and landscape type over the 2 years (Le Conte's sparrow [Ammodramus leconteii]) and between provinces (Savannah sparrow [Passerculus sandwichensis] and western meadowlark [Sturnella neglecta]). Management to benefit grassland specialists should therefore consider the landscape context when seeding cultivated land to non-native grassland and conserve extant native grassland. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Habitat loss has negatively affected many species of upland-nesting waterfowl. Very few areas contain pristine nesting habitat in Florida because of conversion to agriculture and urban development. Although some species have acclimated to nesting in an altered landscape, little is known about the nesting ecology of Florida mottled ducks (Anas fulvigula fulvigula) that use altered habitats. We located and monitored 77 nests of radio-marked Florida mottled ducks in the Upper St. Johns River Basin (1999–2002) and in south Florida (2009–2011) and tested the effects of nest vegetation characteristics, human disturbance, and temporal variables on estimates of daily nest survival. We also calculated the percent of females that nested each year as a measure of breeding propensity. Nest age at discovery had a positive relationship with daily nest survival. Daily nest survival rates did not vary within or among years and were unaffected by density and height of vegetation at the nest and human disturbance parameters we measured. Breeding propensity ranged from 25% to 56%. Breeding propensities were less than those of other duck species, but our nest success estimate of 28% was greater than most estimates for ducks and is not likely to limit population growth of Florida mottled ducks. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Understanding the use of edges by threatened species is important for conservation and management. Whereas the effects of anthropogenic edges on threatened species have been studied, the effects of natural edges are unknown. We studied grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) habitat selection in relation to different landscape-level measures of edge, both natural and anthropogenic. We used a database of global positioning system telemetry data collected from 26 grizzly bears from 2005 to 2009 in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in west-central Alberta, Canada. We quantified grizzly bear locations relative to natural edges extracted from satellite-derived land cover data and anthropogenic edges from existing vector datasets (roads, pipelines, and forest harvests). To compare edge distance from observed telemetry points statistically, we generated a distribution of expected points through a conditional randomization of an existing resource selection function describing grizzly bear habitat use without respect to edges. We also measured the density of edges within home ranges and compared this to the overall population to create an edge selection ratio. In general, females selected anthropogenic edges, whereas males selected natural edges. Both sexes selected the natural transition (edge) of shrub to conifer. Females had a greater selection ratio for road edges than males in all seasons, and males had a greater selection ratio for roads in the fall than in other seasons. Only females selected for pipeline edges. Our results indicated that edge habitat was selected by both males and females, mostly in the fall. Given human access to bear habitat is often facilitated by anthropogenic edges (e.g., roads), improved management of these features may minimize human conflicts. In particular, we highlight the importance of the natural transition of shrub to conifer to grizzly bears. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Decision making in guidance of reintroduction efforts is made challenging by the substantial scientific uncertainty typically involved. However, a less recognized challenge is that the management objectives are often numerous and complex. Decision makers managing reintroduction efforts are often concerned with more than just how to maximize the probability of reintroduction success from a population perspective. Decision makers are also weighing other concerns such as budget limitations, public support and/or opposition, impacts on the ecosystem, and the need to consider not just a single reintroduction effort, but conservation of the entire species. Multiple objective decision analysis is a powerful tool for formal analysis of such complex decisions. We demonstrate the use of multiple objective decision analysis in the case of the Florida non-migratory whooping crane reintroduction effort. In this case, the State of Florida was considering whether to resume releases of captive-reared crane chicks into the non-migratory whooping crane population in that state. Management objectives under consideration included maximizing the probability of successful population establishment, minimizing costs, maximizing public relations benefits, maximizing the number of birds available for alternative reintroduction efforts, and maximizing learning about the demographic patterns of reintroduced whooping cranes. The State of Florida engaged in a collaborative process with their management partners, first, to evaluate and characterize important uncertainties about system behavior, and next, to formally evaluate the tradeoffs between objectives using the Simple Multi-Attribute Rating Technique (SMART). The recommendation resulting from this process, to continue releases of cranes at a moderate intensity, was adopted by the State of Florida in late 2008. Although continued releases did not receive support from the International Whooping Crane Recovery Team, this approach does provide a template for the formal, transparent consideration of multiple, potentially competing, objectives in reintroduction decision making. © 2012 The Wildlife Society.

