Whether ecotourism can lead to human–wildlife conflict is not well understood. In Nuxalk Territory, grizzly bear ( Ursus arctos horribilis Ord, 1815) conflict occurred ∼41–58 km downstream from ecotourism. We screened for genetic matches between individuals that encountered conflict ( n = 30) and 118 individuals detected upstream via hair snags (including 34 at ecotour sites). Of these 34, one encountered conflict. In analysis Scenario 1, we considered all detected and undetected bears in the region as freely mixing, and used Bayes’ theorem to account for imperfect detection of ecotour bears among conflict samples, deriving an estimate of 1.47 (rounded to 2). Accounting for this uncertainty, we used a probability approach to ask how large the unknown non-ecotour bear population would have to be to observe this frequency of conflict among ecotour bears (2/34) by chance. The resulting population level exceeded available estimates, suggesting ecotour bears are less likely to encounter conflict. In Scenario 2, we assumed that downstream bears are not necessarily from the same population as those sampled upstream; we compared the proportions of known ecotour and non-ecotour bears among conflict samples and found no evidence of a significant difference. Collectively, these analyses suggest other human-caused drivers of conflict.

Behavioral ecologists frequently focus on a single modality of wildlife response to disturbance, which can limit inference because different antipredator responses reflect various aspects of predation risk management. We investigated intrapopulation variation in tolerance to human-associated risk within a grizzly bear-ecotourism system in Nuxalk Territory, considering behavior results in tandem with spatial data from genetically tagged individuals. Whereas our behavioral analysis revealed no effects of ecotourism on alertness, our central measure of tolerance, we observed variation in space-use among individuals (n = 80). Only 12, primarily females (n = 10), showed preference for the area of highest ecotourism activity; others showed little to no use of the area, despite its close proximity and high resource abundance. These patterns suggest that behavioral data may have been biased towards individuals tolerant enough to coexist with ecotourism. Examining behavior of ostensibly tolerant ecotourism individuals alone would have overlooked intrapopulation variation in space-use at broader spatial scales. A comprehensive assessment that simultaneously draws upon both spatial and behavioral dimensions may therefore provide richer insight into coexistence than either lens alone. More broadly, coexistence dynamics in this and other systems might exclude some individuals within populations that are not tolerant enough to participate.

Understanding the spatial extent and temporal variability of ecosystem processes is essential for contextualizing land use and land cover change due to disturbance. In this study, we apply an advanced time series modelling method to assess and map ecosystem change and characterize ecosystem cover in west-central British Columbia, Canada. We couple Biogeoclimatic Ecosystem Classification (BEC) zone data with metrics derived from Landsat imagery to model how biogeoclimatic ecosystem cover, interpreted as an indicator of shifting vegetation seasonality, varies over a broad spatiotemporal scale. To do so, we apply the Time-Weighted Dynamic Time Warping (TWDTW) time series modelling approach by relating the spectral characteristics of Landsat data and derived indices from 1997 to 2019. Results highlight important transitions between biogeoclimatic ecosystem classes, with a transition of the interior Douglas-fir Dry to the montane-spruce Dry and the Sub-Boreal Pine to the Spruce zone Dry zones in response to large wildfires in 2003 and 2009. The assessment of ecosystem change across broad spatial and temporal scales is important for assessing the cumulative impacts of changes across highly variable landscapes on essential landscape services.

Local adaptation research often focuses on discrete populations without extensive gene flow that are under differential selective pressures. By contrast, grizzly bears Ursus arctos in British Columbia (BC) are wide-ranging omnivores that span an environmental and resource ecotone from the coastal, salmon-enriched rainforest to dry interior plateau. This ecotone has been associated with local adaptation in other species and the different regions to morphological variation in grizzly bears. To understand genome-wide population genetic patterns across the ecotone and to identify loci or genomic regions associated with these different environments, here we use whole-genome resequencing to characterize 3.9 M SNPs in 31 grizzly bears spanning from central to northern latitudes in coastal and interior regions (to the west and east of the coastal mountain range [CMR], respectively). Clustering grizzly samples by genotypes identified 3 groups that generally correspond to the source geographic regions, with the greatest variation occurring from north to south. The data were best explained by a single ancestry cluster, but K = 3 recovered the 3 geographic groupings and were used to identify putative nonmigrant individuals. The presence of individuals with mixed ancestry (using K = 3) provides evidence for travel across the CMR, but significant differentiation between clusters (mean FST = 0.015 to 0.036) suggests some genetic separation between the regions, supporting an isolation-by-distance or clinal variation model. Putative close-kin were identified and removed, then multiple supervised outlier SNP detection methods were applied to identify regions of the genome consistently segregating between coastal and interior regions. Several associated genomic regions and candidate genes were identified, including a consistently identified outlier region near the gene creatine kinase, m-type. This work provides the first genome-wide analysis of grizzly bears in the studied region. These findings will be useful for connectivity planning and research on the adaptability of coastal and interior grizzlies to future climate change scenarios.

