Anthropogenic-source habitat fragmentation leads to increased habitat edge in the environment, with potential negative consequences for wildlife. We examine the influence of increased edge on a ground nesting bird of conservation concern, the hen harrier Circus cyaneus. Using eight years of data collected in the Slieve Bloom Mountains Special Protection Area, central Ireland, and an average breeding population of ten pairs, we investigate how habitat fragmentation and edge influences hen harrier nest site selection, breeding success and productivity. We also used a deterministic population matrix model to assess population breeding trends and to simulate population growth rate responses to increased habitat edge by varying demographic parameters such as productivity and juvenile survival. Our results show that habitat edge had a significant effect on nest site selection, breeding success and productivity. Hen harriers were more likely to nest in areas of high edge/area ratio, but this was associated with lower breeding success and productivity, suggesting a possible ecological trap. This mismatch between nest site selection and breeding output may be linked to this species' high reproductive site fidelity. Our population matrix indicated a population increase, whereas population monitoring indicates population stability. Our simulations suggest that increased edge will have a negative effect on population growth rate, providing a greater understanding of the relationship between hen harrier population trends and changing habitat configuration. These results highlight the importance of contiguous habitats and the need for appropriate land use management in protected upland areas for breeding raptors. Minimising habitat fragmentation and forest edge to create larger blocks of uniform peatland habitat should be an integral part of the conservation management of hen harrier breeding areas both in Ireland and in similar breeding habitats such as those in Britain.

Changes in the abundance of one prey species may indirectly affect other prey species by triggering responses in generalist predators. Here we examine relationships between two prey species that do not compete directly, the field vole Microtus agrestis, a common rodent with fluctuating populations, and the red grouse Lagopus lagopus scotica, a gamebird inhabiting open moorland, during a 27-year study on a moor in south-west Scotland. First, we test whether vole abundance was related to grouse density and demographic rates. Second, we test whether vole abundance was related to abundance indices of four common predators of both voles and grouse (red fox Vulpes vulpes, weasel Mustela nivalis, hen harrier Circus cyaneus and common buzzard Buteo buteo). Third, we test whether these vole–grouse and vole–predator relationships differ in relation to grouse management, which includes the culling of foxes and weasels. We found no association between vole abundance and grouse densities, adult summer survival or nesting success. However, the ratio of young grouse per adult and the proportion of female grouse with broods in July were negatively associated with field vole abundance, suggesting increased predation of grouse chicks in years with high vole abundance. Fox indices showed a weak positive association with vole abundance when their numbers were not controlled, whilst weasel indices showed no relationship with voles. The numbers of breeding hen harriers and buzzards were also not associated with vole abundance, but the number of buzzard sightings was higher when voles were more plentiful. Our results are consistent with a negative interaction between field voles and red grouse chick survival in a pattern expected for apparent competition. Although the underlying mechanisms could not be disentangled, this interaction may be at least partly mediated by rodent-hunting raptors such as buzzards and, in periods without grouse management, foxes.

Harvest limits are an important component of wildlife management but evaluating whether realized harvest rates are close to established regulations is often not done in practice. Also, managers typically only partially control harvest rates via changes to metrics such as season length and hunting party size, but the relationships between these proxies and harvest rate are often unknown. We studied a population of northern bobwhite Colinus virginianus over a three-year period to estimate harvest, survival and relationships between harvest rate and proxies of hunting pressure. We captured and marked bobwhite with only bands (n = 479) or bands and radio-transmitters (n = 592). We monitored radio-marked individuals weekly until radio failure, lost signal or death. A comparison of annual survival rates indicated birds marked with only bands survived at similar rates (14.5%, 95% CI: 7.6, 21.4%) compared to those marked with both bands and radio-transmitters (10.6%, 95% CI: 7.9, 13.3%). A cumulative incidence function for cause-specific mortality produced an annual harvest rate estimate of 12.0% (95% CI: 8.6, 15.4%). However, this estimate was likely negatively biased in the presence of undocumented crippling loss. We also derived a 14.4% annual harvest rate using average observed levels of hunting pressure and a joint live–dead model that was not dependent on classification of mortality sources. We predicted annual harvest rates over a range of population sizes and hunting pressures to inform managers of possible thresholds to target. Hunting pressure was an important predictor of harvest rate. For instance, we estimated that adding approximately two more hunters per week would push seasonal harvest rates past the targeted harvest threshold, indicating managers should carefully regulate hunting pressure to avoid exceeding set harvest limits. Estimating relationships between weekly survival and hunting pressure can provide information to evaluate different management scenarios and help develop hunting regulations.