Sedinger and Herzog (2012) evaluated the evidence for the impact harvest mortality may have on North American duck populations. While doing that, they questioned our review (Pöysä et al. 2004) and conclusion that harvest mortality in North American mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) may have shifted from compensatory to additive over the period from the 1960s to the 1980s. In this reply, we correct Sedinger and Herzog's misrepresentations of our 2004 paper and argue that our interpretations of the results published at that time have not been invalidated. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Determining the mechanisms responsible for the success of invasive species is critical for developing effective management strategies. Artificially draining managed wetlands to maintain natural ephemeral conditions is a common practice in the Pacific Northwest and is assumed to kill invasive American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) larvae, which typically overwinter in permanent wetlands before metamorphosis. Bullfrogs in the Willamette Valley, Oregon, however, have invaded ephemeral wetland sites with confirmed metamorphosis within 4 months after hatching at 1 site. We hypothesized that plasticity in growth and development rates in response to hydroperiod facilitated bullfrog invasion in Oregon. We tested this hypothesis by quantifying larval bullfrog development and growth in response to 3 hydroperiod conditions in a mesocosm setting. We tested clutches collected from both ephemeral (n = 3) and permanent (n = 3) wetlands. We found no differences in development or growth due to hydroperiod treatments (body length, P = 0.48; mass, P = 0.27), but we found differences in growth among clutches (P ≤ 0.001). These differences likely represent natural variation in growth rates because clutches collected from the same wetland type did not respond with similar growth and geographic barriers between collection sites did not account for the differences. These results indicate a lack of plasticity to hydroperiod and suggest that artificial hydroperiod manipulation in the Pacific Northwest will not induce rapid metamorphosis by invasive bullfrog larvae, although some genotypes may be capable of rapid growth and metamorphosis. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Predator management regularly improves waterfowl nesting success, often beyond levels believed necessary for population maintenance. If recruitment, survival of breeding females, and/or breeding site fidelity is increased on predator-reduced sites, then local breeding populations may increase in subsequent years. During 2005–2008, we annually conducted breeding pair surveys on >600 wetlands at 6 township-sized (93.2 km²) trapped sites and 4 non-trapped sites for the 5 most common upland nesting ducks in eastern North Dakota, USA. For each species, we developed a series of competing regression models that related breeding pair abundance to wetland size, predator management, and upland habitats adjacent to sampled wetlands. In contrast to previous studies, we found limited and equivocal evidence that breeding populations increased following predator management. We discuss multiple potential explanations for this lack of effect and suggest that managers should not assume that increased production as a product of elevated nest success will be compounded over years. © The Wildlife Society, 2013

The northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) is one of the most intensively studied raptors in the world; however, little is known about the impacts of wildfire on the subspecies and how they use recently burned areas. Three large-scale wildfires in southwest Oregon provided an opportunity to investigate the short-term impacts of wildfire and salvage logging on site occupancy of spotted owls. We used Program MARK to develop single-species, multiple-season models of site occupancy using data collected during demographic surveys of spotted owl territories. In our first analysis, we compared occupancy dynamics of spotted owl nesting territories before (1992–2002) and after the Timbered Rock burn (2003–2006) to a reference area in the south Cascade Mountains that was not affected recently by wildfire. We found that the South Cascades had greater colonization probabilities than Timbered Rock before and after wildfire (, 95% CI = 0.60–2.03), and colonization probabilities declined over time at both areas (, 95% CI = −0.12 to 0.00). Extinction probabilities were greater at South Cascades than at Timbered Rock prior to the burn (, 95% CI = 0.23–2.62); however, Timbered Rock had greater extinction probabilities following wildfire (, 95% CI = 0.29–2.62). The Timbered Rock and South Cascades study areas had similar patterns in site occupancy prior to the Timbered Rock burn (1992–2001). Furthermore, Timbered Rock had a 64% reduction in site occupancy following wildfire (2003–2006) in contrast to a 25% reduction in site occupancy at South Cascades during the same time period. This suggested that the combined effects of habitat disturbances due to wildfire and subsequent salvage logging on private lands negatively affected site occupancy by spotted owls. In our second analysis, we investigated the relationship between wildfire, salvage logging, and occupancy of spotted owl territories at the Biscuit, Quartz, and Timbered Rock burns from 2003 to 2006. Extinction probabilities increased as the combined area of early seral forests, high severity burn, and salvage logging increased within the core nesting areas (, 95% CI = 0.10–3.66). We were unable to identify any relationships between initial occupancy or colonization probabilities and the habitat covariates that we considered in our analysis where the β coefficient did not overlap zero. We concluded that site occupancy of spotted owl nesting territories declined in the short-term following wildfire, and habitat modification and loss due to past timber harvest, high severity fire, and salvage logging jointly contributed to declines in site occupancy. