Nonrandom Distribution of Antlers Cast by Peary Caribou Bulls, Melville Island, Northwest Territories

Miller, Frank L.; Barry, Samuel J.

doi:10.14430/arctic1399

Cited by 7 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 12 publications

(7 reference statements)

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“…These insights are valuable across the arctic, including Alaska, Canada, Russia and Scandinavia, for unveiling historical ecological data on landscape use (from single localities to regional perspectives) of caribou and other arctic fauna. Finally, fossil caribou antlers are available in Pleistocene deposits, suggesting that if postmortem transport can be constrained, the biogeography of caribou calving and breeding (from shed male antlers; see [37] for a modern example) may be extended by hundreds of thousands of years or longer.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Antlers on the Arctic Refuge: capturing multi-generational patterns of calving ground use from bones on the landscape

2013

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Bone accumulations faithfully record historical ecological data on animal communities, and owing to millennial-scale bone survival on high-latitude landscapes, have exceptional potential for extending records on arctic ecosystems. For the Porcupine Caribou Herd, maintaining access to calving grounds on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR, Alaska) is a central management concern. However, variability in calving ground geography over the 30+ years of monitoring suggests establishing the impacts of climate change and potential petroleum development on future calving success could benefit from extended temporal perspectives. Using accumulations of female antlers (shed within days of calving) and neonatal skeletons, we test if caribou calving grounds develop measureable and characteristic bone accumulations and if skeletal data may be helpful in establishing a fuller, historically integrated understanding of landscape and habitat needs. Bone surveys of an important ANWR calving area reveal abundant shed antlers (reaching 10 3 km –2 ) and high proportional abundance of newborn skeletal individuals (up to 60% neonate). Openly vegetated riparian terraces, which compose less than 10 per cent of ANWR calving grounds, yield significantly higher antler concentrations than more abundant habitats traditionally viewed as primary calving terrain. Differences between habitats appear robust to potential differences in bone visibility. The distribution of antler weathering stages mirrors known multi-decadal calving histories and highlights portions of the antler accumulation that probably significantly extends records of calving activity. Death assemblages offer historically integrated ecological data valuable for the management and conservation of faunas across polar latitudes.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Antlers on the Arctic Refuge: capturing multi-generational patterns of calving ground use from bones on the landscape

2013

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“…Cameron Island was a likely primary rutting area for caribou, as indicated mainly by the relative abundance of cast bull antlers seen there during several years of aerial searches and surveys (cf. Miller and Barry, 1992;Miller, 1998;F.L. Miller, pers.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Males roaming in search of females during the brief (2 -3 week) early winter rutting period would be most beneficial to Peary caribou when populations are at low densities. This would be particularly true if their rutting activities were restricted to coastal areas, as concentration along the coast would reduce a two-dimensional search problem to an essentially linear one (Miller and Barry, 1992).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multi-island Seasonal Home Range Use by Two Peary Caribou, Canadian High Arctic Islands, Nunavut, 1993-94

