The Effects of Human Disturbance on Elk (Cervus canadensis) Behavior within Great Smoky Mountain National Park
Stroud WK. 2013. The Effects of Human Disturbance on Elk (Cervus canadensis) Behavior within Great Smoky Mountain National Park. National Park Service. Warren-Wilson College, North Carolina
In February 2001 the National Park Service released an experimental population of 25 Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus canadensis manitobensis) into the Cataloochee Valley, located in the southeastern corner of Great Smoky Mountain National Park. The meadow where the elk spend the majority of their time is flanked by a popular dirt road, and people often attempt to feed, photograph, or touch the elk. Although there is evidence linking human disturbance events with decreased birth rates, altered habitat uses, and changed spatial distributions among elk populations, little research has been done to quantify the behavioral effects of human disturbance on elk. My study attempts to understand how elk living in close proximity to humans adapt their behavior to account for human disturbance. I compared behavioral data collected from the Lamar Basin in Yellowstone National Park, a remote site, to data collected from the Cataloochee Valley in Great Smoky Mountain National Park, a site frequented by tourists. T-Test results show that elk within GSMNP spend significantly less time participating in vigilance and travelling behaviors and significantly more time participating in resting behaviors than elk sampled in YSNP. These results lead to the conclusion that elk within the Cataloochee Valley are either habituated or attracted to human disturbance. As the elk population in North Carolina expands, wildlife managers must adapt management plans to reflect the unusual behavior GSMNP elk population.
- Type
- Unpublished Report
- Authors
- Stroud, William
- Date of Issue
- 2013-05-08
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- GRSM
- Keywords
- Behavior, Cataloochee, Cervus canadensis, Elk, GRSM-01125, Human Disturbance
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Mammals