Understanding factors that influence daily and annual activity patterns of a species provides insights to challenges facing individuals, particularly when climate shifts, and thus is important in ...conservation. Using GPS collars with dual-axis motion sensors that recorded the number of switches every 5 minutes we tested the hypotheses: 1. Grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) increase daily activity levels and active bout lengths when they forage on berries, the major high-energy food in this ecosystem, and 2. Grizzly bears become less active and more nocturnal when ambient temperature exceeds 20 degree C. We found support for hypothesis 1 with both male and female bears being active from 0.7 to 2.8 h longer in the berry season than in other seasons. Our prediction under hypothesis 2 was not supported. When bears foraged on berries on a dry, open mountainside, there was no relationship between daily maximum temperature (which varied from 20.4 to 40.1 degree C) and the total amount of time bears were active, and no difference in activity levels during day or night between warm (20.4-27.3 degree C) and hot (27.9-40.1 degree C) days. Our results highlight the strong influence that food acquisition has on activity levels and patterns of grizzly bears and is a challenge to the heat dissipation limitation theory.
Humans profoundly affect animal distributions by directly competing for space, not only transforming, but actively using their habitat. Anthropogenic disturbance is usually measured via structural ...proxies such as infrastructure and land use that overlook the impact of human presence, or functional disturbance. In this study, we propose a methodology unifying two paradigms, human mobility and animal movement, to fill this gap. We developed a novel spatially-explicit index of anthropic disturbance, the Cumulative Outdoor activity Index (COI), and validated it with ground truth observations derived from camera trapping (r = +0.63, p < 0.001). Building on previous work from Peters et al. (2015, Biol. Cons. 186, 123–133) on a Critically Endangered brown bear population in the Alps, we used Resource Selection Analysis to assess the influence of different forms of anthropogenic disturbance on the relative probability of habitat selection. The intensity of COI provided an effective measure of functional anthropogenic disturbance, and it outperformed all alternative and commonly-used proxies of structural disturbance in predicting bear habitat use. Our predictions suggest that brown bear shrinks its ecological niche as a consequence of intense human use of otherwise suitable habitat. These constraints may limit the potential range expansion of bears to establish a viable Alpine-Dinaric metapopulation. Conclusive conservation and future land use planning towards human-wildlife coexistence should account for the functional presence of humans on the landscape. The proposed COI could help determine where mitigation measures should be enforced.
•Structural anthropic disturbance underestimates human-wildlife competition for space.•We developed the Cumulative Outdoor activity Index (COI) based on human mobility data.•COI best predicted brown bear space use in a reintroduced endangered population.•Predictions indicate limits for the establishment of an Alpine bear metapopulation.•COI can identify where to enforce human mobility restrictions for conservation purposes.
Anthropogenic disturbances, including roads, are known to influence animal habitat selection and mortality. In this study, we consider the role of sensory perception in understanding why and how ...animals respond to disturbances. Our goal was to investigate the effect of visual perception (visibility) around roads on grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis Ord, 1815) habitat selection and mortality in Alberta, Canada. We used detailed topographic and vegetation data from airborne light detection and ranging (lidar) to estimate visibility around roads. We modelled habitat selection as a function of road visibility and environmental variables using GPS telemetry data from 39 grizzly bears and integrated step selection analysis (iSSA). Finally, we assessed mortality risk in visible areas by comparing habitat selection between grizzly bears that died and those that survived. We found that grizzly bears were less likely to select visible areas when moving slowly or resting, but were more likely to select visible areas when travelling. We found that grizzly bears that survived selected for areas farther from roads than grizzly bears that died. However, no difference in selection for visible areas was observed. An exploratory analysis showed that grizzly bear mortalities commonly occurred in visible areas. Our findings highlight the importance of sensory perception in understanding animal behaviour.
A male brown bear (Ursus arctos yesoensis) was caught in September 2015, in Shari, Hokkaido, Japan. Necropsy was performed, and a number of large cestodes were collected from the intestine. They were ...diagnosed as Dibothriocephalus sp. based on the morphological features of scolices and genitalia. These parasites were identified as Dibothriocephalus nihonkaiensis by the sequences of 28 ribosomal RNA gene and mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase gene. This is the first report of identification of cestode from a Hokkaido brown bear as D. nihonkaiensis.
Aim
The recent recovery of large carnivores in Europe has been explained as resulting from a decrease in human persecution driven by widespread rural land abandonment, paralleled by forest cover ...increase and the consequent increase in availability of shelter and prey. We investigated whether land cover and human population density changes are related to the relative probability of occurrence of three European large carnivores: the grey wolf (Canis lupus), the Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) and the brown bear (Ursus arctos).
Location
Europe, west of 64° longitude.
Methods
We fitted multi‐temporal species distribution models using >50,000 occurrence points with time series of land cover, landscape configuration, protected areas, hunting regulations and human population density covering a 24‐year period (1992–2015). Within the temporal window considered, we then predicted changes in habitat suitability for large carnivores throughout Europe.
