IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Proffitt, K.M.; Hebblewhite, M.; Goldberg, J.; Thompson, M.; Jimenez, B.; Russell, R. | |
| Integrating resource selection and harvest into spatial capture-recapture models for estimating mountain lion abundance | |
| 2014 Conference Proceeding | |
The lack of rigorous mountain lion abundance estimates has contributed to making mountain lion management one of the most contentious wildlife issues in western Montana. Recent advances in spatial capture recapture (SCR) models have provided new approaches for addressing this important need and providing an objective basis for mountain lion management. We developed extensions to standard SCR models to incorporate simultaneous live sampling and harvest events and habitat quality information. We demonstrate the use of these novel methods in estimating mountain lion abundance and density in two mountain lion management units in western Montana, hunting districts 250 and 270. We identified individuals through DNA samples collected by 1) biopsy darting treed mountain lions located during systematic surveys, 2) opportunistically collecting hair and scat samples, and 3) sampling all harvested mountain lions. We included 80 DNA samples collected from 62 independent individuals in the analysis. We estimated the abundance of 85 (95% CI = 54, 141) independent mountain lions in hunting district 250 and 82 (95% CI = 51, 137) in hunting district 270. These results are 2-3 times higher than previously estimated minimum mountain lion abundances in this area, and correspond to density estimates of 4.6 and 5.4 lions per 100 km2. Because current harvest regulations in western Montana were developed under the assumption of lower population abundance, lion management objectives are unlikely to be met unless harvest prescriptions are adjusted to account for this new understanding of lion population status. More broadly, the analytic improvements in SCR methods will enhance the ability of wildlife managers to reliably and economically estimate abundance of mountain lions, as well as other large carnivores. |
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