Presence of Mammals in Ontario, Canada, Verified by Trail Camera Photographs Between 2008 and 2010

Trail cameras were used to determine the presence of medium to large-sized wild mammals in Ontario between 2008 and 2010. A total of 27 different species of mammals across the province were photographed during 17308 trail-camera-nights. Presence indices (photographs per trail-camera-night) for the areas sampled in southern Ontario were highest for the following species: White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus), Raccoon (Procyon lotor), Coyote (Canis latrans), Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis), and Red Squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus). Presence indices for the areas sampled in northern Ontario were highest for White-tailed Deer, American Black Bear (Ursus americanus), Moose (Alces alces), Snowshoe Hare (Lepus americanus), and Red Squirrel. Trail camera photographs depicted extensive use of snowmobile trails by wildlife in southern Ontario.

Download Full-text

Temporal variation in food habits of the American Black Bear (Ursus americanus) in the boreal forest of northern Ontario

The Canadian Field-Naturalist ◽

10.22621/cfn.v127i2.1442 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 127 (2) ◽

pp. 118 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Derrick A. Romain ◽

Martyn E. Obbard ◽

James L. Atkinson

Keyword(s):

Temporal Variation ◽

Food Habits ◽

Ursus Americanus ◽

Late Summer ◽

Black Bear ◽

Black Bears ◽

Northern Ontario ◽

American Black Bear ◽

American Black ◽

American Black Bears

We used scat analysis to investigate temporal variation in the food habits of American Black Bears (Ursus americanus) in the boreal forest of northern Ontario. Specifically, we examined whether there was a seasonal shift in foraging over three years (1990–1992) and which foods, if any, varied in occurrence among years. American Black Bears ate foods ranging from green vegetation in the spring to ants in mid-summer and berries and nuts in late summer and fall. Late summer berry forage, especially blueberries (Vaccinium spp.), varied greatly among years. American Black Bears in northern Ontario consumed a variety of foods opportunistically. Understanding how American Black Bears in northern Ontario exploit food resources and how these food items vary among years can provide insights into demographic processes and help wildlife managers better anticipate changes in the structure of the harvest of American Black Bears and in human–bear conflict levels. In northern Ontario, forest management practices that increase the availability of early successional species would be beneficial to American Black Bear populations.

Download Full-text

Prevalence of Strongyloides robustus in tree squirrels (Sciuridae) in South-Central Pennsylvania and potential impacts for the endangered northern flying squirrel, Glaucomys sabrinus.

Journal of Student Research ◽

10.47611/jsr.v2i1.141 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 43-47

Author(s):

Jessica L Espenshade ◽

Richard L Stewart

Keyword(s):

Parasite Prevalence ◽

Tamiasciurus Hudsonicus ◽

Sciurus Carolinensis ◽

Glaucomys Sabrinus ◽

Red Squirrel ◽

Flying Squirrel ◽

Northern Flying Squirrel ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

South Central ◽

Central Pennsylvania

Strongyloides robustus is a unique parasite that has conservation impacts for sciurid populations in North America. In some squirrel species, like the southern flying squirrel (Glaucomys volans), the eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) and the red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus), pathology is relatively benign. However in the northern flying squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus), S. robustus infestation can result in high mortality. The objective of this project was to survey the prevalence of S. robustus within the squirrel species currently found in south- central Pennsylvania so that the risk to the northern flying squirrel could be evaluated in light of the parasite mediated competition hypothesis. Fecal samples from eastern gray, red, and southern flying squirrels were obtained through nest boxes, road kills and hunting. A modified Sheather’s sugar floatation was prepared with a specific gravity of 1.27 to evaluate parasite prevalence. Ten of the 40 nest boxes examined had flying squirrel evidence in the form of feces deposited within the nest. Strongyloides robustus was present in 30% of the 10 samples. The prevalence of S. robustus was 77.3% in the 22 road-killed and hunter-killed eastern gray squirrels. The single hunter-killed red squirrel examined in this study demonstrated S. robustus infestation. This study evaluated infection in possible reservoirs that are understudied in Pennsylvania and supported the idea of parasite mediated competition.

Download Full-text

Spatial Memory in the American Black Bear (Ursus americanus)

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e603962013-005 ◽

2009 ◽

Author(s):

Valeria Zamisch ◽

Jennifer Vonk

Keyword(s):

Spatial Memory ◽

Ursus Americanus ◽

Black Bear ◽

American Black Bear ◽

American Black

Download Full-text

‘How do you get to Tim Hortons?’ Direction-giving in Ontario dialects

The Canadian Journal of Linguistics / La revue canadienne de linguistique ◽

10.1017/cnj.2020.34 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 66 (1) ◽

pp. 1-30

Author(s):

Lisa Schlegl ◽

Sali A. Tagliamonte

Keyword(s):

