A Food-Based Habitat-Selection Model for Grizzly Bears in Kluane National Park, Yukon

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A Food-Based Habitat-Selection Model for Grizzly Bears in Kluane National Park, Yukon A FOOD-BASED HABITAT-SELECTION MODEL FOR GRIZZLY BEARS IN KLUANE NATIONAL PARK, YUKON by JAMES EDWARD McCORMICK B.Sc. (Zoology), The University of British Columbia, 1988 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES (Centre for Applied Conservation Biology) (Department of Forest Sciences) (Faculty of Forestry) We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA April 1999 © James Edward McCormick, 1999 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada Date APRIL- aq. DE-6 (2/88) Abstract I examined the relationship between plant food abundance and diet, and habitat selection by grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) in the Alsek River Valley, Kluane National Park (KNP) in 1995 and 1996. I built a simple model that combined how much food was present in each bear habitat type (BHT) with how prevalent that food was in the diet of grizzly bears to produce a habitat food value (HFV) for each BHT. I tested the effectiveness of the model using habitat selection data from radio-collared grizzly bears. I designed this model to make a priori predictions of selection of BHTs by grizzly bears. The model combined the relative food abundances from each BHT with the respective seasonal food values to produce a HFV for each BHT. I calculated the relative abundance of 10 grizzly- bear plant foods within 8 BHTs from 478 food abundance plots. Diet was inferred from an analysis of scats collected in KNP. Four dietary seasons were distinguished based on shifts in plant foods eaten. I calculated a food value by dietary season for each plant food based on relative consumption of that food within that season. BHTs were ranked by HFV within each season and these ranks represented predicted habitat selection by grizzly bears. I tested the utility of this model by comparing actual habitat selection with the predictions of my model. Actual selection of BHTs by grizzly bears was measured from aerial locations (n=365) of radio-collared grizzly bears and then ranked within each dietary season. I compared the ranks of actual habitat selection (grizzly bear telemetry locations) to the ranks of predicted habitat selection (HFVs). HFVs were successful predictors of grizzly bear habitat selection. This simple food-based model may be used by Park managers to minimise human disturbance of grizzly bears in the Alsek valley by restricting human activity in areas of high grizzly bear food value. ii Table of Contents ABSTRACT .ii LIST OF TABLES : iv LIST OF FIGURES v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS vi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION CONTEXT 1 OBJECTIVES 2 STUDY AREA 3 Kluane National Park 3 Alsek River Valley 3 CHAPTER 2. BUILDING A FOOD-BASED HABITAT-SELECTION MODEL FOR GRIZZLY BEARS INTRODUCTION 6 METHODS 7 Habitat Classification 7 Seasonal Food Values 8 Food Abundance 12 Habitat Food Values 16 RESULTS 16 Seasonal Food Values 16 Food Abundance 18 Habitat Food Values 22 DISCUSSION 24 Habitat Classification 24 Seasonal Food Values 25 Food Abundance 27 Habitat Food Values 28 CHAPTER 3. TESTING THE FOOD-BASED HABITAT-SELECTION MODEL INTRODUCTION 30 METHODS 30 Habitat Selection 30 Measured Habitat Selection Compared to Predicted Habitat Food Values 32 RESULTS 33 Habitat Selection 33 Measured Habitat Selection Compared to Predicted Habitat Food Values 35 DISCUSSION 39 CHAPTER 4. SUMMARY AND MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS 41 LITERATURE CITED 47 iii List of Tables Table 1. Bear habitat types (BHTs) identified for the Alsek River study area and the percentage of the study area they cover. 9 Table 2. Major plant foods found in the study area eaten by grizzly bears, as determined from scats collected from 1992-1994 in the montane zone, Kluane National Park (data summarised from McCann 1997). 10 Table 3. Food value (FV) of plant species determined by standardising product of frequency and volume measurements of <2 week old scats collected in the montane zone. Shading indicates high FVs for a given season. Sample size listed in parentheses, (data from McCann 1997) 19 Table 4. Measures of plant food abundance and availability from plots conducted in bear habitat types (BHTs). Mean canopy cover within each BHT is listed for each plant food. The mean proportion of berry producers and berries per 25-cm x 25-cm quadrat are listed for S. canadensis. Standard error of the mean is in parentheses. N/A = not applicable. N/S = not sampled. The rock/ice BHT was not sampled as I assumed it would have no food value. See Table 5 for BHT abbreviations. 