Annual use of water sources by reintroduced Rocky Mountain bighorn sheepOvis canadensis canadensis: effects of season and drought

Whiting, Jericho C.; Bowyer, R. Terry; Flinders, Jerran T.

doi:10.1007/bf03193168

Cited by 18 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…(Whiting et al, 2009a). Human use of this area is restricted to hiking, biking and horseback riding on limited, designated trails (Fairbanks & Tullous, 2002).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Human use of this area is restricted to hiking, biking and horseback riding on limited, designated trails (Fairbanks & Tullous, 2002). Greater detail regarding the flora and fauna of this area is available elsewhere (Fairbanks & Tullous, 2002;Rogerson, Fairbanks & Cornicelli, 2008;Whiting et al, 2009a).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The study area comprises 11 300 ha, and is 24 km long and 8.3 km wide, with the highest peak at 2134 m. During the study legal hunting for bighorns was prohibited on the island, and the average size of the population was 162 animals (Whiting, Bowyer & Flinders, 2009a). We defined seasons according to birthing and mating behaviors of bighorns on the island as follows: spring was 1 April to 30 June, summer consisted of 1 July to 30 September and rut occurred from 1 October to 30 November (Whiting et al, 2009a). In our analyses, we did not include winter (1 December to 31 March), because bighorns rarely visited water sources during that time (Whiting et al, 2009a).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In our analyses, we did not include winter (1 December to 31 March), because bighorns rarely visited water sources during that time (Whiting et al, 2009a). We defined segregation as 1 April to 30 September and aggregation as 1 October to 30 November based on mating behaviors of these bighorns (Whiting et al, 2009a).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We defined seasons according to birthing and mating behaviors of bighorns on the island as follows: spring was 1 April to 30 June, summer consisted of 1 July to 30 September and rut occurred from 1 October to 30 November (Whiting et al, 2009a). In our analyses, we did not include winter (1 December to 31 March), because bighorns rarely visited water sources during that time (Whiting et al, 2009a). We defined segregation as 1 April to 30 September and aggregation as 1 October to 30 November based on mating behaviors of these bighorns (Whiting et al, 2009a).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sexual segregation and use of water by bighorn sheep: implications for conservation

Whiting

Bowyer

Flinders

et al. 2010

Animal Conservation

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Males and females of most dimorphic ruminants segregate outside the mating season, which may necessitate that conservation efforts focus on differential resources used by the sexes. Dimorphic bighorn sheep Ovis canadensis are one of the rarest ungulates in North America with some populations listed as endangered. Water sources are important for the persistence of populations of bighorns, especially in a changing climate. Understanding whether the sexes use different water sources could influence the conservation of this species and the habitats they occupy; however, little research exists regarding this important topic. We tested hypotheses relating to use of water sources by reintroduced male and female bighorns in Utah, USA. We investigated whether use of this resource differed across seasons by sex, and if sexes used water more during drought compared with non-drought conditions. Bighorns used small, adjacent core areas during segregation, and males and females used different sources of water during that time. Males visited water sources used by females more during aggregation. Males and females used water sources more in summer, and males visited water sources more during rut than did females. Males and females did not use water sources more during drought compared with non-drought conditions; however, sexes visited water sources more during the season following drought than following non-drought conditions, indicating a time-lag in use of this resource. Our results highlight the importance of water sources used by sexes of bighorns, and indicate that the existing criterion for distance of bighorn reintroductions from water may be inadequate for successful establishment of populations. We recommend conservationists assess availability of water sources near habitat used by male and female ungulates before conserving and manipulating habitat, siting artificial sources of water and reintroducing animals.