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Marine and coastal tourism has rapidly expanded worldwide in the past 2 decades, often occurring in once secluded habitats. In Alaska, tourism near tidewater glaciers has attracted millions of visitors and increased the presence of ships, tour vessels, and coastal development. Although sustainable tourism, resulting from balanced effects on wildlife and client satisfaction, is a goal of most tourism operators, it is not always achieved. Voluntary compliance with viewing guidelines and codes of conduct have been encouraged, but few assessments have the longitudinal scope to evaluate long-term changes in impacts on wildlife and the ability of vessel operators and kayak guides to sustain lower impact operating practices over time. This study assessed vessel and kayak visitation and resulting impacts on harbor seals in the Kenai Fjords National Park, southcentral Alaska. We obtained observations from 2002 to 2011, using remotely controlled video cameras located near Aialik and Pedersen Glaciers in the Kenai Fjords National Park. Overall, disturbance was associated with 5.1% of vessel sightings, 28% of vessel interactions (vessel observed within approx. 300 m of seals), 11.5% of kayak sightings, and 61% of kayak interactions. Results demonstrated that voluntary changes in operations significantly reduced vessel and kayak disturbance of seals by 60–80%. Even with prior establishment of operating guidelines, tour vessel captains were able to further reduce their effect on wildlife with more careful operations. Rapid growth of guided kayak excursions that occurred during this study caused greater disturbance to seals than motorized vessels but guide trainings helped reduce disturbances. Diminished impacts of motor vessels and kayakers persisted across years although effects of kayaks were less consistent than motor vessels, which reflected greater variability in inter-annual spatial use patterns by kayakers. Long-term monitoring, including assessments of wildlife responses to vessel and kayak operations, combined with 2-way communication with vessel operators and guides, enhanced the effectiveness of mitigation and facilitated adaptive adjustments to mitigation protocols over time. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Postbreeding survival of waterfowl is rarely quantified, despite potential for constraints during this stage of the annual cycle that may subsequently affect population dynamics. We estimated survival of radio-marked adult male Barrow's goldeneyes (Bucephala islandica) during remigial molt and fall staging at Cardinal and Leddy Lakes in the Boreal Transition Zone of northwestern Alberta, Canada. Daily survival rate (DSR) was high during remigial molt (DSR = 0.9987, 95% CI: 0.9967–1.0000), corresponding to a 39-day period survival rate (PSR) of 0.95 (95% CI: 0.88–1.00). During fall staging, DSR was markedly lower (DSR = 0.9938, 95% CI: 0.9898–0.9978), corresponding to a PSR of 0.68 (95% CI: 0.53–0.87) over the 62-day period between the end of remigial molt and fall migration. Half of fall staging mortalities observed on Cardinal Lake were directly attributed to hunting. We conclude that remigial molt is a period with high survival in the annual cycle of Barrow's goldeneyes at our study sites. However, in light of low fall staging survival, Barrow's goldeneye harvest management strategies should be carefully evaluated with intent to reduce risk of localized high mortality at significant staging sites in western Canada. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Little information exists on resource selection by foraging Indiana bats (Myotis sodalis) during the maternity season. Existing studies are based on modest sample sizes because of the rarity of this endangered species and the difficulty of radio-tracking bats. Our objectives were to determine resource selection by foraging Indiana bats during the maternity season and to compare resource use between pregnant and lactating individuals. We used an information theoretic approach with discrete choice modeling based on telemetry data to evaluate our hypotheses that land cover, percent canopy cover, distance to water, and prescribed fire affected the relative probability a point was used by a foraging Indiana bat. We fit models for individual bats and a population-level model based on all individuals with a random factor to account for differences in sample size among individuals. We radio-tracked 29 individuals and found variation in resource selection among individuals. However, among individuals with the same supported covariates, the magnitude and direction of the covariates were similar. Eighteen bats selected areas with greater canopy closure and 5 of 6 bats that had areas burned by low-intensity prescribed fire in their home range selected burned areas. Resource selection was related to land cover for 13 individuals; they selected forest and shrubland over agricultural land, which composed >50% of the landscape within 10 km. We found no support for our hypothesis that resource selection was related to individual reproductive condition or Julian date in our population-level model indicating habitat selection was not determined by reproductive status or date within the maternity season. Land use or forest management that greatly reduces canopy cover may have a negative impact on Indiana bat use. Maintaining forest cover in agricultural landscapes is likely critical to persistence of maternity colonies in these landscapes. Sites managed with low severity prescribed fire may be selected by some individuals because of reduced understory vegetation. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

