Spatial Ecology of Coyotes and Cougars: Understanding the Influence of Multiple Prey on the Spatial Interactions of Two Predators

The extent to which predators regulate prey populations remains a subject of debate. Yet, when predator control is employed as a management strategy, it is often assumed that predators can and do regulate prey populations. From 2011 through 2015, I monitored the demography and space use of coyotes (Canis latrans) and cougars (Puma concolor) on Monroe Mountain in Fishlake National Forest, Utah as part of a larger collaboration investigating the impacts of coyote aerial control on mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) neonate survival. My primary objective was to assess the impacts of anthropogenic regulation on the respective populations and identify any cascading effects relevant to mule deer management. To meet this objective, I established a monitoring program for both predators by deploying radio-telemetry collars (VHF and GPS) on each, documented predation events, established surveys for small mammals and lagomorphs to monitor primary prey populations during deer parturition (June – August), and collected data on the location and demographic composition of winter-removed coyotes. I analyzed these data primarily in a community-based, animal movement and resource selection framework permitting the integration of data from multiple sources. When evaluating coyote aerial removal as a management strategy, I identified a spatial dependency in the ability to match removals with indices of deer recruitment as Wildlife Services Operations personnel were primarily limited by terrain and tree cover. Thus, matching treatment with deer fawning was highly variable with only a small number of sites where removals were effective. In addition, I found that coyotes selected for sites with the highest densities of lagomorphs while avoiding areas with a high probability of encountering cougars. Coyotes did not select for mule deer fawning sites, although individual coyotes that occupied resource-poor home ranges were more likely to do so. Cougars strongly selected for mule deer high use areas throughout much of the year, only switching to elk (Cervus elaphus) during the cougar harvest season (i.e., winter). Data from cougar kill site investigations match the observed patterns in cougar space use. My results suggest that predator-prey processes are multi-dimensional and dynamic through time, which likely contribute to the lack of resolution regarding the efficacy of predator control and the regulatory potential of predators in general

A pilot study examining garment severance damage caused by a trained sharp-weapon user

The pilot study summarized in this paper aimed to raise awareness of a gap that exists in the forensic textile science literature about damage caused to clothing by trained sharp-weapon users. A male trained in the Filipino martial arts discipline of Eskrima performed attack techniques on a physical model of a male torso covered with a 97% cotton/3% elastane knitted T-shirt, that is, a garment commonly worn by males. Fabric severance appearance created by three different, but commonly available, knives was evaluated. High-speed video was used to capture each attack. After each attack the resulting damage to the garment was assessed. This pilot study highlighted differences in severances associated with weapon selection, that is, not all knives resulted in similar patterns of textile damage. In addition, a mixture of stab and slash severances were observed. The findings demonstrated the possible misinterpretation of textile damage under these circumstances compared to damage patterns reported in the existing forensic textile science literature for more commonly occurring knife attacks (i.e. stabbings)

FARMERS' PREFERENCES FOR CROP CONTRACTS

An empirical approach combining elements of principal-agent theory and transaction cost economics is used to determine farmers'Â’ preferences for contract terms in crop production. The approach is tested by asking grain farmers to rank contract choices and specify price premiums in simulated case situations. The statistical results indicate that farmers'Â’ preferences for rates of cost sharing, price premiums, and financing arrangements are significantly influenced by asset specialization and uncertainty associated with the case situations, and by selected business and personal characteristics.Farm Management,

Investigating the use of concealable and disguised knives

Knife-carrying and knife crime is a significant issue in many countries. There are a number of knives available for purchase that are designed to be concealable, or that are disguised as everyday objects e.g. combs, pens and belts. In addition, an experienced knife-user will be able to conceal knives around their person. The aim of the work summarised in this paper was to study the concealment and deployment of a range of such weapons and to raise awareness of such threats to the blue-light community (police, ambulance, firefighters and other first responders); allow comment to be made on the effectiveness of various scenarios that a knife-carrier might use to carry and deploy a disguised or concealed knife; and measure the time to deployment of a disguised or concealed knife from different locations on an assailant’s body so that suitable defensive responses can be designed and assessed. High-speed video was used to assist in studying attack sequences and allowed assessment of the speed of attack; this typically varied from 0.5 seconds to 2.3 seconds

