Spatiotemporal habitat use by a multitrophic Alaska alpine mammal community

Abstract

Evaluating sympatric habitat use of a mammal community can help determine intra- and inter-guild interactions and identify important habitats, potentially improving the management of these communities with a changing climate. Increasingly variable climatic patterns in Alaska, USA, are raising concerns of mismatched phenologies and altered ecosystem structures. We studied the occupancy of 10 mammal species over 15 months, via camera traps, occupying alpine areas of the Alaska Range in interior Alaska, from 2013 to 2014. We tested hypotheses about how habitat use of these species within and between groups varied by spatial and temporal covariates. Furthermore, we modeled two-species occupancy of brown bears (Ursus arctos Linnaeus, 1758) and gray wolves (Canis lupus Linnaeus, 1758) against different potential prey species. Our results suggest that medium-sized and large herbivore use was positively correlated with fine-scale covariates including rock, forb, and graminoid coverage. Large herbivore habitat use was also correlated with abiotic landscape covariates. Detection probabilities of predators and Dall’s sheep (Ovis dalli dalli Nelson, 1884) was improved by camera traps on wildlife trails. Two-species models suggested co-occurrence of habitat use between brown bear – caribou (Rangifer tarandus (Linnaeus, 1758)) and gray wolf – caribou. Results demonstrate the sympatric habitat use by multiple groups of mammals within Alaskan alpine ecosystems and the importance of incorporating multiple groups and spatial scales when making management decisions.