Wolf kill rates across winter in a low-density moose system in Alaska

Journal of Wildlife Management

Volumn 77, Issue 8, 2013, Pages 1512-1522

  Lake, Bryce C ^a   Bertram, Mark R ^a   Guldager, Nikki ^a   Caikoski, Jason R ^b   Stephenson, Robert O ^b  

^a U S FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE   (United States)

^b ALASKA DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME   (United States)

Author keywords

Alaska; Alces alces; Canis lupus; global positioning system telemetry; kill rate; monthly variation; moose; very high frequency telemetry; wolf

Indexed keywords

ADULT; CANID; FUNCTIONAL RESPONSE; GPS; NUMERICAL RESPONSE; PREDATION; PREDATOR-PREY INTERACTION; TELEMETRY; UNGULATE; WINTER;

ALASKA; UNITED STATES; YUKON FLATS;

ALCES ALCES; CANIDAE; CANIS FAMILIARIS; CANIS LUPUS; UNGULATA;

EID: 84886950752     PISSN: 0022541X     EISSN: 19372817     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.603     Document Type: Article

References (73)

1. Adams, L. G., R. O. Stephenson, B. W. Dale, R. T. Ahgook, and, D. J. Demma,. 2008. Population dynamics and harvest characteristics of wolves in the Central Brooks Range, Alaska. Wildlife Monographs 170: 1-25.
2. Anderson, C. R., and, F. G. Lindzey,. 2003. Estimating cougar predation rates from GPS location clusters. Journal of Wildlife Management 67: 307-316.
3. Baigas, P. E., R. A. Olson, R. M. Nielson, S. N. Miller, and, F. G. Lindzey,. 2010. Modeling seasonal distribution and spatial range capacity of moose in southeastern Wyoming. Alces 46: 89-112.
4. Ballard, W. B., L. A. Ayres, K. E. Roney, and, T. H. Spraker,. 1991. Immobilization of gray wolves with a combination of tiletamine hydrochloride and zolazepam hydrochloride. Journal of Wildlife Management 55: 71-74.
5. Ballard, W. B., M. Edwards, S. G. Fancy, S. Boe, and, P. R. Krausman,. 1998. Comparison of VHF and satellite telemetry for estimating sizes of wolf territories in northwest Alaska. Wildlife Society Bulletin 26: 823-829.
6. Ballard, W. B., J. S. Whitman, and, C. L. Gardner,. 1987. Ecology of an exploited wolf population in south-central Alaska. Wildlife Monographs 98: 1-54.
7. Becker, M. S., R. A. Garrott, P. J. White, R. Jaffe, J. J. Borkowski, C. N. Gower, and, E. J. Bergman,. 2009. Wolf kill rates: predictably variable? Pages 339-369 in, R. A. Garrott, P. J. White, and, F. G. Watson, editors. The ecology of large mammals in central Yellowstone. Academic Press Terrestrial Ecology Series, Elsevier, London, United Kingdom.
8. Bentley, W. W., 1961. Moose population inventories-interior and Arctic Alaska. Pages 161-171 in, D. Klein, coordinator. Annual report of progress, 1960-1961. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Juneau, Alaska, USA.
9. Bertram, M. R., and, M. T. Vivion,. 2002. Moose mortality in eastern Interior Alaska. Journal of Wildlife Management 66: 747-756.
10. Boertje, R. D., M. A. Keech, D. D. Young, K. A. Kellie, and, C. T. Seaton,. 2009. Managing for elevated yield of moose in Interior Alaska. Journal of Wildlife Management 73: 314-327.
11. Boutin, S., 1992. Predation and moose population dynamics: a critique. Journal of Wildlife Management 56: 116-127.
12. Burnham, K. P., and, D. R. Anderson,. 2002. Model selection and multimodel inference: a practical information-theoretic approach. Springer-Verlag, New York, New York, USA.
13. Caikoski, J. R., 2010. Units 25A, 25B, and 25D moose. Pages 611-642 in, P. Harper, editor. Moose management report of survey and inventory activities 1 July 2007-30 June 2009. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Project 1.0, Juneau, Alaska, USA. Accessed 29 Mar 2013.
