Life Sciences Commons^™

Editorial: Mammalian Responses To Climate Change: From Organisms To Communities, Johan T. Du Toit, Robyn S. Hetem, M. Denise Dearing

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Mammals have displayed spectacular evolutionary success ever since an asteroid impact caused the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event ~66 million years ago, when the non-avian dinosaurs disappeared. Now another mass extinction event is underway because of another major planetary disturbance, but this time it is directly caused by just one over-achieving species among all those mammals: Homo sapiens.

Exploring Metapopulation-Scale Suppression Alternatives For A Global Invader In A River Network Experiencing Climate Change, Brian D. Healy, Phaedra Budy, Charles B. Yackulic, Brendan P. Murphy, Robert C. Schelly, Mark C. Mckinstry

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Invasive species can dramatically alter ecosystems, but eradication is difficult, and suppression is expensive once they are established. Uncertainties in the potential for expansion and impacts by an invader can lead to delayed and inadequate suppression, allowing for establishment. Metapopulation viability models can aid in planning strategies to improve responses to invaders and lessen invasive species’ impacts, which may be particularly important under climate change. We used a spatially-explicit metapopulation viability model to explore suppression strategies for ecologically-damaging invasive brown trout (Salmo trutta), established in the Colorado River and a tributary within Grand Canyon National Park. Our goals …

Range-Wide Sources Of Variation In Reproductive Rates Of Northern Spotted Owls, Jeremy T. Rockweit, Julianna M. Jenkins, James E. Hines, James D. Nichols, Katie M. Dugger, Alan B. Franklin, Peter C. Carlson, William L. Kendall, Damon B. Lesmeister, Christopher Mccafferty, Steven H. Ackers, L. Steven Andrews, Larissa L. Bailey, Jesse Burgher, Kenneth P. Burnham, Tara Chestnut, Mary M. Conner, Raymond J. Davis, Krista E. Dilione, Eric D. Forsman, Elizabeth M. Glenn, Scott A. Gremel, Keith A. Hamm, Dale R. Herter, J. Mark Higley, Rob B. Horn, David W. Lamphear, Trent L. Mcdonald, Janice A. Reid, Carl J. Schwarz, David C. Simon, Stan G. Sovern, James K. Swingle, J. David Wiens, Heather Wise, Charles B. Yackulic

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

We conducted a range-wide investigation of the dynamics of site-level reproductive rate of northern spotted owls using survey data from 11 study areas across the subspecies geographic range collected during 1993–2018. Our analytical approach accounted for imperfect detection of owl pairs and misclassification of successful reproduction (i.e., at least one young fledged) and contributed further insights into northern spotted owl population ecology and dynamics. Both nondetection and state misclassification were important, especially because factors affecting these sources of error also affected focal ecological parameters. Annual probabilities of site occupancy were greatest at sites with successful reproduction in the previous year …

Planttracker: An R Package To Translate Maps Of Plant Occurrence Into Demographic Data, Alice E. Stears, Peter B. Adler, Shannon E. Albeke, David H. Atkins, Jared Studyvin, Daniel C. Laughlin

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

1. Long-term demographic data are rare yet invaluable for conservation, management, and basic research on the underlying mechanisms of population and community dynamics. Historical and contemporary mapped datasets of plant location and basal area present a relatively untapped source of demographic records that, in some cases, span over 20 years of sequential data collection. However, these maps do not uniquely mark individual plants, making the process of collecting growth, survival, and recruitment data difficult.
2. Recent efforts to translate historical maps of plant occurrence into shapefiles make it possible to use computer algorithms to track individuals through time and determine individual growth …

Survival Of The Fattest: How Body Fat And Migration Influence Survival In Highly Seasonal Environments, Kristin Denryter, Mary M. Conner, Thomas R. Stephenson, David W. German, Kevin L. Monteith

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

1. Energy stores and migration are important adaptations for animals in seasonal environments, but their roles may vary relative to an animal's endogenous and exogenous environment. In partially migratory populations, migrants and residents experience different seasonal environments; thus, the influence of energy stores on survival may differ relative to migratory tactic, with potential consequences to survival and fitness.

2. Using data from Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis sierrae; hereafter, Sierra bighorn), we tested the hypothesis that body fat (energy stores) buffers animals against their environment, but that buffering capacity differs across environments experienced by high-elevation residents (using …

Water Availability Dictates How Plant Traits Predict Demographic Rates, Alice E. Stears, Peter B. Adler, Dana M. Blumenthal, Julie A. Kray, Kevin E. Mueller, Troy W. Ocheltree, Kevin R. Wilcox, Daniel C. Laughlin

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

A major goal in ecology is to make generalizable predictions of organism responses to environmental variation based on their traits. However, straightforward relationships between traits and fitness are rare and likely to vary with environmental context. Characterizing how traits mediate demographic responses to the environment may enhance the predictions of organism responses to global change. We synthesized 15 years of demographic data and species-level traits in a shortgrass steppe to determine whether the effects of leaf and root traits on growth and survival depended on seasonal water availability. We predicted that (1) species with drought-tolerant traits, such as lower leaf …