Mountain hares Lepus timidus, incorporating the subspecies L. t. varronis, L. t. hibernicus and L. t. scoticus, have declined in range throughout continental Europe where they face pressures from climate-change, competition and land-management. In Scotland, the absence of a national monitoring scheme, including mandatory reporting of hunting records, means that producing robust estimates of mountain hare population trends is difficult. We repeated questionnaire surveys conducted in 1995/1996 and 2006/2007 to assess the 2016/2017 distribution and hunting records of mountain hares in Scotland and describe regional changes in their distribution over a 20-year period in relation to management for red grouse Lagopus lagopus scotica shooting. Comparisons of areas covered in all surveys indicated no net change in the area of Scotland occupied by mountain hares, but within that we found changes in range between regions and sites of differing grouse management intensity. Between 1995/1996 and 2016/2017, range contractions in southern Scotland contrasted with no changes in north-–east Scotland. In north-west Scotland range expanded by 61% in areas practicing driven grouse shooting, declined by 57% in areas practicing walked-up grouse shooting and remained low and stable in areas which did not shoot grouse. A total of 33 582 mountain hares were killed in 2016/2017 representing a 71% and 48% increase from 1995/1996 and 2006/2007 respectively. However, the average kill density in 2016/2017 (12.4 ± 3.3 hares km–²) was comparable to 2006/2007 (10.8 ± 3.0 km–²) and we found no relationship between kill density and contractions in range. Despite increases in numbers of mountain hares killed over the last 20 years, it appears that range contraction may be attributed to factors other than culling, such as changes in habitat and management. Disentangling these factors should be the focus of future research.

Investigating how and why the life history and demographic traits of a species vary across its range is fundamental to understand its evolution and population ecology and then develop sustainable management recommendations. At the margins of a species' distribution range, populations are expected to exhibit a slower pace of life than in core areas, making them less able to withstand pressures that impact survival. To explore these questions, we estimated age and sex-dependent seasonal survival probabilities using 305 radio-tagged birds monitored over a 18-year period in two alpine rock ptarmigan populations at the southern limit of their distribution, one in the Alps and one in the Pyrenees. We also estimated fecundity of both populations and then conducted sensitivity analysis as well as population viability analyses using deterministic and stochastic population models. Annual survival probability was high in both populations (0.65 for adults and 0.60 for juveniles), but reproductive success was much lower in the Alps (0.55 chicks per hen in the Alps vs 1.19 in the Pyrenees). The results showed that adult survival was the most sensitive demographic parameter. While population in the Pyrenees was stable (λ=1.01; 0.87–1.16), the other in the Alps appeared to be strongly declining (λ=0.81; 0.72–0.91) and this difference was clearly driven by differences of fecundity. While our findings confirm that our peripheral populations are associated with a slower pace of life, they present the particularity to be situated both at the edge and at high altitude. A more systematic study of peripheral population at higher latitude or on island may provide new insight on inter-pop variations of pace of life that would be useful for manager of these cold-adapted species. Key-words: Life history traits, demography, matrix model, telemetry, population viability analysis, age-class survival, fecundity.