Miller¹

2002

ARCTIC

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A female and a male Peary caribou (Rangifer tarandus pearyi) were captured on 29 July 1993 on Massey Island, south-central Queen Elizabeth Islands, Nunavut, Canada. Each was fitted with a satellite telemetry neck-collar, released, and tracked by satellite from 1 August 1993 to 31 July 1994. The female caribou used five islands and the male caribou used six islands as seasonal and (collectively) as annual home range. They used five of the six islands (Vanier, Cameron, Alexander, Massey, and Marc) both during the same time periods and at different times. Bathurst Island was used only briefly and only by the male. The male and female occupied the same island at the same time during 54% of the 1993-94 annual cycle. Their seven periods of common occupancy ranged in length from 5 to 88 consecutive days. During the study period, the female moved from one island to another on 11 separate occasions, and the male, on 16 occasions. The female's periods of residence on each island ranged in length from 4 to 95 consecutive days, and the male's from 2 to 169 consecutive days. Their seasonal and annual range-use patterns suggest a degree of flexibility and adaptability to a variable and taxing environment and indicate the important role that relatively small islands play in the ecology of Peary caribou. Key words: multi-island range use, satellite telemetry, Canadian High Arctic Islands, Rangifer tarandus pearyi RÉSUMÉ. Le 29 juillet 1993, on a capturé deux caribous de Peary (Rangifer tarandus pearyi), un mâle et une femelle, dans l'île Massey, au centre-sud des îles de la Reine-Élisabeth situées au Nunavut (Canada). Chaque animal a été équipé d'un collier de télémesure par satellite, puis relâché et suivi par satellite du 1 er août 1993 au 31 juillet 1994. La femelle a occupé cinq îles et le mâle six, les îles prises individuellement représentant leur territoire saisonnier et, collectivement, leur territoire annuel. Les deux caribous ont occupé cinq des six îles (Vanier, Cameron, Alexander, Massey et Marc) durant la même période comme à des moments différents. L'île Bathurst n'a été visitée que brièvement et uniquement par le mâle. Ce dernier et la femelle ont occupé la même île en même temps durant 54 p. cent du cycle annuel de 1993-1994. Leurs sept périodes d'occupation commune allaient de 5 à 88 jours consécutifs. Au cours de la période d'étude, la femelle s'est déplacée d'une île à une autre à onze occasions distinctes, et le mâle à 16. Sur chaque île, les périodes de résidence de la femelle allaient de 4 à 95 jours consécutifs, et celles du mâle de 2 à 169 jours consécutifs. Leurs régimes saisonniers et annuels d'utilisation du territoire suggèrent une certaine souplesse et faculté d'adaptation au sein d'un environnement difficile et changeant, et ils soulignent le rôle majeur que des îles relativement petites peuvent jouer dans l'écologie du caribou de Peary. Mots clés: utilisation d'un territoire pluri-insulaire, télémesure par satellite, îles de l'Extrême-Arctique canadien, Rangifer tarandus pearyi Traduit pour la revu...

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“…As caribou commonly aggregate during calving (Griffith et al 2002, Feldhamer et al 2003, regions used as calving grounds have the opportunity to develop concentrations of shed female antlers and the bones of newborn fatalities. Similarly, breeding areas can develop accumulations of shed male antlers (Miller and Barry 1992). Thus, changes in landscape use across broad timescales may be directly investigated using death assemblages, placing current biological patterns in a broader temporal context.…”

Section: Death Assemblages Are Readily Available Sources Of Low-impacmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial fidelity of skeletal remains: elk wintering and calving grounds revealed by bones on the Yellowstone landscape

Miller

2012

Ecology

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Abstract. The spatial distributions of bones on landscape surfaces (death assemblages) may contain high-quality data on species' landscape use. Previous investigations into the spatial fidelity of death assemblages focused on general habitat preferences of the source community. Using well-studied elk populations of Yellowstone National Park, I test the geographic sensitivity of death assemblages by assessing the fidelity of shed elk antlers to the distribution of bull elk in late winter (documented through aerial surveys). I also test the geographic fidelity of newborn calf bones to known calving areas. The spatial distribution of antlers is highly faithful to bull elk landscape use, describing the decadally averaged distribution of wintering grounds as well or better than individual aerial surveys. Discrepancies in geographic distributions between recent wintering patterns and the multidecadal antler assemblage also suggests differences in winter landscape use between current and historical (wolf-free) populations. Neonatal remains, including those partially consumed by carnivores, were always recovered in known calving areas, and all sampled calving grounds produced neonatal bones. Bone surveys are a new, minimally invasive, low-impact tool for obtaining high-quality historically informed data on species' geographic and habitat requirements. This tool will be particularly useful for managing sensitive species, fragile ecosystems, and poorly studied regions.

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Nonrandom Distribution of Antlers Cast by Peary Caribou Bulls, Melville Island, Northwest Territories

Cited by 7 publications

References 12 publications

Antlers on the Arctic Refuge: capturing multi-generational patterns of calving ground use from bones on the landscape

Antlers on the Arctic Refuge: capturing multi-generational patterns of calving ground use from bones on the landscape

Multi-island Seasonal Home Range Use by Two Peary Caribou, Canadian High Arctic Islands, Nunavut, 1993-94

Spatial fidelity of skeletal remains: elk wintering and calving grounds revealed by bones on the Yellowstone landscape

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