This cooperative effort by USDA Forest Service Research and the National Forest System assesses the state of knowledge related to the conservation status of four forest carnivores in the western United States: American marten, fisher, lynx, and wolverine. The conservation assessment reviews the biology and ecology of these species. It also discusses management considerations stemming from what is known and identifies information needed. Overall, we found huge knowledge gaps that make it difficult to evaluate the species' conservation status.
Provides concise, yet authoritative descriptions of the most common techniques used to study wild carnivores and to conserve and manage their populations within increasingly human-dominated landscapes.
The first comprehensive treatment of North American rodents of conservation concern. This action plan summarizes the rodent fauna of North America and provides available information on every rodent taxon that has been considered to be of conservation concern by state, provincial and private conservation agencies and regional experts. It is hoped that the survey provided in this action plan will serve as a common ground for all these parties in drawing up conservation strategies for rodents.
Mammals in the genus Martes are mid-sized carnivores of great importance to forest ecosystems. This book, the successor to Martens, Sables, and Fishers: Biology and Conservation, provides a scientific basis for management and conservation efforts designed to maintain or enhance the populations and habitats of Martes species throughout the world. The twenty synthesis chapters contained in this book bring together the perspectives and expertise of sixty-three scientists from twelve countries, and are organized by the five key themes of evolution and biogeography, population biology and management, habitat ecology and management, research techniques, and conservation. Recent developments in research technologies such as modeling and genetics, biological knowledge about pathogens and parasites, and concerns about the potential effects of global warming on the distribution and status of Martes populations make new syntheses of these areas especially timely. The volume provides an overview of what is known while clarifying initiatives for future research and conservation priorities, and will be of interest to mammalogists, resource managers, applied ecologists, and conservation biologists.
Management of mustelid species such as fishers and martens requires an understanding of the history of local populations. This is particularly true in areas where populations were extirpated and restored through reintroduction efforts. During the late 19th and 20th centuries, fishers (Martes pennanti) and American martens (Martes americana) were extirpated from much of their southern range, including Michigan and Wisconsin. Both species have been restored to varying degrees in these states following multiple reintroductions and translocations. We describe the status of the original populations and changes in their status over time, and include source locations, release sites, release and reintroduction dates, and demographic characteristics of released animals. This synthesis is crucial for evaluating the relative success of reintroductions in Michigan and Wisconsin, and, combined with knowledge of the current condition of these populations, can provide valuable guidance on the future management of these species. We also assess the reintroduction of fishers and martens in Michigan and Wisconsin and discuss strategies for successful reintroductions.
Lake Superior is the largest ultra-oligotrophic freshwater lake in the world. This book includes 18 peer-reviewed papers that provide data and information about the physical, chemical, and biological regimes of this colossal lake. The information contained in the book is a landmark contribution to the science of the large lakes and marks the culmination of a dream to produce high quality, peer-reviewed books on each of the Laurentian Great Lakes.
S2Pokeweed, a plant abundant in Appalachia, exhibits some chemical similarities to a related species that has shown molluscicidal properties. Because this suggests that pokeweed, Phytolacca americana L. (P. decandra L.), has potential for controlling fresh-water snails, we have compiled this report of its chemical composition, uses, propagation methods, and other potentially useful species of the genus Phytolacca. The related species, Phytolacca dodencandra L'Her, was found to be the source of a molluscicide, which could pIay an important role in control of bilharziasis, a parasitic disease of humans widespread in Puerto Rico, Africa, and other tropical areas (22). Dead snails and small fish were observed in waterways in areas of Ethiopia where people washed their clothes with this Phytolacca's fruit, which is rich in saponins. Some distance downstream and immediately upstream from the washing places, abundant live snails were present, suggesting that the fruit contained a toxin acting as a molluscicide. This was subsequently confirmed by laboratory tests; tap-water extracts of the dried and powdered fruit had an LC100 (lethal concentration) of 10 parts per million against snails (Biomphalaria, Bulinus: and Lymnea spp.) after 24-hour exposure at 23OC. Furthermore, it was shown that molluscicidal potency was not affected by the presence of soil or vegetable matter, an important factor when the molluscicide is used under natural conditions. S3.
Bridging the fields of ecosystem science and landscape ecology, this book integrates Dr. Carol Johnston's research on beaver ecosystem alteration at Voyageurs National Park. The findings about the vegetation, soils, and chemistry of beaver impoundments synthesized in the text provide a cohesive reference useful to wetland scientists, ecosystems and landscape ecologysts, wildlife managers, and students. The beaver, Castor canadensis, is an ecosystem engineer unequaled in its capacity to alter landscapes through browsing and dam building, whose population recovery has re-established environmental conditions that probably existed for millenia prior to its near extirpation by trapping in the 1800s and 1900s. Beavers continue to regain much of their natural range throughout North America, changing stream and forest ecosystems in ways that may be lauded or vilified. Interest in beavers by ecologists remains keen as new evidence emerges about the ecological, hydrological, and biogeochemical effects of beaver browsing and construction. There is a critical need for ecologists and land managers to understand the potential magnitude, persistence, and ecosystem services of beaver landscape transformation. The 88-year record of beaver landscape occupation and alteration documented by Dr. Carol Johnston and colleagues from aerial photography and field work provides a unique resource toward understanding the ecosystem effects and sustainability of beaver activity.