Results
Between 1992 and 2015, the habitat suitability for the three species increased in Eastern Europe, the Balkans, North‐West Iberian Peninsula and Northern Scandinavia, but showed mixed trends in Western and Southern Europe. These trends were primarily associated with increases in forest cover and decreases in human population density, and, additionally, with decreases in the cover of mosaics of cropland and natural vegetation.
Main conclusions
Recent land cover and human population changes appear to have altered the habitat suitability pattern for large carnivores in Europe, whereas protection level did not play a role. While projected changes largely match the observed recovery of large carnivore populations, we found mismatches with the recent expansion of wolves in Central and Southern Europe, where factors not included in our models may have played a dominant role. This suggests that large carnivores’ co‐existence with humans in European landscapes is not limited by habitat availability, but other factors such as favourable human tolerance and policy.
Climate change is altering the seasonal timing of life cycle events in organisms across the planet, but the magnitude of change often varies among taxa Thackeray SJ, et al. (2016) Nature 535:241–245. ...This can cause the temporal relationships among species to change, altering the strength of interaction. A large body of work has explored what happens when coevolved species shift out of sync, but virtually no studies have documented the effects of climate-induced synchronization, which could remove temporal barriers between species and create novel interactions. We explored how a predator, the Kodiak brown bear (Ursus arctos middendorffi), responded to asymmetric phenological shifts between its primary trophic resources, sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) and red elderberry (Sambucus racemosa). In years with anomalously high spring air temperatures, elderberry fruited several weeks earlier and became available during the period when salmon spawned in tributary streams. Bears departed salmon spawning streams, where they typically kill 25–75% of the salmon Quinn TP, Cunningham CJ, Wirsing AJ (2016) Oecologia 183:415–429, to forage on berries on adjacent hillsides. This prey switching behavior attenuated an iconic predator–prey interaction and likely altered the many ecological functions that result from bears foraging on salmon Helfield JM, Naiman RJ (2006) Ecosystems 9:167–180. We document how climate-induced shifts in resource phenology can alter food webs through a mechanism other than trophic mismatch. The current emphasis on singular consumer-resource interactions fails to capture how climate-altered phenologies reschedule resource availability and alter how energy flows through ecosystems.
Human encroachment into natural habitats is typically followed by conflicts derived from wildlife damage to agriculture and livestock. Spatial risk modelling is a useful tool to gain the ...understanding of wildlife damage and mitigate conflicts. Although resource selection is a hierarchical process operating at multiple scales, risk models usually fail to address more than one scale, which can result in the misidentification of the underlying processes. Here, we addressed the multi-scale nature of wildlife damage occurrence by considering ecological and management correlates interacting from household to landscape scales. We studied brown bear (
Ursus arctos
) damage to apiaries in the North-eastern Carpathians as our model system. Using generalized additive models, we found that brown bear tendency to avoid humans and the habitat preferences of bears and beekeepers determine the risk of bear damage at multiple scales. Damage risk at fine scales increased when the broad landscape context also favoured damage. Furthermore, integrated-scale risk maps resulted in more accurate predictions than single-scale models. Our results suggest that principles of resource selection by animals can be used to understand the occurrence of damage and help mitigate conflicts in a proactive and preventive manner.
Understanding how the relationships between large carnivores and humans have evolved and have been managed through centuries can provide relevant insights for wildlife conservation. The management ...history of many large carnivores has followed a sim ilarpattern from game reservedfor nobility persecuted to pests, to conservation targets. We reconstructed the history of brown bear (Ursus arctos) management in Białowieza Forest (Poland and Belarus) based on a detailed survey of historical literature and Russian archives. From the end of the Middle Ages to the end of 18th century the brown bear was considered "animalia superiora" (i.e. game exclusively reserved for nobility and protected by law). Bears, also a source of public entertainment, were not regarded as a threat. Effective measures to prevent damages to traditional forest beekeeping were already in practice. In the beginning of 19th century, new game-management approaches allowed most forest officials to hunt bears, which became the prim ary target of hunters due to their valuable pelt. This, together with an effective anticamivore policy enhanced by bounties to bear extirpation in led 1879. Different aPProaches to scientific game management appeared (planned extermination of predators and hunting levels that would maintain stable populations), as did the first initiatives to protect bears from as cruel treatment in captivity. Bear reintroduction