Movements of Two Rabid Raccoons, Procyon lotor, in Eastern Ontario

An adult female Raccoon Procyon lotor was captured about 3 km north of Mallorytown, Ontario, on 27 August 2004, as part of a government rabies control program. The animal was vaccinated against rabies, ear-tagged and released, and recaptured the next day 1.7 km south of the initial capture location. Upon recapture, the Raccoon had porcupine quills in its facial area and seemed agitated and was submitted for rabies testing. It was confirmed as rabies positive on 31 August 2004, by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Similarly, a juvenile male raccoon was captured, ear-tagged, vaccinated, and released near Junetown, Ontario (about 4 km NW of the other rabid Raccoon) on 5 September 2004. It was found dying in a residential window well on 22 September 2004, 700 meters from the original capture location. It was diagnosed as rabid on 23 September 2004

Monitoring landscape and spatial behavioural outcomes of large scale forest management for boreal caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) in upland and lowland forests of Ontario, Canada

Habitat management is a key tool used to support species conservation and sustainable timber harvest on managed forests; however assessments of long-term management outcomes are rare. My study is a qualitative assessment of the outcomes of over 15 years of large scale forest management for boreal caribou in two unique Ontario, Canada landscapes: the northwestern Boreal Shield and the northeastern James Bay Lowlands. I assessed: (1) the realized outcomes of forest management direction with respect to the landscape scale structure and configuration of caribou habitat and harvested areas, and (2) changes in caribou spatial behaviour in response to forest management. I found patterns opposite to those predicted based on management recommendations in terms of harvest configuration and size, and observed no detectable changes in caribou habitat continuity or area that could be related to management application. Similarly, I observed behavioural patterns suggestive of maladaptive behavioural response to management outcomes, which could be potentially detrimental to caribou population viability. Overall, these results suggest that further investigation into the management of habitat for boreal caribou in Ontario is required. Moreover, these results highlight the importance of long-term monitoring for management practices in order to ensure management success.Master of Science (MSc) in Biolog

Use of structured expert judgment to forecast invasions by bighead and silver carp in Lake Erie

Identifying which nonindigenous species will become invasive and forecasting the damage they will cause is difficult and presents a significant problem for natural resource management. Often, the data or resources necessary for ecological risk assessment are incomplete or absent, leaving environmental decision makers ill equipped to effectively manage valuable natural resources. Structured expert judgment (SEJ) is a mathematical and performance‐based method of eliciting, weighting, and aggregating expert judgments. In contrast to other methods of eliciting and aggregating expert judgments (where, for example, equal weights may be assigned to experts), SEJ weights each expert on the basis of his or her statistical accuracy and informativeness through performance measurement on a set of calibration variables. We used SEJ to forecast impacts of nonindigenous Asian carp (Hypophthalmichthys spp.) in Lake Erie, where it is believed not to be established. Experts quantified Asian carp biomass, production, and consumption and their impact on 4 fish species if Asian carp were to become established. According to experts, in Lake Erie Asian carp have the potential to achieve biomass levels that are similar to the sum of biomasses for several fishes that are harvested commercially or recreationally. However, the impact of Asian carp on the biomass of these fishes was estimated by experts to be small, relative to long term average biomasses, with little uncertainty. Impacts of Asian carp in tributaries and on recreational activities, water quality, or other species were not addressed. SEJ can be used to quantify key uncertainties of invasion biology and also provide a decision‐support tool when the necessary information for natural resource management and policy is not available.El Uso de Juicio Experto Estructurado para Predecir Invasiones de Carpas Asiáticas en el Lago ErieResumenIdentificar cuáles especies no‐nativas se volverán invasoras y predecir el daño que causarán es complicado y presenta un problema significativo para el manejo de recursos naturales. Con frecuencia los datos o recursos necesarios para la evaluación de riesgo ecológico están incompletos o son inexistentes, lo que deja mal equipados a quienes toman las decisiones ambientales para manejar efectivamente recursos naturales valiosos. El juicio experto estructurado (JEE) es un método con bases matemáticas y de desempeño para obtener, sopesar y agregar juicios expertos. En contraste con otros métodos de obtención y agregación de juicios expertos (donde, por ejemplo, se le pueden asignar pesos iguales a los expertos), JEE sopesa a cada experto con base en su asertividad estadística y capacidad de informar por medio de la medida de desempeño en un conjunto de variables de calibración. Usamos JEE para predecir los impactos de las carpas asiáticas no‐nativas Hypophthalmichthys spp. en el Lago Erie, donde se cree que no se ha establecido. Los expertos cuantificaron la biomasa, producción y consumo de la carpa asiática y su impacto sobre cuatro especies de peces si la carpa asiática se llegara a establecer en el lago. De acuerdo a los expertos, en el Lago Erie, la carpa asiática tiene el potencial de adquirir niveles de biomasa similares a la suma de biomasa de varios peces que se han cultivado comercialmente o recreativamente. Sin embargo, se estimó por los expertos que el impacto de la carpa asiática sobre la biomasa de estos peces sería pequeño, con poca incertidumbre. Los impactos de la carpa asiática sobre los tributarios y las actividades recreativas, la calidad del agua o sobre otras especies no se evaluaron. El JEE puede usarse para cuantificar incertidumbres clave de la biología de la invasión y también proporcionar una herramienta de apoyo para las decisiones cuando la información necesaria para el manejo de los recursos naturales y la política no está disponible.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/110571/1/cobi12369.pd

