Large Mammal Movement: Differences in Primary and Branch Logging Road Use in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario

Large mammals;Algonquin Provincial Park;logging roads;road ecology;wildlife;Environmental and Resource Studies

Roulston, Hillary Emma

University of Waterloo

关键词: Large mammals;    Algonquin Provincial Park;    logging roads;    road ecology;    wildlife;    Environmental and Resource Studies;   

Others  :  https://uwspace.uwaterloo.ca/bitstream/10012/8105/3/Roulston_Hillary.pdf

瑞士|英语

来源: UWSPACE Waterloo Institutional Repository

【 摘 要 】

There is an expansive network of roads in Algonquin Provincial Park (APP) tofacilitate forestry resource extraction. This leaves a research need for examining how thelogging road network in APP affects the large mammals, and what local-level andlandscape-level variables influence that use. Local-level data was collected directly atobservation points, and landscape-level data was produced from ArcGIS for 40km2,80km2, and 130km2 buffer areas. The objective of my study was to look at the use ofprimary and branch logging roads by five large mammal species in APP, and determine iflandscape-level variables had an influence on the level of movement and utilization. Thefive species included moose, white-tailed deer, American black bear, eastern wolf andcoyote. My null hypothesis (H0) states that there will be no difference in large mammaluse between the primary and branch logging roads within APP and that local- andlandscape-level variables will have no influence on them; my alternative hypothesis (H1)states that there will be less large mammal activity on the primary logging roads, morelarge mammal movement on the branch logging roads and local- and landscape-levelvariables will influence this use. Tracking was done by vehicle on six transects acrossthe park for three repeated surveys where species identification and local-level variableswere recorded. Landscape-level variables were acquired through GIS analysis in the lab.Based on the results from the local-level data, branch and primary logging road usediffered in composition, though no significance was found between the use by largemammals for these two types of road. Through generalized linear models, specificcombinations of landscape-level variables did influence large mammal movement on theprimary and branch logging roads within three habitat range scales (130km2, 80km2, and40km2). The most significance was seen at the buffer of 40km2 on the branch loggingroads, with the variables road density (p < 0.01), percent forest cover (p = 0.04) andtopographic ruggedness (p < 0.01) all having a strong impact on large mammalmovement. The only significant findings for primary logging roads were also at the40km2 scale with percent forest cover (p = 0.03) and percent water cover (p = 0.02)having an impact on large mammal movement. Overall, the landscape variables hadgreater influence on branch logging roads that may be explained by the quality of thesurrounding habitat, as well as greater influence at smaller buffer scales. Further researchand monitoring of the large mammals in APP is recommended to expand on thispreliminary study. Greater understanding of the local- and landscape-level variables atdiffering habitat ranges will assist in understanding these large mammal movements andprovide data to base logging road management on. As large mammals are wide-rangingspecies, my study informs APP that their logging road network does not seem to hinderthe movements of this group of animals. Overall, the large mammals in APP did nothave any significant difference in their use of primary and branch logging roads of APP.Further research has the potential to give greater understanding of the impacts of thelogging road network on the five large mammal species studied in APP. There is also thepotential for useful management strategies to emerge for large mammals in this park, andhow to incorporate human activities within their habitat while maintaining sustainablepopulations.