Treesearch

Coyotes (Canis latrans) and Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis) are sympatric throughout much of the lynx’s southern range. Researchers and managers have suggested that the presence of compacted snowmobile trails may allow coyotes to access lynx habitat from which they were previously excluded by deep, unconsolidated snow. This could then allow coyotes to more effectively compete with lynx for snowshoe hares (Lepus americanus), the lynx’s primary prey. We investigated how coyotes interacted with compacted snowmobile trails by conducting carnivore track surveys and by snow tracking adult coyotes...

A fundamental assumption in landscape ecology is that spatial patterns have significant influences on the flows of materials, energy, and information while processes create, modify, and maintain spatial patterns. Thus, it is of paramount importance in both theory and practice to address the questions of landscape pattern optimization ... For example, can landscape patterns be optimized in terms of both the composition and configuration of patches and matrix characteristics for purposes of biodiversity conservation, ecosystem management, and landscape sustainability?

Conservation science is concerned, in part, with anticipating how natural or human-caused disturbance affects the pattern of commonness and rarity among the biota of a given area (Lubchenco et al. 1991; also see chap. 1). In this and the next chapter, we review various species- and system-level approaches proposed or applied to species conservation planning and assessment. We review the literature on approaches to conservation and management of individual species, groups of species, communities, and ecosystems, as published in peer-reviewed ecological outlets or in reports by land managemen...

The spatial and temporal controls on soil CO2 production and surface CO2 efflux have been identified as an outstanding gap in our understanding of carbon cycling. I investigated both the spatial and temporal variability of soil CO2 concentrations and surface CO2 efflux across eight topographically distinct riparian-hillslope transitions in the ~300 ha subalpine upper-Stringer Creek Watershed in the Little Belt Mountains, Montana. Riparian-hillslope transitions provide ideal locations for investigating the spatial and temporal controls on soil CO2 concentrations and surface CO2 efflux due...

Recent years have seen a growing interest in measuring and modeling soil CO2 efflux, as this flux represents a large component of ecosystem respiration and is a key determinant of ecosystem carbon balance. Process-based models of soil CO2 production and efflux, commonly based on soil temperature, are limited by nonlinearities such as the observed diurnal hysteresis between soil CO2 concentration ([CO2]) and temperature. Here we quantify the degree to which hysteresis between soil [CO2] and soil temperature is controlled by soil water content in a montane conifer forest, and how this...

We used tracer based methods to calibrate eleven streamflow gauging stations at the Tenderfoot Creek Experimental Forest in western Montana. At six of the stations the measured flows were consistent with the existing rating curves. At Lower and Upper Stringer Creek, Upper Sun Creek and Upper Tenderfoot Creek the published flows, based on the existing rating curves, were higher than the actual flows, while at Lower Sun Creek the published flows were lower than the actual flows. At the Lower and Upper Stringer Creek and Upper Tenderfoot Creek sites we recommend that the flumes be examined...

Changes in forest structure resulting from natural disturbances, or managed treatments, can have negative and long lasting impacts on water resources. To facilitate integrated management of forest and water resources, a System for Long-Term Integrated Management Modeling (SLIMM) was developed. By combining two spatially explicit, continuous time models, vegetation patterns can be simulated forward in time based on management criteria. Output from the SIMPPLLE vegetation simulator are converted into landcover maps at every time-step and used to predict hydrologic watershed responses to...

Until recently it was assumed that fishers (Martes pennanti) in the Rocky Mountains all were descended from reintroduced stocks. However, a recent study reported that mitochondrial DNA (cytochrome-b and control region) haplotypes of fishers found only in west-central Montana are likely derived from a relic population of fishers that escaped harvests conducted in the early 20th century. I compared fishers in west-central Montana to samples from north-central Idaho and found no evidence for substructure between these groups. A museum specimen, collected in 1896 in north-central Idaho before...

In both forest and rangelands, fuel reduction operations are now common practices. Mechanical thinning followed by prescribed fire is common in forests, while fire is frequently applied to rangelands. Studies at different scales (50 sq m to 389 ha) measure the erosion from fuel management. This presentation compares runoff and erosion from these studies. Plot size has the greatest influence on runoff, with larger watersheds generating more runoff. Runoff ranged from zero on a number of 4-ha forested watersheds to 376 mm on a 386 ha forested watershed. Erosion rates were most influenced by...

In response to ever-increasing anthropogenic changes to natural ecosystems, regional, national and international organizations have established guidelines for monitoring biological diversity. Most monitoring programs, however, do not take full advantage of the potential afforded by molecular genetic markers, which can provide information relevant to both ecological and evolutionary time frames, while costing less and being more sensitive and reliable than traditional monitoring approaches. As several molecular and computational approaches are relatively new, many technical and theoretical...