2008 Lake Ontario Lakewide Fishery Assessment

Lake trout abundance in Lake Ontario is now at a low level that has not been observed since modern restoration efforts began in the 1970s. However, the continued observations of small numbers of naturally spawned age-2 lake trout in assessment surveys and the appearance of mature lake trout of suspected natural origin, despite low abundance of the stocked population, is encouraging. Changes in stocking policy for Canadian waters in the early 1990s has produced a situation where lake trout along the north shore are concentrated in the west and east and suggests that the lakewide indicators of restoration progress used in the past for this part of the lake are in need of re-evaluation. In addition, this absence of lake trout along the central northern shore may be decreasing ecosystem stability and resistance to invasive species affects. Low lake trout abundance also seems to have positive implications for native preyfish recovery. Concurrent with lake trout declines, native deepwater sculpin (Myoxocephalus thompansonii) have reappeared (Lantry et al. 2007) and their recovery may indicate an enhanced opportunity exists for restoration of extirpated native deepwater coregonines. The results from this study thus far indicate that it would be beneficial to periodically repeat the whole lake survey and the five year interval of the EPA/EC Great Lakes cooperative monitoring cycle seems adequate and presents an ideal opportunity for researchers from this and other programs to share data and sampling infrastructure. Periodic lakewide lake trout assessments will extend annual monitoring of the condition of the lake trout population for the southern and north eastern areas of the lake to the whole lake and provide opportunity for assessment along the north shore. The whole lake surveys will also provide opportunities to calibrate between the annual USGS/NYSDEC standard lake trout assessments along the south shore and the OMNR community index netting occurring in the northeast portion of the lake; and an opportunity for collection of tissue samples for periodic examination of dietary trends and reproductive health

Correlation Between Age Estimates for Elk, Cervus Elaphus, Using Tooth Wear/Eruption Patterns and Counts of Annuli in Tooth Cementum

Two different techniques, (1) tooth wear, tooth eruption patterns and other attributes and (2) counting annuli and seasonal growth zones in the cementum of incisor teeth, were used to estimate the age of Elk, Cervus elaphus, that were relocated from Alberta to Ontario, Canada. Age estimates for Elk ranged from 2 to 20 years, and a significant relationship was found between the ages acquired by the two methods. Critical to acquiring accurate age estimates for Elk were staff with extensive skill with respect to the aging technique utilized