14. Caikoski, J. R., 2011. Unit 25D black bear. Pages 257-261 in, P. Harper, editor. Black bear management report of survey and inventory activities 1 July 2007-30 June 2010. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Project 17, Juneau, Alaska, USA. . Accessed 29 Mar 2013.
15. Carbyn, L. N., 1983. Wolf predation on elk in Riding National Park, Manitoba. Journal of Wildlife Management 47: 963-976.
16. Cariappa, C. A., J. K. Oakleaf, W. B. Ballard, and, S. W. Breck,. 2011. A reappraisal of the evidence for regulation of wolf populations. Journal of Wildlife Management 75: 726-730.
17. Coady, J. W., 1974. Influence of snow on behavior of moose. Le Naturaliste Canadien 101: 417-436.
18. Dale, B. W., L. G. Adams, and, R. T. Bowyer,. 1995. Winter wolf predation in a multiple ungulate prey system, Gates of the Arctic National Park, Alaska. Pages 223-230 in, L. N. Carbyn, S. H. Fritts, and, D. R. Seip, editors. Ecology and conservation of wolves in a changing world. Canadian Circumpolar Institute, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
19. De Long, R. A., 2006. Geospatial population estimator software user's guide. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Fairbanks, AK, USA. . Accessed 29 Mar 2013.
20. Eberhardt, L. L., 1997. Is wolf predation ratio-dependent ? Canadian Journal of Zoology 75: 1940-1944.
21. Eberhardt, L. L., 2000. Reply: predator-prey ratio dependence and regulation of moose populations. Canadian Journal of Zoology 78: 511-513.
22. Eberhardt, L. L., R. A. Garrott, W. D. Smith, P. J. White, and, R. O. Peterson,. 2003. Assessing the impact of wolves on ungulate prey. Ecological Applications 13: 776-783.
23. Edwards, J. K., R. L. Marchinton, and, G. F. Smith,. 1982. Pelvic girdle criteria for sex determination of white-tailed deer. Journal of Wildlife Management 46: 544-547.
24. Festa-Bianchet, M., J.-M. Gaillard, and, S. D. Cote,. 2003. Variable age structure and apparent density dependence in survival of adult ungulates. Journal of Animal Ecology 72: 640-649.
25. Fielding, A. H., and, J. F. Bell,. 1997. A review of methods for the assessment of prediction errors in conservation presence/absence models. Environmental Conservation 24: 38-49.
26. Franke, A., T. Caelli, G. Kuzyk, and, R. J. Hudson,. 2006. Prediction of wolf (Canis lupus) kill-sites using hidden Markov models. Ecological Modelling 197: 237-246.
27. Fuller, T. K., 1989. Population dynamics of wolves in north-central Minnesota. Wildlife Monographs 105: 1-41.
28. Fuller, T. K., and, L. B. Keith,. 1980. Wolf population dynamics and prey relationships in northeastern Alberta. Journal of Wildlife Management 44: 583-602.
29. Fuller, T. K., L. D. Mech, and, J. F. Cochrane,. 2003. Wolf population dynamics. Pages 161-191 in, L. D. Mech, and, L. Boitani, editors. Wolves: behavior, ecology, and conservation. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL, USA.
30. Gasaway, W. C., R. D. Boertje, D. V. Grangaard, and, D. G. Kelleyhouse,. 1992. The role of predation in limiting moose at low densities in Alaska and Yukon and implications for conservation. Wildlife Monographs 120: 1-59.
31. Gipson, P. S., W. B. Ballard, R. M. Nowak, and, L. D. Mech,. 2000. Accuracy and precision of estimating age of gray wolves by tooth wear. Journal of Wildlife Management 64: 752-758.
32. Guisan, A., and, N. E. Zimmermann,. 2000. Predictive habitat distribution models in ecology. Ecological Modelling 135: 147-186.
33. Hayes, R. D., A. M. Baer, U. Wotschikowsky, and, A. S. Harestad,. 2000. Kill rate by wolves on moose in the Yukon. Canadian Journal of Zoology 78: 49-59.
34. Hayes, R. D., R. Farnell, R. M. Ward, J. Carey, M. Dehn, G. W. Kuzyk, A. M. Baer, C. L. Gardner, and, M. O'Donoghue,. 2003. Experimental reduction of wolves in the Yukon: ungulate responses and management implications. Wildlife Monographs 152: 1-35.
