DOI: 10.1111/gcb.13711
论文题名: Mule deer and energy development-Long-term trends of habituation and abundance
作者: Sawyer H. ; Korfanta N.M. ; Nielson R.M. ; Monteith K.L. ; Strickland D.
刊名: Global Change Biology
ISSN: 13541013
出版年: 2017
语种: 英语
英文关键词: Avoidance behavior
; Disturbance
; Indirect habitat loss
; Land-use planning
; Mitigation
英文摘要: As the extent and intensity of energy development in North America increases, so do disturbances to wildlife and the habitats they rely upon. Impacts to mule deer are of particular concern because some of the largest gas fields in the USA overlap critical winter ranges. Short-term studies of 2-3 years have shown that mule deer and other ungulates avoid energy infrastructure; however, there remains a common perception that ungulates habituate to energy development, and thus, the potential for a demographic effect is low. We used telemetry data from 187 individual deer across a 17-year period, including 2 years predevelopment and 15 years during development, to determine whether mule deer habituated to natural gas development and if their response to disturbance varied with winter severity. Concurrently, we measured abundance of mule deer to indirectly link behavior with demography. Mule deer consistently avoided energy infrastructure through the 15-year period of development and used habitats that were an average of 913 m further from well pads compared with predevelopment patterns of habitat use. Even during the last 3 years of study, when most wells were in production and reclamation efforts underway, mule deer remained >1 km away from well pads. The magnitude of avoidance behavior, however, was mediated by winter severity, where aversion to well pads decreased as winter severity increased. Mule deer abundance declined by 36% during the development period, despite aggressive onsite mitigation efforts (e.g. directional drilling and liquid gathering systems) and a 45% reduction in deer harvest. Our results indicate behavioral effects of energy development on mule deer are long term and may affect population abundance by displacing animals and thereby functionally reducing the amount of available habitat. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Citation statistics:
资源类型: 期刊论文
标识符: http://119.78.100.158/handle/2HF3EXSE/61142
Appears in Collections: 影响、适应和脆弱性
There are no files associated with this item.
作者单位: Western Ecosystems Technology, Inc. Laramie, WY USA; Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources University of Wyoming Laramie, WY USA; Western Ecosystems Technology Inc. Fort Collins, Colarado USA; Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit Department of Zoology and Physiology University of Wyoming Laramie, WY USA
Recommended Citation:
Sawyer H.,Korfanta N.M.,Nielson R.M.,et al. Mule deer and energy development-Long-term trends of habituation and abundance[J]. Global Change Biology,2017-01-01