Human impacts on mammals in and around a protected area before, during, and after COVID‐19 lockdowns
Abstract The dual mandate for many protected areas (PAs) to simultaneously promote recreation and conserve biodiversity may be hampered by negative effects of recreation on wildlife. However, reports of these effects are not consistent, presenting a knowledge gap that hinders evidence‐based decision...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2022-07-01
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| Series: | Conservation Science and Practice |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.12743 |
| _version_ | 1829111295319736320 |
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| author | Michael Procko Robin Naidoo Valerie LeMay A. Cole Burton |
| author_facet | Michael Procko Robin Naidoo Valerie LeMay A. Cole Burton |
| author_sort | Michael Procko |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The dual mandate for many protected areas (PAs) to simultaneously promote recreation and conserve biodiversity may be hampered by negative effects of recreation on wildlife. However, reports of these effects are not consistent, presenting a knowledge gap that hinders evidence‐based decision‐making. We used camera traps to monitor human activity and terrestrial mammals in Golden Ears Provincial Park and the adjacent University of British Columbia Malcolm Knapp Research Forest near Vancouver, Canada, with the objective of discerning relative effects of various forms of recreation on cougars (Puma concolor), black bears (Ursus americanus), black‐tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus), snowshoe hares (Lepus americanus), coyotes (Canis latrans), and bobcats (Lynx rufus). Additionally, public closures of the study area associated with the COVD‐19 pandemic offered an unprecedented period of human‐exclusion through which to explore these effects. Using Bayesian generalized mixed‐effects models, we detected negative effects of hikers (mean posterior estimate = −0.58, 95% credible interval [CI] −1.09 to −0.12) on weekly bobcat habitat use and negative effects of motorized vehicles (estimate = −0.28, 95% CI −0.61 to −0.05) on weekly black bear habitat use. We also found increased cougar detection rates in the PA during the COVID‐19 closure (estimate = 0.007, 95% CI 0.005 to 0.009), but decreased cougar detection rates (estimate = −0.006, 95% CI −0.009 to −0.003) and increased black‐tailed deer detection rates (estimate = 0.014, 95% CI 0.002 to 0.026) upon reopening of the PA. Our results emphasize that effects of human activity on wildlife habitat use and movement may be species‐ and/or activity‐dependent, and that camera traps can be an invaluable tool for monitoring both wildlife and human activity, collecting data even when public access is barred. Further, we encourage PA managers seeking to promote both biodiversity conservation and recreation to explicitly assess trade‐offs between these two goals in their PAs. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-12T12:15:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8c6e0d0ec31d4173aa8f6a63a41634b0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2578-4854 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-12T12:15:05Z |
| publishDate | 2022-07-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Conservation Science and Practice |
| spelling | doaj.art-8c6e0d0ec31d4173aa8f6a63a41634b02022-12-22T00:24:47ZengWileyConservation Science and Practice2578-48542022-07-0147n/an/a10.1111/csp2.12743Human impacts on mammals in and around a protected area before, during, and after COVID‐19 lockdownsMichael Procko0Robin Naidoo1Valerie LeMay2A. Cole Burton3Department of Forest Resources Management, Forest Sciences Centre University of British Columbia Vancouver British Columbia CanadaWWF‐US Washington District of Columbia USADepartment of Forest Resources Management, Forest Sciences Centre University of British Columbia Vancouver British Columbia CanadaDepartment of Forest Resources Management, Forest Sciences Centre University of British Columbia Vancouver British Columbia CanadaAbstract The dual mandate for many protected areas (PAs) to simultaneously promote recreation and conserve biodiversity may be hampered by negative effects of recreation on wildlife. However, reports of these effects are not consistent, presenting a knowledge gap that hinders evidence‐based decision‐making. We used camera traps to monitor human activity and terrestrial mammals in Golden Ears Provincial Park and the adjacent University of British Columbia Malcolm Knapp Research Forest near Vancouver, Canada, with the objective of discerning relative effects of various forms of recreation on cougars (Puma concolor), black bears (Ursus americanus), black‐tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus), snowshoe hares (Lepus americanus), coyotes (Canis latrans), and bobcats (Lynx rufus). Additionally, public closures of the study area associated with the COVD‐19 pandemic offered an unprecedented period of human‐exclusion through which to explore these effects. Using Bayesian generalized mixed‐effects models, we detected negative effects of hikers (mean posterior estimate = −0.58, 95% credible interval [CI] −1.09 to −0.12) on weekly bobcat habitat use and negative effects of motorized vehicles (estimate = −0.28, 95% CI −0.61 to −0.05) on weekly black bear habitat use. We also found increased cougar detection rates in the PA during the COVID‐19 closure (estimate = 0.007, 95% CI 0.005 to 0.009), but decreased cougar detection rates (estimate = −0.006, 95% CI −0.009 to −0.003) and increased black‐tailed deer detection rates (estimate = 0.014, 95% CI 0.002 to 0.026) upon reopening of the PA. Our results emphasize that effects of human activity on wildlife habitat use and movement may be species‐ and/or activity‐dependent, and that camera traps can be an invaluable tool for monitoring both wildlife and human activity, collecting data even when public access is barred. Further, we encourage PA managers seeking to promote both biodiversity conservation and recreation to explicitly assess trade‐offs between these two goals in their PAs.https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.12743anthropausecoastal forestsmammal conservationmesopredator releasepredator shieldrecreation ecology |
| spellingShingle | Michael Procko Robin Naidoo Valerie LeMay A. Cole Burton Human impacts on mammals in and around a protected area before, during, and after COVID‐19 lockdowns Conservation Science and Practice anthropause coastal forests mammal conservation mesopredator release predator shield recreation ecology |
| title | Human impacts on mammals in and around a protected area before, during, and after COVID‐19 lockdowns |
| title_full | Human impacts on mammals in and around a protected area before, during, and after COVID‐19 lockdowns |
| title_fullStr | Human impacts on mammals in and around a protected area before, during, and after COVID‐19 lockdowns |
| title_full_unstemmed | Human impacts on mammals in and around a protected area before, during, and after COVID‐19 lockdowns |
| title_short | Human impacts on mammals in and around a protected area before, during, and after COVID‐19 lockdowns |
| title_sort | human impacts on mammals in and around a protected area before during and after covid 19 lockdowns |
| topic | anthropause coastal forests mammal conservation mesopredator release predator shield recreation ecology |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.12743 |
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