Conservation interventions increasingly clash with other human activities, often resulting in conflict among people, communities, and wildlife. One means by which to address and overcome conflicts is through examining their roots in identities and beliefs; in this way, researchers can identify potential routes to conflict interventions that address different kinds-and levels of-conflict often ignored in conventional management. In the Salish Sea region, conflict has emerged following measures by Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans that restrict recreational Chinook (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) fishing to protect endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales (Orcinus ater). Public response has been conflict-laden, especially between "angler" and "conservation-supporter" communities-stakeholder groups portrayed in the media as distinct and opposed. We used online surveys to examine the identity, beliefs, and opinions of stakeholders. Most survey participants (n = 727) self-identified saliently as either conservation-supporters (53%) or anglers (34%), although some held both identities. Both groups scored similarly high in environmental and stakeholder identity affiliation scores, also showing association between the intensity of identities with public engagement in management discourse. Groups differed strongly (chi 2 = 156.27, p <.001) in management beliefs, with conservation supporters favoring core management priorities of species conservation, while anglers favored a balanced or natural resource-oriented approach. Despite divergences in beliefs and management priorities, more individuals self-identified as both anglers and conservation-supporters than one would expect based only on existing media portrayals. Ultimately, our results identify conflicts between stakeholder groups as deeply-embedded. Commonalities (in identities and beliefs regarding Chinook), however, suggest a path forward that draws on conservation conflict transformation theory. Broadly, our approach offers new generalizable insight into the levels-of-conflict framework to inform scholarly and practical endeavors.

Understanding how functional connectivity can provide mobile consumers access to key resources can inform habitat management. The spatial arrangement of landscape features, for example, can affect movement among resource patches. Guided by the Haíɫzaqv (Heiltsuk) Integrated Resource Management Department (HIRMD), and within Haíɫzaqv Territory, coastal British Columbia (BC), Canada, our objectives were to (1) estimate functional connectivity for grizzly and black bears (Ursus arctos and U. americanus, respectively) among aggregations of spawning Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.), (2) identify important movement pathways for landscape planning, and (3) contribute to the growing body of functional connectivity research on dynamic ecological systems. Using circuit theory and least cost paths, we predicted movement among salmon spawning reaches within a 5618 km2 study area. Variables affecting bear movement were parameterized by drawing on the relevant literature and Haíɫzaqv Knowledge. We validated our cumulative resistance surface with observed movements as identified via genetic recapture data. Modeled current from Circuitscape suggested areas of high connectivity between salmon spawns within and among watersheds. Our least cost paths model identified principal routes, which we then ranked to illustrate possible corridors for consideration by HIRMD planners. Understanding movement among salmon spawns, a fitness-related food, provides key information to inform landscape planning for bears. Further, our work provides an example of connectivity research codeveloped, executed, and applied with an Indigenous government.

Alpine ecosystems are changing rapidly with implications for the demography of alpine organisms. Here, we studied a sentinel species of mountain environments-the mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus)-to examine hypotheses about intrinsic and extrinsic drivers of reproductive demography using long-term data collected from individually marked animals across a broad spatiotemporal extent (n = 180 females, 3 study areas, 17 years) in coastal Alaska. Our analyses revealed the importance of life-history trade-offs and environmental variability on reproductive performance. The cost of reproduction, defined as the impact of reproducing the previous year on the probability of current year parturition, was high, especially for young, largely primiparous females (13%-32% reduction) and old, senescing individuals (27%-43% reduction); parturition of prime-aged individuals was relatively unaffected (2% reduction). Winter snow accumulation, which alters energetic expenditure and forage availability, exerted strong negative effects on reproduction (20%-35% reduction, depending on age). The relationship between temperature during the preceding summer's growing season and reproduction was likewise negative, although weaker and more variable (10%-15% reduction). Demographic modelling indicated that snow exerted stronger effects on population growth than summer temperature in part due to greater variability in snow versus temperature among years. Our analyses further revealed that reproductive performance did not affect subsequent survival of mothers or offspring, suggesting mountain goats employ a 'risk-sensitive', conservative reproductive strategy that prioritizes survival over reproduction. Taken together, these results fill an important knowledge gap by providing novel insights about the interplay between life-history trade-offs and environmental variation, and how they shape the reproductive demography of climate-sensitive wildlife.

