Closer to Carrying Capacity: Analysis of the Internal Demographic Structure Associated with the Management and Density Dependence of a Controlled Wolf Population in Latvia
Large carnivores are essential components of natural ecosystems. In populated areas, their conservation depends on preserving a favorable status in coexistence with humans, which may require the elimination of excess carnivores to minimize public concerns. As the Baltic region currently hosts a thri...
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2021
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:d3227b8542b740d59af2fee59fe71252 2023-05-15T15:50:47+02:00 Closer to Carrying Capacity: Analysis of the Internal Demographic Structure Associated with the Management and Density Dependence of a Controlled Wolf Population in Latvia Jurģis Šuba Agrita Žunna Guna Bagrade Gundega Done Mārtiņš Lūkins Aivars Ornicāns Digna Pilāte Alda Stepanova Jānis Ozoliņš 2021-08-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3390/su13179783 https://doaj.org/article/d3227b8542b740d59af2fee59fe71252 EN eng MDPI AG https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/17/9783 https://doaj.org/toc/2071-1050 doi:10.3390/su13179783 2071-1050 https://doaj.org/article/d3227b8542b740d59af2fee59fe71252 Sustainability, Vol 13, Iss 9783, p 9783 (2021) wolf Canis lupus Latvia demography population management Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350 article 2021 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3390/su13179783 2022-12-31T16:19:05Z Large carnivores are essential components of natural ecosystems. In populated areas, their conservation depends on preserving a favorable status in coexistence with humans, which may require the elimination of excess carnivores to minimize public concerns. As the Baltic region currently hosts a thriving wolf population, locally sustainable management of wolves is important for preserving biodiversity at a European scale. In this paper, we provide a dynamic assessment of the Latvian wolf subpopulation from 1998 until 2020. This study is based on age composition and fecundity data from teeth, uteri, and ovaria inspections obtained from samples of legally culled or accidentally killed individuals. The abundance estimates indicated population growth that exceeded the previously predicted carrying capacity. The proportion of juveniles among the culled individuals increased in recent years, but the mean age of culled adults exhibited a stable trend. In presumably nonselective hunting, the juveniles and individuals older than 3 years had greater culling mortality estimates in comparison with other age classes, and the culling rates for adult females of particular age classes were higher than for males of the same age. While creating significant hunting pressure, wolf management in Latvia may have contributed to the population growth by affecting its demographic processes. Article in Journal/Newspaper Canis lupus Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Sustainability 13 17 9783 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
wolf Canis lupus Latvia demography population management Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350 |
spellingShingle |
wolf Canis lupus Latvia demography population management Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Jurģis Šuba Agrita Žunna Guna Bagrade Gundega Done Mārtiņš Lūkins Aivars Ornicāns Digna Pilāte Alda Stepanova Jānis Ozoliņš Closer to Carrying Capacity: Analysis of the Internal Demographic Structure Associated with the Management and Density Dependence of a Controlled Wolf Population in Latvia |
topic_facet |
wolf Canis lupus Latvia demography population management Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350 |
description |
Large carnivores are essential components of natural ecosystems. In populated areas, their conservation depends on preserving a favorable status in coexistence with humans, which may require the elimination of excess carnivores to minimize public concerns. As the Baltic region currently hosts a thriving wolf population, locally sustainable management of wolves is important for preserving biodiversity at a European scale. In this paper, we provide a dynamic assessment of the Latvian wolf subpopulation from 1998 until 2020. This study is based on age composition and fecundity data from teeth, uteri, and ovaria inspections obtained from samples of legally culled or accidentally killed individuals. The abundance estimates indicated population growth that exceeded the previously predicted carrying capacity. The proportion of juveniles among the culled individuals increased in recent years, but the mean age of culled adults exhibited a stable trend. In presumably nonselective hunting, the juveniles and individuals older than 3 years had greater culling mortality estimates in comparison with other age classes, and the culling rates for adult females of particular age classes were higher than for males of the same age. While creating significant hunting pressure, wolf management in Latvia may have contributed to the population growth by affecting its demographic processes. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Jurģis Šuba Agrita Žunna Guna Bagrade Gundega Done Mārtiņš Lūkins Aivars Ornicāns Digna Pilāte Alda Stepanova Jānis Ozoliņš |
author_facet |
Jurģis Šuba Agrita Žunna Guna Bagrade Gundega Done Mārtiņš Lūkins Aivars Ornicāns Digna Pilāte Alda Stepanova Jānis Ozoliņš |
author_sort |
Jurģis Šuba |
title |
Closer to Carrying Capacity: Analysis of the Internal Demographic Structure Associated with the Management and Density Dependence of a Controlled Wolf Population in Latvia |
title_short |
Closer to Carrying Capacity: Analysis of the Internal Demographic Structure Associated with the Management and Density Dependence of a Controlled Wolf Population in Latvia |
title_full |
Closer to Carrying Capacity: Analysis of the Internal Demographic Structure Associated with the Management and Density Dependence of a Controlled Wolf Population in Latvia |
title_fullStr |
Closer to Carrying Capacity: Analysis of the Internal Demographic Structure Associated with the Management and Density Dependence of a Controlled Wolf Population in Latvia |
title_full_unstemmed |
Closer to Carrying Capacity: Analysis of the Internal Demographic Structure Associated with the Management and Density Dependence of a Controlled Wolf Population in Latvia |
title_sort |
closer to carrying capacity: analysis of the internal demographic structure associated with the management and density dependence of a controlled wolf population in latvia |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3390/su13179783 https://doaj.org/article/d3227b8542b740d59af2fee59fe71252 |
genre |
Canis lupus |
genre_facet |
Canis lupus |
op_source |
Sustainability, Vol 13, Iss 9783, p 9783 (2021) |
op_relation |
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/17/9783 https://doaj.org/toc/2071-1050 doi:10.3390/su13179783 2071-1050 https://doaj.org/article/d3227b8542b740d59af2fee59fe71252 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3390/su13179783 |
container_title |
Sustainability |
container_volume |
13 |
container_issue |
17 |
container_start_page |
9783 |
_version_ |
1766385798143279104 |