Regional Variation ◽

Speech Act ◽

Urban Center ◽

Canadian English ◽

Northern Ontario ◽

Southern Ontario ◽

Cardinal Directions ◽

Physical Layout

AbstractIn this study, we target the speech act of direction-giving using variationist sociolinguistic methods within a corpus of vernacular speech from six Ontario communities. Not only do we find social and geographical correlates to linguistic choices in direction-giving, but we also establish the influence of the physical layout of the community/place in question. Direction-giving in the urban center of Toronto (Southern Ontario) contrasts with five Northern Ontario communities. Northerners use more relative directions, while Torontonians use more cardinal directions, landmarks, and proper street names – for example, Go east on Bloor to the Manulife Centre. We also find that specific lexical choices (e.g., Take a right vs. Make a right) distinguish direction-givers in Northern Ontario from those in Toronto. These differences identify direction-giving as an ideal site for sociolinguistic and dialectological investigation and corroborate previous findings documenting regional variation in Canadian English.

Download Full-text

Wildlife Use of Drainage Structures Under 2 Sections of Federal Highway 2 in the Sky Island Region of Northeastern Sonora, Mexico

Air Soil and Water Research ◽

10.1177/1178622120988721 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 ◽

pp. 117862212098872

Author(s):

Mirna Manteca-Rodríguez ◽

Ricardo E Félix-Burruel ◽

Cecilia Aguilar-Morales ◽

Juan Carlos Bravo ◽

Myles Traphagen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Index ◽

Black Bear ◽

Island Region ◽

Wildlife Use ◽

Field Assessment ◽

Federal Highway ◽

Wildlife Migration ◽

Trail Cameras ◽

Sky Island ◽

Wildlife Mortality

Roads and highways are 1 of the most significant obstacles affecting wildlife movement by fragmenting habitat, altering wildlife migration and use of habitat, while also being a danger to wildlife and humans caused by wildlife-vehicle interactions. To mitigate wildlife mortality on highway sections and to minimize death and injury to motorists as well, road ecologists have proposed structures adapted for the safe passage of wildlife across roads. In this study, photographic sampling was conducted using trail cameras to quantify wildlife activity and use of existing culverts, bridges, and drainages within 2 separate sections of Mexico Federal Highway 2 where previous field assessment had observed high levels of activity. These sections are important areas for the conservation of wildlife, and they are known to be biological corridors for rare species of concern such as jaguar, black bear, and ocelot. The trail cameras were operated for 1 year to document the annual cycle of wildlife movement through the area. With the photographs obtained, a database was created containing the information from each wildlife-culvert interaction. Prior to sampling, an inventory of existing culverts was conducted that measured height, width, volume, and surrounding habitat to assign a hypothesized use quality index. After testing for significant differences in use index among culverts, we recognized that all culverts were equally important for moving wildlife, and that there were no significant differences in the use of culverts by the quality index.

Download Full-text

Bearing fruit: Piloting a novel judgment bias task in an American black bear

Zoo Biology ◽

10.1002/zoo.21584 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jennifer Vonk ◽

Molly C. McGuire ◽

Zoe Johnson‐Ulrich

Keyword(s):

Black Bear ◽

Judgment Bias ◽

American Black Bear ◽

American Black

Download Full-text

Potential of Small Culverts as Wildlife Passages on Forest Roads

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13137224 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (13) ◽

pp. 7224

Author(s):

Hsiang-Ling Chen ◽

Erin E. Posthumus ◽

John L. Koprowski

Keyword(s):

Animal Movement ◽

Small Dimension ◽

Lynx Rufus ◽

Tamiasciurus Hudsonicus ◽

Red Squirrels ◽

Forest Roads ◽

Alternative Pathways ◽

Slow Moving ◽

Trail Cameras ◽

Spermophilus Variegatus

Roads and traffic can cause animal mortality. Specifically, roads serve as barriers by impeding animal movement, resulting in demographic and genetic consequences. Drainage structures, such as culverts, can provide linkages between habitat patches. However, the potential of small culverts with diameters of <60 cm (e.g., wildlife passages that facilitate movement on forest roads) are relatively unknown. In this study, we used trail cameras to monitor the use of 14 small culverts, by mammals, along forest roads on Mt. Graham, home of the critically endangered Mt. Graham red squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus grahamensis), in southeastern Arizona, USA. From 2011 to 2013, we only recorded 20 completed road crossings through culverts. More than half of culvert uses were by striped skunks (Mephitis mephitis), followed by the rock squirrel (Spermophilus variegatus) and the bobcat (Lynx rufus). The Mt. Graham red squirrel was the only species that was common along the roads, but never crossed the roads. Culverts with higher usages were characterized by shorter culvert lengths and absence of accumulated soil inside the culverts. Our study shows that small-dimension drainage systems may provide alternative pathways for wildlife crossing roads, especially for slow moving and ground dwelling species. However, the potential of small culverts assisting wildlife crossings can only be maximized when culverts are accessible year-round.

Download Full-text