Assessing passive recording of howls to measure wolf (Canis lupus) occupancy in the East Kootenays, British Columbia
department or school: Science, Irving K. Barber Faculty of (Okanagan)
department or school: Biology, Department of (Okanagan)
data provider: DSpace
degree campus: UBCO
creator: Gauthier, Danielle
issued: 2022-01-07T22:28:05Z
issued: 2021
related degree: Master of Science - MSc
degree grantor: University of British Columbia
description: Wolves (Canis lupus) population management is a priority for conservationists, wildlife managers, hunters, trappers, cattle producers, and First Nations. Ideally, a survey technique should allow individual identification to increase managers’ ability to precisely and accurately estimate population trends in abundance, distribution, density and pack structure. However, wolf monitoring is notoriously difficult because of the species’ low density and elusive nature. Furthermore, lowering operating costs is a priority for wildlife agencies. In some cases, non-invasive survey techniques have lower monitoring costs relative to more invasive approaches like capture and tagging. There have been very promising developments in bioacoustics that could answer these questions. Morphological differences in the vocal tract of wolves mean that individuals have measurably distinct vocalizations. Minimum counts, age class, and individual identification have been achieved in previous studies, yet these methods remain to be proven in the field where little or no information about wolves or packs is available. The goal of this study was to assess bioacoustics for monitoring wolf occupancy by deploying autonomous recording units (ARU) in southeastern British Columbia. We hypothesized that deploying ARUs at wolf rendezvous sites would yield the best number and quality of recordings. To do so, we created a predictive map of rendezvous sites, and used it in an attempt to find rendezvous sites through grounds searches and elicited howling surveys. We paired ARUs with cameras traps to compare detection probability, overlap, and environmental covariates through single and multiple-method occupancy models. We also compared costs for equipment, deployment, and analysis. Finally, howling phenology was investigated to detect trends that could be used to refine recording schedules and reduce requirements for field data. ARUs proved more efficient at detecting wolves than camera traps paired at the …
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/80605
note: ASSESSING PASSIVE RECORDING OF HOWLS TO MEASURE WOLF (CANIS LUPUS) OCCUPANCY IN THE EAST KOOTENAYS, BRITISH COLUMBIA by Danielle Gauthier B.Sc., Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, 2009 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE in THE COLLEGE OF GRADUATE STUDIES (Biology) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Okanagan) December 2021 © Danielle Gauthier, 2021 ii The following individuals certify that they have read, and recommend to the College of Graduate Studies for acceptance, a thesis/dissertation entitled: Assessing passive recording of howls to measure wolf (Canis lupus) occupancy in the East Kootenays, British Columbia. submitted by Danielle Gauthier in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Biology Examining Committee: Dr. Adam T. Ford, Biology Department, Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science Supervisor Dr. Karen Hodges, Biology Department, Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science Supervisory Committee Member Dr. Garth Mowat, Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations & Rural Development Supervisory Committee Member Dr. Miles Thorogood, Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies Additional Examiner iii Abstract Wolves (Canis lupus) population management is a priority for conservationists, wildlife managers, hunters, trappers, cattle producers, and First Nations. Ideally, a survey technique should allow individual identification to increase managers’ ability to precisely and accurately estimate population trends in abundance, distribution, density and pack structure. However, wolf monitoring is notoriously difficult because of the species’ low density and elusive nature. Furthermore, lowering operating costs is a priority for wildlife agencies. In some cases, non-invasive survey techniques have lower monitoring costs relative to more invasive approaches like capture and tagging. There have been very promising developments in bioacoustics that could answer thes…
has type: Thesis/Dissertation
date issued: 2022-02
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0406215
language: eng
degree discipline: Biology
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
publisher: University of British Columbia
rights: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
rights URI: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
scholar level: Graduate
contributor: Ford, Adam
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/80605