Evidence of American Martens Populating the Turtle Mountains of North Dakota

American martens (Martes americana) were native to northeastern North Dakota but were considered extirpated by the early 1800s. Although there is no historic evidence of martens occurring beyond the northeast, forested habitat potentially suitable for martens exists in the Turtle Mountains region of northcentral North Dakota and southwestern Manitoba. From 1989– 1991, the Turtle Mountain Trappers Association translocated 59 martens into the Canadian portion of the Turtle Mountains. During summer 2007, we used covered track-plates and/or remotely-triggered cameras placed at 123 survey sites distributed among 41 1-km2 grid cells (a GIS-generated layer imposed on electronic maps of the study region) to determine if martens occupied the Turtle Mountains in North Dakota. Martens were detected at 26 (21%) sites, representing 20 of the 41 sample cells (49%) widely dispersed throughout the study area. Our study provided the first evidence of martens occurring in North Dakota since the early 1800s

NOTES: RIVER OTTERS USE AGRICULTURAL FIELD ALONG THE TURTLE RIVER IN EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AS CROSSOVER AND LATRINE AREA

Recently, the Nearctic river otter (Lontra canadensis) has been re-colonizing portions of eastern North Dakota (Serfass et al. 2010). The landscape in eastern North Dakota is dominated by agricultural fields and pastures, habitats which have received little research attention related to otter habitat use. During 2008, we searched shorelines to detect otter latrines, which is a common method for determining otter presence (Clark et al. 1987, Shackelford and Whitaker 1997, Melquist et al. 2003). Generally, latrines are locations along bodies of water where otters deposit scats, urine, and glandular secretions for olfactory communication, and groom, wrestle, and play, which may mat vegetation (Melquist and Hornocker 1983, Carpenter 2001, Mills 2004, Ben-David et al. 2005, Stevens and Serfass 2008). In the northeastern United States, inland riverine system studies have shown latrines to be associated with prominent features along river shorelines (e.g., conifer trees, rock formations, and American beaver [Castor canadensis] activity) and forest cover (Newman and Griffen 1994, Swimley et al. 1998); however, otters will establish latrines in coastal and other areas where tree cover is limited (Mowbray et al. 1976). Further, latrines sometimes are associated with (on or near) overland trails (―crossovers‖; Gorman et al. 2006a), which are used as connections between adjacent aquatic systems or between meanders within a riverine system. In 2008 and 2009, we surveyed river shorelines in northeastern North Dakota to determine the re-establishing otter population’s distribution and monitor unique otter behavior. We report the occurrence of otters establishing and repeatedly using a crossover and latrine area in an agricultural field

A Direct Comparison of Enclosed Track Plates and Remote Cameras in Detecting Fishers, Martes pennanti, in North Dakota

Fishers (Martes pennanti) historically were reported to occupy forested areas of northeastern North Dakota, but the population was presumed extirpated during the 1900s as a result of overtrapping. Recently (≤15 years), Fishers have been recolonizing the state, and there is increasing interest in developing approaches for monitoring the population. During the period June–August 2008, we compared the efficacy of remote cameras and enclosed track plates in detecting Fishers in riparian forest along portions of the drainage basin of the Red River of the North in eastern North Dakota. We monitored 122 scent stations, each composed of both detection devices, with the remote camera positioned to monitor the entrance of the enclosed track plate. Fishers were detected at 40 of the 122 scent stations (32.8%) distributed along approximately 790 km of riparian forest. Among those 40 stations, Fishers were detected by both camera and track plate at 28 stations (70.0%), by camera only at 9 stations (22.5%), and on track plates only at 3 stations (7.5%). Overall, Fishers were detected 37 times by camera (92.5%) and 31 times on a track plate (77.5%). From photographic evidence at the 37 stations where Fishers were detected by camera, we determined that the average latency to initial detection was 4.8 days (SE 0.3, range 1–8). Among the 37 stations where Fishers were detected by camera, detections most frequently occurred on one (27 sites) (73.0%) or two days (7 sites) (19.0%) of a detection period

Detection probability output from Do an invasive organism's dispersal characteristics affect how we should search for it?

