https://www.google.com/url?rct=j&sa=t&url=http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/1c085957827143eb8e178a5f67fa7e12/ND--North-Dakota-Lions&ct=ga&cd=CAEYASoTNTk0ODU3NTk3MDc1NTk4Mjc4NTIaNDY5MjBhOTZlZmMxMTU4ODpjb206ZW46VVM&usg=AFQjCNFmG06xshGAErsDfCHL0u1O3yu3aA
Stephanie Tucker, furbearer biologist for the Game
and Fish Department, said the first phase of the
study is in the books and a new three-year
follow-up study will be launched this fall.
North Dakota is entering its 10th year of
managed mountain lion hunting. This year's
season opened Friday.
Tucker said one of the most effective methods
of gathering data — particularly when dealing
with a species new to certain areas — is to
open a season on them. "It's kind of a reactive
way to manage," she told The Bismarck Tribune (http://bit.ly/1q3enQR ). Animals that have
been hunted and harvested provide solid
information like feeding habits and genetic
background.
For the past decade or longer, mountain
lions have been breeding in the state
but also have been immigrating from
South Dakota's Black Hills.Data from
the study also has indicated at least
two male lions have moved in from
eastern Montana.
The first phase of the study tracked
22 mountain lions that were captured
and either fitted with radio collars or
ear tags.
Tucker said it focused on studying
survival rates, food habits and home
range and movement patterns
compared to mountain lions in other
areas of North America.
Of the 22 cats captured, seven males
and seven females were fitted with radio
collars and seven males and one female
were ear-tagged. Tucker said 18 of the
cats that were captured for the study
are confirmed dead by hunters or other
means and the fate of the remaining
four is not known.
The first year of the hunting season
(2005-06), seven mountains were killed.
The next four seasons, 11-12 cats were
killed, until the 2010-11 season when
22 were killed. The high came in 2011-12,
when 31 cats were taken. The last two
seasons, there have been 23 and 20
mountain lions killed, respectively.
Tucker said those numbers reflect all
forms of mortality, whether from hunters,
road kill or protection of property.
Tucker said the first split season was three
years ago, when seven animals were held back
from the Zone 1 season quota for those hunting
with hounds.The state is divided into two
mountain lion zones. Zone 1 is the Badlands
area and Zone 2 is remainder of the state.
The Zone 1 season closes Nov. 23 or when
the 14-cat quota is reached, leaving the
remaining seven in the quota for hound
hunters, although any hunters can hunt them.
There is no quota for Zone 2.
Tucker said data shows that until 2011, the
mountain lion population in Zone 1 was
increasing. But that has changed, she said.
We've been declining the last three years,"
she said. Part of that has had to do with
the success of those hunting with hounds.
"Hound hunters are still having a lot of
success," she said. "We know our harvest
season is having an impact."Conversely,
Tucker said, those hunting without dogs
are having less success than in previous years.
Tucker said data from the first three years
of the study indicates the survival rate of
the North Dakota mountain lion population
is significantly lower than other states. She
said lions here showed a survival rate of 42
percent for two years following their capture
and tagging. That compares to survival rates
of 59 percent in the Pacific Northwest, 64-74
percent in Utah and 67-97 percent in Canada
where similar studies have been conducted.
At least part of that may be attributed to the
fact that mountain lions' primary range in
North Dakota, the Badlands, is a relatively
small and closed system.Tucker said it
also suggests the state's population is
lower than originally thought.
As far as feeding habits, lions rely mainly
on deer — mulies and white tails — for
most of their diet.Porcupines and beaver,
however, also play a significant role in
the makeup of mountain lion diets.John
Jenks, the principal investigator at SDSU,
said that is not a big surprise because
lions are known to scavenge whatever
food is readily available."Porcupines are
classic prey for mountain lions in South
Dakota," he said.Jenks said the lions in
the Black Hills turned to stalking deer
for food after they had thinned out the
porcupine numbers. And, with larger prey,
Jenks said, the success rate for kills is
not all that high due to the method in
which they hunt.Mountain lions prefer to
ambush their prey from a high vantage
point to get a running start.He said the
scavenge rate for North Dakota lions in
the study was around 7 percent of their
diet, on par with lions in other states.
He said interestingly, mountain lions
here don't tend to hunt larger animals
like bighorn sheep or elk. Jenks said
lions are solitary hunters and it may
be they haven't yet figured out how
to kill larger prey.
He added that based on a small
population sample of lions studies
,predation on livestock appeared to
be minimal.
Jenks said there has been some
evidence of lions feeding on livestock,
but it's not known if the lions killed or
scavenged the carcasses. He said there
also has been evidence of lions killing
coyotes and of injuries to the cats
themselves, likely from territorial
disputes between males.
He said the second phase of the study will
focus more on habitat selection and validate
population data and home range and survival
rates from the first study.Tucker said male
lions in the Badlands have been shown to
have a home range twice that of females —
about 89 square miles compared to 42 —
which is on the lower end of scale in
comparison to other states.
Jenks said the immigration of two males
from the Charles M. Russell National
Wildlife Refuge near Fort Peck, Montana,
is a positive for Badlands population —
at least from a genetic diversity standpoint.
The first phase of the study has shown
mountain lions are breeding only in the
northern portion of the Badlands.
Tucker said the next three years of the
study will include an SDSU graduate
student, the second student working
on a master's degree, on the ground
in North Dakota.She said the goal is
to capture and track more lions to add
to the data from the first three years.
"We'd love to get another 22 cats,
but we'll take what we can get,"
Tucker said.
As far as any conclusive findings
early on, Tucker said the study may
indicate North Dakota's mountain
lion population may never be able
to support a hunting season with a higher
quota.
