Abstract
In past studies of the fisher (Pekania pennanti) most researchers have concluded that fisher habitat must consist of mostly mature to late-seral forest with few, if any, openings. Without doubt, certain elements found in mature to late-seral forests are required by females to successfully rear their young, but some recent work casts doubt on the extent that a continuous canopy of tree coverage and a preponderance of older stands are necessary as long as certain components exist. This paper explores this issue with an attempt to better characterize essential elements of habitat for the female fisher. This characterization is based upon fine-scale inventory plot data that is analyzed across several spatial scales that represent a small neighborhood about den sites, the forest of the 75% kernel density estimate for female home ranges, and the forested region as a whole. We present results of a test of significance in comparing habitat elements across these three scales. Our findings suggest that certain habitat elements typically found in mature to late seral forests must be present at a certain fraction of the landscape for the fisher. The approach described here may be of considerable value in developing guidelines for conservation agreements.
Highlights
One of the biggest challenges facing conservation biologists and ecologists is the development of a knowledge base that is sufficient to make cogent management decisions in protecting threatened species
Our results presented here are based upon comparing the distribution of l-th ranked plots within neighborhood clusters (NCs) of some spatial extent to a distribution of l-th ranked plots of NCs of a different spatial extent
For many of the attributes, the highest ranked attribute within den NCs was better than what occurred in forest NCs with a p-value of 0.05
Summary
One of the biggest challenges facing conservation biologists and ecologists is the development of a knowledge base that is sufficient to make cogent management decisions in protecting threatened species. Expert opinion is used to address the key question: What comprises suitable habitat for key species and how large an area is necessary? The ideal habitat of the San Joaquin Kit Fox (Vulpes macrotis mutica) is a grassy plain that has not been plowed or cultivated and tends to avoid riparian areas. The kit fox has recently been found in sizable numbers living in urban areas [6], including the town of Bakersfield, CA—burrowing under portable school buildings, hunting on school grounds and even eating the leftovers from McDonald’s and other fast food restaurants [7]. One might ask oneself, “What is wrong with this picture?” The Kit Fox is doing what expert opinion had once thought impossible: living in an urban area. There are large open grassy spaces, protected den areas under portable classrooms, food sources such as mice, squirrels, etc. within easy
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