Mammals
Mammals
Featured Project
The Effects of Climate Variability and Change on Human-Bear Conflict in North America
The Effects of Climate Variability and Change on Human-Bear Conflict in North America
Some mammals have specific habitat needs, such as sufficient snow cover or specific temperature ranges, and their distributions are often dependent on climate. Understanding how climate change will affect mammals and their habitat, and how they might respond to these changes, such as shifting their ranges, will help wildlife managers make informed adaptive management decisions. Learn more below.
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Corridor Mapping Team: Ungulate Migrations of the West
Advancing the conservation and understanding of Wyoming's migratory hooved animals (mule deer, elk, pronghorn, etc.). The Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit is led by USGS federal researchers. The Wyoming Migration Initiative is a University of Wyoming’s Zoology and Physiology Department-based collaborative of biologists, photographers, mapmakers, and writers working to research...
Building community-based monitoring partnerships between rural schools and wildlife refuges in Alaska
Project Overview In Alaska, winters are becoming shorter and more unpredictable, leading to changes in lake and river ice, impacting access to hunting grounds, fuel wood transportation and recreation for local communities. Researchers supported by this Alaska CASC project will revitalize and modernize a freshwater ice observation network with a youth-centric partnership that teams...
Climate-Informed Disease Threat Assessment for Montana’s Species of Greatest Conservation Need
Project Overview Infectious disease poses a growing threat to wildlife and human health, and managing disease threats is complicated by climatic changes that can change levels of disease risk. Researchers supported by this North Central CASC project will co-develop a method to rank wildlife disease threats under climate change, providing critical useable information to Montana’s wildlife...
Co-producing Robust Estimates of Feral Horses on Tribal Lands
Feral horse populations in the southwestern United States, including on tribal lands, are far above sustainable levels. This overpopulation poses threats to rangeland ecosystems as the feral horses compete with native species and livestock for limited resources – which likely will become even more limited with climate change. Researchers supported by this Southwest CASC project will...
Evaluating Climate-related Threats and Conservation Strategies for the Cascade Red Fox in Washington
The endangered Cascade red fox, native to Washington’s southern Cascades, faces threats from climate change, habitat loss, and coyotes, which are both competitors and predators. Researchers supported by this Northwest CASC project will track Cascade red fox population sizes, movement, habitat use, and survival using GPS collars. They will use the collected data in collaboration with...
Evaluating Corridor Conservation as a Drought Resiliency Strategy for Mule Deer Across a Gradient in Human Development
Project Overview Migratory big game species, like mule deer, are at risk due to human development and more frequent drought events that can limit access to food resources during migration. To address this, researchers supported by this North Central CASC project will collaborate with State, Tribal, and Federal agencies to examine the effectiveness of corridor conservation as a strategy...
Informing Management Options for Grizzly Bears in a Changing Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
Project Overview The iconic grizzly bear of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem has exhibited a remarkable recovery in response to concerted conservation actions implemented since its listing as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 1975. However, information regarding the potential effects and timing of climate change in conjunction with increasing human recreation and...
Linking Snow and Subsurface Microclimatic Refugia to Assess Climate Threats to Pygmy Rabbits
Project Overview: Extreme weather conditions may disrupt key life cycle events for pygmy rabbits, a species that relies on snow and underground burrows for protection from predators and extreme cold. Researchers supported by this Northwest CASC project will use models to understand how different snow patterns and subsurface temperatures will impact pygmy rabbit habitats. Project outcomes...
Support of State Wildlife Action Plan Revisions in the North Central Region
As part of the State Wildlife Grant Fund, states are required to submit State Wildlife Action Plans (SWAPs) every 10 years detailing habitats, species, and conservation plans. However, incorporating climate change in SWAPs isn’t required and capacity to do so is limited at most state agencies, resulting in varied consideration of climate change impacts. In support of the revisions to...
A Decision Support Tool for Prairie Dog and Cattle Coexistence in a Changing Climate
Project Overview Prairie dog colonies in North America’s Central Grasslands undergo cycles of collapse and recovery caused by the non-native sylvatic plague, and each phase of the cycle negatively affects wildlife or livestock. Researchers supported by this North Central-CASC project will develop a decision-support web tool for users to predict prairie dog colony dynamics under changing...
Developing a Next-Generation Climate Change Vulnerability Index in Support of Climate-Informed Natural-Resource Management
Project Overview Climate change threatens plants and animals across the US, making it important to have tools that can efficiently assess species’ vulnerabilities. In this project, CASC scientists and NatureServe are collaborating to update a popular Climate Change Vulnerability Index to include the latest scientific data, improved metrics, and new user-friendly technology. The tool will...
Using the Virginia Northern Flying Squirrel to Guide Resilient Restoration of Red Spruce in the Central Appalachians
High elevation red spruce forests are among the most iconic and visited natural communities in the High Alleghenies of the Central Appalachian Mountains. These ecosystems provide many services such as clean water and carbon sequestration, as well as habitat for species of high conservation concern, i.e., the eastern brook trout, the northern goshawk, and the northern flying squirrel...