Demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment
Snow cover is a key environmental component for tundra wildlife that will be aff ected by climate change. Change to the snow cover may aff ect the population dynamics of high-latitude small mammals, which are active throughout the winter and reproduce under the snow. We experimentally tested the hyp...
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ftcanberrauncris:oai:pure.atira.dk:publications/bfe93fa3-9028-4f25-a8d9-bd71bb6ae845 2023-05-15T15:12:05+02:00 Demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment Bilodeau, Frederic Reid, Donald Gauthier, Gilles Krebs, Charles Berteaux, D Kenney, Alice 2013 https://researchprofiles.canberra.edu.au/en/publications/bfe93fa3-9028-4f25-a8d9-bd71bb6ae845 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2012.00220.x eng eng info:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccess Bilodeau , F , Reid , D , Gauthier , G , Krebs , C , Berteaux , D & Kenney , A 2013 , ' Demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment ' , Oikos (Malden) , vol. 122 , pp. 1167-1176 . https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2012.00220.x article 2013 ftcanberrauncris https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2012.00220.x 2022-10-31T06:44:15Z Snow cover is a key environmental component for tundra wildlife that will be aff ected by climate change. Change to the snow cover may aff ect the population dynamics of high-latitude small mammals, which are active throughout the winter and reproduce under the snow. We experimentally tested the hypotheses that a deeper snow cover would enhance the densities and winter reproductive rates of small mammals, but that predation by mustelids could be higher in areas of increased small mammal density. We enhanced snow cover by setting out snow fences at three sites in the Canadian Arctic (Bylot Island, Nunavut, and Herschel Island and Komakuk Beach, Yukon) over periods ranging from one to four years. Densities of winter nests were higher where snow depth was increased but spring lemming densities did not increase on the experimental areas. Lemmings probably moved from areas of deep snow, their preferred winter habitat, to summer habitat during snow melt once the advantages associated with deep snow were gone. Our treatment had no eff ect on signs of reproduction in winter nests, proportion of lactating females in spring, or the proportion of juveniles caught in spring, which suggests that deep snow did not enhance reproduction. Results on predation were inconsistent across sites as predation by weasels was higher on the experimental area at one site but lower at two others and was not higher in areas of winter nest aggregations. Although this experiment provided us with several new insights about the impact of snow cover on the population dynamics of tundra small mammals, it also illustrates the challenges and diffi culties associated with large-scale experiments aimed at manipulating a critical climatic factor. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Bylot Island Climate change Herschel Herschel Island Nunavut Tundra Yukon University of Canberra Research Portal Arctic Nunavut Yukon Bylot Island Herschel Island ENVELOPE(-139.089,-139.089,69.583,69.583) Komakuk Beach ENVELOPE(-140.157,-140.157,69.601,69.601) Oikos 122 8 1167 1176 |
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Open Polar |
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University of Canberra Research Portal |
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ftcanberrauncris |
language |
English |
description |
Snow cover is a key environmental component for tundra wildlife that will be aff ected by climate change. Change to the snow cover may aff ect the population dynamics of high-latitude small mammals, which are active throughout the winter and reproduce under the snow. We experimentally tested the hypotheses that a deeper snow cover would enhance the densities and winter reproductive rates of small mammals, but that predation by mustelids could be higher in areas of increased small mammal density. We enhanced snow cover by setting out snow fences at three sites in the Canadian Arctic (Bylot Island, Nunavut, and Herschel Island and Komakuk Beach, Yukon) over periods ranging from one to four years. Densities of winter nests were higher where snow depth was increased but spring lemming densities did not increase on the experimental areas. Lemmings probably moved from areas of deep snow, their preferred winter habitat, to summer habitat during snow melt once the advantages associated with deep snow were gone. Our treatment had no eff ect on signs of reproduction in winter nests, proportion of lactating females in spring, or the proportion of juveniles caught in spring, which suggests that deep snow did not enhance reproduction. Results on predation were inconsistent across sites as predation by weasels was higher on the experimental area at one site but lower at two others and was not higher in areas of winter nest aggregations. Although this experiment provided us with several new insights about the impact of snow cover on the population dynamics of tundra small mammals, it also illustrates the challenges and diffi culties associated with large-scale experiments aimed at manipulating a critical climatic factor. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Bilodeau, Frederic Reid, Donald Gauthier, Gilles Krebs, Charles Berteaux, D Kenney, Alice |
spellingShingle |
Bilodeau, Frederic Reid, Donald Gauthier, Gilles Krebs, Charles Berteaux, D Kenney, Alice Demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment |
author_facet |
Bilodeau, Frederic Reid, Donald Gauthier, Gilles Krebs, Charles Berteaux, D Kenney, Alice |
author_sort |
Bilodeau, Frederic |
title |
Demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment |
title_short |
Demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment |
title_full |
Demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment |
title_fullStr |
Demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment |
title_full_unstemmed |
Demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment |
title_sort |
demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment |
publishDate |
2013 |
url |
https://researchprofiles.canberra.edu.au/en/publications/bfe93fa3-9028-4f25-a8d9-bd71bb6ae845 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2012.00220.x |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-139.089,-139.089,69.583,69.583) ENVELOPE(-140.157,-140.157,69.601,69.601) |
geographic |
Arctic Nunavut Yukon Bylot Island Herschel Island Komakuk Beach |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Nunavut Yukon Bylot Island Herschel Island Komakuk Beach |
genre |
Arctic Bylot Island Climate change Herschel Herschel Island Nunavut Tundra Yukon |
genre_facet |
Arctic Bylot Island Climate change Herschel Herschel Island Nunavut Tundra Yukon |
op_source |
Bilodeau , F , Reid , D , Gauthier , G , Krebs , C , Berteaux , D & Kenney , A 2013 , ' Demographic response of tundra small mammals to a snow fencing experiment ' , Oikos (Malden) , vol. 122 , pp. 1167-1176 . https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2012.00220.x |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2012.00220.x |
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Oikos |
container_volume |
122 |
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8 |
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1167 |
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1176 |
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