Analyzing stakeholder preferences for managing elk and bison at the National Elk Refuge and Grand Teton National Park: An example of the disparate stakeholder management approach

South African National Parks (SANParks) manage landscapes rather than numbers of elephants (Loxodonta africana) to mitigate the effects that elephants may have on biodiversity, tourism and stakeholder conservation values associated with protected areas. This management philosophy imposes spatial variability of critical resources on elephants. Restoration of such ecological processes through less intensive management predicts a reduction in population growth rates from the eras of intensive management. We collated aerial survey data since 1995 and conducted an aerial total count using a helicopter observation platform during 2015. A minimum of 17 086 elephants were resident in the Kruger National Park (KNP) in 2015, growing at 4.2% per annum over the last generation of elephants (i.e. 12 years), compared to 6.5% annual population growth noted during the intensive management era ending in 1994. This may come from responses of elephants to density and environmental factors manifested through reduced birth rates and increased mortality rates. Authorities should continue to evaluate the demographic responses of elephants to landscape scale interventions directed at restoring the limitation of spatial variance in resource distribution on elephant spatiotemporal dynamics and the consequences that may have for other conservation values.Conservation implications: Conservation managers should continue with surveying elephants in a way that allows the extraction of key variables. Such variables should focus on measures that reflect on how theory predicts elephants should respond to management interventions.

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Inquiry-Based Geology Field Course for In-Service Educators

The UW National Parks Service Research Station Annual Reports ◽

10.13001/uwnpsrc.2014.4065 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 37 ◽

pp. 124-125

Author(s):

David Harwood ◽

Kyle Thompson

Keyword(s):

Natural History ◽

South Dakota ◽

National Park ◽

Grand Teton National Park ◽

Excellent Opportunity ◽

History Of ◽

Teton Range ◽

Park Area

Eight in-service teachers and two instructors engaged in an inquiry-based geology field course from June 14 to 29, 2014 through Wyoming, South Dakota, and Nebraska. This team of learners spent three days in mid-June working in the Grand Teton National Park area. The UW-NPS facilities provide an excellent opportunity for participants to discover the natural history of the Teton Range, as well as close-out a few projects while sitting in a real chair, at a real table, a welcome change from our usual campground setting.

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River Otter Distribution and Food Habits in Grand Teton National Park as Part of an Ongoing Project in the GYE

The UW National Parks Service Research Station Annual Reports ◽

10.13001/uwnpsrc.2015.4099 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 38 ◽

pp. 75-78

Author(s):

Kelly Pearce ◽

Tom Serfass

Keyword(s):

National Park ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Public Support ◽

Primary Objective ◽

Camera Traps ◽

Lontra Canadensis ◽

Flagship Species ◽

River Otter ◽

Grand Teton National Park ◽

River Otters

Grand Teton National Park is part of the known range of the North American river otter, however not much is known about this semi-aquatic mammal within the park. The results presented here are part of a larger project to investigate the potential of the river otter (Lontra canadensis) to serve as an aquatic flagship (species that engender public support and action) for the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. River otters, known for their charismatic behavior have the potential to serve as an aquatic flagship species to promote conservation of aquatic ecosystems. The primary objective of this portion of the study was to identify river otter latrines on portions of the Snake River, between Flagg Ranch and Jackson Lake, and between Jackson Lake Dam and Pacific Creek, collect river otter scats to determine diet of the river otter, and employ remote cameras to determine activity patterns of the river otters. Between 20 June and 1 July 2015, 26 river otter latrines were identified during shoreline surveys, 186 river otter scats were collected, and cameras were deployed at 6 latrines between 7 July and 24 August 2015. River otter scats have been cleaned and prepared for analysis, but have not all been processed to date. Camera traps recorded 222 images, of which 7% (n = 14) were of carnivores, 70% (n = 155) were of non-carnivore mammals, and 9% (n = 22) were of birds. River otters were detected at 1 of the 6 latrines, a total of 5 independent times during the study.