Natural or anthropogenic disturbances (stimuli that trigger a behavioural response from animals) can have direct consequences on fitness and population trends. This study aimed at investigating the relative influence of three types of disturbances (mammalian herbivores, terrestrial threats from ground predators and aerial threats) on the responses by waterbirds at waterpans in Hwange National Park (HNP, Zimbabwe) and adjacent land uses. Thirteen waterpans were monitored during daylight hours between years 2015 and 2017 and responses of waterbirds to the three forms of disturbances were recorded. Logistic regressions revealed that the likelihood of responding was highest after terrestrial threats; with individuals/groups that were initially engaged in non-feeding activities that allowed vigilance, responding the most. Wildfowl species spent significantly longer time flying (compared to waders and generalists), more so in communal areas (CAs) than HNP, and after terrestrial threats compared to aerial threats and herbivore disturbances. We did not find any differences in probability of responding across land uses probably because there is less human disturbance in HNP, but predation risk is high. Further, even though there are less terrestrial predators in CAs, domestic dogs may be maintaining the stimuli. We conclude that terrestrial threats are least tolerated, with species most susceptible to human predation (i.e. wildfowl) losing more time avoiding them. Interestingly, only acute aerial threats induced departure from waterpans. Our findings have a direct implication for waterbird conservation as herbivore and human density in this area are currently increasing.

Climate change and human population growth have increased anthropogenic threats to biodiversity and habitat fragmentation. Ecologists and conservationists need tools to assess the effect of these ecological and environmental perturbations on organismal fitness. One possibility is glucocorticoids (e.g. cortisol and corticosterone) which integrate various factors such as anthropogenic disturbances, predation, food or environmental stressors. Here we tested the hypothesis that fecal glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations (GCMs) in wild female elk Cervus canadensis increased as the hunting season progressed. We also examined the influence of year, food availability and elk group size on fecal GCMs. We found that as the hunting season progressed, fecal GCMs tended to decrease. We also found that as the number of cows in a group increased, GCMs decreased and found a strong effect of year on fecal GCMs, with samples collected in 2016 having lower fecal GCMs than those collected in 2015, 2017 and 2018. However, yearly variation was not driven by availability of hard mast forage. The association between hunting pressure and fecal GCMs and identifying what is driving yearly variation in fecal GCMs warrants further study. We highlight the negative influence of group size, possibly due to vigilance, on fecal GCMs and the importance of examining ecologically relevant covariates to accurately identify main treatment effects.

Many wildlife populations are experiencing a variety of environmental pressures due to the direct and indirect consequences of a changing climate. In the northeast, USA, moose Alces alces are declining in large part because of the increasing parasitism by winter tick Dermacentor albipictus, facilitated by high host density and optimal environmental conditions. To test this hypothesis, and better understand the influence of this interaction on the stability of the regional population, we constructed a population viability model using data collected through comprehensive survival and productivity studies in 2002–2005 and 2014–2018 in northern New Hampshire. Years of heavy tick infestation (epizootics) saw a marked reduction in calf survival (< 50%), adult calving (< 60%), twinning rate (< 5%) and complete loss of yearling productivity. We conducted population viability analysis using VORTEX ver. 10.2 to model this moose population for 40 years using mean demographics from both time periods, including environmental variation measured in the field during winter tick epizootic (2002, 2014, 2015, 2016) and non-epizootic (2003, 2004, 2005, 2017) years. This exercise highlights the influence of winter tick infestation on the trajectory of the population with the potential for rapid population growth or decline depending on the frequency of epizootics. We suggest a shift in moose management strategy focused on lowering moose density, assuming continued influence of climate change on the host–parasite relationship.

A tradeoff between forage acquisition and predation avoidance contributes to shape space use by herbivores. The manipulation of structural components of the habitat, such as forage and forest cover may alter this tradeoff. The idea of influencing space use of herbivores is appealing for wildlife managers that aim to locally modify herbivore densities and increase their vulnerability to hunting. We attempted to manipulate the tradeoff between forage acquisition and risk avoidance of white-tailed deer Odocoileus virginianus on Anticosti Island (Québec, Canada) using experimental hunting fields varying in forage production (fertilized or unfertilized fields) and residual forest cover (30 or 60-m-wide forested strips between fields). In this system with high deer density, no natural predator and limited forage, fecal group surveys and camera traps demonstrated greater use of fertilized fields. Residual forest cover did not impact habitat use, suggesting that use of the experimental fields was mainly driven by the benefits of foraging compared to the costs of avoiding hunters. Deer vulnerability to hunting, however, differed with residual forest cover: hunters saw more deer per hour in fields separated by 30-m-wide forested strips compared to fields separated by 60-m-wide forested strips. That hunters did not detect the difference in deer use between fertilized and unfertilized fields suggests that deer vulnerability to hunting and deer use could be modified by different structural components of the habitat. Our results provide useful insights for wildlife managers that have to deal with conflicting goals such as maintaining hunter satisfaction with high observation rates of deer while reducing the negative impacts of high deer densities on their body condition and, on the composition and structure of forests.

