The Impact of Human Traffic on Wildlife Abundance on a Recreational Trail System in Southeastern Tennessee

Humans impact wildlife in numerous ways. The most serious being direct habitat destruction due to the expansion of urban landscapes, farmland, logging, and other activities that consume natural resources. However, even outdoor recreation in relatively protected areas can exert an influence. While consumptive outdoor recreational activities, like hunting and fishing, directly impact wildlife populations, non-consumptive outdoor recreation, like hiking or mountain biking, can impact wildlife in less overt ways. Simply the presence of humans in a natural area can disrupt normal animal behavior and drive animals away from important resources. In this study we used trail cameras to examine the impact of human traffic on the rate of wildlife detection on a private trail system in southeastern Tennessee during the Fall mating season. 92.9% of total camera sightings were from humans or domestic animals (i.e. domestics dogs) while only 7.1% were from native wildlife with most of these sighting (55.9%) coming from white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). Analysis using Poisson generalized estimating equations (GEEs) suggested an inverse relationship between the intensity of human traffic and the rate of wildlife detection. Analysis also showed that the portion of the trail system that had been developed the longest (since 2001) had lower cumulative wildlife detection and species richness than the portion of the trails system developed more recently (2016). An analysis of the time of day sightings occurred showed that peak activity for wildlife did not overlap with human activity. Wildlife sightings peaked in the morning while human activity peaked in the later afternoon/evening. Overall, these results confirm previous research that suggests that non-consumptive outdoor recreation can have significant effects on the abundance and behavior of wildlife

Risk Assessment and the Effects of Refuge Availability on the Defensive Behaviors of the Southern Unstriped Scorpion (Vaejovis carolinianus)

Selection should favor individuals that acquire, process, and act on relevant environmental signals to avoid predation. Studies have found that scorpions control their use of venom: both when it is released and the total volume expelled. However, this research has not included how a scorpion’s awareness of environmental features influences these decisions. The current study tested 18 Vaejovis carolinianus scorpions (nine females and nine males) by placing them in circular arenas supplied with varying numbers (zero, two, or four) of square refuges and by tracking their movements overnight. The following morning, defensive behaviors were elicited by prodding scorpions on the chelae, prosoma, and metasoma once per second over 90 s. We recorded stings, venom use, chelae pinches, and flee duration. We found strong evidence that, across all behaviors measured, V. carolinianus perceived prods to the prosoma as more threatening than prods to the other locations. We found that stinging was a common behavior and became more dominant as the threat persisted. Though tenuous, we found evidence that scorpions’ defensive behaviors changed based on the number of refuges and that these differences may be sex specific. Our findings suggest that V. carolinianus can assess risk and features of the local environment and, therefore, alter their defensive strategies accordingly

Human-Wildlife Conflict at a Suburban–Wildlands Interface: Effects of Short- and Long-Distance Translocations on Red Diamond Rattlesnake (Crotalus ruber) Activity and Survival

The mitigation of human-rattlesnake conflicts often involves euthanizing or translocating the offending rattlesnake. Although translocation is generally considered more humane, especially by the general public, it may negatively impact the translocated individual and may not be effective if that individual returns to areas where the probability of human conflict is high. We used radiotelemetry to experimentally study the effects of short- (SDT) and long-distance translocation (LDT; beyond the typical home range or activity range) on adult Red Diamond Rattlesnakes (Crotalus ruber) near a residential development in Southern California. Though the results were mixed, some analyses suggested that higher numbers of SDTs were associated with larger activity areas and increased movement. For snakes undergoing LDT, the activity areas and mean daily movement distances were 1.8–4.6 times larger than those of non-LDT snakes in the year of translocation, but were similar in the following year. Cox regression models revealed that, for both LDT and non-LDT snakes, every 1 m increase in the distance moved resulted in a 1.2% decreased risk of moving back into a human-modified area and a 1.6% decreased risk of returning to the original site of conflict. We failed to detect an effect of either LDT or SDT on body mass change or survival. Our findings suggest that LDT of nuisance snakes may be a viable option for at least some rattlesnake populations or species, especially those in which individuals do not require communal overwintering sites

Human-Wildlife Conflict at a Suburban–Wildlands Interface: Effects of Short- and Long-Distance Translocations on Red Diamond Rattlesnake (Crotalus ruber) Activity and Survival

The mitigation of human-rattlesnake conflicts often involves euthanizing or translocating the offending rattlesnake. Although translocation is generally considered more humane, especially by the general public, it may negatively impact the translocated individual and may not be effective if that individual returns to areas where the probability of human conflict is high. We used radiotelemetry to experimentally study the effects of short- (SDT) and long-distance translocation (LDT; beyond the typical home range or activity range) on adult Red Diamond Rattlesnakes (Crotalus ruber) near a residential development in Southern California. Though the results were mixed, some analyses suggested that higher numbers of SDTs were associated with larger activity areas and increased movement. For snakes undergoing LDT, the activity areas and mean daily movement distances were 1.8–4.6 times larger than those of non-LDT snakes in the year of translocation, but were similar in the following year. Cox regression models revealed that, for both LDT and non-LDT snakes, every 1 m increase in the distance moved resulted in a 1.2% decreased risk of moving back into a human-modified area and a 1.6% decreased risk of returning to the original site of conflict. We failed to detect an effect of either LDT or SDT on body mass change or survival. Our findings suggest that LDT of nuisance snakes may be a viable option for at least some rattlesnake populations or species, especially those in which individuals do not require communal overwintering sites

Human–Wildlife Conflict at a Suburban–Wildlands Interface: Effects of Short-and Long-Distance Translocations on Red Diamond Rattlesnake (Crotalus ruber) Activity and Survival

The mitigation of human-rattlesnake conflicts often involves euthanizing or translocating the offending rattlesnake. Although translocation is generally considered more humane, especially by the general public, it may negatively impact the translocated individual and may not be effective if that individual returns to areas where the probability of human conflict is high. We used radiotelemetry to experimentally study the effects of short- (SDT) and long-distance translocation (LDT; beyond the typical home range or activity range) on adult Red Diamond Rattlesnakes (Crotalus ruber) near a residential development in Southern California. Though the results were mixed, some analyses suggested that higher numbers of SDTs were associated with larger activity areas and increased movement. For snakes undergoing LDT, the activity areas and mean daily movement distances were 1.8–4.6 times larger than those of non-LDT snakes in the year of translocation, but were similar in the following year. Cox regression models revealed that, for both LDT and non-LDT snakes, every 1 m increase in the distance moved resulted in a 1.2% decreased risk of moving back into a human-modified area and a 1.6% decreased risk of returning to the original site of conflict. We failed to detect an effect of either LDT or SDT on body mass change or survival. Our findings suggest that LDT of nuisance snakes may be a viable option for at least some rattlesnake populations or species, especially those in which individuals do not require communal overwintering sites