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Environmental Sciences

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2004

Wildlife damage management

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Movements Of Urban Canada Geese: Implications For Nicarbazin Treatment Programs, Kurt C. Vercauteren, David R. Marks Sep 2004

Movements Of Urban Canada Geese: Implications For Nicarbazin Treatment Programs, Kurt C. Vercauteren, David R. Marks

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Resident Canada goose (Branta canadensis) and human populations in North America are increasing rapidly. Consequently, human-goose conflicts also are increasing. A potential approach to manage Canada goose populations is the use of orally delivered reproductive inhibitors. Nicarbazin, when ingested daily, is a reproductive inhibitor that has the potential to reduce the hatchability of Canada goose eggs. To successfully employ reproductive inhibition, managers must understand the behavior of local Canada goose populations, primarily springtime movements, nesting, and habitat use to develop effective methods for delivering necessary doses. We monitored movement, habitat use, and nesting of 51 resident Canada geese, …


Economics In Wildlife Damage Management Studies: Common Problems And Some Solutions, Stephanie A. Shwiff Feb 2004

Economics In Wildlife Damage Management Studies: Common Problems And Some Solutions, Stephanie A. Shwiff

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Benefit-cost analysis (BCA) has become a highly useful economic tool to evaluate research and operational efforts in wildlife damage management. At the same time, common problems with BCA can be noted in these studies. These problems include: the absence of present value calculations, the misuse of market vs. non-market valuations, and the improper accounting of benefits and costs. Solutions to these problems are relatively simple but are imperative to the accuracy of the results. This paper outlines a number of common errors in BCA and offers solutions that enhance the use of economics in wildlife damage management studies.


The Role Of Bait Manipulation In The Delivery Of Oral Rabies Vaccine To Skunks, Stacie J. Robinson, Susan M. Jojola, Kurt C. Vercauteren Feb 2004

The Role Of Bait Manipulation In The Delivery Of Oral Rabies Vaccine To Skunks, Stacie J. Robinson, Susan M. Jojola, Kurt C. Vercauteren

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The majority of rabies cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control each year occur in wildlife including skunks, raccoons, bats, foxes, and coyotes. Currently, oral rabies vaccination campaigns are employed to immunize coyotes, foxes, and raccoons. Though skunks are vectors of 6 rabies strains, there is currently no effective oral vaccine or delivery system for skunks. More information is needed to determine if baits currently used are sufficiently attractive to skunks, or if the baits are difficult for skunks to handle and consume. We observed bait manipulation by skunks in penned/feeding trials to determine the bait type most conducive …


Cervid Disease Research At The National Wildlife Research Center, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Mike Lavelle, Dale L. Nolte, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Jason Gilsdorf Feb 2004

Cervid Disease Research At The National Wildlife Research Center, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Mike Lavelle, Dale L. Nolte, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Jason Gilsdorf

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The realized and perceived threats of cervid diseases have immense implications for federal and state wildlife management agencies, captive cervid ranchers, hunters, and businesses and economies that rely on recreation associated with deer and elk. Therefore, the spread of diseases, primarily chronic wasting disease and bovine tuberculosis, in wild and captive cervids is of great concern. Research is paramount to closing information gaps associated with all aspects of cervid diseases. The Wildlife Disease Research Program of the USDA APHIS WS National Wildlife Research Center is engaged in considerable research on cervid diseases. Efforts focus on disease epidemiology, cervid ecology, and …


Evaluating Population Management Scenarios: Crunching The Numbers Before Going To The Field, Bradley F. Blackwell, Brian E. Washburn, Michael J. Begier Jan 2004

Evaluating Population Management Scenarios: Crunching The Numbers Before Going To The Field, Bradley F. Blackwell, Brian E. Washburn, Michael J. Begier

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Effolts to mitigate wildlife-human conflicts tpically involve management of unacceptably abundant populations. Increasingly, however, reduction of dense or increasing populations of certain wild species evokes both support and contention kom the public. Management decisions involving population reduction, particularly those directed at highly visible species, should therefore be based on quantitative evaluation of potential outcomes prior to implementation. The purpose of th~sp aper is to revisit a call for use of population modeling in management decisions by reviewing basic aspects of population analysis and the use of publicly available long-term data sets in environmental assessments and impact statements. Our objectives are …


Evaluation Of A Deer-Activated Bioacoustic Frightening Device For Reducing Deer Damage In Cornfields, Jason M. Gildorf, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Greg M. Clements, Erin E. Blankenship, Richard M. Engeman Jan 2004

Evaluation Of A Deer-Activated Bioacoustic Frightening Device For Reducing Deer Damage In Cornfields, Jason M. Gildorf, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Greg M. Clements, Erin E. Blankenship, Richard M. Engeman

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Deer (Odocoileus spp.) can cause substantial damage to agricultural crops, resulting in economic losses for producers. We developed a deer-activated bio-acoustic frightening device to reduce white-tailed deer (O. virginianus) damage in agricultural fields. The device consisted of an infrared detection system that activated an audio component which broadcast recorded distress and alarm calls of deer. We tested the device against unprotected controls in cornfields during the silking–tasseling stage of growth in July 2001. The device was not effective in reducing damage: track-count indices (F1,4=0.02, P=0.892), corn yield (F1,9=1.27, P=0.289), and estimated damage levels (F1,10=0.87, P=0.374) did not differ between experimental …


Propane Exploders And Electronic Guards Were Ineffective At Reducing Deer Damage In Cornfields, Jason M. Gilsdorf, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Erin E. Blankenship, Richard M. Engeman Jan 2004

Propane Exploders And Electronic Guards Were Ineffective At Reducing Deer Damage In Cornfields, Jason M. Gilsdorf, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Erin E. Blankenship, Richard M. Engeman

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) cause millions of dollars of damage to agricultural crops annually. We tested the effectiveness of propane exploders and Electronic Guards (Pocatello Supply Depot, Pocatello, Id.) for reducing deer damage in cornfields during the silking–tasseling stage of growth. Track-count indices (F2,7=0.70, P=0.532), corn yields (F2,6=0.14, P=0.873), and estimated damage levels (F2,12=1.45 P=0.272) did not differ between experimental and control fields. The size (F2,11=0.08, P=0.924), location (F2,9=0.30, P=0.750), and percent overlap (F2,9=0.46, P=0.644) of use-areas of radiomarked female deer in the vicinity of experimental fields did not differ among before, during, and after 18-day treatment periods. In a …