Climate is changing rapidly in mountain environments, giving rise to increasing variability in weather, incidence of extreme events, and alteration of the cryosphere. Natural hazards, such as snow avalanches, and the ecological communities they impact may be particularly sensitive to such change. While avalanches may impose both 'good' and 'bad' effects on mountain ecosystems, the direct impacts that lead to mortality have particularly important implications for future viability and resilience of slow-growing alpine wildlife populations. Here, we studied a sentinel species of coastal Alaskan mountain environments-the mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus) - using long-term field data from individually marked animals (600 individuals over 44 years) in a quantitative modeling framework to understand how avalanches influence demographic processes. Specifically, we developed and parameterized a sex- and age-specific population modeling approach to simulate the effects of avalanche-caused mortality on population growth rate (λ). We examined a range of ecologically relevant scenarios based on empirically observed states of avalanche-caused mortality. During years when avalanche impacts are severe, populations can experience significant additive mortality and population declines (up to 15%). Due to low reproductive rates, such impacts can lead to long demographic recovery times (up to 11 years, or ~1.5 mountain goat generations). Thus, during the course of a typical mountain goat lifetime, significant avalanche-linked perturbations can be expected to occur, suggesting that meaningful demographic signatures of avalanche impacts are generationally recurrent and routinely imbedded in population histories. From a conservation perspective, such impacts are striking and highlight the utility of employing a quantitative modeling approach to predict possible effects of avalanches and extreme events more broadly on mountain ungulate population dynamics and viability. Our work explicitly builds upon recent findings about the importance of avalanches on mountain-adapted animal populations and has implications for the cultural and ecological communities that depend on them.

Shellfish have supported Indigenous lifeways on the Pacific Coast of North America for millennia. Despite the ubiquity of clamshells in archaeological sites, shell size measurements are rarely reported due to a lack of applicable basis for generating size estimates from fragmentary remains. We present a linear regression-based method for determining shell length from hinge and umbo measurements of littleneck (Leukoma staminea; n = 239), butter (Saxidomus gigantea; n = 274), and horse (Tresus nuttallii; n = 92) clams using both contemporary and archaeological shells collected from three regions in coastal British Columbia, Canada. We examine the accuracy of these size estimations, which indicate that 83%–97% of the variability in dorsal shell length is predicted by umbo thickness and hinge length. Hinge length generated higher R2 values yet exhibited greater intra- and inter-observer error. While the predicted dorsal length for each species differed by region, this size difference was smaller than intra- and inter-observer error, suggesting broad applicability for these simple measurements. We applied these formulae to a Tseshaht First Nation archaeological clamshell assemblage (n = 488) on western Vancouver Island spanning 3000 years and observed profiles that resemble contemporary legal size limits, which suggests the sustained use and maintenance of local shellfisheries. The accuracy of these regression models for determining shell length from fragments highlights the utility of this approach as a basis for assessing past shellfish management practices.

AbstractSnow is a major, climate-sensitive feature of the Earth’s surface and catalyst of fundamentally important ecosystem processes. Understanding how snow influences sentinel species in rapidly changing mountain ecosystems is particularly critical. Whereas effects of snow on food availability, energy expenditure, and predation are well documented, we report how avalanches exert major impacts on an ecologically significant mountain ungulate - the coastal Alaskan mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus). Using long-term GPS data and field observations across four populations (421 individuals over 17 years), we show that avalanches caused 23−65% of all mortality, depending on area. Deaths varied seasonally and were directly linked to spatial movement patterns and avalanche terrain use. Population-level avalanche mortality, 61% of which comprised reproductively important prime-aged individuals, averaged 8% annually and exceeded 22% when avalanche conditions were severe. Our findings reveal a widespread but previously undescribed pathway by which snow can elicit major population-level impacts and shape demographic characteristics of slow-growing populations of mountain-adapted animals.

