Increased hormonal stress reactions induced in an Alpine Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix) population by winter sports

Formenti, Nicoletta; Viganò, Roberto; Bionda, Radames; Ferrari, Nicola; Trogu, Tiziana; Lanfranchi, P.; Palme, Rupert

doi:10.1007/s10336-014-1103-3

Cited by 23 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Our results confirm our initial hypothesis of a general avoidance of such routes as a result of human disturbance. In previous studies, negative impacts of outdoor recreation and recreation infrastructure were well described for black grouse [15,16,18,[20][21][22] and capercaillie [14,17,19,23] in Alpine and other mountainous habitats. Many of these focused on winter sports but some considered summer outdoor recreation as well [17][18][19].…”

Section: Impact Of Public and Closed Routes On Habitat Usementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Impacts such as winter sports, hiking, mountain-biking and related infrastructures cause well known negative effects on black grouse and its close relative capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus), resulting in fragmentation, habitat reduction or habitat avoidance [14][15][16][17][18][19]. Further described effects are reduction in abundance or activity of displaying black grouse cocks [15,20], physiological stress [14,21,22] and increased flushing distances [23][24][25]. Consequential behavioural changes (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impact of tourism on habitat use of black grouse (Tetrao tetrix) in an isolated population in northern Germany

et al. 2020

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As many other wild living species, black grouse Tetrao tetrix has to cope with anthropogenic disturbances in many habitats. Impacts of tourism and outdoor recreation on grouse species Tetraoninae have been subject to several studies in mountainous habitats in Central Europe and the United Kingdom. The geographically isolated and critically endangered black grouse population of Lower Saxony (North Germany) has been consistently monitored but beyond that poorly studied. This also applies to the key habitats of the nature reserve Lü neburg Heath (Lü neburger Heide) which, in turn, serves as a recreational area as well. In this study, the impact of tourism activity on habitat use of black grouse was investigated using data of GPS-tracked individuals. Additionally, visitor numbers on public and (usually undisturbed) closed routes were monitored using infrared light barriers. The spatio-temporal distribution of locations and the recreational activity were evaluated by linear mixed-effects models. Tagged individuals avoided the vicinity of public routes and avoiding distances were directly related to intensity of human activity. There was no seasonal change of black grouse habitat use alongside public routes. However, towards closed routes, significantly higher distances appeared during peak phases of visitor numbers (August and September), implying temporary increased disturbance levels within a key refuge area. Diurnal adaptation of habitat use was strongly dependent on the route density within the home range. Individuals used the vicinity of public trails at night and dawn but evaded these habitats during peak human activity around noon and afternoon. Recreational disturbances appeared to significantly affect the effective habitat availability for black grouse in the nature reserve. Visual cover by vegetation, however, seemed to diminish negative effects emerging from hiking trails. This provides an effective protective measure which requires minimal effort for the local conservation management.

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Section: Impact Of Public and Closed Routes On Habitat Usementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of tourism on habitat use of black grouse (Tetrao tetrix) in an isolated population in northern Germany

et al. 2020

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“…Declining and endangered in many Central European countries, grouse (Tetraoninae) have become a common model for conservation-related endocrinological studies. As these species are highly susceptible to human disturbance (Coppes, Ehrlacher, Thiel, Suchant, & Braunisch, 2017;Storch, 2013;Summers, McFarlane, & Pearce-Higgins, 2007;Thiel et al, 2011), their stress response has been elucidated particularly in relation to human recreation activities: Elevated FCM levels were found after repeated flushing in black grouse Tetrao tetrix (Arlettaz et al, 2015), with decreasing distance to recreational infrastructure in capercaillie Tetrao urogallus (Thiel et al, 2011) and in areas severely disturbed by winter sports in both species (Formenti et al, 2015;Thiel, Jenni-Eiermann, Braunisch, Palme, & Jenni, 2008). Furthermore, tree species composition and ambient temperature were found to affect FCM levels in capercaillie (Thiel et al, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The importance of individual heterogeneity for interpreting faecal glucocorticoid metabolite levels in wildlife studies

