Comparison of pre-fire and post-fire space use reveals varied responses by woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou) in the Boreal Shield
By regulating successional dynamics in Canada’s boreal forest, fires can affect the distribution of the Threatened woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou (Gmelin, 1788)). Caribou tend to avoid areas burned within the last 40 years; however, few studies have compared pre-fire and post-fire carib...
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2020
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 |
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crcansciencepubl:10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 2024-09-15T18:31:45+00:00 Comparison of pre-fire and post-fire space use reveals varied responses by woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou) in the Boreal Shield Silva, J.A. Nielsen, S.E. McLoughlin, P.D. Rodgers, A.R. Hague, C. Boutin, S. 2020 http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 en eng Canadian Science Publishing http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining Canadian Journal of Zoology volume 98, issue 11, page 751-760 ISSN 0008-4301 1480-3283 journal-article 2020 crcansciencepubl https://doi.org/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 2024-08-22T04:08:43Z By regulating successional dynamics in Canada’s boreal forest, fires can affect the distribution of the Threatened woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou (Gmelin, 1788)). Caribou tend to avoid areas burned within the last 40 years; however, few studies have compared pre-fire and post-fire caribou observations. In this study, we used caribou GPS locations from the Boreal Shield of Saskatchewan, Canada, to assess the short-term response of caribou to areas that burned while they were collared (hereafter recent burns). We used a “before–after, control–impact” design to compare the overlap of pre-fire and post-fire seasonal home ranges to the overlap of year-to-year seasonal home ranges. Caribou rarely encountered recent burns and when they did, they adjusted their space use in variable and complex ways that were largely indistinguishable from regular, interannual variation. Caribou tended to reduce use of recent burns in summer–autumn and winter, but not during the calving season, in some cases shifting their home range to incorporate more burned habitat. We conclude that recently burned areas (<5 years) may provide habitat value to woodland caribou, particularly during the calving season, requiring a more flexible approach to interpret fire in habitat management strategies. Article in Journal/Newspaper Rangifer tarandus Canadian Science Publishing Canadian Journal of Zoology 98 11 751 760 |
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Open Polar |
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Canadian Science Publishing |
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crcansciencepubl |
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English |
description |
By regulating successional dynamics in Canada’s boreal forest, fires can affect the distribution of the Threatened woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou (Gmelin, 1788)). Caribou tend to avoid areas burned within the last 40 years; however, few studies have compared pre-fire and post-fire caribou observations. In this study, we used caribou GPS locations from the Boreal Shield of Saskatchewan, Canada, to assess the short-term response of caribou to areas that burned while they were collared (hereafter recent burns). We used a “before–after, control–impact” design to compare the overlap of pre-fire and post-fire seasonal home ranges to the overlap of year-to-year seasonal home ranges. Caribou rarely encountered recent burns and when they did, they adjusted their space use in variable and complex ways that were largely indistinguishable from regular, interannual variation. Caribou tended to reduce use of recent burns in summer–autumn and winter, but not during the calving season, in some cases shifting their home range to incorporate more burned habitat. We conclude that recently burned areas (<5 years) may provide habitat value to woodland caribou, particularly during the calving season, requiring a more flexible approach to interpret fire in habitat management strategies. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Silva, J.A. Nielsen, S.E. McLoughlin, P.D. Rodgers, A.R. Hague, C. Boutin, S. |
spellingShingle |
Silva, J.A. Nielsen, S.E. McLoughlin, P.D. Rodgers, A.R. Hague, C. Boutin, S. Comparison of pre-fire and post-fire space use reveals varied responses by woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou) in the Boreal Shield |
author_facet |
Silva, J.A. Nielsen, S.E. McLoughlin, P.D. Rodgers, A.R. Hague, C. Boutin, S. |
author_sort |
Silva, J.A. |
title |
Comparison of pre-fire and post-fire space use reveals varied responses by woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou) in the Boreal Shield |
title_short |
Comparison of pre-fire and post-fire space use reveals varied responses by woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou) in the Boreal Shield |
title_full |
Comparison of pre-fire and post-fire space use reveals varied responses by woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou) in the Boreal Shield |
title_fullStr |
Comparison of pre-fire and post-fire space use reveals varied responses by woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou) in the Boreal Shield |
title_full_unstemmed |
Comparison of pre-fire and post-fire space use reveals varied responses by woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou) in the Boreal Shield |
title_sort |
comparison of pre-fire and post-fire space use reveals varied responses by woodland caribou ( rangifer tarandus caribou) in the boreal shield |
publisher |
Canadian Science Publishing |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 |
genre |
Rangifer tarandus |
genre_facet |
Rangifer tarandus |
op_source |
Canadian Journal of Zoology volume 98, issue 11, page 751-760 ISSN 0008-4301 1480-3283 |
op_rights |
http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139 |
container_title |
Canadian Journal of Zoology |
container_volume |
98 |
container_issue |
11 |
container_start_page |
751 |
op_container_end_page |
760 |
_version_ |
1810473496912855040 |