Ecotourism management can draw on theory and data related to non-consumptive effects of risk on wildlife. The asset protection principle (APP) predicts that variable food supply and its associated risks will affect antipredator behavior; responses to predation risk should dominate when food reserves are high, while nutritional risk becomes more important when food reserves are limited. Additionally, the human shield hypothesis (HSH) describes how some individuals might seek human presence if it repels potential sources of risk. Using camera traps, we used generalized linear mixed effects and multinomial regression models to test components of the APP and HSH where ecotourism co-occurs with grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) foraging during hyperphagia. When salmon abundance was high (+1 SD), bear activity (weekly detections) decreased by 13% with every 100 visitors/week. Under low salmon conditions, bear activity increased with visitor numbers, creating 'high bear-high visitor' conditions. Consistent with HSH, detection data revealed an increased likelihood of detecting subordinate age-sex classes compared with adult males when visitor numbers were high. Our findings suggest that when salmon are low, managers might consider limiting visitors to mitigate disturbance. More broadly, understanding how wildlife allocate anti-predator behavior as a function of risk and food can inform conservation science and practice. Ecotourism management can draw on theory and data related to non-consumptive effects of risk on wildlife to inform conservation outcomes. Using camera traps, we tested the asset protection principle and human shield hypothesis along the Atnarko River, Nuxalk Territory, British Columbia, where ecotourism co-occurs with grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) foraging during a critical time to amass energy. Our findings suggest that when food resources are low, managers might consider limiting visitors to mitigate potential disturbance during hyperphagia. image

ABSTRACTIn an era of global change, historical natural history data can improve our understanding of ecological phenomena, particularly when evaluated with contemporary Indigenous and place‐based knowledge. The Yáláƛi (Goose Island) Archipelago is a group of islands in Heiltsuk (Haíɫzaqv) territory on the Central Coast of British Columbia, Canada. Not only has this region been important to the Heiltsuk for millennia but also it is both a federally and internationally recognized important bird area. In this study, we compare data collected by Charles J. Guiguet, a biologist who documented bird communities at Yáláƛi in the summer of 1948, to three different contemporary surveys and to citizen‐science data. We find that the relative abundances of forest bird species (i.e., birds that use the terrestrial island ecosystems) in 1948 differed to those observed in systematic surveys in 2011. While Orange‐crowned Warblers, Dark‐eyed Juncos, and Red Crossbills comprised 55% of detections by Guiguet in 1948, the three most abundant species in 2011 were Bald Eagles, Varied Thrushes, and Pacific Wrens, and these accounted for only 25% of detections. Although we could not make a quantitative comparison, we provide summaries of each species observed in surveys or reported on eBird. We also incorporate Heiltsuk place‐based knowledge to enrich our discussion of the variability in bird communities over time, from how changes in mammal communities and human use may have shaped vegetation dynamics to how large‐scale natural phenomena impacted topography. To understand which birds are present and how their communities are changing over time, we recommend continued monitoring of the bird communities at Yáláƛi.

AbstractWildlife must increasingly balance trade‐offs between the need to access important foods and the mortality risks associated with human‐dominated landscapes. Human disturbance can profoundly influence wildlife behavior, but managers know little about the relationship between disturbance–behavior dynamics and associated consequences for foraging. We address this gap by empirically investigating the consequences of human activity on a keystone predator–prey interaction in a region with limited but varied industrial disturbance. Using stable isotope data from 226 hair samples of grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis) collected from 1995 to 2014 across 22 salmon‐bearing watersheds (88,000 km2) in British Columbia, Canada, we examined how human activity influenced their consumption of spawning salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.), a fitness‐related food. Accounting for the abundance of salmon and other foods, salmon consumption strongly decreased (up to 59% for females) with increasing human disturbance (as measured by the human footprint index) in riparian zones of salmon‐bearing rivers. Declines in salmon consumption occurred with disturbance even in watersheds with low footprints. In a region currently among the least influenced by industrial activity, intensification of disturbance in river valleys is predicted to increasingly decouple bears from salmon, possibly driving associated reductions in population productivity and provisioning of salmon nutrients to terrestrial ecosystems. Accordingly, we draw on our results to make landscape‐scale and access‐related management recommendations beyond current streamside protection buffers. This work illustrates the interaction between habitat modification and food security for wildlife, highlighting the potential for unacknowledged interactions and cumulative effects in increasingly modified landscapes.