Coppes

Kämmerle

Willert

et al. 2018

Journal of Applied Ecology

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As a non‐invasive and inexpensive method, the use of faecal glucocorticoid metabolites (FGM) analysis in wildlife research is increasing. Various environmental factors have been shown to influence FGM levels, or faecal corticosteroid metabolites (FCM) levels in birds, but most studies do not account for inter‐individual variance, which we hypothesized may substantially affect results. We combined FCM analysis with genetic analysis to identify the sex and individual's identity in samples collected in three consecutive winters; with repeated samples per individual, across the entire range of an endangered population of capercaillie Tetrao urogallus in south‐western Germany. Using generalized additive mixed models, we modelled FCM levels as a function of sex, season and environmental covariates at two spatial scales: location and home range. We compared two models: one including information on the individual animal and the other excluding this information (i.e. naïve model) to assess the influence of individual heterogeneity on the results obtained. Models accounting for inter‐individual differences explained 44.0% and 45.1% (at the location and home‐range scale respectively), while only very little (4.0% and 5.1%, respectively) was explained by the environmental predictors. When ignoring individual effects, the model results changed considerably with other, previously non‐informative predictors, becoming significant. In the full models, accounting for inter‐individual variance, weather conditions had no effect at either scale. FCM levels were negatively correlated with habitat quality at the sampling location, while human recreation at the home‐range scale led to elevated FCM levels. In the naïve models, two additional predictors appeared significant: one weather variable at the local scales and two at the home‐range scale. In all models, seasonal FCM patterns differed significantly between males and females. Synthesis and applications. By combining faecal corticosteroid metabolites (FCM) analysis with genetic individual assessment, we demonstrate that individual heterogeneity can explain most of the variance in faecal corticosteroid metabolites levels and that ignoring this information can lead to erroneous conclusions when testing for environmental stressors. We therefore stress the importance of identifying individuals when studying faecal corticosteroid metabolites in wildlife and recommend combining faecal corticosteroid metabolites analyses with genetic analyses to adequately address this issue.

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“…With the growing numbers of outdoor recreationists, their impact on the environment is likely to be increasing (Rankin et al , Tolvanen and Kangas ). Wildlife responds to the presence of humans in their habitats (Beale and Monaghan ), with reactions varying from physiological responses such as increased heart rate (Weimerskirch et al ) or increased stress hormone levels (Walker et al , Formenti et al ) to behavioral reactions which include fleeing or flushing (Keller , Miller et al , Thiel et al , Sönnichsen et al ) and behavioral adaptations such as changes in vigilance behavior (Fernández‐Juricic and Telleria , Beale and Monaghan , Jayakody et al ). Recreation activities have been shown to reduce woodland bird densities (van der Zande et al ), bird community composition and nest predation (Miller et al ) or breeding success (Anderson and Keith , Ahlund and Götmark ).…”

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confidence: 99%

Outdoor recreation causes effective habitat reduction in capercaillie Tetrao urogallus: a major threat for geographically restricted populations

Coppes

Ehrlacher

Thiel

et al. 2017

Journal of Avian Biology

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Outdoor recreation inflicts a wide array of impacts on individual animals, many of them reflected in the avoidance of disturbed areas. The scale and spatial extent, however, at which wildlife populations are affected, are mostly unclear. Particularly in geographically isolated populations, where restricted habitat availability may preclude a relocation to undisturbed areas, effective habitat reduction may remain underestimated or even unnoticed, when animals stay in disturbed areas and only show small‐scale responses. Based on telemetry data, we investigated the spatial and seasonal effects of outdoor recreation – in relation to landscape and vegetation conditions – on western capercaillie Tetrao urogallus, considering two scales, home range and within‐home range habitat selection. We determined the distance‐thresholds up to which recreation infrastructures were avoided and estimated the extent of affected habitat for the isolated Black Forest (southwestern Germany) study population. While outdoor recreation did not affect home range selection, strong effects on habitat use within the home range were detected: distance to recreation infrastructure (hiking and cross‐country skiing trails, ski pistes) was the main determinant of habitat selection in winter; in summer, mountain bike trails and hiker's restaurants were avoided up to an average distance of 145 m (CI: 60–1092 m). Around winter‐infrastructure, relative avoidance was recorded up to 320 m (CI: 36–327 m), it was reduced, however, when dense understory provided visual cover. Of the entire population area, between 8–20% (summer) and 8–40% (winter) were affected by outdoor recreation, mainly in the high altitudes. Even without evident large‐scale shifts in species distribution, local‐scale avoidance of outdoor recreation can substantially contribute to effective habitat reduction. Based on our results we recommend a general reduction in recreation infrastructure density in key habitats, the establishment of undisturbed wildlife refuges with a diameter of at least 800 m, as well as enhancing visual protection by maintaining a strip of dense understory along trails.

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Increased hormonal stress reactions induced in an Alpine Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix) population by winter sports

Cited by 23 publications

References 13 publications

Impact of tourism on habitat use of black grouse (Tetrao tetrix) in an isolated population in northern Germany

Impact of tourism on habitat use of black grouse (Tetrao tetrix) in an isolated population in northern Germany

The importance of individual heterogeneity for interpreting faecal glucocorticoid metabolite levels in wildlife studies

Outdoor recreation causes effective habitat reduction in capercaillie Tetrao urogallus: a major threat for geographically restricted populations

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