Selection of Northern Yellowstone Elk by Gray Wolves and Hunters
Selection of Northern Yellowstone Elk by Gray Wolves and Hunters
复制标题
灰狼和猎人对北黄石麋鹿的选择
DOI：
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发表时间：
2006
期刊：
影响因子：
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通讯作者：
T. O. Lemke
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
G. J. Wright;R. Peterson;Douglas W. Smith;T. O. Lemke
摘要我们比较了加德纳晚狩猎和北方黄石狼（Canis lupus）对北方黄石麋鹿（Cervus elaphus）的性别、年龄和对招募的影响。我们比较了1996-2001年的收获数据与1995-2001年的麋鹿死亡数据。我们通过构建生命表和计算北方黄石公园麋鹿群中雌性麋鹿的生殖值，评估了狩猎和狼捕食对雌性麋鹿生殖的影响。我们设计了一个总的生殖影响指数来衡量狩猎和狼捕食对小牛生产的影响。被狼和猎人选择的雌性麋鹿的年龄组存在显著差异。猎人选择了大部分具有最大生殖价值的雌性麋鹿，而狼选择了大部分具有低生殖价值的麋鹿幼崽和老年雌性。在整个研究期间，被猎人杀死的成年雌性的平均年龄为6.5岁，而被狼杀死的成年雌性的平均年龄为13.9岁。狩猎比狼的捕食对牛群产生了更大的总生殖影响。猎人杀死壮年雌性（2-9岁），狼杀死小牛，以及其他捕食者捕食的综合影响有可能限制麋鹿的数量。黄石公园在这方面是独一无二的，因为多种掠食者共域出现，包括猎人，狼，灰熊（Ursus arctos），黑熊（Ursus americanus），美洲狮（Felis concolor）和郊狼（Canis latrans），都捕食麋鹿。使用自适应收获管理过程中，已知的雌性麋鹿收获在加德纳晚狩猎已减少了72%，从2,221麋鹿在1997年到620麋鹿在2004年。在未来，狩猎收获水平可能会进一步降低，以部分抵消麋鹿因狼、其他捕食者和环境因素而造成的损失。
Abstract We compared selection of northern Yellowstone elk (Cervus elaphus) by hunters in the Gardiner Late Hunt and northern Yellowstone wolves (Canis lupus) with regard to sex, age, and impacts to recruitment. We compared harvest data from 1996–2001 with wolf-killed elk data from 1995–2001. We assessed the effects of hunting and wolf predation on reproductive female elk by constructing a life table and calculating reproductive values for females in the northern Yellowstone herd. We devised an index of total reproductive impact to measure impacts to calf production due to hunting and wolf predation. The age classes of female elk selected by wolves and hunters were significantly different. Hunters selected a large proportion of female elk with the greatest reproductive values, whereas wolves selected a large proportion of elk calves and older females with low reproductive values. The mean age of adult females killed by hunters throughout the study period was 6.5 years, whereas the mean age of adult females killed by wolves was 13.9 years. Hunting exerted a greater total reproductive impact on the herd than wolf predation. The combined effects of hunters killing prime-aged females (2–9 yr old), wolves killing calves, and predation by other predators has the potential to limit the elk population in the future. Yellowstone is unique in this regard because multiple predators that occur sympatrically, including hunters, wolves, grizzly bears (Ursus arctos), black bears (Ursus americanus), cougars (Felis concolor), and coyotes (Canis latrans), all prey on elk. Using an Adaptive Harvest Management process the known female elk harvest during the Gardiner Late Hunt has been reduced by 72% from 2,221 elk in 1997 to 620 elk in 2004. In the future, hunting harvest levels may be reduced further to partially offset elk losses to wolves, other predators, and environmental factors.