Author
by Gilbert PROULX and NIGEL G. Buckland
CWBM 9 (2): 81-87.
Correspondence: Gilbert Proulx, Alpha Wildlife Research & Management Ltd., 229 Lilac Terrace, Sherwood Park, Alberta, T8H 1W3, Canada.
Email: gproulx@alphawildlife.ca
Abstract
In Canada, little information exists on habitat use by Pacific martens (Martes caurina). In this study, we used remote video-cameras to study the distribution of the species in the Coastal Western Hemlock ecosystems of southern Vancouver Island. All video-cameras were set in May-June 2019 and February-March 2020. In 2019-2020, 32 video-cameras were functional. A total of 18 cameras (56%) in simple stands (6048 h of recording) and 14 (44%) in complex stands (4704 h of recording) recorded 26 and 38 independent Pacific marten visits, respectively. There was a significant difference (2= 6.0; df: 1; P<0.02) between observed and expected frequencies of Pacific marten recordings per stand type. There were significantly (t=3.2, P<0.05) more Pacific marten recordings/camera site in complex stands (𝑥 ̅=2.7 ±1.45) than in simple ones (𝑥 ̅=1.4 ±1.6). Our hypothesis that Pacific marten recordings will be significantly more frequent in stands with structural complexity than in simple stands with little or no structure was supported.
Key Words: British Columbia, Habitat, Martes caurina, Pacific Marten, Structurally Complex Forest, Vancouver Island.
4 - Proulx and Buckland
Want to publish your work?
We are inviting you to submit your contributions on Canadian Wildlife Distribution. Click here to see the guidelines.