An Overview of Some Emergent Infectious Diseases of Concern to Montana’s Nongame Species

Virulent infectious diseases in a variety of wildlife populations have increased over the past couple of decades in both natural and managed landscapes.  Fungal and viral pathogens, aided by human disturbance of habitats and human, wildlife, and domestic animal derived transport, are playing an increasingly dominant role in wildlife disease epidemics.  State and federal agencies and professional organizations such as this chapter need to do a better job of keeping wildlife professionals fully informed of all emerging infectious diseases in order to facilitate detection and a potential response at the earliest possible time.  I will provide overviews of: 1) White-Nose Syndrome which is caused by a cold-adapted fungus that, since 2006, has killed more than 6 million bats in eastern North America and has continued to spread westward; 2) two chytrid fungi which have caused mass mortalities and extinctions of amphibians worldwide, including near extinction of the Northern Leopard Frog (Lithobates pipiens) and decline of the Western Toad (Anaxyrus boreas) in western Montana; 3) Tiger Salamander Ranavirus, an iridovirus which is the most likely cause of mass mortality events in larval Western Tiger Salamander (Ambystoma mavortium) populations that have been recorded across Montana; and 4) Snake Fungal Disease, which has emerged as a threat to some snake populations in eastern and midwestern North America since 2006 and may be spreading westward.  In general, wildlife professionals in Montana should report observations of unhealthy wildlife and wildlife mortality events that may involve these and other emerging infectious diseases to the Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks Wildlife Laboratory in Bozeman in order to facilitate coordinated diagnoses and responses with other state and federal agencies

State-wide assessment of status, predicted distribution, and landscape-level habitat suitability of amphibians and reptiles in Montana

Beginning in the late 1980s herpetologists began to realize that amphibians around the world had undergone, and were continuing to undergo, declines, extirpations, and extinctions. In most cases, detections of declines and determinations of the underlying causes has been hampered by a lack of available baseline information on distribution and status. This project was a cooperative effort to address these data deficiencies for amphibians and reptiles in Montana. Watersheds with greater than 30 percent federal or state land ownership were randomly selected for survey in each of 11 geographic strata. Visual encounter and dipnet surveys of all standing water bodies on public lands within these watersheds yielded watershed and site occupancy estimates as a measure of status. Occupancy estimates from this first-ever state-wide base level assessment can be more validly used for future comparisons with future status assessment, provided additional support for declines in Western Toad (Bufo boreas) and Northern Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens) populations in western Montana, and identified a variety of conservation issues of concern that can be addressed through management actions (e.g., clear evidence for negative impacts of fish and importance of maintaining natural disturbance regimes such as flooding, beaver, and fire). The information gathered during field inventories was combined with other existing information and used in maximum entropy modeling to predict state-wide distribution and habitat suitability for all of Montana\u27s amphibians and reptiles. These models out performed GAP analysis models by simultaneously reducing the area predicted and omission error rates. Among other things, models identified scale dependent responses to environmental variables, potentially isolated populations in need of conservation efforts, and areas that are critical for maintaining landscape connectivity. In conjunction with field inventories, a state-wide assessment of the distribution of the pathogenic chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) (Bd) was undertaken using PCR-based detection in skin swabs or tissue samples. Bd was found across Montana in 6 of the 9 species tested at a variety of elevations, habitats, and distances from human activities. The widespread presence of Bd highlights the need for additional studies and measures to prevent the spread of Bd and other novel pathogens

