Data from: Wolf ecology and caribou-primary prey-wolf spatial relationships in low productivity peatland complexes in northeastern Alberta ...

• Main Authors: Latham, A. David M., Boutin, Stan
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Movebank Data Repository 2019
• Subjects: Canis lupus; animal movement; animal tracking; Canada; GPS logger; movement ecology; predation; wolf; Caribou Range; caribou; Rangifer tarandus
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5441/001/1.7vr1k987; https://www.datarepository.movebank.org/handle/10255/move.948

Woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) in northeastern Alberta have historically been provided a refuge from wolf (Canis lupus) predation by using habitats not typically occupied by moose (Alces alces), which are the primary prey species for wolves in this region. However, in recent years most caribou populations in northeastern Alberta have declined, suggesting that they no longer have a refuge from wolf predation. I tested the hypotheses that (1) primary prey densities have increased since recent industrial expansion into caribou range, resulting in a numeric response by wolves; and (2) an altered wolf-primary prey system has reduced the ability of caribou to spatially separate from other prey - and consequently wolves - in this system. My results showed that wolf densities in the region have increased from approximately 6/1,000 km2 to approximately 11/1,000 km2. Based on my estimates, there has also been a corresponding increase in ungulate biomass, which appears to be primarily due to the recent ...