Habitat use and selection patterns inform habitat conservation priorities of an endangered large carnivore in southern Europe

L Krambokoukis,K Grivas,G Papakostas,AA Karamanlidis,M de Gabriel Hernando,J Beecham

doi:10.3354/esr01105

Abstract

Understanding the habitat use and selection patterns of endangered species is essential in developing management measures that will protect critical habitat and mitigate human-wildlife conflicts. This understanding is particularly important in areas with high anthropogenic pressures. To understand the ecological role of various habitat types in the conservation of an endangered large carnivore in southern Europe, with its distinct environmental conditions and predominantly anthropogenic landscapes, we studied 18 GPS-collared brown bears Ursus arctos in Greece. We examined the use and selection of habitats according to age and sex categories and behavioral status during 5 ecologically defined seasons. Areas with rough terrain were identified as important refuge areas and were used by all bears in late hyperphagia and emergence. All bears used areas closer to human-related habitat features during the night. Habitat selection was positive for areas with rough terrain and naturalized (i.e. abandoned or not intensive) crops and areas close to water courses, while high-altitude areas and roads were avoided. The selection or avoidance of other habitats varied across bear categories and between stationary and moving behavior. We recommend that the results of the study be used to develop guidelines for species conservation and allow for prioritizing management actions that will promote the conservation of bears in Greece. In particular, the habitat use patterns provide information on how to limit interactions between humans and bears in space and/or time, while the habitat selection patterns indicate suitable habitats that should be protected/improved based on their importance and ecological role for the species.

Highlights

The thorough understanding of animal habitat use and selection patterns is essential in developing effective management measures to protect critical habitats, safeguard the necessary resources for a Publisher: Inter-Research · www.int-res.comEndang Species Res 44: 203–215, 2021 timal habitat types (Martínez-Abraín & Jiménez 2016)
Circannual and circadian habitat use Circannual habitat use patterns differed across brown bear categories, with the exception of areas with a rougher terrain that were used by all bears in lHY and EM (Fig. 2)
Understanding habitat use and selection patterns is of paramount importance in wildlife conservation, as behavioral responses may often be the first measurable reactions that animals show in response to environmental changes and can help determine the capacity of a species to adapt to these changes (Sih et al 2011)

Summary

Introduction

The thorough understanding of animal habitat use and selection patterns is essential in developing effective management measures to protect critical habitats, safeguard the necessary resources for a Publisher: Inter-Research · www.int-res.comEndang Species Res 44: 203–215, 2021 timal habitat types (Martínez-Abraín & Jiménez 2016). In Greece, numbering fewer than 500 individuals (Karamanlidis et al 2015), and considered to be endangered (Mertzanis et al 2009), brown bears reach their southernmost European distribution Their range in Greece has been expanding in recent years (Bonnet Lebrun et al 2020), and their population has been recovering, both demographically (Karamanlidis et al 2015) and genetically (Karamanlidis et al 2018). This has been partly facilitated by specific behavioral adaptations in the overall movement patterns of the species (de Gabriel Hernando et al 2020) combined with the rewilding of the countryside after the rural abandonment by humans (Mertzanis et al 2020)

Methods

Results

Conclusion