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Mammalian habitat use along a residential development gradient in northern Colorado

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dc.contributor.authorGoad, Erica H., author
dc.contributor.authorPejchar, Liba, advisor
dc.contributor.authorKnight, Richard L., advisor
dc.contributor.authorReed, Sarah E., committee member
dc.contributor.authorSibold, Jason S., committee member
dc.date.accessioned2007-01-03T05:55:19Z
dc.date.available2007-01-03T05:55:19Z
dc.date.issued2013
dc.description.abstract"Exurban" development occupies nearly five times more land in the United States than urban and suburban development combined. Understanding the effects of exurban development on biodiversity thus has important and wide-ranging implications for the planning, construction and stewardship of sustainable communities and surrounding rural lands. To assess the impact of exurban development on mammalian habitat use, wildlife cameras were placed along a unique development gradient designed to capture landscape permeability in a rapidly growing rural region of Colorado. Multiple-season species occupancy and relative activity (frequency of detections) were measured in summer and winter seasons and these data were analyzed in conjunction with a novel, acoustic-based approach to assessing human activity. Impacts of exurban housing varied by mammal species, with some species, such as bobcats, elk, and coyotes, showing decreased activity and occupancy levels at higher housing densities, whereas others, including red foxes and Abert's squirrels, occurred more frequently in these areas. Human-sourced activities associated with development and non-natural sound levels emerged as top models for most species. Relative activity rates corroborated occupancy results, indicating that some species not only use habitat in high density areas, they use it more frequently. In addition, some species, including black bears, preferentially used embedded greenbelts in high-density exurban subdivisions, suggesting that greenbelts may be important for structural and functional connectivity. This study demonstrates that the impacts of exurban development are species-dependent. However, incorporating well-designed and naturally vegetated open spaces into development projects and minimizing human disturbance may be critical to mitigating development impacts to most wildlife in regions undergoing continued exurban expansion.
dc.format.mediumborn digital
dc.format.mediummasters theses
dc.identifierGoad_colostate_0053N_11868.pdf
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10217/80220
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherColorado State University. Libraries
dc.relation.ispartof2000-2019
dc.rightsCopyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.
dc.subjectanthropogenic noise
dc.subjectdevelopment gradient
dc.subjectexurban development
dc.subjectmultiple-season occupancy
dc.subjectrelative activity
dc.subjectwildlife cameras
dc.titleMammalian habitat use along a residential development gradient in northern Colorado
dc.typeText
dcterms.rights.dplaThis Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights (https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/). You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
thesis.degree.disciplineEcology
thesis.degree.grantorColorado State University
thesis.degree.levelMasters
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (M.S.)

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