The use of gelatine in wound ballistics research

Blocks of gelatine are used in both lethality and survivability studies for broadly the same reason, i.e. comparison of ammunition effects using a material that it is assumed represents (some part of) the human body. The gelatine is used to visualise the temporary and permanent wound profiles; elements of which are recognised as providing a reasonable approximation to wounding in humans. One set of researchers aim to improve the lethality of the projectile, and the other to understand the effects of the projectile on the body to improve survivability. Research areas that use gelatine blocks are diverse and include ammunition designers, the medical and forensics communities and designers of ballistic protective equipment (including body armour). This paper aims to provide an overarching review of the use of gelatine for wound ballistics studies; it is not intended to provide an extensive review of wound ballistics as that already exists, e.g. Legal Med 23:21–29, 2016. Key messages are that test variables, projectile type (bullet, fragmentation), impact site on the body and intermediate layers (e.g. clothing, personal protective equipment (PPE)) can affect the resulting wound profiles

Towards identifying factors underlying readiness for online learning: an exploratory study

To test the potential value of McVay\u27s (2000) Readiness for Online Learning questionnaire for research and practice, the instrument was administered to 107 undergraduate university students drawn from a range of courses in the United States and Australia. The questionnaire was subjected to a reliability analysis and a factor analysis. The instrument fared well in the reliability analysis, and yielded a two-factor structure that was readily interpretable in a framework of existing theory and research. Factors identified were &quot;Comfort with e-learning&quot; and &quot;Self-management of learning.&quot; It is suggested that the instrument is useful for both research and practice, but would be enhanced through further work on 5 of the 13 items. Additionally, further work is required to establish predictive validity.<br /

A protected area influences genotype-specific survival and the structure of a Canis hybrid zone

It is widely recognized that protected areas can strongly influence ecological systems and that hybridization is an important conservation issue. However, previous studies have not explicitly considered the influence of protected areas on hybridization dynamics. Eastern wolves are a species of special concern and their distribution is largely restricted to a protected population in Algonquin Provincial Park (APP), Ontario, Canada, where they are the numerically dominant canid. We studied intrinsic and extrinsic factors influencing survival and cause-specific mortality of hybrid and parental canids in the three-species hybrid zone between eastern wolves, eastern coyotes, and gray wolves in and adjacent to APP. Mortality risk for eastern wolves in areas adjacent to APP was significantly higher than for other sympatric Canis types outside of APP, and for eastern wolves and other canids within APP. Outside of APP, the annual mortality rate of all canids by harvest (24%) was higher than for other causes of death (4–7%). Furthermore, eastern wolves (hazard ratio ¼ 3.5) and nonresidents (transients and dispersing animals, hazard ratio ¼ 2.7) were more likely to die from harvest relative to other Canis types and residents, respectively. Thus, eastern wolves dispersing from APP were especially vulnerable to harvest mortality. For residents, eastern wolf survival was more negatively influenced by increased road density than for other Canis types, further highlighting the sensitivity of eastern wolves to human disturbance. A cycle of dispersal from APP followed by high rates of mortality and hybridization appears to maintain eastern wolves at low density adjacent to APP, limiting the potential for expansion beyond the protected area. However, high survival and numerical dominance of eastern wolves within APP suggest that protected areas can allow rare hybridizing species to persist even if their demographic performance is compromised and barriers to hybridization are largely absent in the adjacent matrix

The effect of helmet materials and simulated bone and tissue layers on bullet behaviour in a gelatine model of overmatch penetrating head injury

This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)The aim of this work was to simulate an overmatch ballistic event against a head wearing a helmet. The experiments were designed to understand how layers of bone (or synthetic bone), synthetic skin and currently used helmet materials influence the behaviour of full metal jacket mild steel core (FMJ MSC) 7.62 × 39 mm bullets, impacting on targets with a mean velocity of 650 m/s. Bullet behaviour within 10% (by mass) gelatine blocks was assessed by measurements made of the temporary cavity within the blocks using high-speed video and of the permanent cavity by dissecting blocks post firing. While ANOVA did not find significant difference at the 0.05 level in the mean values of most of the measurements, there was a significant difference in neck length within the gelatine blocks. The addition of material layers did produce greater variability in the temporary cavity measurements under some of the conditions. One of the synthetic bone polymers with a synthetic skin layer produced similar results within the gelatine blocks to the horse scapulae (with residual tissue) and may be suitable for future ballistic experiments