Nitrogen Increases Early-Stage And Slows Late-Stage Decomposition Across Diverse Grasslands, Allison L. Gill, Peter B. Adler, Elizabeth T. Borer, Christopher R. Buyarski, Elsa E. Cleland, Carla M. D'Antonio, Kendi F. Davies, Daniel S. Gruner, W. Stanley Harpole, Kirsten S. Hofmockel, Andrew S. Macdougall, Rebecca L. Mcculley, Brett A. Melbourne, Joslin L. Moore, John W. Morgan, Anita C. Risch, Martin Schütz, Eric W. Seabloom, Justin P. Wright, Louie H. Yang, Sarah E. Hobbie

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

1. To evaluate how increased anthropogenic nutrient inputs alter carbon cycling in grasslands, we conducted a litter decomposition study across 20 temperate grasslands on three continents within the Nutrient Network, a globally distributed nutrient enrichment experiment
2. We determined the effects of addition of experimental nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium plus micronutrient (K_μ) on decomposition of a common tree leaf litter in a long-term study (maximum of 7 years; exact deployment period varied across sites). The use of higher order decomposition models allowed us to distinguish between the effects of nutrients on early- versus late-stage decomposition.
3. Across continents, the …

Movement Patterns Of Resident And Translocated Beavers At Multiple Spatiotemporal Scales In Desert Rivers, Emma Doden, Phaedra Budy, Tal Avgar, Julie Young

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Wildlife translocations alter animal movement behavior, so identifying common movement patterns post-translocation will help set expectations about animal behavior in subsequent efforts. American and Eurasian beavers (Castor canadensis; Castor fiber) are frequently translocated for reintroductions, to mitigate human-wildlife conflict, and as an ecosystem restoration tool. However, little is known about movement behavior of translocated beavers post-release, especially in desert rivers with patchy and dynamic resources. We identified space-use patterns of beaver movement behavior after translocation. We translocated and monitored nuisance American beavers in desert river restoration sites on the Price and San Rafael Rivers, Utah, USA, and compared …

Sex-Related Differences In Aging Rate Are Associated With Sex Chromosome System In Amphibians, Hugo Cayuela, Jean-François Lemaître, Jean-Paul Léna, Victor Ronget, Iñigo Martínez-Solano, Erin Muths, David S. Pilliod, Benedikt R. Schmidt, Gregorio Sánchez-Montes, Jorge Gutiérrez-Rodríguez, Graham Pyke, Kurt Grossenbacher, Omar Lenzi, Jaime Bosch, Karen H. Beard, Lawrence L. Woolbright, Brad A. Lambert, David M. Green, Nathalie Jreidini, Justin M. Garwood, Robert N. Fisher, Kathleen Matthews, David Dudgeon, Anthony Lau, Jeroen Speybroeck, Rebecca Homan, Robert Jehle, Eyup Başkale, Emiliano Mori, Jan W. Arntzen, Pierre Joly, Rochelle M. Stiles, Michael J. Lannoo, John C. Maerz, Winsor H. Lowe, Andrés Valenzuela-Sánchez, Ditte G. Christiansen, Claudio Angelini, Jean-Marc Thirion, Juha Merilä, Guarino R. Colli, Mariana M. Vasconcellos, Taissa C.V. Boas, Ísis Da C. Arantes, Pauline Levionnois, Beth A. Reinke, Cristina Vieira, Gabriel A.B. Marais, Jean-Michel Gaillard, David A.W. Miller

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Sex‐related differences in mortality are widespread in the animal kingdom. Although studies have shown that sex determination systems might drive lifespan evolution, sex chromosome influence on aging rates have not been investigated so far, likely due to an apparent lack of demographic data from clades including both XY (with heterogametic males) and ZW (heterogametic females) systems. Taking advantage of a unique collection of capture–recapture datasets in amphibians, a vertebrate group where XY and ZW systems have repeatedly evolved over the past 200 million years, we examined whether sex heterogamy can predict sex differences in aging rates and lifespans. We showed …

Landscape Dynamics (Landdx) An Open-Access Spatial-Temporal Database For The Kenya-Tanzania Borderlands, Peter Tyrrell, Irene Amoke, Koen Betjes, Femke Broekhuis, Robert Buitenwerf, Sarah Carroll, Nathan Hahn, Daniel Haywood, Britt Klaassen, Mette Løvschal, David Macdonald, Karen Maiyo, Hellen Mbithi, Nelson Mwangi, Churchil Ochola, Erick Odire, Victoria Ondrusek, Junior Ratemo, Frank Pope, Samantha Russell, Wilson Sairowua, Kiptoo Sigilai, Jared A. Stabach, Jens-Christian Svenning, Elizabeth Stone, Johan T. Du Toit, Guy Western, George Wittemyer, Jake Wall

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

The savannas of the Kenya-Tanzania borderland cover >100,000 km² and is one of the most important regions globally for biodiversity conservation, particularly large mammals. The region also supports >1 million pastoralists and their livestock. In these systems, resources for both large mammals and pastoralists are highly variable in space and time and thus require connected landscapes. However, ongoing fragmentation of (semi-)natural vegetation by smallholder fencing and expansion of agriculture threatens this social-ecological system. Spatial data on fences and agricultural expansion are localized and dispersed among data owners and databases. Here, we synthesized data from several research groups and conservation …