The meadow viper Vipera ursinii includes four subspecies with five allopatric areas of distribution in Europe. It is currently considered one of the most threatened reptile species on the continent, mainly because of its patchy distribution and concurrent habitat loss. Taking advantage of a database composed of occurrence data from bibliographical sources and field observations, we present the first European-scale assessment of the historical knowledge and chronogeonemy of this species. In addition, we evaluate the habitat use and coverage of protected areas with regard to both actual occurrences and modelled potentially suitable areas. This was done for Vipera ursinii s.l. as well as for each of the four subspecies. Our results show different patterns of historical knowledge as well as different degrees of legal protection, depending on the country and subspecies considered. Furthermore, most of the occurrences are from habitats which are classified as vulnerable. A gap analysis reveals an inadequate protection status for modelled areas of potential suitability and a heterogeneous coverage of protected areas, again depending on the subspecies considered. Our findings assist towards a more focused conservation management of all V. ursinii subspecies in the next future, which could take place by connecting landscape-scale research with field studies to update management strategies of protected areas. For these latter, Europe-wide coordinated actions are required to promote plans targeting the same conservation goals.

Alaska moose (Alces alces) hunters have expressed concern that harvest has been challenged by warmer temperatures altering moose behavior and low water levels limiting boat access to hunting areas. The environmental impacts of these changes on moose harvest have not been quantified and are not well understood. Our objective was to assess how environmental conditions impact hunter harvest in Interior Alaska from 2000-2016. We split hunters into categories (local or non-local) and analyzed relationships during 5-day blocks that spanned the moose hunting season. The local harvest model associated high water level with increased harvest during block 4 (peak-harvest) of the hunting season (p = 0.006). A water level increase of 1 m increased daily harvest by 1.5 (p = 0.003). Non-local harvest was significantly different than null models for block 2 (p = 0.001), 3 (p = 0.048), and 4 (p = 0.001), and nearly in block 5 (p = 0.063). The non-local harvest model associated an increase in mean high temperature with reduced harvest in block 2 (p = 0.004) and block 5 (p = 0.037), and an increase in water level with increased harvest in block 3 (p = 0.083), 4 (p = 0.017), and block 5 (p = 0.092). These results reveal that local and non-local hunters are impacted differently by environmental conditions throughout the hunting season. We provided quantitative information on previously untested hypotheses regarding the impacts of dynamic environmental conditions on moose hunter harvest. Our findings provide wildlife managers with new insight on causes of variation in harvest among different user groups.

Biased sampling could affect the results due to the pseudoreplication from the same animal and the spatial heterogeneity of food distribution although sampling methods are not always well discussed in studies of fecal analysis for animal food habits. We investigated the effects of biased sampling in sample size, collection site and its surrounding environment on the fecal analysis using the point frame (%PF) and the frequency of occurrence (%FO) methods of island raccoon dogs Nyctereutes procyonoides, which are opportunistic in food habits and defecate at fixed latrines. Our analyses showed that when the sample size was <30 and <50 in %PF and %FO, respectively, a significant bias was observed, and if the fecal sampling environment was restricted to the inland area, a significant bias occurred even if the sample size was <50 and <70 in %PF and %FO, respectively. If the sampling point was restricted to a specific latrine or the seashore, a significant bias in the dietary analysis could not be eliminated even if the sample size was artificially increased to 100. To avoid biases, spatially biased sampling to collect many feces from a specific latrine should be avoided. It seemed necessary to collect ≥30 and ≥40 fecal samples in %PF and %FO, respectively, from different latrines.