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“…(Whiting et al, 2009a). Human use of this area is restricted to hiking, biking and horseback riding on limited, designated trails (Fairbanks & Tullous, 2002).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sexual segregation and use of water by bighorn sheep: implications for conservation

Whiting

Bowyer

Flinders

et al. 2010

Animal Conservation

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Divergent water requirements partition exposure risk to parasites in wild equids

Tombak

Easterling

Martinez

et al. 2022

Ecology and Evolution

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For grazing herbivores, dung density in feeding areas is an important determinant of exposure risk to fecal‐orally transmitted parasites. When host species share the same parasite species, a nonrandom distribution of their cumulative dung density and/or nonrandom ranging and feeding behavior may skew exposure risk and the relative selection pressure parasites impose on each host. The arid‐adapted Grevy's zebra (Equus grevyi) can range more widely than the water‐dependent plains zebra (Equus quagga), with which it shares the same species of gastrointestinal nematodes. We studied how the spatial distribution of zebra dung relates to ranging and feeding behavior to assess parasite exposure risk in Grevy's and plains zebras at a site inhabited by both zebra species. We found that zebra dung density declined with distance from water, Grevy's zebra home ranges (excluding those of territorial males) were farther from water than those of plains zebras, and plains zebra grazing areas had higher dung density than random points while Grevy's zebra grazing areas did not, suggesting a greater exposure risk in plains zebras associated with their water dependence. Fecal egg counts increased with home range proximity to water for both species, but the response was stronger in plains zebras, indicating that this host species may be particularly vulnerable to the elevated exposure risk close to water. We further ran experiments on microclimatic effects on dung infectivity and showed that fewer nematode eggs embryonated in dung in the sun than in the shade. However, only 5% of the zebra dung on the landscape was in shade, indicating that the microclimatic effects of shade on the density of infective larvae is not a major influence on exposure risk dynamics. Ranging constraints based on water requirements appear to be key mediators of nematode parasite exposure in free‐ranging equids.

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Comparison of Effects of Shed Antler Hunting and Helicopter Surveys on Ungulate Movements and Space Use

Bates¹,

Whiting

Larsen

2021

J Wildl Manag

Self Cite

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Shed antler hunting (i.e., collecting cast cervid antlers) has increased in popularity during the past decade, but little is known about how this recreational activity affects ungulate movements and space use. We placed geographic positioning system (GPS)‐collars on 133 female and male bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis), bison (Bison bison), and mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) to quantify their movements and space use during shed antler hunts compared with those behaviors during helicopter surveys in Utah, USA, from 2012 to 2015. For each species, we calculated means and 95% confidence intervals for distance moved during 90‐minute segments (16 points/day) pre‐event (control, 7 consecutive days prior to event), event (1–2 days), and post‐event (7 consecutive days after event) for shed antler hunts and helicopter surveys. We also compared use of space for each species during these events. Female bighorn sheep did not increase distance moved or substantially change space use during shed antler hunts and helicopter surveys. Male bighorn sheep increased distance moved 41% on average during shed antler hunts and by 2.02 times during helicopter surveys but did not change space use during those events. Female bison increased distance moved 15% on average during shed antler hunts and 30% during helicopter surveys. Mule deer increased distance moved and altered space use the most during shed antler hunts; females increased distance moved 97%, and 54% of females moved a mean distance of 742 ± 642 (SD) m (range = 9–3,778 m) outside of their home ranges during those hunts for a mean of 9.2 ± 9.4 hours (range = 1.5 to 41 hr). Male mule deer increased distance moved by 2.10 times on average during shed antler hunts, and 82% of males moved a mean distance of 1,264 ± 732 m (range = 131–3,637 m) outside of their home ranges during those hunts for a mean of 12.6 ± 7.6 hours (range = 4.5–33 hr). Our results provide timely information about how legal shed antler hunting affects movements and space use of female and male ungulates, especially mule deer, and can guide the conservation of ungulate populations and their habitat. © 2021 The Wildlife Society.

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Annual use of water sources by reintroduced Rocky Mountain bighorn sheepOvis canadensis canadensis: effects of season and drought

Cited by 18 publications

References 38 publications

Sexual segregation and use of water by bighorn sheep: implications for conservation

Sexual segregation and use of water by bighorn sheep: implications for conservation

Divergent water requirements partition exposure risk to parasites in wild equids

Comparison of Effects of Shed Antler Hunting and Helicopter Surveys on Ungulate Movements and Space Use

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