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Eagle Protection and Offset Program
No full textA recent study found that the main anthropogenic causes of golden eagle mortality in the western US were shooting, collision, electrocution, poisoning, and trapping. This “take” of golden eagles can either be intentional (e.g., shooting) or incidental from otherwise lawful activities (e.g., collisions with wind turbines, electrocutions from power lines). Incidental take of golden eagles violates the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. The US Fish and Wildlife Service can issue Eagle Incidental Take Permits to industry, such as wind energy developers, as long as compensatory mitigation to offset eagle mortality is implemented. Currently, the only mitigation accepted to offset any source of eagle incidental take is power pole retrofitting to reduce electrocutions. The US Fish and Wildlife Service has approved a mitigation bank for eagle incidental take developed by Burns & McDonnell, an engineering firm headquartered in Kansas City. NorthWestern Energy has partnered with Burns & McDonnell to provide the power pole retrofits needed to fulfill mitigation for eagle incidental take permittees. Power poles qualify for the Eagle Protection and Offset Program based on Relative Risk Index, presence of eagle habitat, history of eagle mortalities, location within Eagle Management Units, and cost. NorthWestern provided the first power pole credits for eagle incidental take in 2022
3D Digitization of Yellowstone Wolf Skulls for Research, Education and Outreach (Poster)
No full textRecent innovations in imaging software and virtual platforms have made it possible for museums to make virtual 3D models of biological specimens available to a wider audience for research, education, and outreach. The Yellowstone National Park Heritage and Research Center (HRC) houses one of the best-studied collections of wolf skulls (Canis lupus); n>225) in the world. Long-term research conducted by the Yellowstone Wolf Project has produced an extensive volume of ecological metadata associated with each skull specimen. Here, we used photogrammetry to digitize the HRC wolf skull collection (crania and mandibles) and uploaded the virtual 3D models to MorphoSource, an online 3D data repository. We will use these 3D models and landmark-based geometric morphometric methods to answer questions about how skull shape varies as a function of age, sex, social status, disease, mortality type, and relative prey availability. We will also analyze Yellowstone wolf skull shape variation through time and quantify the occurrence of dental malocclusion in Yellowstone wolves as a result of hunting large prey. In addition to answering these questions, the 3D models will be made available for use as online educational tools and as tangible educational aids by 3D printing individual specimens. Individuals and organizations will be able to download these data and their derivatives for collaborative research to answer new questions about wolf cranial and mandibular morphology. With the absence of a physical gallery in the HRC, this new medium will increase accessibility and public engagement with the natural history of Yellowstone National Park
A Crash Course in Planning Conservation Plantings or Wildlife and Pollinators
No full textInsects, especially pollinating species, are ecologically and economically important but many species are declining across the United States. The duty of fish and wildlife agencies to manage for insects can be unclear based on existing charters, which can make obtaining funding or capacity to directly address these declines difficult. By factoring these species into current habitat management practices, natural resource agency staff can leverage existing capacity to benefit these species. Conservation plantings of grasses and forbs are regularly conducted for reasons such as soil health, erosion control, livestock forage, upland game bird and waterfowl nesting, and grassland songbird habitat. Incorporating pollinator habitat needs is relatively easy when designing these projects. As an example of existing agency potential to benefit pollinator species, in just the last two years Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks’ Upland Game Bird Enhancement Program administered over 5,300 acres, and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program separately administered over 42,000 acres of conservation grass and forb plantings on private lands throughout Montana. Each agency also has multiple other programs under which this work occurs. This presentation will explore how to conduct conservation plantings to achieve multiple natural resource benefits including a basic planning process, resources for planning, specific considerations for benefiting pollinators when designing seed mixes, and a review of some existing cost-share programs available to implement these practices on public or private lands
Firing Hunting Bullets into Water Reveals Extreme Dissimilarities in Terminal Ballistics
No full textHunting bullets are often comprised of a lead core covered with a copper jacket. When the bullet collides with an animal, particles - sometimes thousands - can shed from the projectile and embed in animal tissues. Those lead fragments can end up in game meat and in the remaining carrion that many species scavenge. Hunters can reduce the availability of lead in food chains simply by shooting lead-free ammunition. With all bullets, it is vital to assess their accuracy and terminal ballistics to ensure they perform adequately and effectively. We fired 12 types of bullets into water to measure their weight retention and expansion at 100 and 260 yards. Bullet constructions included bonded, partition, cup-and-core lead, copper, and tin. Copper bullets retained >98% of their weight, whereas cup-and-core lead bullets retained 9-55%, depending on the brand. One brand of bonded lead bullet retained weight (~96%) almost as well as copper bullets, while another brand retained much less mass (~71%). Most copper bullets expanded similarly regardless of distances tested. Cup-and-core lead bullets often performed inconsistently, where the jacket separated from the lead core. Our data emphasize the importance of understanding a bullet’s terminal ballistics as a prerequisite to hunting with that projectile
Roadside Surveys for Calling Amphibians in Montana