in Biatowieza Forest began in 1937 and represented the world's first reintroduction of a large carnivore motivated by conservation goals. The outbreak of World War II spoiled what might have been a successful project; reproduction in the wild was documented for 8 years and bear presence for 13. Soft release of cubs bom in captivity inside the forest but freely roaming with m inim al human contact proved successful Release of captive human-habituated bears, feeding of these bears, and a lack of involvement of local communities were weaknesses of the project. Large carnivores are key components of ecosystem-function restoration, and site-specific histories provide important lessons in how to preserve them for the future. Entender cómo las relaciones entre los grandes carnívoros y los humanos han evolucionado y han sido manejadas durante siglos puede proporcionar conocimientos para la conservación de la fauna silvestre. La historia del manejo de muchos carnívoros mayores ha seguido un patrón similar desde ser presa reservada para la nobleza luego plagas perseguidas, hasta ser objetivos de conservación. Reconstruimos la historia del manejo del oso pardo (Ursus arctos) en el bosque de Białowieża (Polonia y Bielorrusia) en base a una revisión detallada de la literatura histórica y archivos rusos. Desdefinales de la Edad Media hasta el fin del siglo XVIII, el oso pardo fue considerado "animalia superiora" (es decir, presa reservada exclusivamente para la nobleza y protegida por la ley). Los osos, también vistos como una fuente de entretenimiento no estaban considerados como una amenaza. En esos tiempos ya estaban en práctica medidas efectivas para prevenir daños a la apicultura tradicional en el bosque. A principios del siglo XIX nuevas estrategias de las manejo de presas permitieron que la mayoría de los oficiales del bosque cazaran osos, los cuales se volvieron elprincipal objetivo de los cazadores por su valiosa piel. Esto, junto con una efectiva política anticamívoros promovida por recompensas ofrecidas llevó a la exterminación de los osos en 1879. Aparecieron estrategias diferentes para el manejo científico de las presas (exterminación planeada de depredadores y niveles de caza que mantendrían poblaciones estables) así como las primeras iniciativas para proteger a los osos del trato cruel que recibían en cautiverio. La reintroducción de osos en el bosque de Biaiowieża comenzó en 1937 y representó la primera reintroducción en el mundo de un gran carnívoro motivada por objetivos de conservación. El inicio de la Segunda Guerra M undial arruinó lo que pudo haber sido un proyecto exitoso; la reproducción en vida Ubre fue documentada durante ocho años y la presencia de osos durante 13. La liberación moderada de oseznos nacidos en cautiverio pero deambulando libremente con el mínim o contacto humano resultó ser exitosa. La liberación de osos cautivos acostumbrados al humano, la alimentación de estos osos, y una falta de participación por las comunidades locales fueron los puntos débiles del proyecto. Los grandes carnívoros son componentes claves de la restauración de la función de los ecosistemas, y la historia de sitios específicos proporciona lecciones importantes sobre cómo preservar a los carnívoros para el futuro. 了解几个世纪以来大型食肉动物与人类关系的演变和管理，能为我们保护野生生物提供有益的见解。许 多大型食肉动物的管理都经历过类似的模式，从贵族的猎物，到受迫害的有害动物，再到成为保护的対象。基于 对历史文献和俄罗斯档案的详细调查，我们重建了波兰和白俄罗斯比亚沃维耶扎森林棕熊的管理历史。从中世 纪末期到十八世纪末期，稼靡被认为是animaliasiiperiora (即专供贵族狩猎并受到法律保护的动物)。它们还被 视作ー种公众娱乐资源，而不是ー种威胁。当时巳实行有效措施以避免棕熊破坏传统的森林养蜂业。十九世纪 初，新的狩猎管理办法允许大多数森林管理者猎杀棕熊，棕熊也因其珍贵的皮毛成为狩猎者的主要目标。狩猎, 加之以赏金推动的反食肉动物政策的施行，导致棕熊在1879年灭绝。后来出现了不同的科学狩猎管理方法（W 计划地消灭捕食者和以维持稳定种群为限的猎杀水平) ，类似于第一次保护圈养棕熊不受虐待的管理行动。棕 熊重引入比亚沃维耶扎森林的计划始于1937年，是世界上第一个以保护为目标的食肉动物重引入计划。第二次 世界大战的爆发, 破坏了这一本可能成功的计划; 计划实施期间有8年记录到棕熊在野外繁殖，有13年记录到有 棕熊存活。圈养出生幼熊的软释放被证明是成功的，在保持与人类最低接触限度的情況下幼崽可以在森林里自 由活动。而这个项目的不足在于被人类惯养的圈养棕熊的释放、对它们的喂养以及缺少当地社区的参与。大 型食肉动物是生态系统功能恢复的关键组成，而特定地点的历史可以为未来如何保护它们提供重要经验教训。
Time can be a limiting constraint for consumers, particularly when resource phenology mediates foraging opportunity. Though a large body of research has explored how resource phenology influences ...trophic interactions, this work has focused on the topics of trophic mismatch or predator swamping, which typically occur over short periods, at small spatial extents or coarse resolutions. In contrast many consumers integrate across landscape heterogeneity in resource phenology, moving to track ephemeral food sources that propagate across space as resource waves. Here we provide a conceptual framework to advance the study of phenological diversity and resource waves. We define resource waves, review evidence of their importance in recent case studies, and demonstrate their broader ecological significance with a simulation model. We found that consumers ranging from fig wasps (Chalcidoidea) to grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) exploit resource waves, integrating across phenological diversity to make resource aggregates available for much longer than their component parts. In model simulations, phenological diversity was often more important to consumer energy gain than resource abundance per se. Current ecosystem‐based management assumes that species abundance mediates the strength of trophic interactions. Our results challenge this assumption and highlight new opportunities for conservation and management. Resource waves are an emergent property of consumer–resource interactions and are broadly significant in ecology and conservation.
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