We coordinated a large-scale evaluation of northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) population response to establishment of 9-m to 37-m linear patches (buffers) of native herbaceous vegetation along row-crop field margins as part of the Conservation Reserve Program practice Habitat Buffers for Upland Birds (CP33). We compared northern bobwhite covey densities on 1,088 paired row-crop fields with and without native herbaceous buffers in 13 states during autumn, 2006–2008. We used a 2-stage random effects modeling approach that incorporates the effective area as an offset in generalized linear mixed models to assess regional relationships among autumn bobwhite covey densities and covariates of field type (i.e., fields with vs. without native herbaceous buffers), ecological region, year, survey week, and contracted vegetative cover (i.e., planting native grasses and forbs vs. establishing through natural regeneration). Covey density was correlated with year and interaction effects of field type and ecological region. The year effect suggested annual variation in covey densities, whereas the field type by ecological region interaction suggested covey response to buffers was dependent on spatial location, likely reflecting differences in buffer establishment, succession, and characteristics of the surrounding landscape among regions. Mean fitted covey density on fields across all survey sites was 0.047 (±0.008 bootstrap standard error [BSE]) and 0.031 coveys/ha (±0.003 BSE) on row-crop fields with and without herbaceous buffers, respectively. Covey density was greater on fields with buffers relative to matched, comparison fields without buffers in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley (241%; P < 0.001) and both the eastern (123%; P < 0.001) and western (60%; P = 0.01) portions of the Southeastern Coastal Plain region. Covey density was an order of magnitude greater in the central Texas region compared to other regions, but exhibited a small response to native herbaceous buffers, as did density of coveys in the Eastern Tallgrass Prairie and Central Hardwoods regions. Disproportionate response to buffers in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley and Southeastern Coastal Plain suggests native herbaceous habitats might be limiting during autumn in these regions, whereas lack of response in the Eastern Tallgrass Prairie, Central Hardwoods, and central Texas regions suggests that herbaceous habitat either was not limiting or buffers failed to provide adequate requirements for bobwhites during autumn. Selection of other habitats to meet security and thermoregulatory needs might have resulted in lack of response in these regions. Native herbaceous cover provided by buffers can provide critical habitat in row-crop agricultural systems in some regions, and can contribute to regional population recovery objectives of the Northern Bobwhite Conservation Initiative (NBCI). However, range-wide NBCI recovery objectives will best be met through multiple conservation practices in row-crop agricultural systems. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Hyper-herbivory following predator removal is a global issue. Across North America and Europe, increasing deer numbers are affecting biodiversity and human epidemiology, but effectiveness of deer management in heterogeneous landscapes remains poorly understood. In forest habitats in Europe, deer numbers are rarely assessed and management is mainly based on impacts. Even where managed areas achieve stable or improving impact levels, the extent to which they act as sinks or persist as sources exporting deer to the wider landscape remains unknown. We present a framework to quantify effectiveness of deer management at the landscape scale. Applied across 234 km² of Eastern England, we assessed management of invasive Reeve's muntjac (Muntiacus reevesi) and native roe (Capreolus capreolus), measuring deer density (using thermal imaging distance transects 780 km/year), fertility, neonatal survival, and culling to quantify source-sink dynamics over 2008–2010. Despite management that removed 23–40% of the annual population, 1,287 (95% CI: 289–2,680) muntjac and 585 (454–1,533) roe deer dispersed annually into the wider landscape, consistent with their ongoing range expansion. For roe deer, culled individuals comprised fewer young deer than predicted by a Leslie matrix model assuming a closed population, consistent with age-dependent emigration. In this landscape, for roe and muntjac, an annual cull of at least 60% and 53%, respectively, is required to offset annual production. Failure to quantify deer numbers and productivity has allowed high density populations to persist as regional sources contributing to range expansion, despite deliberative management programs, and without recognition by managers who considered numbers and impacts to be stable. Reversing an unfavorable condition of woodland biodiversity requires appropriate culls across large contiguous areas, supported by knowledge of deer numbers and fertility. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