35. Hayes, R. D., and, A. S. Harestad,. 2000. Wolf functional response and regulation of moose in the Yukon. Canadian Journal of Zoology 78: 60-66.
36. Hebblewhite, M., P. C. Paquet, D. H. Pletscher, R. B. Lessard, and, C. J. Callaghan,. 2003. Development and application of a ratio estimator to estimate wolf kill rates and variance in a multiple-prey system. Wildlife Society Bulletin 31: 933-946.
37. Holling, C. S., 1959. The components of predation as revealed by a study of small-mammal predation of the European pine sawfly. Canadian Entomologist 91: 293-320.
38. Hosmer, D. W., and, S. Lemeshow,. 1989. Applied logistic regresion. John Wiley and Sons, New York, New York, USA.
39. Johnson, D. H., 1999. The insignificance of statistical significance testing. Journal of Wildlife Management 63: 763-772.
40. Keech, M. A., M. S. Lindberg, R. D. Boertje, P. Valkenburg, B. D. Taras, T. A. Boudreau, and, K. B. Beckmen,. 2011. Effects of predator treatments, individual traits, and environment on moose survival in Alaska. Journal of Wildlife Management 75: 1361-1380.
41. Kellie, K. A., and, R. A. DeLong,. 2006. Geospatial survey operations manual. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Fairbanks, AK, USA. . Accessed 29 Mar 2013.
42. Knopff, K. H., A. A. Knopff, A. Kortello, and, M. S. Boyce,. 2010. Cougar kill rate and prey composition in a multiprey system. Journal of Wildlife Management 74: 1435-1447.
43. Knopff, K. H., A. A. Knopff, M. B. Warren, and, M. S. Boyce,. 2009. Evaluating global positioning system telemetry techniques for estimating cougar predation parameters. Journal of Wildlife Management 73: 586-597.
44. Lake, B. C., 2010. Moose population survey of the western Yukon Flats-November 2010. . Accessed 29 Mar 2013.
45. Lake, B. C., J. R. Caikoski, and, M. R. Bertram,. 2013. Wolf density and territory size in a low biomass ungulate prey system estimated with global positioning system (GPS) technology. Accessed 29 Mar 2013.
46. Larsen, D. G., D. A. Gauthier, and, R. L. Markel,. 1989. Causes and rate of moose mortality in the southwest Yukon. Journal of Wildlife Management 53: 548-557.
47. MacCracken, J. G., V. V. VanBallenberghe, and, J. M. Peek,. 1997. Habitat relationships of moose on the Copper River Delta in South-Central Alaska. Wildlife Monographs 136: 1-52.
48. Mackie, R. J., D. F. Pac, K. L. Hamlin, and, G. L. Dusek,. 1998. Ecology and management of mule deer and white-tailed deer in Montana. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Helena, USA. . Accessed 29 Mar 2013.
49. McPhee, H. M., N. F. Webb, and, E. H. Merrill,. 2012. Hierarchical predation: wolf (Canis lupus) selection along hunt paths and at kill sites. Canadian Journal of Zoology 90: 555-563.
50. Mech, L. D., L. G. Adams, T. J. Meier, J. W. Burch, and, B. W. Dale,. 1998. The wolves of Denali. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, USA.
51. Mech, L. D., T. J. Meier, J. W. Burch, and, L. G. Adams,. 1995. Patterns of prey selection by wolves in Denali National Park, Alaska. Pages 231-243 in, L. N. Carbyn, S. H. Fritts, and, D. R., Seip, editors. Ecology and conservation of wolves in a changing world. Canadian Circumpolar Institute, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
52. Mech, L. D., and, R. O. Peterson,. 2003. Wolf-prey relations. Pages 131-160 in, L. D. Mech, and, L. Boitani, editors. Wolves: behavior, ecology, and conservation. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
53. Mech, L. D., D. W. Smith, K. M. Murphy, and, D. R. MacNulty,. 2001. Winter severity and wolf predation on a formerly wolf-free elk herd. Journal of Wildlife Management 65: 998-1003.
