Winter Defecation Output and Bedding Frequency of Wild, Free-Ranging Moose

Joyal, Robert; Ricard, Jean-Guy

doi:10.2307/3800991

Cited by 10 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Our results show that the defecation rate derived by comparing aerial counts and pellet group counts in the field for specific years (14 pellet groups per moose per day) is similar to, or in the lower range of, those reported for moose in captivity (Franzmann et al 1976a,b, Oldemeyer & Franzmann 1981) and for some free-ranging populations (Jordan & Wolfe 1980, Joyal & Ricard 1986, Andersen et al 1992, Jordan et al 1993. Several authors (Andersen et al 1992, Neff 1968, Person 2003 have shown that the defecation rate may depend on the herbivore population structure and the amount and quality of available forage.…”

Section: Pellet Group Countssupporting

confidence: 82%

Evaluation of four methods used to estimate population density of moose Alces alces

Rönnegård¹,

Sand²,

Andrén³

et al. 2008

Wildlife Biology

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Various survey methods are used to monitor and manage ungulate populations. The choice of optimal method depends on estimation accuracy, management objective and financial constraints. Here we compare estimates produced by four different methods for estimating population size, i.e. aerial counts, hunter observations, pellet group counts and cohort analysis. A Swedish moose Alces alces population was studied during 1973-2005 in the Grimso¨Wildlife Research Area (135 km 2 ). The highest correlation was found between cohort analysis and aerial counts (r=0.69, P<0.05), and the hunter observations and the aerial counts (r=0.76, P<0.10). The different methods produced relatively consistent trends in population estimates over years. Pellet group counts prior to 1997 were not significantly correlated with the other methods, probably due to unrepresentative spatial sampling. A comparison of the aerial and pellet group counts in 2002 and 2006, showed that the average defecation rate was estimated at approximately 14 pellet groups per day per moose. Our results show the importance of having representative spatial sampling in pellet group surveys and indicate that hunter observations can be a useful tool for estimating long-term population trends even in moderately sized areas.

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Section: Pellet Group Countssupporting

confidence: 82%

Evaluation of four methods used to estimate population density of moose Alces alces

Rönnegård¹,

Sand²,

Andrén³

et al. 2008

Wildlife Biology

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show abstract

“…These ratios were used to convert pellet group densities from interpolated 30 × 30 m area estimates to densities of moose and elk. Because aerial surveys for deer and horses were not flown, we used a ratio of winter defecation rates of deer (2.36 3) and horses (0.69 3) compared with moose (Tyler 1972, Joyal and Ricard 1986, Rogers 1987, Sawyer et al 1990, Persson et al 2000) to convert moose equivalents derived as described above to densities of deer and horses (Webb 2009). Although field estimates of the density of ungulate prey were derived by species, these winter densities were combined into two separate measures of large‐ (elk, moose, horse) and small‐bodied (deer) prey in our analysis to correspond with the ability of the predictive cluster models to distinguish these prey types (Webb et al 2008).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Time‐to‐kill: measuring attack rates in a heterogenous landscape with multiple prey types

McPhee

Webb

Merrill

2011

Oikos

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Although spatial heterogeneity of prey and landscapes are known to contribute to variation around predator-prey functional response models, few studies have quantified these effects. We illustrate a new approach using data from winter movement paths of GPS-collared wolves in the Rocky Mountains of Canada and time-to-event models with competing risks for measuring the effect of prey and landscape characteristics on the time-to-kill, which is the reciprocal of attack rate (aN) in a Holling's functional response. We evaluated 13 a priori models representing hypothesized mechanisms influencing attack rates in a heterogeneous landscape with two prey types. Models ranged from variants on Holling's disc equation, including search rate and prey density, to a full model including prey density and patchiness, search rates, satiation, and landscape features, which were measured along the wolf 's movement path. Movement rates of wolves while searching explained more of the variation in time-to-kill than prey densities. Wolves did not compensate for low prey density by increasing movement rates and there was little evidence that spatial aggregation of prey influenced attack rates in this multiprey system. The top model for predicting time-to-kill included only search rate and landscape features. Wolves killed prey more quickly in flat terrain, likely due to increased vulnerability from accumulated snow, whereas attack rates were lower when wolves hunted near human-made features presumably due to human disturbance. Understanding the sources of variation in attack rates provides refinements to functional response models that can lead to more effective predator-prey management in human-dominated landscapes.

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“…The number of days in the counting period can be stan dardised for between-year comparisons, and the use of permanent sampling areas will minimise this type of error. It is a well-known fact that the large vari ability in the daily defecation output limits the use of pellet group counts for accurate censuses of moose (Timmermann 1974, Franzmann, Ameson & Oldemeyer 1976a, Franzmann et al 1976b, Oldemeyer & Franzmann 1981, Joyal & Ricard 1986. On the other hand, Jordan et al (1993) demonstrated that moose pellet group counts can also give reliable results.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of pellet group counts in determining density and habitat use of mooseAlces alcesin Finland

Härkönen¹,

Heikkilä

1999

Wildlife Biology

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Winter Defecation Output and Bedding Frequency of Wild, Free-Ranging Moose

Cited by 10 publications

References 7 publications

Evaluation of four methods used to estimate population density of moose Alces alces

Evaluation of four methods used to estimate population density of moose Alces alces

Time‐to‐kill: measuring attack rates in a heterogenous landscape with multiple prey types

Use of pellet group counts in determining density and habitat use of mooseAlces alcesin Finland

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