Introduction
With the rapid growth of the American population and the greater demand for work, large urban areas developed throughout the U.S. landscape. Urbanization, as it is called, is the replacement of the rural areas with more urban ones. Urbanization has impacted human behavior and wildlife as well and most likely won’t be ending anytime soon as humanity continues to push into wildlife habitats. As relative keepers of the environment, humans need to understand the impacts of urbanization on the environment and ecosystem as a whole (Warren et al. 2006). These characteristics are exhibited in urban squirrel (Sciurus carolinensi) populations.
Squirrels have been able to adapt fairly well in response to urbanization and are one of the most visible urban mammals in North America; there are about 55 species of tree squirrels. Squirrels usually live in deciduous, coniferous, and tropical forests. Most squirrels make their nests (dreys) above ground in the trees, which provide them with food and shelter. The dreys usually are built of leaves and sticks in the crevices or branches of trees. Squirrels store food underground and in trees in urban environments just as they naturally do in rural environments to use in the winter months.
The density of squirrels seems to be much lower in rural areas than in urban. Urban densities of two to three squirrels per Hectare are fairly common, whereas in rural areas densities of 1/2 to one per hectare are typically recorded. These high densities are attributed to the supplemental feeding by people and many other sources of food located in the parks and playgrounds of urban settings. There is also a major difference in predators living within an urban environment compared to tha...
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... suggests that lack of predator density may be a driver for reduced wariness and increased confidence shown by urbanized wildlife (Williamson, 1983).
My results have shown an extremely significant change in the number of squirrels found in open view foraging activities between urban and rural environments. Based upon the findings of the t-test, (P< 0.05) I can reject my null hypothesis that there will be no difference of abundance of squirrels in open view foraging activities between rural and urban environments. My hypothesis that there will be a greater abundance of squirrels in open view foraging activities in an urban environment than in a rural environment is supported by this study. This study shows that urban environments are associated with more abundant foraging behavior being exhibited by squirrels in parks than in rural environments.
Literature Cited
As the weather in northern climates continues to change it becomes more important to the effects of the change on local species. The ability of theses northern species to adapted affects their survival s. Arctic foxes are one of the main predators of the terrestrial arctic ecosystem. Foxes main prey consists of small rodents, birds and their eggs in the summer and spring. Arctic foxes travel large distances searching for prey, averaging 29 km a day. (http://www.osti.gov/scitech/biblio/5927638). Many studies have been done on how food and resource abundance affects the foraging patterns, but not many studies have been done on how weather patterns and changing climate may be affecting the arctic foxes. One concern is that annual spring and summer
...rather than in undeveloped and remote areas. By choosing to stay close to urbanized areas the impact is much more concentrated meaning animals have more habitat and are less likely to venture into human areas and become a nuisance. You can also help wildlife by obeying city laws and regulations regarding proper trash and food disposal. You can also respect local wildlife by staying out of out of bound areas that are often meant for wildlife and following the leave no trace principle of you pack it in you pack it out, meaning taking your trash with you off the mountain and not littering. You can also help the local wildlife by keeping a respectful distance and trying not to disturb them when you do happen to come across a wild animal. This has the upside of preserving the local environment as well as the scenic atmosphere that draws many visitors to the mountains.
The purpose of conducting this experiment is to find out how an invasive specie affects different native animals. In the past, invasive species have spread disease, created more competition, and had grown exponentially to then destroyed land. By comparing populations between native birds and an invasive specie, in this case the Eurasian Collared Dove, we can find out how the native birds were affected. We are examining how the Eurasian Collared dove affected populations of native birds in San Diego. Further research would allow us to view the reasoning behind what occurred to the native species. We are choosing the view effects on San Diego’s native birds because the climate in San Diego is considered fair and stable year round fluctuating
This type of writing is not meant for leisurely reading; it is meant to translate and share scientific findings amongst agriculturalists. Therefore, scientific writing is not always entertaining to read, sometimes, it can be difficult to understand and challenging to digest the material in its entirety. Even more so, articles, written academically, will possess visual literacy, mathematical literacy, data, and technical vocabulary; these variables will display the information in a different presentational form. In the article, Seasonal comparison of daily activity budgets of gray squirrels in an urban area, the authors choose to present the reader with tables, mathematical literacy, and charts representing the given data of the daily activity budgets of squirrels. Gonzales, Nilon, and Parker decided to use tables and graphs to help the reader better understand the written information with a visual representation of the data; sometimes it is easier to visually see data than to read
Fischer, Mary. "Introduced Species Summary Project Grey Squirrel (Sciurus Carolinensis)."Columbia.edu. Columbia University, 2 Mar. 2002. Web. 26 Mar. 2014.