54. Messier, F., 1985. Social organization, spatial distribution, and population density of wolves in relation to moose density. Canadian Journal of Zoology 63: 1068-1077.
55. Messier, F., 1994. Ungulate population models with predation: a case study with the North American moose. Ecology 75: 478-488.
56. Messier, F., and, M. Crete,. 1985. Moose-wolf dynamics and the natural regulation of moose populations. Oecologia 65: 503-512.
57. Metz, M. C., D. W. Smith, J. A. Vucetich, D. R. Stahler, and, R. O. Peterson,. 2012. Seasonal patterns of predation for gray wolves in the multi-prey system of Yellowstone National Park. Journal of Animal Ecology 81: 555-563.
58. National Resources Conservation Service. 2010. Snow course and monthly SNOTEL data tables for Lower Beaver Creek and Vunzik Lake. . Accessed 29 Mar 2013
59. Page, R. E., 1989. The inverted pyramid: ecosystem dynamics of wolves and moose on Isle Royale. Dissertation. Michigan Technological University, Houghton, USA.
60. Peterson, R. O., 1977. Wolf ecology and prey relationships. U.S. National Park Service scientific monograph series No. 11. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., USA. . Accessed 29 Mar 2013.
61. Peterson, R. O., 1995. The wolves of Isle Royale: a broken balance. Willow Creek Press, Minocqua, Wisconsin, USA.
62. Peterson, R. O., J. D. Woolington, and, T. N. Bailey,. 1984. Wolves of the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska. Wildlife Monographs 88: 1-52.
63. Renecker, J. A., and, C. C. Schwartz,. 1997. Food habits and feeding behavior. Pages 403-440 in, A. W. Franzmann, and, C. C. Schwartz, editors. Ecology and management of the North American moose. Smithsonian Institution Press, London, United Kingdom.
64. Ruth, T. K., P. C. Buotte, and, H. B. Quigley,. 2010. Comparing ground telemetry and global positioning system methods to determine cougar kill rates. Journal of Wildlife Management 74: 1122-1133.
65. Sand, H., J. A. Vucetich, B. Zimmermann, P. Wabakken, C. Wikenros, H. C. Pedersen, R. O. Peterson, and, O. Liberg,. 2012. Assessing the influence of prey-predator ratio, prey age structure, and packs size on wolf kill rates. Oikos 121: 1454-1463.
66. Sand, H., B. Zimmerman, P. Wabakken, H. Andren, and, H. C. Pedersen,. 2005. Using GPS technology and GIS cluster analyses to estimate kill rates in wolf-ungulate ecosystems. Wildlife Society Bulletin 33: 914-925.
67. Smith, D. W., T. D. Drummer, K. M. Murphy, D. S. Guernsey, and, S. B. Evans,. 2004. Winter prey selection and estimation of wolf kill rates in Yellowstone National Park, 1995-2000. Journal of Wildlife Management 68: 153-166.
68. Stephenson, R. O., 1978. Characteristics of exploited wolf populations. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Juneau Alaska, USA.
69. Thurber, J. M., and, R. O. Peterson,. 1993. Effects of population density and pack size on the foraging ecology of gray wolves. Journal of Mammalogy 74: 879-889.
70. Ver Hoef, J. M., 2008. Spatial methods for plot-based sampling of wildlife populations. Environmental Ecological Statistics 15: 3-13.
71. Vucetich, J. A., M. Hebblewhite, D. W. Smith, and, R. O. Peterson,. 2011. Predicting prey population dynamics from kill rate, predation rate and predator-prey ratios in three wolf-ungulate systems. Journal of Animal Ecology 80: 1236-1245.
72. Webb, N. F., M. Hebblewhite, and, E. H. Merrill,. 2008. Statistical methods for identifying wolf kill sites using global positioning system locations. Journal of Wildlife Management 72: 798-807.
73. Young, D. D., and, R. D. Boertje,. 2008. Recovery of low bull: cow ratios of moose in Interior Alaska. Alces 44: 65-71.