Comparison of pre-fire and post-fire space use reveals varied responses by woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) in the Boreal Shield

• Main Authors: Silva, Joseph Austin, Nielsen, Scott, McLoughlin, Philip D., Rodgers, Arthur R., Hague, Christine, Boutin, Stan
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: NRC Research Press (a division of Canadian Science Publishing) 2020
• Subjects: Canada; Rangifer tarandus
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1807/102551; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/abs/10.1139/cjz-2020-0139

By regulating successional dynamics in Canada’s boreal forest, fires can affect the distribution of the Threatened woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou (Gmelin, 1788)). Caribou tend to avoid areas burned within the last 40 years; however, few studies have compared pre-fire and post-fire caribou observations. In this study, we used caribou GPS locations from the Boreal Shield of Saskatchewan, Canada, to assess the short-term response of caribou to areas that burned while they were collared (hereafter recent burns). We used a “before–after, control–impact” design to compare the overlap of pre-fire and post-fire seasonal home ranges to the overlap of year-to-year seasonal home ranges. Caribou rarely encountered recent burns and when they did, they adjusted their space use in variable and complex ways that were largely indistinguishable from regular, interannual variation. Caribou tended to reduce use of recent burns in summer–autumn and winter, but not during the calving season, in some cases shifting their home range to incorporate more burned habitat. We conclude that recently burned areas (<5 years) may provide habitat value to woodland caribou, particularly during the calving season, requiring a more flexible approach to interpret fire in habitat management strategies. The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author.