AimSpecies distributions across islands are shaped by dispersal limitations, environmental filters and biotic interactions but the relative influence of each of these processes has rarely been assessed. Here, we examine the relative contributions of island characteristics, marine subsidies, species traits, and species interactions on avian community composition.LocationCentral Coast region of British Columbia, Canada.TaxonTerrestrial breeding birds.MethodsWe observed 3610 individuals of 32 bird species on 89 islands that spanned multiple orders of magnitude in area (0.0002-3 km2). We fit a spatially explicit joint species distribution model to estimate the relative contributions of island physical characteristics, island-specific inputs of marine subsidies, species' traits, and biotic interactions on species distributions. Biogeographic characteristics included island area, isolation, and habitat heterogeneity, while marine influence was represented by forest-edge soil & delta;15N, wrack biomass, shoreline substrate, and distance to shore. This approach also allowed us to estimate how much variation in distributions resulted from species' biological traits (i.e. body mass, feeding guild, feeding height, and nesting height).ResultsBird species distributions were determined almost equivalently by island biogeographic characteristics (23.5% of variation explained) and marine influence (24.8%). We detected variation in species-specific responses to both island biogeographic characteristics and marine influence, but no significant effect of any biological trait examined. Additionally, we found evidence that habitat preferences were a more important driver than competitive interactions.Main ConclusionsAlthough most island biogeographic studies focus only on islands' physical characteristics, we found evidence for an equivalent role of marine subsidy in structuring island bird communities. Our study suggests that for small islands, disentangling the effects of island biogeographic characteristics, marine inputs, and biotic interactions is a useful next step in understanding species distributions.

Humans are perceived as predators by many species and may generate landscapes of fear, influencing spatiotemporal activity of wildlife. Additionally, wildlife might seek out human activity when faced with predation risks (human shield hypothesis). We used the anthropause, a decrease in human activity resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, to test ecology of fear and human shield hypotheses and quantify the effects of bear-viewing ecotourism on grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) activity. We deployed camera traps in the Khutze watershed in Kitasoo Xai'xais Territory in the absence of humans in 2020 and with experimental treatments of variable human activity when ecotourism resumed in 2021. Daily bear detection rates decreased with more people present and increased with days since people were present. Human activity was also associated with more bear detections at forested sheltered sites and less at exposed sites, likely due to the influence of habitat on bear perception of safety. The number of people negatively influenced adult male detection rates, but we found no influence on female with young detections, providing no evidence that females responded behaviorally to a human shield effect from reduced male activity. We also observed apparent trade-offs of risk avoidance and foraging. When salmon levels were moderate to high, detected bears were more likely to be females with young than adult males on days with more people present. Should managers want to minimize human impacts on bear activity and maintain baseline age-sex class composition at ecotourism sites, multiday closures and daily occupancy limits may be effective. More broadly, this work revealed that antipredator responses can vary with intensity of risk cues, habitat structure, and forage trade-offs and manifest as altered age-sex class composition of individuals using human-influenced areas, highlighting that wildlife avoid people across multiple spatiotemporal scales.

Some wildlife species mistakenly seek human-inhabited areas to avoid predators.

Although the keystone species concept was conceived of over 50 years ago, contemporary efforts to synthesize related literature have been limited. Our objective was to create a list of keystone animal species identified in the literature and to examine the variation in the traits of species and the ecosystem influences they elicit. We documented 230 species considered keystones. A clustering analysis classified them into five archetypes based on combinations of their taxonomic class, body size, trophic level, and role (consumers, modifiers, or prey). Although conservation and public perception of keystones primarily focuses on large vertebrate consumers, our analysis reveals that researchers have defined a wide diversity of keystone species, with large variation in associated ecosystem processes. Future research may confront ambiguity in the definition of keystone status, as well as clarify the type, abundance, and quality of data required to assign the term. Identifying keystones with increased rigor would not only enrich the literature but also inform intervention to safeguard threatened keystones and their associated influences on ecosystems.

In seasonal environments, the ability of mustelid species to acquire carrion—a dietary resource heavily depended upon—is driven by a collection local habitat characteristics and competition dynamics. In resource-scarce winter, sympatric mesocarnivores must balance energetic rewards of carrion with avoiding antagonistic interactions with conspecifics. We examined scavenging interactions among three mustelid species in the northern Canadian Rocky Mountains. Camera traps (n = 59) were baited with carrion during winter between 2006 to 2008. Spatial and temporal dimensions of scavenger behaviour (i.e., carcass use) were evaluated using a multi-model approach, which enabled us to recognize potentially adaptive behavioural mechanisms for mitigating competition at carcass sites. Best performing models indicated that carrion site use is governed by a combination of competition threats and environmental factors. A decrease in scavenging with increasing snow depth was observed across all species. Mustelids adopted a host of adaptive behavioural strategies to access shared scavenging opportunities. We found evidence that wolverine (Gulo gulo) and American marten (Martes americana) segregate in space but temporally tracked one another. Short-tailed weasel (Mustela erminea) scavenging decreased with greater site use by marten. Carcass availability across a spatially complex environment, as well as spatial–temporal avoidance strategies, can facilitate carrion resource partitioning.