Dogs Canis lupus familiaris are increasingly being used in wildlife conservation studies, due to their extensive ofactory capabilities. Dogs are a useful tool for species detection, species discrimination (or subspecies), and scent-matching of individuals within a species. Scent-matching can reduce or eliminate the need for expensive genotyping of obtained biological samples. We investigated the potential use of dogs to scent-match individual Eurasian beavers Castor fiber via anal gland secretion (AGS) samples, in 30 double blind floor platform experiments. We hypothesised that dogs can scent-match individual beavers when presented with AGS from different beavers of both sexes. We showed that dogs were able to scent-match individual beavers with average accuracy of 88.9%, sensitivity of 66.7% and specificity of 93.3%. Our results suggest that scent-matching dogs may be used as a reliable additional method to DNA analysing of biological samples to improve accuracy of individual beaver detection, and a better alternative than live-trapping/capturing in monitoring of specific beavers in e.g. a reintroduction project.

Although extensive research has been conducted on a variety of factors that influence wildlife harvest rates, few studies have quantified the impact of weather on harvest success. As global warming continues to contribute to unprecedented changes in local weather regimes, particularly in arctic and alpine ecosystems, understanding how these changes impact human–wildlife interactions will become increasingly important and relevant for wildlife managers. Therefore, we used a long-term dataset (1999–2015) on Dall's sheep Ovis dalli dalli, an alpine species in Alaska, USA, as a case study to explore how changes in local daily weather has affected hunter harvest success. We used generalized linear mixed models to estimate relationships between daily harvest count and weather variables using three separate models; all hunters, resident hunters and non-resident hunters. Weather variables included daily mean relative humidity, precipitation, air temperature and wind speed. For our model including all hunters, which excluded wind, we estimated that a mean increase in relative humidity, precipitation and temperature from one day to the next resulted in an 11.7, 4.3 and 2.9% decrease in daily harvest, respectively. The effect of relative humidity influenced harvest count two to three times more than all other weather variables across models. This study contributes to a limited body of knowledge on quantifying the impact of weather on harvest success and about how changes in weather affect hunter and wildlife behavior. Advancing knowledge on how weather influences variation in harvest may facilitate effective strategies for adapting hunting regulations to meet harvest and population goals.

The American common eider Somateria mollissima dresseri is a sea duck of coastal mid-Atlantic North America, and breeding colonies in the southern part of its range have been in decline. To better understand threats faced by the subspecies, we used satellite telemetry to track 46 eiders through their annual cycle in four years from three regions in the southern part of the range, to identify key locations and migratory corridors. Female eiders exhibited highly variable movement phenology within and among colonies, but coastal Maine and Massachusetts were consistent, important moulting areas for males and females from all breeding colonies. Most birds wintered in coastal waters around Cape Cod and Nantucket Sound, meaning that threats in this region (industrial development, disease outbreak, harvest) could have deleterious effects on much of the population.

Manned, aerial surveys are an important tool for wildlife managers, but they are dangerous to conduct, expensive and difficult to replicate. Interest is increasing in using small unmanned aerial systems [sUAS] due to concerns associated with traditional manned, aerial surveys. To assess the potential of sUAS technology for grouse lek surveys, we examined the behavioral response of sharp-tailed grouse Tympanucus phasianellus to a quadcopter sUAS platform in the Northern Great Plains. We conducted 43 surveys at 19 leks between 9 April and 3 May in 2018 and 2019. We found altitude and wind speed were informative at explaining the behavioral response of grouse following sUAS exposure. We observed an increase in flush responses during low altitude surveys (≤30 m above ground level) during periods of low to high wind speeds. In contrast, flush responses were mitigated when survey altitude increased to 121 m above ground level with moderate wind speeds. Further investigation into sUAS for lek surveys should explore altitudes >121 m above ground level, using more advanced sUAS platforms.

