Woodland caribou calf recruitment in relation to calving/post-calving landscape composition
Since the 1990s, Newfoundland’s woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) population has declined by an estimated 66%. Low calf recruitment has been associated to the decline, possibly triggered by increasing calf predation and/or decreasing resources. To investigate the role of landscape composi...
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2011
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:f2f9fa35e2f04fb0a729756fb3f8b591 2023-05-15T15:53:30+02:00 Woodland caribou calf recruitment in relation to calving/post-calving landscape composition Sara C. McCarthy Robert B. Weladji Christine Doucet Paul Saunders 2011-04-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.7557/2.31.1.1918 https://doaj.org/article/f2f9fa35e2f04fb0a729756fb3f8b591 EN eng Septentrio Academic Publishing https://septentrio.uit.no/index.php/rangifer/article/view/1918 https://doaj.org/toc/1890-6729 doi:10.7557/2.31.1.1918 1890-6729 https://doaj.org/article/f2f9fa35e2f04fb0a729756fb3f8b591 Rangifer, Vol 31, Iss 1 (2011) avoidance disturbance habitat industrial development Newfoundland logging Animal culture SF1-1100 article 2011 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.7557/2.31.1.1918 2022-12-31T00:14:24Z Since the 1990s, Newfoundland’s woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) population has declined by an estimated 66%. Low calf recruitment has been associated to the decline, possibly triggered by increasing calf predation and/or decreasing resources. To investigate the role of landscape composition in this system, we studied the yearly (2005-2008) calving/post-calving range (CPCR) of 104 satellite-collared females belonging to six herds. We mapped nine disturbance factors (e.g. roads, logging, etc), as well as vegetation cover types (e.g. coniferous, deciduous forests, etc), and determined the total area they occupied within CPCRs yearly for each herd. Using an information theoretic approach, we assessed the model that best explained variation in recruitment using these components. Based on corrected Akaike Information Criterion, the model that best explained variation in calf recruitment included total disturbance and deciduous forest area, both showing the expected negative relationship with calf recruitment. Other landscape variables among the models with ΔAICc < 2 were mixed forest, also with a suggested negative relationship, and barrens and wetlands with a significant positive trend. This study highlights the need to minimize total disturbance footprint and account for resulting changes in forest composition within CPCRs during land use planning. Expanding forestry operations and road infrastructure in critical woodland caribou habitat across Canada may additionally contribute to habitat loss via fragmentation. This in turn, may lead to range recession beyond the initial local avoidance footprint. We see the possibility of using calf recruitment models based on landscape parameters, among others, to predict the impact of new industrial developments on calf recruitment. Article in Journal/Newspaper caribou Newfoundland Rangifer Rangifer tarandus Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Canada Rangifer 31 1 35 47 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
avoidance disturbance habitat industrial development Newfoundland logging Animal culture SF1-1100 |
spellingShingle |
avoidance disturbance habitat industrial development Newfoundland logging Animal culture SF1-1100 Sara C. McCarthy Robert B. Weladji Christine Doucet Paul Saunders Woodland caribou calf recruitment in relation to calving/post-calving landscape composition |
topic_facet |
avoidance disturbance habitat industrial development Newfoundland logging Animal culture SF1-1100 |
description |
Since the 1990s, Newfoundland’s woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) population has declined by an estimated 66%. Low calf recruitment has been associated to the decline, possibly triggered by increasing calf predation and/or decreasing resources. To investigate the role of landscape composition in this system, we studied the yearly (2005-2008) calving/post-calving range (CPCR) of 104 satellite-collared females belonging to six herds. We mapped nine disturbance factors (e.g. roads, logging, etc), as well as vegetation cover types (e.g. coniferous, deciduous forests, etc), and determined the total area they occupied within CPCRs yearly for each herd. Using an information theoretic approach, we assessed the model that best explained variation in recruitment using these components. Based on corrected Akaike Information Criterion, the model that best explained variation in calf recruitment included total disturbance and deciduous forest area, both showing the expected negative relationship with calf recruitment. Other landscape variables among the models with ΔAICc < 2 were mixed forest, also with a suggested negative relationship, and barrens and wetlands with a significant positive trend. This study highlights the need to minimize total disturbance footprint and account for resulting changes in forest composition within CPCRs during land use planning. Expanding forestry operations and road infrastructure in critical woodland caribou habitat across Canada may additionally contribute to habitat loss via fragmentation. This in turn, may lead to range recession beyond the initial local avoidance footprint. We see the possibility of using calf recruitment models based on landscape parameters, among others, to predict the impact of new industrial developments on calf recruitment. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Sara C. McCarthy Robert B. Weladji Christine Doucet Paul Saunders |
author_facet |
Sara C. McCarthy Robert B. Weladji Christine Doucet Paul Saunders |
author_sort |
Sara C. McCarthy |
title |
Woodland caribou calf recruitment in relation to calving/post-calving landscape composition |
title_short |
Woodland caribou calf recruitment in relation to calving/post-calving landscape composition |
title_full |
Woodland caribou calf recruitment in relation to calving/post-calving landscape composition |
title_fullStr |
Woodland caribou calf recruitment in relation to calving/post-calving landscape composition |
title_full_unstemmed |
Woodland caribou calf recruitment in relation to calving/post-calving landscape composition |
title_sort |
woodland caribou calf recruitment in relation to calving/post-calving landscape composition |
publisher |
Septentrio Academic Publishing |
publishDate |
2011 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.7557/2.31.1.1918 https://doaj.org/article/f2f9fa35e2f04fb0a729756fb3f8b591 |
geographic |
Canada |
geographic_facet |
Canada |
genre |
caribou Newfoundland Rangifer Rangifer tarandus |
genre_facet |
caribou Newfoundland Rangifer Rangifer tarandus |
op_source |
Rangifer, Vol 31, Iss 1 (2011) |
op_relation |
https://septentrio.uit.no/index.php/rangifer/article/view/1918 https://doaj.org/toc/1890-6729 doi:10.7557/2.31.1.1918 1890-6729 https://doaj.org/article/f2f9fa35e2f04fb0a729756fb3f8b591 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.7557/2.31.1.1918 |
container_title |
Rangifer |
container_volume |
31 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
35 |
op_container_end_page |
47 |
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1766388612315742208 |