We employed a chronosequence approach to evaluate patterns of bird abundance in relation to post-fire vegetation recovery in mountain big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata vaseyana). We estimated population density for 12 species of birds within the perimeters of 4 fires that had undergone 8–20 years of vegetation recovery and on adjacent unburned areas in the northwestern Great Basin, USA. Six species showed negative responses to fire persisting up to 20 years. Two species showed positive responses with effects persisting for <20 years. Understory vegetation was similar between burned and unburned areas irrespective of recovery time, and shrub canopy cover was similar between burned and unburned sites after 20 years of recovery. Persistent reductions in bird densities lead us to conclude that shrub canopy cover alone is not a sufficient metric for predicting recovery of songbird abundances following disturbance in mountain big sagebrush. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Effects of habitat loss and fragmentation on the behavior of individual organisms may have direct consequences on population viability in altered forest ecosystems. The American marten (Martes americana) is a forest specialist considered as one of the most sensitive species to human-induced disturbances. As some studies have shown that martens cannot tolerate >30–40% clear-cuts within their home range, we investigated marten space use (home range size and overlap) and habitat selection in landscapes fragmented by 2 different patterns of timber harvesting in the black spruce boreal forest: dispersed-cut landscapes (10–80 ha cut-blocks) and clustered-cut landscapes (50–200 ha cut-blocks). We installed radio-collars on female martens and determined 20 winter home ranges (100% minimum convex polygons and 60–90% kernels) in dispersed-cut (n = 8) and clustered-cut (n = 12) landscapes. Home range size was not related to the proportion of clear-cuts (i.e., habitat loss), but rather to the proportion of mixedwood stands 70–120 years old. However, female body condition was correlated to habitat condition inside their home ranges (i.e., amount of residual forest and recent clear-cuts). At the home range scale, we determined that mixedwood forests were also among the most used forest stands and the least used were recent clear-cuts and forested bogs, using resource selection functions. At the landscape scale, home ranges included more mixedwood forests than random polygons and marten high activity zones were composed of more residual forest and less human-induced disturbances (clear-cuts, edges, and roads). These results suggest that mixedwood forests, which occupy approximately 10% of the study area, play a critical role for martens in this conifer-dominated boreal landscape. We recommend permanent retention or special management considerations for these isolated stands, as harvesting mixedwood often leads to forest composition conversion that would reduce the availability of this highly used habitat. © The Wildlife Society, 2013

The adaptation of translocated organisms to a new environment in the first years after their release is crucial in translocation programs because it may affect survival and reproductive success. Therefore, identifying the factors determining resource selection by the relocated animals is essential to improve the planning and the outcome of such programs. Using data collected in 2006–2009 in the framework of a restocking program, we studied the temporal variation of habitat selection in 14 translocated Alpine ibex (Capra ibex) during the year of their release and the following 3 years. We hypothesized a progressive adaptation of the translocated individuals, highlighted by a gradual decrease in the dissimilarities between translocated and resident individuals in ecological characteristics and social behavior. We tested the differences in habitat selection and home range size between the translocated and resident individuals and compared the spatial overlap between the groups. As expected, the dissimilarities decreased annually. The translocated and resident ibex almost immediately selected the same habitat resources, but the translocated individuals required 3 years to become fully socially assimilated. Our results indicated that habitat selection by gregarious species in a new environment is primarily driven by specific ecological requirements and that sociality plays a significant role. The translocated individuals tended to colonize areas already occupied by residents, either to fulfill social requirements and/or because the location of resident individuals may indicate high-quality habitat. This pattern of behavior must be considered in the planning of translocation programs because habitat selection can affect the outcomes of the programs. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