Non-Native Salmonids Affect Amphibian Occupancy at Multiple Spatial Scales

Aim The introduction of non-native species into aquatic environments has been linked with local extinctions and altered distributions of native species. We investigated the effect of non-native salmonids on the occupancy of two native amphibians, the long-toed salamander (Ambystoma macrodactylum) and Columbia spotted frog (Rana luteiventris), across three spatial scales: water bodies, small catchments and large catchments. Location Mountain lakes at ≥ 1500 m elevation were surveyed across the northern Rocky Mountains, USA. Methods We surveyed 2267 water bodies for amphibian occupancy (based on evidence of reproduction) and fish presence between 1986 and 2002 and modelled the probability of amphibian occupancy at each spatial scale in relation to habitat availability and quality and fish presence. Results After accounting for habitat features, we estimated that A. macrodactylum was 2.3 times more likely to breed in fishless water bodies than in water bodies with fish. Ambystoma macrodactylum also was more likely to occupy small catchments where none of the water bodies contained fish than in catchments where at least one water body contained fish. However, the probability of salamander occupancy in small catchments was also influenced by habitat availability (i.e. the number of water bodies within a catchment) and suitability of remaining fishless water bodies. We found no relationship between fish presence and salamander occupancy at the large-catchment scale, probably because of increased habitat availability. In contrast to A. macrodactylum, we found no relationship between fish presence and R. luteiventris occupancy at any scale. Main conclusions Our results suggest that the negative effects of non-native salmonids can extend beyond the boundaries of individual water bodies and increase A. macrodactylum extinction risk at landscape scales. We suspect that niche overlap between non-native fish and A. macrodactylum at higher elevations in the northern Rocky Mountains may lead to extinction in catchments with limited suitable habitat

2014 Statewide Winter Owl Surveys (Oral Presentation and Poster)

Localized winter owl surveys have been conducted in Montana in the past, but a coordinated statewide effort had never been undertaken.  Eleven owl species were, therefore, listed as Species of Highest Inventory Need by Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks and the Montana Natural Heritage Program.  We coordinated statewide winter owl call surveys in 180 of the 185 quarter latitude/longitude (QLL) blocks that encompass Montana.  Call transects each consisted of 10 call stations spaced at 1-mile intervals along a 9-mile long road transect within a QLL block.  At each call station, observers alternately silently listened for owl calls and played owl calls for species likely to occur in the surrounding habitat.  A total of 1,829 call stations were surveyed and a total of 511 owls across 11 owl species were detected.  Detections during the 2014 surveys nearly, or more than, doubled the number of records with indirect evidence for breeding that have been gathered in Montana across all time for Eastern Screech-Owl, Great Horned Owl, Long-eared Owl, and Short-eared Owl.  We recommend that these species and the Northern Saw-whet Owl be removed from the Montana Species of Highest Inventory Need as a result of the information gathered during these surveys

2014 Statewide Winter Owl Surveys (Oral Presentation and Poster)

Localized winter owl surveys have been conducted in Montana in the past, but a coordinated statewide effort had never been undertaken.  Eleven owl species were, therefore, listed as Species of Highest Inventory Need by Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks and the Montana Natural Heritage Program.  We coordinated statewide winter owl call surveys in 180 of the 185 quarter latitude/longitude (QLL) blocks that encompass Montana.  Call transects each consisted of 10 call stations spaced at 1-mile intervals along a 9-mile long road transect within a QLL block.  At each call station, observers alternately silently listened for owl calls and played owl calls for species likely to occur in the surrounding habitat.  A total of 1,829 call stations were surveyed and a total of 511 owls across 11 owl species were detected.  Detections during the 2014 surveys nearly, or more than, doubled the number of records with indirect evidence for breeding that have been gathered in Montana across all time for Eastern Screech-Owl, Great Horned Owl, Long-eared Owl, and Short-eared Owl.  We recommend that these species and the Northern Saw-whet Owl be removed from the Montana Species of Highest Inventory Need as a result of the information gathered during these surveys

Keeping Common Species Common: Inventory And Monitoring For A Diversity Of Wildlife Species

Many of the over 500 vertebrate species found in Montana lack formal status assessments. Few monitoring efforts exist for these species and very few are statewide to include public and private lands. In 2008, the Montana Natural Heritage Program and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks designed a protocol for simultaneous multi-species survey. We sampled quarter-quadrangle grid cells selected at random over 3 yrs and covered the entire state. We surveyed all lentic sites for amphibians and all south-facing rocky slopes for reptiles within each cell. We also surveyed dominant habitats for bats using acoustic detectorsand small-mammals using standard trap line techniques. The largest challenges included: securing private landowner contact information and permission, automating map creation for the hundreds of selected cells, the preservation of collected specimens, maintaining working acoustic equipment in inclement weather, housing and backing up huge amounts of data from remote locations, and analyzing large quantities of acoustic data. Small mammal and acoustic call identifications are ongoing. A preliminary summary of other data shows an investment of over 20,000 person hours for a total of: 211 grid cells surveyed, 40 small mammal species detected in 2486 captures, 16 bat species detected through thousands of acoustic calls, 12 amphibian species and eight reptile species detected, and 304 species detected as incidental observations. We intend to conduct occupancy modeling for many of the species detected using the grid cells as site. We discuss prospects for using this sampling scheme and methods for future monitoring