20 Table 5. Relative abundances (RA) of food species in the eight different bear habitat types (BHTs) that I sampled. Shaded areas indicate high RAs. 21 Table 6. Habitat food values (HFVs) calculated for each bear habitat type (BHT) within each dietary season. The BHTs were ranked from 1 (high) to 9 (low) within each dietary season based on their HFV. When two or more BHTs had the same HFV, the average rank was given to each of the tied BHTs. The rock/ice BHT was assumed to have no food value. Shaded areas indicate the BHTs with the highest HFVs for that dietary season. 23 Table 7. Telemetry locations in the study area summarised by dietary season, by gender, and by number of individuals. 33 Table 8. Grizzly bear habitat selection calculated using Manly's alpha (Manly et al. 1972). The BHTs were ranked from 1 (high) to 9 (low) within each dietary season based on habitat selection. When two or more BHTs had the same selection value, the average rank was given to each of the tied BHTs. Shaded areas indicate the three BHTs with the highest selection values for that dietary season. Number of telemetry locations listed in parentheses. 34 Table 9. Correlations between rank of predicted habitat selection based on habitat food value (HFV) and rank of actual habitat selection based on radio-collared grizzly bear locations for all four dietary seasons (critical value: (rs)0 05(1) 9 = 0.6) 37 Table 10. A summary of habitat food values (HFV) and habitat selection values for all four dietary seasons. 45 Table 11. Relative abundance of grizzly bear plant foods in the nine bear habitat types (BHTs). (***** highest abundance; **** 75-99% of highest abundance; *** 50- 74% of highest abundance; ** 25-49% of highest abundance; * 1-25% of highest abundance; - not measured; blank = none observed) 46 iv List of Figures Figure 1. Map of north-western North America showing the location of Kluane National Park. 4 Figure 2. Annual dietary patterns of grizzly bears determined from predominance of food items found in scats collected in the montane zone in Kluane National Park between 1992 and 1994 (n=363). Area under the curve reflects the presence of food item in scats. Frequency and volume of food item residue in scats used to determine relative mean percent volume (see text). I used shifts in food consumption patterns to sort the biweekly periods into 4 dietary seasons. 17 Figure 3. Rank of predicted habitat selection based on habitat food values (HFVs) compared to rank of actual habitat selection based on locations of radio-collared grizzly bears. All 4 dietary seasons have been combined on this graph. Ranks range from 1 (high) to 9 (low) for each dietary season. 36 Figure 4. Changes in ranks across the 4 dietary seasons for 2 bear habitat types (BHTs). Rank of predicted habitat selection based on habitat food values (HFVs) compared to rank of actual habitat selection based on locations of grizzly bears: deciduous mixed forest (a) and shrub mosaic (b). Ranks range from 1 (high) to 9 (low) for each dietary season. 38 v Acknowledgements This study was funded and logistical support was provided by Kluane National Park and Reserve. This project is part of the larger Kluane National Park Grizzly Bear Research Project. Funding support was also provided by the Northern Studies Training Program. I received the Bert Hoffmeister Scholarship in Forest Wildlife and the Donald S. McPhee Fellowship. I am very grateful to my supervisor, Dr. Fred Bunnell, for his perspicacity and encouragement. My committee members, Dr. Bruce McLellan and Dr. Michael Pitt, provided insightful advice throughout the course of my project. Dr. David Shackleton suggested improvements for the final draft of my thesis. Drs. Valerie LeMay, Antal Kozak, and Peter Marshall provided invaluable statistical advice. Rob McCann helped conceive this project and provided much insight and direction. He generously provided data he collected and analysed for the Kluane National Park Grizzly Bear Research Project that allowed me to both refine and test my model. This project would not have happened without the excellent support and effort from Park Wardens Ray Breneman and Kevin McLaughlin. Sid Waskiewich went above and beyond expectations as a volunteer field assistant for two summers. His dedication and friendship made fieldwork an especially rewarding experience. For their assistance and for the great working environment that they supplied, I thank the Park Wardens of Kluane National Park: Terry Skjonsberg, Rhonda Markell, Bruce Sunbo, Glen Kubian, Tom Buzzell, Mark Eikland, Craig McKinnon, Lloyd Freese, Duane West, Phillip Frost, Andrew Lawrence, and Rick Staley.
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