BISMARCK, North Dakota — A multi-year study tracking
North Dakota's mountain lion population indicates the
number of big cats is trending downward. In August
2011, the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, in conjunction with South Dakota State University,
embarked on a $218,000 study funded by
Pittman-Robertson excise tax money.
North Dakota's mountain lion population indicates the
number of big cats is trending downward. In August
2011, the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, in conjunction with South Dakota State University,
embarked on a $218,000 study funded by
Pittman-Robertson excise tax money.
and Fish Department, said the first phase of the
study is in the books and a new three-year
follow-up study will be launched this fall.
North Dakota is entering its 10th year of
managed mountain lion hunting. This year's
season opened Friday.
Tucker said one of the most effective methods
of gathering data — particularly when dealing
with a species new to certain areas — is to
open a season on them. "It's kind of a reactive
way to manage," she told The Bismarck Tribune (http://bit.ly/1q3enQR ). Animals that have
been hunted and harvested provide solid
information like feeding habits and genetic
background.
For the past decade or longer, mountain
lions have been breeding in the state
but also have been immigrating from
South Dakota's Black Hills.Data from
the study also has indicated at least
two male lions have moved in from
eastern Montana.
The first phase of the study tracked
22 mountain lions that were captured
and either fitted with radio collars or
ear tags.
Tucker said it focused on studying
survival rates, food habits and home
range and movement patterns
compared to mountain lions in other
areas of North America.
Of the 22 cats captured, seven males
and seven females were fitted with radio
collars and seven males and one female
were ear-tagged. Tucker said 18 of the
cats that were captured for the study
are confirmed dead by hunters or other
means and the fate of the remaining
four is not known.
The first year of the hunting season
(2005-06), seven mountains were killed.
The next four seasons, 11-12 cats were
killed, until the 2010-11 season when
22 were killed. The high came in 2011-12,
when 31 cats were taken. The last two
seasons, there have been 23 and 20
mountain lions killed, respectively.
Tucker said those numbers reflect all
forms of mortality, whether from hunters,
road kill or protection of property.
Tucker said the first split season was three
years ago, when seven animals were held back
from the Zone 1 season quota for those hunting
with hounds.The state is divided into two
mountain lion zones. Zone 1 is the Badlands
area and Zone 2 is remainder of the state.
The Zone 1 season closes Nov. 23 or when
the 14-cat quota is reached, leaving the
remaining seven in the quota for hound
hunters, although any hunters can hunt them.
There is no quota for Zone 2.
Tucker said data shows that until 2011, the
mountain lion population in Zone 1 was
increasing. But that has changed, she said.
We've been declining the last three years,"
she said. Part of that has had to do with
the success of those hunting with hounds.
"Hound hunters are still having a lot of
success," she said. "We know our harvest
season is having an impact."Conversely,
Tucker said, those hunting without dogs
are having less success than in previous years.
Tucker said data from the first three years
of the study indicates the survival rate of
the North Dakota mountain lion population
is significantly lower than other states. She
said lions here showed a survival rate of 42
percent for two years following their capture
and tagging. That compares to survival rates
of 59 percent in the Pacific Northwest, 64-74
percent in Utah and 67-97 percent in Canada
where similar studies have been conducted.
At least part of that may be attributed to the
fact that mountain lions' primary range in
North Dakota, the Badlands, is a relatively
small and closed system.Tucker said it
also suggests the state's population is
lower than originally thought.
As far as feeding habits, lions rely mainly
on deer — mulies and white tails — for
most of their diet.Porcupines and beaver,
however, also play a significant role in
the makeup of mountain lion diets.John
Jenks, the principal investigator at SDSU,
said that is not a big surprise because
lions are known to scavenge whatever
food is readily available."Porcupines are
classic prey for mountain lions in South
Dakota," he said.Jenks said the lions in
the Black Hills turned to stalking deer
for food after they had thinned out the
porcupine numbers. And, with larger prey,
Jenks said, the success rate for kills is
not all that high due to the method in
which they hunt.Mountain lions prefer to
ambush their prey from a high vantage
point to get a running start.He said the
scavenge rate for North Dakota lions in
the study was around 7 percent of their
diet, on par with lions in other states.
He said interestingly, mountain lions
here don't tend to hunt larger animals
like bighorn sheep or elk. Jenks said
lions are solitary hunters and it may
be they haven't yet figured out how
to kill larger prey.
He added that based on a small
population sample of lions studies
,predation on livestock appeared to
be minimal.
Jenks said there has been some
evidence of lions feeding on livestock,
but it's not known if the lions killed or
scavenged the carcasses. He said there
also has been evidence of lions killing
coyotes and of injuries to the cats
themselves, likely from territorial
disputes between males.
He said the second phase of the study will
focus more on habitat selection and validate
population data and home range and survival
rates from the first study.Tucker said male
lions in the Badlands have been shown to
have a home range twice that of females —
about 89 square miles compared to 42 —
which is on the lower end of scale in
comparison to other states.
Jenks said the immigration of two males
from the Charles M. Russell National
Wildlife Refuge near Fort Peck, Montana,
is a positive for Badlands population —
at least from a genetic diversity standpoint.
The first phase of the study has shown
mountain lions are breeding only in the
northern portion of the Badlands.
Tucker said the next three years of the
study will include an SDSU graduate
student, the second student working
on a master's degree, on the ground
in North Dakota.She said the goal is
to capture and track more lions to add
to the data from the first three years.
"We'd love to get another 22 cats,
but we'll take what we can get,"
Tucker said.
As far as any conclusive findings
early on, Tucker said the study may
indicate North Dakota's mountain
lion population may never be able
to support a hunting season with a higher
quota.
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