Acoustic Assessment of Year-round Bat Activity and Distribution in Montana and Surrounding Areas

Montana’s bat species face an array of conservation issues including wind energy development and disease. A collaborative project between state and federal agencies was initiated in 2011 to collect baseline data prior to the arrival of White-nose Syndrome and help inform surveillance and future mitigation strategies. In the last 6 years, we deployed a network of Song Meter ultrasonic acoustic detector/recorder stations at 76 sites across the region for an average of 1.8 years per station. Each detector recorded nightly bat passes across all seasons. To date 9.5 million sound files have been recorded. Using automated scrubbing and identification software we identified call sequences and generated initial species identifications, then hand confirmed species presence by month at each site. Over 54,000 bat passes have been reviewed by hand and used to track activity of all species at each site. To date we have 2,770 new records of monthly species presence, regular winter activity of 3 resident species, and year-round presence of 1 species previously considered migratory. Through integrating National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Association weather station with our call data, we have found positive correlations in activity with temperature and barometric pressure, and negative correlations with wind speed. Our experiences with these data highlight the importance of: (1) maintaining common settings across recording devices and consistent processing standards; (2) maintaining publicly available call libraries that can be reanalyzed using the latest software and made available to software developers; and (3) making standards used for species determinations available for peer review

Analisis Proses Audit Pendapatan dalam Pengelolaan Pendapatan di Hotel Marriott Yogyakarta

Proses audit pendapatan menjadi hal yang sangat penting bagi perhotelan. Manajemen keuangan yang baik membantu perhotelan untuk mengelola kinerja pendapatan keuangan mereka. Hotel Marriott Yogyakarta yang didirikan pada tahun 2017 merupakan salah satu hotel mewah yang secara langsung tersambung dengan Pakuwon Mall Yogyakarta. Perhotelan memiliki manajemen keuangan yang baik dan mampu meluas ke dunia internasional. Praktik kerja magang bertujuan untuk membangun mahasiswa mengimplementasikan pengetahuan dan kemampuan yang diasah di kampus ke dunia kerja profesional. Sebagai Income Audit Intern selama praktik kerja magang, pekerjaan yang dilakukan adalah meninjau dan memverifikasi laporan pendapatan harian dari berbagai departemen, memastikan semua transaksi tercatat dengan benar dalam sistem, mengidentifikasi dan menyelidiki setiap perbedaan atau pendapatan yang hilang, dan melakukan rekonsiliasi penjualan harian dengan laporan point of sale dan dokumen pendukung

In-Hand Measurements of Adult Bats in the Northern Great Plains and Rocky Mountains

Researchers rely on keys and other published records of pelage and morphological characteristics to identify bat species in the field. However, these records may not reflect the variability of measurements taken in a field setting, particularly if they are based upon museum specimens or a small number of live individuals. To assist in the identification of similar bat species, we created a supplement to the “Key to Idaho, Montana, and South Dakota Bats.” We compiled 3,222 records of 11 species of adult bats captured between 1994-2016 in Montana, northern Idaho, and northwestern South Dakota. Using this dataset, we have provided distributions of body measurements as well as insight into the timing of reproduction, parturition, and seasonal body condition for 14 of the 15 species occurring within Montana. Following data analyses, we concluded that: (1) lengths of smaller appendages such as the thumb and tragus show substantial variation, demonstrating that more precise measurements are required; (2) parturition dates appear similar across all species present in the study area, including migratory bats; (3) trends of low body mass in late summer captures may represent older juveniles that are difficult to distinguish from adults by current methods;  and (4) we require more data to analyze the traits of species that are infrequently captured. This document will be available on the Montana Natural Heritage Program website (mtnhp.org) to assist researchers in the field