No full textSince the first global assessment of amphibian populations in 2004, nearly a third of species are considered threatened with 43% experiencing population declines. Habitat loss, disease, and climate change are the main factors believed responsible for these declines. To assess the population status of amphibian species in eastern Montana, we repeated nocturnal calling surveys first performed in 2016. By comparing species detections across established routes, we sought to inform state conservation status ranks and identify Montana Species of Concern. In 2016, we surveyed 19 roadside transects for breeding amphibians and detected five species: Boreal Chorus Frog (Pseudacris maculata), Northern Leopard Frog (Lithobates pipiens), Great Plains Toad (Anaxyrus cognatus), Woodhouse’s Toad (A. woodhousii), and Plains Spadefoot (Spea bombifrons). We repeated these transects in 2022 with the addition of five new routes and detected these same five species. The greatest number of detections were of Boreal Chorus Frogs (26%) followed by Woodhouse’s Toad (6%), Plains Spadefoot (3%), and Great Plains Toad (2%). Comparing diversity between years, 2016 had up to three species detected per transect, while diversity in 2022 ranged from no detections up to five species on at least one transect. Of the 19 repeated surveys, 52.6% remained consistent in species composition and 26.3% had an increase in species diversity between the two years of survey effort. As species detections across transects changed little between 2016 and 2022, it is likely that populations of these species are stable within this area and current taxonomic statuses remain valid
Snapping Turtle Nesting Near Prairie Streams in Montana
No full textSnapping turtle nesting behavior has not been studied in Montana and little is known about their habitat use on prairie streams. From May to late-June timed visual surveys were conducted for reptile eggs. Eight “nesting aggregations,” with concentrated nesting activity were identified. Fresh snapping turtle nests were excavated to count and measure eggs and then rebury them with a HOBO temperature logger. Sites were resurveyed in the fall to document hatching success or predation. Nests were mainly found in mixed substrate on southern facing hills and bluffs with an average slope of 23.6 degrees, located no more than 50 meters from the water. Daubenmire nest/random site comparisons indicated that nest site ground cover consisted of over 75% bare ground, while random sites were more vegetated with only 16% bare ground. Suitable nesting habitat at this creek seems limited and thus it is important that we help landowners understand the value of these sites and how to limit disturbance
The Importance of Supporting Bumble Bees in The Early Spring
No full textBumble bees are critical to terrestrial ecosystem functioning and human food security because of the pollination services they provide. As a group, bumble bees are the most economically important native pollinators in North America and play a vital role in native angiosperm pollination. However, many species and populations of bumble bees have experienced dramatic declines in recent decades. The mechanisms driving these declines remain understudied, but likely involve factors such as changes in land use and increases in pesticide and disease prevalence. While most research and conservation efforts focus on supporting bumble bee colonies in the summer months, the needs of populations during the remaining three-quarters of the year remain relatively understudied and under addressed. Here, I present a combination of fieldwork and lab experiments focused on the basic needs and biology of early spring bumble bee populations, which consist entirely of solitary queens. Early spring queens have higher mortality, lower fecundity, and higher exposure to environmental stressors such as predation and extreme weather events relative to queens in late spring and summer that have workers in the nest. These results underline the importance of supporting bumble bee queens and the habitats on which they depend in the early spring, before many pollinators are visible on the landscape
Common Poorwills in Western Montana
No full textLong-term banding efforts with Common Poorwills (Phalaenoptilus nuttallii) in western Montana reveal several aspects of their cryptic lives during the breeding season. We have banded more than 170 individuals within one landscape over 7 years of work. Our high recapture rate indicates breeding- and natal-site fidelity and also reveals multiple individuals living for 5 or 6 years. We have also recorded successful breeding attempts by second-year birds, looked at diet and comparisons to other nocturnal insectivores including Common Nighthawks, and studied home range size. Our latest efforts include using the Motus network to look at migration and overwintering destinations
Conservation Easements and Leases Mitigate Potential Losses of Grassland Birds in Montana
No full textThe primary aim of the Grassland Initiative Project pursued by FWP from 2017-2022 was to work towards stemming declines of grassland species through preservation of existing grassland habitat. Through these efforts, FWP has increased conserved grassland by approximately 10% statewide. Functionally, this strategy works to reduce further decline of wildlife populations through prevention of potential habitat loss, an outcome that, because it is avoided, is more effectively modeled than observed. We are modelling population loss of grassland bird species of conservation concern that has been theoretically mitigated through implementation of grassland conservation easements in Montana by manipulating land cover values in habitat-based bird density models. For the first study species, Sprague’s pipits, models indicate a particular mitigation effect of conserved grassland along the Rocky Mountain front and near Glasgow. We will present findings that integrate the risk of grassland conversion into the models and expansion to additional species
Elk in The Ruby Mountains (Poster)
No full textHuman recreation and wildlife overlap is a growing concern. The amount of people who visit public land grow in numbers every year, and it is important to understand how large visitor numbers are affecting the local ecosystem. Elk are particularly affected, since they need space to raise calves, find food, and sleep as a herd. With the largest elk population in the United States, the state of Colorado is investigating how humans that hike and camp affect where elk spend their time and raise their calves. To this end, study sites have been set up with trail cameras in Colorado and Montana. We calculated an abundance estimate for one of the few study sites outside of Colorado, the Ruby Mountains of Montana. We used trail camera photos collected from July and August of 2020 to estimate total elk, cow, and bull abundance over the entire study period. We also estimated total calf abundance over four two-week periods. Our estimates for total number of elk, cows, and bulls were reasonable when compared to existing FWP regional estimates. Calf abundance dropped significantly over the course of the study, though misclassification made our estimates lower than we expected. We calculated our estimates with the Space to Event (STE) model (Moeller et al. 2018, Moeller and Lukacs 2021). Although areas that experience heavy recreational use are obvious candidates for surveys, areas whose recreation are diffuse such as the Ruby Mountains are just as important to gain a complete understanding of the subject