Fall supplemental feeding increases population growth rate of an endangered caribou herd
Most woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) populations are declining primarily because of unsustainable predation resulting from habitat-mediated apparent competition. Wolf (Canis lupus) reduction is an effective recovery option because it addresses the direct effect of predation. We consider...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:ea9d62d12ef844de9026c215211af83d 2024-01-07T09:42:37+01:00 Fall supplemental feeding increases population growth rate of an endangered caribou herd Douglas C. Heard Kathryn L. Zimmerman 2021-03-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.10708 https://doaj.org/article/ea9d62d12ef844de9026c215211af83d EN eng PeerJ Inc. https://peerj.com/articles/10708.pdf https://peerj.com/articles/10708/ https://doaj.org/toc/2167-8359 doi:10.7717/peerj.10708 2167-8359 https://doaj.org/article/ea9d62d12ef844de9026c215211af83d PeerJ, Vol 9, p e10708 (2021) Supplemental feeding Caribou Endangered species Population growth Predation risk Nutrition Medicine R Biology (General) QH301-705.5 article 2021 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.10708 2023-12-10T01:51:35Z Most woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) populations are declining primarily because of unsustainable predation resulting from habitat-mediated apparent competition. Wolf (Canis lupus) reduction is an effective recovery option because it addresses the direct effect of predation. We considered the possibility that the indirect effects of predation might also affect caribou population dynamics by adversely affecting summer foraging behaviour. If spring and/or summer nutrition was inadequate, then supplemental feeding in fall might compensate for that limitation and contribute to population growth. Improved nutrition and therefore body condition going into winter could increase adult survival and lead to improved reproductive success the next spring. To test that hypothesis, we fed high-quality food pellets to free-ranging caribou in the Kennedy Siding caribou herd each fall for six years, starting in 2014, to see if population growth rate increased. Beginning in winter 2015–16, the Province of British Columbia began a concurrent annual program to promote caribou population increase by attempting to remove most wolves within the Kennedy Siding and the adjacent caribou herds’ ranges. To evaluate the impact of feeding, we compared lambdas before and after feeding began, and to the population trend in the adjacent Quintette herd over the subsequent four years. Supplemental feeding appeared to have an incremental effect on population growth. Population growth of the Kennedy Siding herd was higher in the year after feeding began (λ = 1.06) compared to previous years (λ = 0.91) and to the untreated Quintette herd (λ = 0.95). Average annual growth rate of the Kennedy Siding herd over the subsequent four years, where both feeding and wolf reduction occurred concurrently, was higher than in the Quintette herd where the only management action in those years was wolf reduction (λ = 1.16 vs. λ = 1.08). The higher growth rate of the Kennedy Siding herd was due to higher female survival (96.2%/yr vs. 88.9%/yr). Many ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Canis lupus Rangifer tarandus Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles PeerJ 9 e10708 |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
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ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Supplemental feeding Caribou Endangered species Population growth Predation risk Nutrition Medicine R Biology (General) QH301-705.5 |
spellingShingle |
Supplemental feeding Caribou Endangered species Population growth Predation risk Nutrition Medicine R Biology (General) QH301-705.5 Douglas C. Heard Kathryn L. Zimmerman Fall supplemental feeding increases population growth rate of an endangered caribou herd |
topic_facet |
Supplemental feeding Caribou Endangered species Population growth Predation risk Nutrition Medicine R Biology (General) QH301-705.5 |
description |
Most woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) populations are declining primarily because of unsustainable predation resulting from habitat-mediated apparent competition. Wolf (Canis lupus) reduction is an effective recovery option because it addresses the direct effect of predation. We considered the possibility that the indirect effects of predation might also affect caribou population dynamics by adversely affecting summer foraging behaviour. If spring and/or summer nutrition was inadequate, then supplemental feeding in fall might compensate for that limitation and contribute to population growth. Improved nutrition and therefore body condition going into winter could increase adult survival and lead to improved reproductive success the next spring. To test that hypothesis, we fed high-quality food pellets to free-ranging caribou in the Kennedy Siding caribou herd each fall for six years, starting in 2014, to see if population growth rate increased. Beginning in winter 2015–16, the Province of British Columbia began a concurrent annual program to promote caribou population increase by attempting to remove most wolves within the Kennedy Siding and the adjacent caribou herds’ ranges. To evaluate the impact of feeding, we compared lambdas before and after feeding began, and to the population trend in the adjacent Quintette herd over the subsequent four years. Supplemental feeding appeared to have an incremental effect on population growth. Population growth of the Kennedy Siding herd was higher in the year after feeding began (λ = 1.06) compared to previous years (λ = 0.91) and to the untreated Quintette herd (λ = 0.95). Average annual growth rate of the Kennedy Siding herd over the subsequent four years, where both feeding and wolf reduction occurred concurrently, was higher than in the Quintette herd where the only management action in those years was wolf reduction (λ = 1.16 vs. λ = 1.08). The higher growth rate of the Kennedy Siding herd was due to higher female survival (96.2%/yr vs. 88.9%/yr). Many ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Douglas C. Heard Kathryn L. Zimmerman |
author_facet |
Douglas C. Heard Kathryn L. Zimmerman |
author_sort |
Douglas C. Heard |
title |
Fall supplemental feeding increases population growth rate of an endangered caribou herd |
title_short |
Fall supplemental feeding increases population growth rate of an endangered caribou herd |
title_full |
Fall supplemental feeding increases population growth rate of an endangered caribou herd |
title_fullStr |
Fall supplemental feeding increases population growth rate of an endangered caribou herd |
title_full_unstemmed |
Fall supplemental feeding increases population growth rate of an endangered caribou herd |
title_sort |
fall supplemental feeding increases population growth rate of an endangered caribou herd |
publisher |
PeerJ Inc. |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.10708 https://doaj.org/article/ea9d62d12ef844de9026c215211af83d |
genre |
Canis lupus Rangifer tarandus |
genre_facet |
Canis lupus Rangifer tarandus |
op_source |
PeerJ, Vol 9, p e10708 (2021) |
op_relation |
https://peerj.com/articles/10708.pdf https://peerj.com/articles/10708/ https://doaj.org/toc/2167-8359 doi:10.7717/peerj.10708 2167-8359 https://doaj.org/article/ea9d62d12ef844de9026c215211af83d |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.10708 |
container_title |
PeerJ |
container_volume |
9 |
container_start_page |
e10708 |
_version_ |
1787423649107542016 |