Advanced Wildlife Biology Final Exam

Give 3 reasons why wildlife are attracted to urban areas (general and specific).

Food availibility (Raccoons eating garbage), reduced predation, and shelter.

Describe at least 3 conflicts that arise from wildlife using urban habitats and how could we resolve each conflict?

Property damage/loss (can be solved by creating/maintaining green areas or restoring natural habitat), potential health and safety risks (fencing, barriers, other deterrents), competition for resources (Food management strategies).

Describe at least 3 options for controlling big game populations of wildlife in urban habitats and list pros and cons of each.

Recreational hunting - Sounds good on paper but is generally not an option

Professional shooting - gets the job done, but incurs public wrath

Reproductive control - effective, but expensive.

What are the pros and cons of open space, dispersed development, and concentrated development in relation to wildlife conflicts?

Open Space

Pros: Early successional stage and recreational use (can be a con).

Cons: Recreational use causing disturbance and weed concerns.

Dispersed Development

Pros: Favoring of human-friendly wildlife.

Cons: Fragmentation of wildlife habitat, increased risk of human-wildlife contact.

Describe at least 3 principles/design features of “green development” for meshing wildlife and humans in urban areas.

Houses are grouped together in small lots, roads are narrow, few, and far between, and more than half the area is ecologically significant.

Describe nuclear and mitochondrial DNA and discuss the advantages and limitations of each.

Nuclear Genomes:

Inherited from both parents, found in the nucleus, not well mapped, evolves slowly.

Mitochondrial Genomes:

Found in the mitochondrion, maternally inherited, well mapped, evolves quickly.

What material can you get DNA from? Which are best from a DNA and a logisitc standpoint?

Muscle, blood, saliva, heart, liver, skin, hair, feathers, scales, feces, urine, etc.

Feathers, hairs, scales, and other such samples are best from a management standpoint, but organs and muscle tissues are best from a DNA perspective.

What is destructive vs. non-destructive sampling? What does non-invasive mean?

Destructive sampling kills the animal, while non-destructive does not. Non-invasive means not even interacting with the animal during sampling.

What issues exist when collection and processing DNA material?

Contamination or destruction of DNA evidence.

List common techniques to collect DNA material.

Hair snares: Bears (Baited barbed wire trap sets), Lynx (Tacked carpet pad with lure).

How do we delineate species and why does it matter?

We delineate species based on morphological and behavioral characteristics. We can use genetic analysis to improve differentiations. It matters because of the ESA. We can determine species, sub-species, and distinct population segments. An example is sage grouse, which, due to declines, genetic data was used with behavioral and morphological characteristics to recognize a new species.

What is an evolutionary significant unit (ESU) and how are they determined?

“A subset of inclusive entity species which possess genetic attributes significant for the present and future generations of the species.” They’re determined by substantial reproductive isolation and significant divergence of allele frequencies.

What is hybridization and why is it important?

It is breeding between two different species resulting in a hybrid species. They can offer increased genetic diversity, contain better genetics than the parents, and can reduce viability and fertility. True hybrids are not protected under the ESA.

What affects genetic diversity and how can you foster gene flow?

Gene flow, mutations, population size, and natural selection. Dispersal and reproduction in new populations foster gene flow.

How can we help grizzly bears recover?

Using traditional biological techniques like radio telemetry, as well as assessing mortality causes and risks, and learning as much as we can about population size, dispersal between recovery zones, movements within populations.

What attributes of feathers can be used to determine the age and sex of birds?

Molt patterns, feather condition, and specific feather patterns like wings or tails.

What attributes can be used to determine the species of a skull?

Size, dentition, shape, etc.

How do you determine a dental formula?

I = Incisor, C = Canine, P = Premolar, M = Molar

Count the number of each tooth, write it as a ratio (upper/lower).

What behavioral attributes can be used to determine the sex of a species that are similar between males and females.

Mating rituals, parental care, and aggressive behaviors.

How do you age a deer from a mandible?

You can estimate the age by observing tooth eruption patterns and wear, specifically focusing on the molars and third premolar.

What are the key things you should do before sampling?

Know your objectives (total count? sample?) and know your organism (natural history, appropriate methods, pilot study)

Describe the different types of “populations” that you could be tasked with assessing.

Biological population: Difficult to define.

Target population: portion of the biological population you manage and are interested in

Sampled population: portion of the target population that can be sampled.

Statistical population: individuals within the sampled population.

Describe accuracy, precision, and bias.

Accuracy: How close your estimate is to the true value.

Precision: How close your repeated estimates are to each other.

Bias: Outside factors that can skew your results.

What are the three primary components of any sampling efforts?

Replication: Allows precision to be measured and reported on.

Randomization: Done to eliminate bias.

Control: “Representativeness.”

What are the two primary data pieces you should report for an estimate?

Precision and accuracy so you can show the reliability of your estimate.

Describe at least 3 sampling approaches and what conditions they would be used for.

Simple Random Sampling: Good for when you need to eliminate all bias and avoid spatial correlation.

Systematic Sampling: Good for when you need low setup and good interspersion.

Cluster Sampling: Good for when it is difficult to take a random sample of an individual.

Describe the measures of variability.

n = number of samples.

N-hat = estimate of the population.

M = total number of potential sample units.

N = true population size.

Can be used in a formula to determine the dispersion of the dataset we are working with.

What issues exist in radio telemetry assessment, especially as it relates to time and space?

Bias and shit

How would we address those concerns?

Randomization, replication, control and systematic, simple random, stratified sampling and sample size and power calculations.

What concerns exist during the collaring process?

Concerns regarding the physical safety of both the technician and the animal in question, as well as damage to the equipment.

Discuss Use vs. Availability and preference. Define and discuss concerns with each.

Availability is the amount of habitat that is available to a population (Concern: What may appear available may not actually be available), whereas utilization is the amount of habitat that is actually used (Habitat use determinations MUST be independent). Preference is the habitat an animal selects over others for one reason or another (Determined by chance.).

What can complicate an assessment of habitat preference?

Preference is indicated when an animal spends more time in a habitat than expected by chance alone.

Discuss home range approaches (MCP and Kernel) and what issues exist in each assessment.

Minimum Convex Polygon (MCP) is simple and assumes no underlying distribution and is sensitive to sample size, but insensitive to internal habitat use. Kernel approaches link observations based on distance forming or merging polygons into clusters that can result in multiple home range polygons.