Gene flow between the two brown bear Ursus arctos populations of Fennoscandia is very weak although bear populations both in Finland and Scandinavia has been increasing substantially during the last 50 years. We examined spatial and temporal pattern in the proportion of adult females in Finland's bear population. First, we expected evidence for decreasing female proportions with increasing distance from the potential core areas in Russia and near Finnish–Russian border. Secondly, we expected increasing proportions of females during our study period of 21 years, i.e. two brown bear generations. We conducted a logistic mixed effects model that would predict a hunter-killed bear's sex based on year, the distance from the source population (Finnish–Russian border), bear management area and bear's age group (adult, sub-adult) as independent variables. Geographic coordinates were used to reduce the apparent spatial autocorrelation. Because female bears form kin clusters, in the final model we used exponential spatial autocorrelation, based on the assumption that the probability of a dead bear being a female increased when the nearest dead bear also was a female. The model demonstrated that the population's population structure did not change spatially during our study period. The only differentiating variables were bear management area and age group, the probability of females being low in reindeer husbandry area, and males predominating among subadults. Because the low proportion of females in Finland's reindeer husbandry area may weaken meta-population viability in Fennoscandia, bear management in northern Finland should save females more efficiently.

The wolf Canis lupus population occupying the lowlands of central Europe is divided into two management units: the Baltic population east of the Vistula river and the Central European population to the west. We re-evaluated arguments for this division in the context of the ongoing wolf recovery and its usefulness for wolf management in Poland. To do so, we 1) compared the recovery stage on each side of the Vistula, 2) investigated the history of wolf occurrence in western Poland after the eradication campaign of 1955–1975, 3) evaluated dispersal corridors, dispersal distances and genetic data for evidence of a possible isolation of the two alleged populations and 4) compared habitat characteristics in Poland on each side of the Vistula.

The total area of forest occupied by wolves was 56 600 km² in 2015 and grew by 5340 km2 until June 2017. Wolves in eastern Poland occurred in more areas than predicted by a habitat model, whereas wolves in the west have not yet recolonized all suitable habitats. Wolves have never been extinct west of the Vistula after the eradication campaign, but their recovery started only in the 1980s. Areas currently occupied by wolves on both sides of the Vistula are interconnected by dispersal corridors less than 100 km long, and population genetic studies show that wolves inhabiting the Polish lowlands constitute one genetic cluster. The wolf habitats west of the Vistula have a higher proportion of forests are less fragmented. We conclude that wolves inhabiting the lowlands on both sides of the Vistula river belong to the same population, have similar conservation status, and should be treated as the same management unit.

Group living is an important behavioral feature in some species of mammals, although somewhat uncommon in the Order Carnivora. Wolves Canis lupus are highly social and cooperative carnivores that live in family groups, i.e. packs. The number of wolves in a pack affects social, reproductive and predatory behavior, thus conditioning population dynamics. Despite its relevance to management decisions, pack size has not been thoroughly studied in populations inhabiting human dominated landscapes such as the Iberian Peninsula. We estimated variation of wolf pack size from 1990 to 2018 in northern Spain, both in winter and summer. Winter data corresponded to direct observations and snow tracking at 42 localities (n = 253 data, 160 pack-years), whereas summer data corresponded to observations at rendezvous sites at 22 localities (n = 237 data, 43 pack-years). We estimated average pack size from the largest number of wolves recorded at each locality and year. Winter pack size averaged 4.2 ± 1.7 (mean ± SD) individuals. At summer rendezvous sites adult/subadult wolves (older than one year) averaged 3.1 ± 1.3 individuals, whereas pups averaged 4.0 ± 1.9. Generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) showed that pack size declined through the winter from 4.9 (4.2–5.6, 95% CI) wolves in November to 3.8 (2.9–4.9, 95% CI) wolves in April. We found no trend in pack size, neither in winter nor in summer. We discuss our results compared with other studies and populations worldwide, and its usefulness to comprehend the dynamics of this vulnerable population.

Increased postnatal leveret mortality has been identified as the proximate factor explaining the decline of European brown hare Lepus europaeus populations in Europe. However, direct measurements of survival rates are non-existent as the leveret's cryptic behaviour makes them very difficult to study. Previously, leveret survival rates calculated using hunting bag statistics or capture–mark–recapture methods have been estimated to lie between 5% and 56% for the period between the start (January) and the end (October) of the breeding season. Such indirect approaches are known to yield inaccurate results compared to direct survival measurements. Hence, we applied novel detection methods and radio-tagged 63 wild-born leverets (aged between 1 and 22 days at capture) in two different populations in the Swiss lowlands. We located the tagged individuals daily to monitor individual fates and to directly calculate survival probabilities. We found that leveret survival is negatively influenced by precipitation. However, when leverets use edge habitats, survival is positively influenced. Daily survival rate and survival probability for the first month of life were found to be 0.94 and 0.18 respectively. Such low survival is alarming and to prevent further declines in populations of brown hares, it will be essential to mitigate against these excessive losses. Therefore, we suggest measures aimed at increasing the area of suitable habitat for leverets, where they can grow up safely (e.g. shelter from predators and bad weather).

