A survey of forest carnivore species composition and distribution in North Cascades National Park Service Complex, Washington
Christophersen RG, Kuntz RC, McLaughlin JF. 2005. A survey of forest carnivore species composition and distribution in North Cascades National Park Service Complex, Washington. Natural Resource Technical Report. NPS/PWR-NCCN/NOCA/NRTR—2005-01. North Cascades National Park Service Complex. Sedro-Woolley, Washington 98284
We investigated the potential occurrence of forest carnivore species using remotely triggered cameras during the months of late January through mid-May of 2003 and 2004. Sampling units consisted of 4 mi2 blocks with two camera stations per block, with each camera separated by a minimum of one mile. A total of 39 blocks were sampled. Each camera was left installed until a 28-night sampling period was achieved. We obtained 1,734 photographs of 13 mammal and five bird species. American marten (Martes americana) and spotted skunk (Spilogale gracilis) were the most frequently recorded carnivore species comprising 64.9% (1,125 of 1,734) and 18.0% (313 of 1,734) of the total photos respectively. Other forest carnivore species detected included coyote (Canis latrans, 15.4% of blocks), short-tailed weasel (Mustela erminea,12.8%), bobcat (Lynx rufus, 10.3%), American black bear (Ursus americanus, 5.1%) and cougar (Puma concolor, 2.6%).
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Christophersen, Roger; Kuntz, Robert; McLaughlin, John
- Date of Issue
- 2005-02
- Publisher
- North Cascades National Park Service Complex
- Units
- NOCA
- Keywords
- Animal, camera, carnivore, Distribution, Fisher, Forest, Inventory, Lynx, Mammal, Mammal Inventory, Marten, Observations, Presence, spotted skunk, Washington, Wolverine
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Mammals