Summary of five output variables (top to bottom panels) from 100 replicate runs for five different dispersal kernels and four different detection probabilities (very low 0.01, low 0.25, high 0.75 and perfect 1.00), a surveillance density of two and a surveillance frequency of one and a grid arrangement. Box plots indicate the median of the 100 replicate runs (internal line), the interquartile range (box), and the range (whiskers), with any outliers (results more than 1.5 times the interquartile range from the median) shown as individual points. Initial detection time is the number of months until the first detection occurs. Maximum distance represents the maximum distance in meters travelled by the pest at the time of detection. The suitable area infested is the number of 1 x 1 m pixels that were infested at the time of detection (maximum suitable pixels = 250,000). The number of fields represents the number of fields with any infestation at the time of detection (maximum possible fields = 25). Finally, the number of escapes indicates how many seed, or propagules, had travelled beyond the 50 m border at the time of detection. Note log-scale on y-axi

Weibull dispersal number of escapes from Do an invasive organism's dispersal characteristics affect how we should search for it?

Summary of the number of escapes for all three Weibull dispersal kernels from simulations where Density, Frequency, Arrangement or detection probability was varied. Apart from the varied factor, the following constants were used: surveillance density of two, surveillance frequency of one, a grid surveillance arrangement and a detection probability of 0.75. No escapes occurred in the scenarios with Exponential kernel

NOTES: RIVER OTTERS USE AGRICULTURAL FIELD ALONG THE TURTLE RIVER IN EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AS CROSSOVER AND LATRINE AREA

Recently, the Nearctic river otter (Lontra canadensis) has been re-colonizing portions of eastern North Dakota (Serfass et al. 2010). The landscape in eastern North Dakota is dominated by agricultural fields and pastures, habitats which have received little research attention related to otter habitat use. During 2008, we searched shorelines to detect otter latrines, which is a common method for determining otter presence (Clark et al. 1987, Shackelford and Whitaker 1997, Melquist et al. 2003). Generally, latrines are locations along bodies of water where otters deposit scats, urine, and glandular secretions for olfactory communication, and groom, wrestle, and play, which may mat vegetation (Melquist and Hornocker 1983, Carpenter 2001, Mills 2004, Ben-David et al. 2005, Stevens and Serfass 2008). In the northeastern United States, inland riverine system studies have shown latrines to be associated with prominent features along river shorelines (e.g., conifer trees, rock formations, and American beaver [Castor canadensis] activity) and forest cover (Newman and Griffen 1994, Swimley et al. 1998); however, otters will establish latrines in coastal and other areas where tree cover is limited (Mowbray et al. 1976). Further, latrines sometimes are associated with (on or near) overland trails (―crossovers‖; Gorman et al. 2006a), which are used as connections between adjacent aquatic systems or between meanders within a riverine system. In 2008 and 2009, we surveyed river shorelines in northeastern North Dakota to determine the re-establishing otter population’s distribution and monitor unique otter behavior. We report the occurrence of otters establishing and repeatedly using a crossover and latrine area in an agricultural field

Evidence of American Martens Populating the Turtle Mountains of North Dakota

American martens (Martes americana) were native to northeastern North Dakota but were considered extirpated by the early 1800s. Although there is no historic evidence of martens occurring beyond the northeast, forested habitat potentially suitable for martens exists in the Turtle Mountains region of northcentral North Dakota and southwestern Manitoba. From 1989– 1991, the Turtle Mountain Trappers Association translocated 59 martens into the Canadian portion of the Turtle Mountains. During summer 2007, we used covered track-plates and/or remotely-triggered cameras placed at 123 survey sites distributed among 41 1-km2 grid cells (a GIS-generated layer imposed on electronic maps of the study region) to determine if martens occupied the Turtle Mountains in North Dakota. Martens were detected at 26 (21%) sites, representing 20 of the 41 sample cells (49%) widely dispersed throughout the study area. Our study provided the first evidence of martens occurring in North Dakota since the early 1800s