Delays in waterfowl autumn migration have been widely reported by hunters and ornithologists throughout North America. The implications of such delays are vast, with potential effects on the efficacy of population management, reduced social and economic opportunities, and reduced resource availability by overuse and over-grazing in key staging areas. In this study, we tested for changes in autumn migration timing for six abundant species of dabbling ducks in southern Ontario, Canada. We applied generalized linear mixed models to test for effects of year and climate indices El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) on the Julian date of peak abundance as observed during aerial surveys conducted throughout the lower Great Lakes. Our analyses revealed delays of 11–18 days between 1968 and 2011 for four of six focal species: mallard, American black duck, American wigeon and gadwall. La Niña and El Niño events had no effect on migration timing for American black duck, American green-winged teal or American wigeon, while an increase in the annual NAO index resulted in a delayed migration for American wigeon. There was an NAO:ENSO interaction for mallard and gadwall migration; an increase in NAO advanced peak migration dates during La Niña events. However, an increase in NAO delayed migration for gadwall during the neutral phase of the ENSO and delayed migration for both species during El Niño events. Blue-winged teal and American green-winged teal showed no change in migration timing. Given that climate forecasts indicate continued positive-value phases, the autumn migrations for mallard, American black duck, gadwall and American wigeon may become increasingly delayed. Wildlife managers should use all available data, including from standardized aerial surveys, citizen science and climate models to inform and direct adaptive population management, hunting regulations, wildlife emergency response and habitat conservation.

We tested the possibility and feasibility of assembling Arduino GPS trackers without previous engineering experience and modified them for upland game birds under extreme environmental conditions. Low-cost GPS trackers were assembled and deployed on ring-necked pheasants Phasianus colchicus in conjunction with an ongoing winter survival study. To assess GPS receiver accuracy, we deployed trackers in a static test. The static test fix rate was 1.0, median error was 2.5 m and mean error was 13.3 m (SD = 39.5). During the mobile test, wild pheasants were captured using walk-in funnel traps baited with corn from January to March 2019. During winter, 407 VHF locations and 1574 GPS locations of 35 individuals were collected, resulting in a 287% increase in data density at only 23% increase in cost. The fix rate during the mobile test averaged to 0.83. To determine if trackers were low-cost, we calculated cumulative costs of equipment and supplies required to recreate the GPS tracking unit. GPS costs were $47.60 per unit with an additional $202.00 for the supplemental VHF transmitter.

We investigated the occurrence and diet of two sympatric mongoose species; the small Indian mongoose Urva auropunctatus and the grey mongoose Herpestes edwardsii inhabiting Margalla Hills National Park, Islamabad, Pakistan. The two species occurred in the park at elevations between 537 m and 1363 m a.s.l., with the grey mongoose occurring at higher elevations than the small Indian mongoose. Out of 23 sites sampled, only three were common to both mongoose species. The diet of mongooses, determined through food remains in scats, comprised of small mammals (rodents, shrews), insects, birds, reptiles and seeds and fruits. Rodents were the most frequently-consumed prey species of both mongooses during summer and winter, whereas insects were consumed more frequently during the summer. The small Indian mongoose showed a wider niche breadth than the grey mongoose, but the overall dietary overlap between the two mongoose species was high with a value of 0.93. Our results support the idea that these sympatric mongoose species may reduce interspecific competition for food with each other through spatial adjustments in their habitat use.