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River Reach Delineations and Beaver Movement in Grand Teton National Park

The UW National Parks Service Research Station Annual Reports ◽

10.13001/uwnpsrc.2015.4087 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 38 ◽

pp. 37-47

Author(s):

William Gribb ◽

Henry Harlow

Keyword(s):

National Park ◽

Single Channel ◽

Wave Length ◽

Theoretical Background ◽

Three Dimensions ◽

Snake River ◽

River Continuum ◽

Grand Teton National Park ◽

Meandering Channel ◽

River Reach

This project had two components, with the first component providing a background for the second component. Water resources in Grand Teton National Park (GTNP) are both unregulated and regulated by human management. The Jackson Lake Dam and the ponds scattered across the park influence the flow of water. In the process of managing the water it is important to have knowledge of the different components of the streams through which the water flows. One component of this project was to examine the different segments of the major rivers in GTNP and identify the river forms that are displayed by the different reaches of the Snake River above and below Jackson Lake, Buffalo Fork and Pacific Creek. The river form can be segregated into three main categories; the single channel, the meandering channel and the braided channel (Knighton 1984). The different river forms are part of the overall structural composition of the river and can be used to delineate the segments or reaches of the river. The river continuum concept presented by Vannote et al. (1980) provides a theoretical background upon which to construct the river reach system. In 2007, Nelson (2007) completed a reach system project while investigating the fluvial geomorphology of the Snake River below Jackson Lake Dam (Figure 1.). His 20 river reaches provided a zonation of the river that incorporated a range of geomorphic features. This same type of system can be used throughout the GTNP so that researchers have a common spatial unit designation when referencing portions of the Snake River and its tributaries. Ackers (1988) in his work on alluvial channel hydraulics identified three dimensions of meanders that should be considered; width, depth and slope. He further agreed with Hey (1978) that there are nine factors that define river geometry and that these should be considered as well: average bank full velocity, hydraulic mean depth, maximum bank full depth, slope, wave length of bed forms, their mean height, bank full wetted perimeter, channel sinuousity and arc length of meanders. Nelsonâs work (Nelson 2007) added another parameter by including a braiding index into the representation of river reach designations. In a more recent work, the Livers and Wohl (2014) study confirmed Nelsonâs approach by comparing reach characteristics between glacial and fluvial process domains using similar reach designation characteristics to determine reach differences.

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Coyote (Canis latrans) Habitat use and Mortality in Grand Teton National Park and Suburban-Agricultural Areas of Jackson Hole, Wyoming

The UW National Parks Service Research Station Annual Reports ◽

10.13001/uwnpsrc.2000.3415 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 24 ◽

pp. 51-59

Author(s):

Matt McGee ◽

Stan Anderson ◽

Doug Wachob

Keyword(s):

Habitat Use ◽

National Park ◽

Agricultural Land ◽

Canis Latrans ◽

Short Interval ◽

Agricultural Area ◽

Grand Teton National Park ◽

Use Patterns ◽

Jackson Hole ◽

Agricultural Areas

A study of coyote (Canis latrans) habitat use and mortality in Grand Teton National Park and the suburban-agricultural land surrounding Jackson, WY was conducted between September 1999 and August 2000. This research focused on the influence of human development, habitat type, topography, and simulated wolf presence on coyote habitat use and on coyote mortality patterns in undeveloped and suburban-agricultural land. The overall goal of this project was to provide baseline information on the coyote population in Jackson Hole that can be used in the future to determine what, if any, impact wolves and human developments may have on coyotes. There were a total of fifteen radio-collared coyotes in the suburban-agricultural area and fourteen radio collared coyotes in Grand Teton National Park and adjacent areas in the National Elk Refuge and Bridger-Teton National Forest. Marked coyotes were tracked weekly using short interval telemetry relocations and triangulation to determine habitat use patterns. During the winter, track transects were skied weekly and coyote trails were backtracked and mapped using hand held GPS units to determine fine scale habitat use patterns. Coyote mortality was determined via telemetry and direct observation. Preliminary data analyses suggest that coyotes use mainly sagebrush-grasslands or forest-shrub-grass edge areas and avoid forest interior areas. Coyotes frequently use trails and roads in the undeveloped area when moving long distances. Preliminary analysis also indicates that roads and trails are used in a greater proportion than their abundance on the landscape. Coyotes were frequently observed using riparian corridors to move between open meadows in the suburban-agricultural area. There is some evidence that suggests coyotes selectively travel fences and irrigation ditches for long distances in agricultural areas. The movement data also suggests that coyotes avoid developed areas during the day and travel in these developed areas at night. The data on coyote locations suggests some avoidance of wolf urine scent grids in the undeveloped area, but not in the developed area. Coyote mortality was primarily human caused, and coyotes that were male, transient, and lived in the suburban-agricultural area were the most commonly killed animals.

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