IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Beausoleil, R.A. | |
| Using DNA to evaluate field identification of cougar gender by agency staff and hunters using trained dogs | |
| 2014 Conference Proceeding | |
Cougar hunting has typically been classified as either selective-hunting with the aid of dogs or non-selective-hunting without dogs, based on the assumption that hunters using dogs can better identify gender of cougars prior to harvest. Subsequent to hunt activity, 94% of all wildlife agencies that allow cougar hunting have mandatory inspections where gender is identified and recorded by agency staff. To test the ability of hunters and agency staff in Washington to correctly identify gender of cougars in the field during hunting seasons and inspection of mortalities, respectively, this project used DNA analysis of tissue samples collected with biopsy darts and during inspection. The gender assigned by dog hunters in the field matched gender from DNA analysis 70% of the time (n = 159); correct identification varied between 57 and 88% per year. The gender identified by agency staff during inspection of mortalities matched DNA analysis 85% of the time (n = 1,331); correct identification varied between 71 and 90% per year. Because gender misclassification has the potential to alter intended hunter harvest as well as how success of management prescriptions are interpreted, agencies may want to initiate internal and hunter education programs. Since the majority already have mandatory inspections, agencies may also want to consider DNA collection during mandatory inspections to identify error rates of gender identification by staff within their jurisdiction. Finally, considering the size of cougar management units in jurisdictions can be a valuable way for agencies to prevent complications of potential gender misidentification. |
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