Sharp-tailed grouse occur across much of the northern Great Plains of North America where large grassland tracts remain. Though extirpated from areas within the Great Plains, primarily due to habitat loss, sharp-tailed grouse populations have remained relatively stable since European Settlement. Because of their need for large contiguous grasslands, sharp-tailed grouse typically occur in areas managed for or with cattle. In an effort to better understand how land management affects sharp-tailed grouse, we studied hen sharp-tailed grouse during the brooding season to identify habitat use and factors that influenced the daily survival rate of broods. We conducted our study on the Grand River National Grassland in South Dakota where cattle herbivory is the primary form of disturbance. We monitored 42 broods from 2013 to 2015. Using conditional logistic regression, we found brood-rearing hens used areas based on the distance to the nearest drainage and choose sites with less litter cover and bare ground relative to random sites at a microhabitat scale. Variables associated with variation in survival did not align with those shown to influence habitat selection. We found that brood survival decreased as the relative slope of a site increased and that survival increased as the distance a hen kept her chicks from a fence line also increased. At the microhabitat scale, survival was positively related to visual obstruction and vegetation height. Our findings demonstrate the importance of numerous variables across multiple scales to brood-rearing sharp-tailed grouse. Managers of grouse populations should manage for heterogeneity, as many factors appear to shape sharp-tailed grouse brood ecology in the Great Plains.

Bat activity surveys are essential in the contexts of scientific research, conservation, assessment of ecosystem health, monitoring progress towards sustainable development goals, and legislative compliance in development and infrastructure construction. However, environmental conditions have the potential to influence bat activity and, in turn, their detectability in acoustic surveys. Here we use 3242 hours of acoustic survey data from 323 nights of bat monitoring at 14 sites over a 4-year period to explore the influence of spatiotemporal factors, lunar phase and weather conditions on bat activity. All spatiotemporal and abiotic factors analysed (site, hour post sunset, length of night, duration of moonlight, temperature, rain, wind and cloud cover) contributed to the optimal multivariate model for at least one bat species/genus; all factors except cloud cover and temperature were significant in the optimal model for total bat activity. However, there were notable species-specific differences. Among the key findings were differences between Pipistrellus species, with periods of rainfall being negatively related to soprano pipistrelle Pipistrellus pygmaeus registrations but not those of common pipistrelle Pipistrellus pipistrellus. In addition, overcast conditions showed a strong positive relationship with the number of Myotis registrations while duration of moonlight was positively correlated with common pipistrelle. Temperature was only important for Nyctalus species. These findings demonstrate that understanding the effect multifaceted and interlinked environmental factors on the activity of different bat species is a vital step in developing maximally effective survey protocols, which, in turn, will improve the reliability of conservation and planning decisions underpinned by survey data.

COVID-19 pandemic has threatened millions of human lives and devastated social and economic conditions globally. This pandemic also threatens wildlife, particularly fragile populations. Many news and rumors linking COVID-19 with wildlife have flooded in early phase of pandemic, which has impacted the conservation in long run. Understanding the unexpected threats posed by COVID-19 is crucial to preserving such animals. Negative perception towards wildlife, financial uncertainty for conservation activities, and increase pressure on poaching and illegal killing of animals would be new challenges due to this pandemic. Educating people on how disease could transfer from wildlife to human and tackling COVID-19 rumors against wild animals are necessary in this situation.

Survey data improve population management, yet those data often have associated bias. We quantified one source of bias in moose survey data (observer detection probability, p), by using repeated ground-observations of calves-at-heel of radio-collared moose in Colorado, USA. Detection probabilities, which varied both spatially and temporally, were estimated using an occupancy-modelling framework. We provide an efficient offset for modelled calf-at-heel occupancy (ψ) estimates that accommodates summer calf mortality. Detection probabilities were most efficiently modelled with seasonal variation, with the lowest probability of detecting calves-at-heel occurring during parturition (i.e. May) and later autumn periods (after August). Our most efficiently modelled detection probability estimate for summer was 0.80 (SE = 0.05). During the four years of this study, ψ estimates ranged from 0.54–0.84 (SE = 0.08–0.11). Accounting for 91.7% monthly calf survival corrected ψ estimates downward (ψ = 0.42–0.65). Our results suggest that repeated ground-based observations of individual cow moose, during summer months, can be can a cost-effective strategy for estimating a productivity parameter for moose. Ground survey results can be further improved by accounting for calf mortality.