Pikas in peril: Multiregional vulnerability assessment of a climate-sensitive sentinel species

Garrett, Lisa; Jeffress, Mackenzie; Britten, Mike; Epps, Clinton; Ray, Chris; Wolff, Susan

A large team of National Park Service (NPS) staff and academic researchers are collaborating on a three-year research project funded through the NPS Climate Change Response Program. The “Pikas in Peril” research team hopes to address questions regarding the vulnerability of the American pika (Ochotona princeps), a species sensitive to temperature and climate, to future climate change scenarios projected for the western United States. The project objectives are to (1) document pika occurrence patterns and predict pika distribution across eight national parks in the western United States; (2) measure gene flow and model connectivity of pika populations in five of those parks; and (3) project climate change effects on the future distribution, connectivity, and vulnerability of pika populations in each park. Systematic pika occupancy surveys were conducted in 2010 and 2011 across a range of latitudes, longitudes, elevations, and substrate types (talus slopes vs. lava beds). Analyses of DNA extracted from fecal pellets collected during occupancy surveys will document recent gene flow patterns. The distribution, habitat, connectivity, and genetic data and models will be combined to conduct a quantitative vulnerability assessment that explicitly predicts pika response to climate change. By assessing the vulnerability of this sentinel species, the research team will provide park managers with insights into the expected rate and magnitude of climate-related changes in park ecosystems and critical information for park scenario planning and interpretive goals.

Pikas in peril: Multiregional vulnerability assessment of a climate-sensitive sentinel species

Part of

Series

Collections