Winter attendance patterns of lactating Steller sea lions Eumetopias jubatus and their offspring were recorded during the late stages of nursing when the young were expected to move from milk to independent foraging. Trip duration and nursing visits to shore by 24 mothers with pups (7±9 months old) and six mothers with yearlings (19±21 months old) were noted during 600 h of observations (from 22 January to 1 April 1996) at a non-breeding haulout site in south-eastern Alaska. Pups and yearlings tended to stay on or near the haulout while their mothers were away and showed no signs of weaning during winter. Their average trips to sea were 43% shorter in duration than those of lactating females, suggesting that pups and yearlings make independent trips away from the haulout while their mothers forage. The winter attendance cycle of lactating females (consisting of one trip to sea and one visit on land) averaged about 3 days, with the mothers of pups spending an average of 15 h of this time onshore with their offspring. The winter attendance cycle of pups and yearlings averaged just over 2 days, with the immature sea lions spending an average of 22 h on shore. Foraging trips by mothers of yearlings were signi®cantly longer than those by mothers of pups. However, there was no signi®cant difference in the foraging times of mothers of male and female pups. Lactating females spent more time at sea during winter than during summer. The probability of sighting an individual on the winter haulout during daylight hours was 15% for lactating females and 40% for immature animals.

Acquisition of field data and analytical methods needed for conservation and management of wildlife populations represent significant challenges, particularly for species that inhabit landscapes that are difficult to access or species that persist in small, isolated populations. In such instances, integrating diverse and complementary data streams, such as genetic and non‐genetic data, can advance our understanding of population dynamics and associated management implications. We examined how genetic and morphologic data can be used to articulate population structure of a low‐density, peninsular population of mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus) on the Cleveland Peninsula, Alaska, USA, and surrounding areas, 2005–2018. We then use a population demographic modeling approach to examine how the use of population structure information influences sustainable harvest quotas, as compared to a panmictic, null model. Specifically, we conducted extensive field sampling of genetic (n = 446) and morphologic (i.e., horn length, n = 371) data to characterize population structure. We conducted demographic analyses and examined harvest modeling scenarios using a sex‐ and age‐specific matrix population modeling approach. Genetic and morphologic data analyses suggested peninsular subpopulations were demographically isolated, relative to surrounding mainland populations. Specifically, genetic structuring was evident and followed an isolation‐by‐distance, stepping‐stone pattern indicating limited interchange, low effective population sizes, and reduced genetic diversity along a peninsular extremity to mainland gradient. Harvest modeling indicated that overharvest would likely occur if the panmictic, null model was used to guide harvest because the smallest genetically defined population at the peninsular extremity was too small to permit any level of sustainable harvest. Our analyses illustrate the importance of using genetic and morphologic data, in combination with demographic modeling, to quantitatively delineate population boundaries and dynamics for ensuring viability of small, isolated populations. © 2020 The Wildlife Society.

Milk stealing and fostering care is rare among mammals (Packer

Timber interests target coastal temperate rainforests, and within them stands composed of large trees potentially selected by American black bears (Ursus americanus) for denning. We identified the location of 75 black bear dens (used ≥14 days) in an intensively logged area on Prince of Wales Island, Alaska, USA. We ground‐visited a subset (n = 43) of these sites to measure the diameter of living trees and woody structures used by black bears for denning. We contrasted dens with random trees available in the study area in a series of models to characterize black bear den selection. All but 1 of 43 ground‐visited dens were located within woody structures, and all but 2 of these structures were >1 m diameter at breast height (dbh). We built resource selection functions (RSFs) to investigate black bear den selection across a range of spatial scales, though estimated selection was generally scale invariant. Black bears strongly selected large‐diameter woody structures (dead or alive) as dens at the home‐range scale, with the estimated relative strength of selection (RSS) for a 2‐m‐diameter tree approximately 166 times that of a 1‐m‐diameter tree. The estimated RSS of logged forest was unexpectedly greater (2.75 times) than that of the remaining commercially valuable old‐growth forest. Selection for den structures within stumps in previously logged stands suggests features of the woody structure may be of greater importance to black bears selecting dens than attributes of the surrounding forest. There was no observed correlation between bear den selection and second‐growth age, indicating that stumps may persist as suitable dens well after logging. Because denning is an important part of their life history and the denning structures used by black bears on Prince of Wales Island will eventually decay, retaining habitat value for bears in areas intensively managed for timber harvest requires strategies to recruit very large, old trees throughout the landscape. © 2021 The Wildlife Society.

Collaborations between academic researchers and agencies is crucial for genetic data to have a tangible impact on conservation and wildlife management. Such partnerships are particularly important elusive species where the difficult terrain requires that a significant amount of resources and a combination of methods be used to estimate population parameters needed for conservation. We report and multi-year academic-agency collaboration on the North American mountain goat that used an extensive field sampling of genetic and phenotypic data to determine whether, and to what degree, genetic and phenotypic differences separate an isolated population of mountain goats on the Cleveland Peninsula form those in southeast Alaska. We observed significantly larger horns on the peninsula and the population appears demographically isolated. Isolation-by-distance accompanied by limited migration and low effective population size on the Cleveland Peninsula suggest this population will continue to lose genetic diversity.While the large horns of mountain goats have generated interest in re-opening mountain goat harvest on Cleveland Peninsula, our genetic data suggest this population is vulnerable to demographic and environmental perturbations and is unlikely to support a sustained harvest.