A New Record Size Wolf, Canis lupus, Group for Ontario

This report documents a group of 19 Wolves (Canis lupus) in northwestern Ontario. This is the largest group observed since record keeping in the Moose Aerial Inventory commenced in 1995. This large group may be a response to a high Moose (Alces alces) population in the Red Lake area

Integration of woodland caribou habitat management and forest management in northern Ontario - current status and issues

Woodland caribou {Rangifer tarandus caribou) range across northern Ontario, occurring in both the Hudson Bay Lowlands and the Boreal Forest. Woodland caribou extend south well into the merchantable forest, occurring in licensed and/or actively managed Forest Management Units (FMU's) across the province. Caribou range has gradually but continuously receded northward over the past century. Since the early 1990's, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR) has been developing and implementing a woodland caribou habitat management strategy in northwestern Ontario. The purpose of the caribou habitat strategy is to maintain woodland caribou occupancy of currently occupied range in northwestern Ontario. Long-term caribou habitat needs and predator-prey dynamics form the basis of this strategy, which requires the development of a landscape-level caribou habitat mosaic across the region within caribou range. This represents a significant change from traditional forest management approaches, which were based partially upon moose (Alces alces) habitat management principles. A number of issues and concerns regarding implications of caribou management to the forest industry are being addressed, including short-term and long-term reductions in wood supply and wood quality, and increased access costs. Other related concerns include the ability to regenerate forests to pre-harvest stand conditions, remote tourism concerns, implications for moose populations, and required information on caribou biology and habitat. The forest industry and other stakeholders have been actively involved with the OMNR in attempting to address these concerns, so that caribou habitat requirements are met while ensuring the maintenance of a viable timber industry, other forest uses and the forest ecosystem

Late-born Elk, Cervus elaphus, Calf Observed Near Bancroft, Ontario

A recently born male Elk (Cervus elaphus) calf was observed and photographed approximately 30 km east of Bancroft, Ontario, on 5 October 2004. Based on the gestation period for Elk, the estimated conception date was between late December 2003 and early January 2004. This is unusual as the majority of calves are born between late May and early June with conception having occurred in September/October. This reproductive strategy allows for an optimum growth period for calves to occur before the onset of winter which increases the probability of survival. An eleven-year-old cow Elk was identified as the mother of the late born calf. The age of the cow, and her inability to meet the annual energy requirements necessary for normal reproduction, may have contributed to the late conception and parturition dates

An uncertain future for woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou): The impact of climate change on winter distribution in Ontario

Habitat alteration and climate change are two important environmental stressors posing increasing threats to woodland caribou, Rangifer tarandus caribou, in Ontario. Our first objective was to identify the importance of linear features, habitat, and climate on the occurrence of woodland caribou during the winter season using over 30 years of records (1980-2012). Our second objective was to forecast the impacts of climate change on the future occurrence and range of woodland caribou. Woodland caribou occurrence and environmental data collected during 1980 to 2012 were obtained from the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR). Logistic regression models were used to identify the importance of linear features, habitat, and climate on woodland caribou. We then forecast future caribou occurrences using 126 future climate projections. Woodland caribou preferred coniferous forests and mixed forests that tended to be associated with increased lichen coverage, and regions with colder winters. Woodland caribou also avoided anthropogenically disturbed regions, such as areas associated with high road density or developed areas. Caribou range extent was projected to contract by 57.2-100% by 2050 and 58.9-100% by 2070. Furthermore, all 126 climate change scenarios forecast a range loss of at least 55% for woodland caribou in Ontario by 2050. We project complete loss of woodland caribou in Ontario if winter temperatures increase by more than 5.6°C by 2070. We found that woodland caribou in Ontario are sensitive to changes in climate and forecasted that an average of 95% of Ontario’s native wood­land caribou could become extirpated by 2070. The greatest extirpations were projected to occur in the northernmost regions of Ontario as well as northeastern Ontario, while regions in western Ontario were projected to have the lowest rates of extirpation. This underscores the importance of mitigating greenhouse gases as a means to protect this iconic species