Tamias can be found in woodland and in brushland they can also use cover such as urban parks, fence lines and hedges. They have large glossy eyes and characteristic bushy tails chipmunks have small but important ears which face forwards, small eyes set on the sides of their heads and a pointed mouth. When an eastern chipmunk eats nuts Beech tree, this is mutualism. Chipmunks are rodents that are a type of squirrel. These small, furry animals are identified by their stubby legs, bushy tails and the white, black and brown stripes that run down their backs. Chipmunks are the smallest members of the squirrel family, according to National Geographic. The biggest species of chipmunk is the Eastern chipmunk. It grows to 11 inches (28 centimeters)
The three colonies are independent of each other but in the same foraging range of the hawks. Ferruginous Hawk foraging behavior and Prairie dog activity was monitored using binoculars, video cameras, 2 tower blinds and a stationary vehicle. All three prairie dog colonies were monitored simultaneously. The number of prairie dogs above ground were counted hourly to determine the availability of prey. Hawks were monitored for their presence at a colony along with the time spent at
Differences in diets of lynx by age and sex class haven’t been reported yet. Due to their heavy dependence on hares for food, morphological adaptations to hunting hares (Murray and Boutin 1991), lynx are usually considered hare specialists. They hunt by either stalking and rushing at their prey, or ambushing them from “ambush beds” which they make near the trails of prey (Murray et al. 1995; O’Donoghue et al. 1998a). The costs and benefits of ambushing rather than talking prey likely depend on prey abundance and behavior as well as the physiological state of the predator (Davies 1997; Formanowicz and Brandley 1987). Ambushing prey when prey availability is low may be more energetically efficient for them than actively searching for them (O’Donoghue et al. 1998a). While typically solitary, lynx regularly hunt in family groups, headed by the mother. Families usually spread out while hunting hares in good habitat, and hares flushed by one animal are often killed by another (Saunders 1963a; Parker 1981; Mowat and Slough 1998; O’Donoghue et al. 1998a). This behavior increases the foraging efficiency of family groups. Lynx occupy forests of North America (McCort and Cardoaz 1982; Quinn and Parker
Jackson (2015) mentioned that the findings in their analyses were very generic and that more research needed to be conducted to fully understand the interactions of invasive species and the effects invasive species have on various environments. It was also suggested that there should be more research conducted outside of the United States since 43% of the papers used in this study completed their research within the United States (Jackson, 2015). Hoopes et al. (2013) mentioned several limitations to their research as well. There was missing data for a large number of refuges which caused an issue when looking at trends and patterns within the data. Also, as the data was collected from numerous undergraduate students across the United States, there was some error due to compiling and entering data incorrectly. Lastly, land-history was not considered in this study which could have an effect on the end
The prairie is facing several problems that threaten not only the wellbeing but also the existence of plant and animal species. Habitat loss, overgrazing, and pollution are ruining the prairie ecosystem. The habitats of native prairie animals are being destroys and converted into farmland. Prairie grasses are being uprooted, which are a vital food source for prey animals. When these prey animals do not have enough resources to sustain their current population, their decreasing numbers create ripples across the food web. Loss of prairie grasses is also a problem for animals that live create nests inside them to shelter them and their young. Another side effect of habitat loss is that as the amount of land decreases, the population density increases
More than ten years after the essay in our textbook, “For Environmental Balance, Pick up a Rifle,” first appeared in the NY Times, the author, Nickolas Kristof, continues to write for the NY Times as a columnist. This long-term relationship with The Gray Lady is quite an achievement for a writer in a tough market of New York readers. The original essay needed aggressive wording to grab attention of readers who peruse the paper while crowded into buses and trains. It is engaging, humorous, and compellingly holds the readers’ attention right through to the end. Kristof is correct in his claim that the solution to the deer over-population lies in thinning out the herds through hunting. Alternate methods of deer population management do not exist in the suburbs. We certainly do not want to restore the natural predators of deer, because humans would be on these predators’ menu, too. Deer food laced with contraceptives has limited effectiveness because deer migrate regularly over an area of up to 25 square miles. Therefore, the deer who ate the contraceptive might not be the deer who winter over in that area and give birth in spring. Once the medicinally-laced food is put out, no guarantee exists that deer would be the only ones to eat it.
The relationship between white-tailed deer and coyotes have a negative correlation across the United States. Whether or not one species’ population number has a direct effect on the other is unknown, but there is much research that may show a connection between the two. The population of white-tailed deer has increased in many areas, including Cuyahoga Valley National Park (CVNP), Ohio (Fulton, Skerl, Shank, & Lime, 2004). In southeastern states, such as South Carolina, deer are an important food item for coyotes (Kilgo, Ray, Ruth, & Miller, 2010). Many citizens in the CVNP area believe the deer population needs to be managed with human control (Fulton et al., 2004). In order to get a grip on the issue of deer overpopulation, it is important
Populations contain very delicate and reactive relationships between species. These populations can be largely impacted by small changes such as weather or climate. Most populations stay relatively balanced by predators or limited food sources. Populations are sometimes directly correlated to each other and when one gets too large they either get killed by the other or starve from competition over food. Our experiment was designed to answer the question, which factors affect the stability of a predator-prey population size relationship? This shows how populations balance each other out. Our claim was that if there is a higher amount of time needed for the re-growth of the grass, the amount of sheep, and therefore wolves, will go down.
According to pro-hunters’ view foxes are pests and the most effective way to limit their number is fox hunting. Hunt supporters believe that the fox does untold damage to farmers and their livestock, including attacks on lambs, poultry and game birds. For them hunting plays an essential role in managing local fox populations, and is the best and the most humane way of controll...
Sikes, Roberts. and William L. Gannon. "Guidelines of the American Society of Mammalogists for the Use of Wild Mammals in Research." Journal of Mammalogy 92.1 (Feb. 2011): 235-253. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 5 Oct. 2011.