SNOWSHOE HARE HABITAT USE IN FRAGMENTED FORESTS IN NORTHERN WASHINGTON

• Sponsoring Institution: Other Cooperating Institutions
• Project Status: COMPLETE
• Funding Source: STATE
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 0202230
• Project Start Date: Jan 1, 2003
• Project End Date: Dec 31, 2004
• Program Code: [(N/A)]- (N/A)

Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA
COLLEGE OF FORESTRY AND CONSERVATION
MISSOULA,MT 59812

Performing Department
COLLEGE OF FORESTRY AND CONSERVATION

Non Technical Summary
Knowledge of snowshoe hare densities in fragmented forests is necessary to develop management strategies for snowshoe hares and their many predators, including especially the federally threatened lynx, in Western forests.

Animal Health Component

90%

Research Effort Categories

Basic

10%

Applied

90%

Developmental

(N/A)

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
123	0840	1070	100%

Knowledge Area
123 - Management and Sustainability of Forest Resources;

Subject Of Investigation
0840 - Fur-bearing animals;

Field Of Science
1070 - Ecology;

Keywords

forest ecology

snowshoe hares

wildlife

fragmentation

dispersal

landscapes

wildlife ecology

wildlife habitats

habitat characteristics

forest wildlife relations

forests

movement

wildlife population

population density

vegetation

estimates

wildlife management

predators

barriers

prey

Goals / Objectives
We are working to identify habitat characteristics at multiple spatial scales that support high snowshoe hare densities. We also hope to gain a more mechanistic understanding of how landscape configuration affects snowshoe hare movements.

Project Methods
We have surveyed over 110 patches of forest within the Okanogan National Forest in Washington over the past two years, obtaining snowshoe hare density estimates and measuring vegetation characteristics within each stand, and have used GIS coverages to quantify characteristics of the landscape surrounding these patches of hare habitat. Additionally, we radio collared 35 hares and tracked them during their night-time active periods. These data will be used to indicate whether certain habitat types present barriers to interpatch movement, and give us an indication of which spatial scale(s) hares respond to as they move about the landscape

Progress 01/01/03 to 12/31/04

Outputs
With the help of excellent field technicians, I have been able to survey over 110 patches of forest within the Okanogan National Forest in Washington over the past two years, obtaining snowshoe hare density estimates and measuring vegetation characteristics within each stand. I have used GIS coverages to quantify characteristics of the landscape surrounding these patches of hare habitat. Data analysis is now underway, and I am working to determine which factors, at which spatial scales, have the greatest influence on hare densities. Additionally, I radio collared 35 hares and tracked them during their night-time active periods. These data will be used to indicate whether certain habitat types present barriers to interpatch movement, and indicate which spatial scale(s) hares respond to as they move about the landscape.

Impacts
Snowshoe hares are the primary prey source for the federally threatened Canada lynx and forest managers are required to manage National Forests to maximize snowshoe hare abundance. By identifying how the distribution of stands with different vegetative and structural characteristics influences snowshoe hare abundance, results from this research will help foresters simultaneously manage for high snowshoe hare abundance (and lynx abundance) and timber extraction.

Publications

• No publications reported this period