An abundant supply of cavity-bearing trees is important for maintaining wildlife communities in harvested forests. During harvesting, suitable trees and cavities are directly removed, and the longevity of cavities in retained trees may be reduced by increased exposure to wind and other disturbance factors. We examined patterns of cavity survival in retained trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides) trees in harvested stands compared with those in unharvested mature stands by monitoring the persistence of individual cavities. We followed 930 cavities in 3 harvest treatments for up to 17 years in pre-cut and uncut forest, and up to 13 years post-harvest (reserve patches and dispersed retention), in temperate-mixed forests of interior British Columbia, Canada. Average annual cavity loss rates were 5.6% in pre-cut and uncut forest, 7.2% for cavities in trees retained in reserves, and 8.1% for cavities in retained trees dispersed throughout cuts. Correspondingly, median cavity longevity was 15 years for cavities in pre-cut and uncut forest, 10 years for cavities retained in reserves, and 9 years for those in dispersed retention. Risk of loss increased most for cavities in living trees (factor of 2.17), but we found no detectable difference for cavities in recently dead trees and trees with advanced decay. We suggest retention of a range of aspen size and decay classes to allow for future cavity-tree recruitment in harvested stands. Inclusion of wildlife reserves as part of an overall forest management plan will also help to mitigate the effects of windthrow and maintain long-lived cavity resources required by a large portion of forest wildlife. © 2013 The Wildlife Society

The southeast Beaufort Sea is a critical spring staging area for common and king eiders (Somateria mollissima v-nigrum, S. spectabilis), and is for many the final stop before they reach their breeding grounds throughout the western Canadian Arctic. The region also has significant oil and gas potential, and the recent approval of a pipeline through the Mackenzie Valley may make development of these resources economically viable. We used satellite telemetry to determine the distribution and habitat use of eiders staging in the southeast Beaufort Sea in spring, and the overlap of eiders with oil and gas exploration. From 2004 to 2009, we monitored 51 eiders equipped with platform terminal transmitters (PTTs) throughout spring migration (May–June). We compared the marine habitats used by each species, and evaluated habitat preferences using resource selection functions. The location and extent of the flaw lead (open water along the interface between mobile pack ice and stationary landfast ice) at the time when eiders were staging varied among years, but both species showed a strong preference for use of flaw lead habitats. This preference was stronger for common eiders than for king eiders, which also used pack ice extensively. Common eiders generally occurred near the landfast ice edge, whereas king eiders were just as often nearer to the pack ice edge of the flaw lead. Average water depth (±SE) for common eiders was 22 ± 2 m compared to 30 ± 1 m for king eiders. Kernel density estimators showed that eiders generally occurred in lower densities in areas of otherwise suitable habitat off the Mackenzie River delta. We suggest that this is a result of the highly turbid water discharged by the Mackenzie River, which limits visibility. Oil and gas exploration overlapped significantly with the areas used by eiders. The high density of birds using the restricted and ice-rich flaw lead habitats indicates that an accidental spill in the region could be catastrophic for Canada's western Arctic eider populations. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Ecological relationships of animals and their environments are known to vary spatially and temporally across scales. However, common approaches for evaluating resource selection by animals assume that the processes of habitat selection are stationary across space. The assumption that habitat selection is spatially homogeneous may lead to biased inference and ineffective management. We present the first application of geographically weighted logistic regression to habitat selection by a wildlife species. As a case study, we examined nest site selection by greater prairie-chickens at 3 sites with different ecological conditions in Kansas to assess whether the relative importance of habitat features varied across space. We found that 1) nest sites were associated with habitat conditions at multiple spatial scales, 2) habitat associations across spatial scales were correlated, and 3) the influence of habitat conditions on nest site selection was spatially explicit. Post hoc analyses revealed that much of the spatial variability in habitat selection processes was explained at a regional scale. Moreover, habitat features at local spatial scales were more strongly associated with nest site selection in unfragmented grasslands managed intensively for cattle production than they were in fragmented grasslands within a matrix of farmland. Female prairie-chickens exhibited spatial variability in nest site selection at multiple spatial scales, suggesting plasticity in habitat selection behavior. Our results highlight the importance of accounting for spatial heterogeneity when evaluating the ecological effects of habitat components. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Survival of greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) has been well described in large populations across the species range. Very little published information exists, however, on survival rates of translocated sage-grouse or grouse from a long-term (>10 yr) study. Our objectives were to estimate seasonal and annual survival rates; assess differences in survival between resident and translocated, adult and yearling, and male and female sage-grouse; identify environmental and behavioral factors associated with survival; and assess the influence of mammalian predator control on survival rates of radio-marked sage-grouse in Strawberry Valley, Utah from 1998 to 2010. We used a 2-stage model selection approach using Akaike's Information Criterion corrected for sample size (AIC_c) with known-fate models in Program MARK to evaluate the influences of seasonal, annual, demographic, and behavioral effects on survival rates of sage-grouse. We captured and fitted 535 individual sage-grouse (male and