Landscape context and spatial attributes matter for New England cottontail occupancy

Abstract

AbstractIn response to the widespread threat of habitat loss, managers of imperiled species commonly focus on restoring habitat to encourage species establishment (i.e., the field of dreams hypothesis). Habitat management strategies for the rare New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis) have largely followed the field of dreams hypothesis, focusing on increasing the area of young and regenerating forest throughout the species' range to increase populations of the species. Recently researchers indicated that these practices may not be as effective when the introduced eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) co‐occupies patches with the New England cottontail. Using data from the New England Cottontail Regional Monitoring Program collected in Connecticut, USA, from 2016–2020 and geospatial data to create dynamic occupancy models, we determined how both patch and landscape characteristics influence New England cottontail and eastern cottontail occupancy patterns. We ran 4 dynamic occupancy models: 1 at the patch scale and 1 at the landscape scale for each species. Large patches and short interpatch distances increased both species' occupancy patterns more than vegetation height <2.5 m. New England cottontail occupancy and colonization positively responded to the amount of shrublands within the landscape and weakly responded to forest regeneration, the vegetation type most commonly created by management actions for the species. New England cottontail colonization probability was low at both the patch and landscape scale, and lower than extinction probabilities, suggesting the current landscape may not be sufficient to allow metapopulations to persist. Overall, our results indicate that solely focusing on habitat restoration, or applying the field of dreams hypothesis, to conserve New England cottontail, a species that is area dependent, dispersal limited, and threatened by an introduced competitor, does not promote species persistence on the landscape.