female, resident and translocated) with radio transmitters over a 13-year period and monitored them weekly. The top model of survival, which accounted for 22% of the AIC_c weight, included 3 seasons that varied by year where rates were influenced by residency, sex, and whether a female initiated a nest. A group-level covariate for the number of canids killed each year received some support as this variable improved model fit compared to identical models without it, although confidence intervals around β estimates overlapped zero slightly. All other demographic or environmental variables showed little or no support. Annual estimates of survival for females ranged between 28% and 84% depending on year and translocation source. Survival was consistently highest during the fall–winter months with a mean monthly survival rate of 0.97 (95% CI = 0.96–0.98). The lack of a control site and other potential confounding factors limit the extent of our inference with respect to predator control. Nonetheless, we suggest managers consider enhancing nesting habitat, translocating sage-grouse, and possibly controlling predators to improve survival rates of sage-grouse. © The Wildlife Society, 2013

Black bears (Ursus americanus) were once abundant in Nevada and distributed throughout the state, yet recognition of the species' historical occurrence in the state is uncommon and has therefore been ignored in published distribution maps for North America. The lack of representation on distribution maps is likely due to the lack of any scientific data or research on bears in Nevada until 1987. Historical records dating back to the 1840s compiled by Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) biologist Robert McQuivey indicate presence of black bears throughout the state in the 1800s through about 1930. The paucity of historical references after 1931 suggest extirpation of black bears from Nevada's interior mountain ranges by this time. We report on historical records of black bears in the state of Nevada and the results of a current population estimate of black bears derived from a sample of marked bears (n = 420) captured 707 times between 1997 and 2008. Using Pradel and Cormack–Jolly–Seber models in Program MARK, we estimated overall population size, finite rate of growth (λ = 1.16), quarterly and annual survival rates for males and females, seasonal capture probabilities, and recruitment rates. Our results indicate an overall population size of 262 ± 31 adult black bears in western Nevada. These results suggest that the once abundant, then extirpated population of black bears in Nevada is increasing at an annual average rate of 16%. Although the current distribution is limited to the western part of the state, our findings suggest possible expansion of the population into historical habitat within the interior and eastern portions of the state that have been absent of bears for >80 years. Finally, based on historical records, we present suggested revised historical distribution maps for black bears that include the Great Basin ranges in Nevada. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

The identification of core habitat areas and resulting prediction maps are vital tools for land managers. Often, agencies have large datasets from multiple studies over time that could be combined for a more informed and complete picture of a species. Colorado Parks and Wildlife has a large database for greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) including 11 radio-telemetry studies completed over 12 years (1997–2008) across northwestern Colorado. We divided the 49,470-km² study area into 1-km² grids with the number of sage-grouse locations in each grid cell that contained at least 1 location counted as the response variable. We used a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) using land cover variables as fixed effects and individual birds and populations as random effects to predict greater sage-grouse location counts during breeding, summer, and winter seasons. The mixed effects model enabled us to model correlations that may exist in grouped data (e.g., correlations among individuals and populations). We found only individual groupings accounted for variation in the summer and breeding seasons, but not the winter season. The breeding and summer seasonal models predicted sage-grouse presence in the currently delineated populations for Colorado, but we found little evidence supporting a winter season model. According to our models, about 50% of the study area in Colorado is considered highly or moderately suitable habitat in both the breeding and summer seasons. As oil and gas development and other landscape changes occur in this portion of Colorado, knowledge of where management actions can be accomplished or possible restoration can occur becomes more critical. These seasonal models provide data-driven, distribution maps that managers and biologists can use for identification and exploration when investigating greater sage-grouse issues across the Colorado range. Using historic data for future decisions on species management while accounting for issues found from combining datasets allows land managers the flexibility to use all information available. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Although some populations remain stable, moose (Alces alces) density and distribution have been declining in many areas along the southern edge of their North American distribution. During 2006–2009, we deployed 99 vaginal implant transmitters (VITs) in 86 adult female moose in central Ontario, Canada to assist in locating and radiocollaring neonatal moose calves. We monitored radiocollared calves to estimate calf survival and assess the relative importance of specific causes of death. Calves in the western portion of our study area (WMU49) were exposed to a 6-day general hunting season, whereas calves in the eastern portion of our study area (Algonquin Provincial Park [APP]) were not exposed to hunting. Annual survival for 87 collared calves was greater in the protected area than the harvested area (72.4 ± 6.8% and 55.8 ± 8.3%, respectively) and averaged 63.7 ± 7.1% overall. Predation by wolves (Canis sp.) and American black bears (Ursus americanus) was the dominant cause of death but occurred predominately in APP, whereas other natural mortality agents were 4× more common in WMU49. Only 16% of the collared calves in WMU49 were harvested each year despite a high proportion (approx. 50%) of accessible, public land. Most natural mortality occurred prior to the autumn hunting season such that reductions in natural mortality had little potential to compensate for calf harvest. Overall, calf survival in our study area was moderate to high and our findings suggest predator control or further restrictions of calf hunting in this area is not justified. © The Wildlife Society, 2013

Understanding the influence of environmental stressors on daily nest survival of introduced birds is important because it can affect introduction success as well as the ability to evaluate introduction programs. For long-lived birds with low annual production, adjustment to local breeding conditions can take many years. We examined nest success rates of 2 introduced bird species, whooping crane (Grus americana) and trumpeter swan (Cygnus buccinator), in Wisconsin. Both species are long-lived with low annual reproductive rates. Trumpeter swans were established in our study area approximately 10 years before whooping cranes. We predicted that trumpeter swans would show less sensitivity to environmental stressors. We used daily nest survival rates (DNSRs) as our response variable to model several environmental parameters including weather, phenology, and ornithophilic black flies (Diptera: Simuliidae). Additionally, we examined the influence of captive history, age, release method, energetics, and nesting experience on whooping crane DNSRs. Daily nest survival of whooping cranes was the most sensitive to stressors. Trumpeter swan daily nest survival showed less sensitivity to the same stressors. Daily nest survival for both species peaked later in the nesting season, after 30 April and before 30 May. We also found that the daily nest survival rate (DNSR) for whooping cranes was potentially affected by captive exposure (measured by generations removed from the wild). Our results highlight the difficulties associated with conservation of long-lived birds with low annual productivity as they adjust to local breeding conditions and that nest phenology at the source location can determine how these conditions are interfaced. We recommend that the juxtaposition of source and introduction location nest phenology be considered prior to introduction site selection. Additionally, strategically selecting offspring from captive pairs with nest phenology similar to that of sympatric species at the introduction location should be considered. Published 2013. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

Habitat fragmentation in urban areas has left many species isolated and vulnerable to loss of genetic variation. White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), however, thrive in urban areas. We compared genetic diversity and structure among deer in 2 urban metroparks with deer in a fenced reserve and with deer from an open, continuously distributed population to inform urban deer management. If urban deer maintain species' typical matrilineal genetic structure, removal of female groups may effectively reduce local abundance. However, if gene flow in urban areas is high, dispersal may impede efforts to reduce abundance. Although genetic diversity was high and mean relatedness was near zero in all locations, distributions of pairwise relatedness in urban metroparks and the fenced reserve contained greater proportions of closely and distantly related deer than the open locations, likely attributable to matrilineal structure. In addition, deer from the metroparks (approx. 65 km apart) were moderately differentiated (F_st = 0.092) indicating gene flow in urban areas may be less than in other landscapes. Our results indicate that removal of matrilineal groups may reduce local urban deer abundance without inducing immigration from surrounding areas. © The Wildlife Society, 2012

The present study examined the feasibility of experimentally manipulating perceptions of benefit and control via communications to increase public acceptance of bears. We assigned subjects to either a pseudo-control (basic bear biology message) or 1 of 3 treatments adding a benefits message, a perceived control message, or combining messages about both benefits and perceived control. Within-subjects pre–post t-tests showed a significant increase in acceptance among those in the benefits and combined treatments. A between-subjects 1-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed a significant difference between the perceived control and combined treatments (where the perceived control message actually decreased acceptance). Our results highlight the importance of including information about benefits stemming from the presence of black bears, as adding this information tended to increase stakeholder acceptance of black bear populations. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.