Latrines serve as important communication networks among felids for transmitting information relative to social dominance, reproductive status, and defense of hunting areas. During January 2011–August 2012, we monitored 10 bobcat (Lynx rufus ) latrines in the northern Lower Peninsula (NLP) of Michigan, USA, using motion‐sensitive cameras to estimate bobcat visitation and scat deposition rates among

For species at risk, it is important that demographic models be consistent with our most recent knowledge because alternate model versions can have differing predictions for wildlife and natural resource management. To establish and maintain this consistency, we can compare predicted model values to current or past observations and demographic knowledge. When novel predictor information becomes available

In many parts of North America, deer (Odocoileus spp.) have adapted to live in urban areas and are a source of negative human‐wildlife interactions. Management strategies such as culling, immunocontraceptives, sterilization, and translocation have been implemented to manage urban deer populations. In the East Kootenay region of southern British Columbia, urban mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus ) populations

Hibernation is a strategy many species employ to survive periods of thermal stress or resource shortage (e.g., harsh thermal conditions, food limitations) and habitat requirements of hibernating species may differ between summer (the active season) and winter (during hibernation). Accounting for seasonal differences in habitat affinities will help ensure that management actions are more beneficial

Barren ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus granti ) are distributed in herds that seasonally use specific geographic regions within an annual range, with varying levels of fidelity during different periods (e.g., calving, insect relief, wintering). As a result, caribou management is generally tailored to individual herds that often range across administrative boundaries. Herd ranges can shift over time

Population manipulations such as translocation and head‐starting are increasingly used as recovery tools for chelonians. But evaluating success of individual projects can require decades of monitoring to detect population trends in these long‐lived species. Furthermore, there are often few benchmarks from stable, unmanipulated populations against which to compare demographic rates, particularly for

As industrial development increases in the range of barren‐ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus granti ) across the warming Arctic, the need to understand the responses of caribou to development and to assess the effectiveness of mitigation measures increase accordingly. The Central Arctic Herd (CAH) of caribou ranges across northern Alaska, USA, and the herd's summer range includes the Prudhoe Bay and

Trapping data have a long and rich history of use in monitoring furbearer populations in North America but understanding the influences of variation in trapper harvest is important. Many factors besides abundance can cause variation in trapper harvest, including socioeconomics, weather, and motivation. The relationships between these extrinsic factors and trapper harvest may change temporally, which

Endangered dholes (Cuon alpinus ) are restricted to small and declining populations in Southeast Asia, and little is known about how their ecology differs within the region. We used DNA‐confirmed scats and prey surveys to determine the seasonal diet and prey selection of dholes in 2 different landscapes that dominate Southeast Asia: closed evergreen forests in hilly terrain in northern Laos, and open

Information garnered from the capture and handling of free‐ranging animals helps advance understanding of wildlife ecology and can aid in decisions on wildlife management. Unfortunately, animals may experience increased levels of stress, injuries, and death resulting from captures (e.g., exertional myopathy, trauma). Partial sedation is a technique proposed to alleviate stress in animals during capture

A Ph.D. student entered my office at the University of Arizona and asked me to review a habitat model for a desert ungulate that was part of their dissertation. I gladly did so, and when the student returned for my comments, I gave my opinion and asked how they thought the habitat characteristics afield aligned with those in the model. The study area was only a few hours southwest of the university

Weather can shape movements of animals and alter their exposure to anthropogenic threats. Bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus ) are increasingly at risk from collision with turbines used in onshore wind energy generation. In the midwestern United States, development of this energy source typically occurs in upland areas that bald eagles use only intermittently. Our objective was to determine the

Every aspect of scientific writing has been examined, but the title is the least studied component of manuscripts (Goodman et al. 2001, Soler 2007) even though some describe the title as the most important element (Garg 2017). When scientists are scanning literature to decide what to read, the title is often the only thing they look at (Stapleton et al. 1995). Useful guidelines for titles are often

Wildlife professionals are tasked with sustainably managing habitats and wildlife for the benefit of a variety of stakeholders, and hunters are an important user group. But the number of hunters in North America has continued to decline, and as a result, new wildlife professionals entering the field are less likely to be hunters than their predecessors. We find this trend concerning because future

Aligning wildlife management boundaries with accurate biological units promotes effective conservation and management practices that reflect ecological and evolutionary processes. Neutral genetic markers allow for quantitative delineation of population structure without a priori assumptions or biases. In the United States, bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis ) are a charismatic component of Wyoming's biodiversity

Forests are becoming increasingly fragmented, primarily because of their conversion to production landscapes. Animals occupying modified landscapes may need to expand their ranges and move longer distances between remnant forest patches to find resources. The establishment of plantations in fragmented landscapes, however, may provide complementary habitat for wildlife and improve connectivity, reducing

The Central Georgia Bear Population (CGP) is the least abundant and most isolated of Georgia's 3 American black bear (Ursus americanus ) populations. Beginning in 2011, changes to regulations governing harvest of the CGP resulted in an increase in female bear harvest, creating concern that future harvest could be an important influence on population viability. Hence, our objective was to assess viability

The importance of conserving migratory populations is recognized across a variety of ungulate taxa, yet the demographic benefits of migration remain uncertain for ungulate populations that exhibit partial migration. We hypothesized that migratory pronghorn (Antilocapra americana ) would experience greater survival compared to residents by moving longer distances to avoid severe winter weather and access

Behavioral and movement ecology of broods are among the most poorly understood aspects of wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo ) reproductive ecology. Recent declines in wild turkey productivity throughout the southeastern United States necessitate comprehensive evaluations of brood ecology across multiple spatial scales. We captured and marked 408 female wild turkeys with global positioning system (GPS)‐transmitters

Understanding how reproductive tradeoffs act in concert with abiotic elements to affect survival is important for effective management and conservation of wildlife populations, particularly for at‐risk or harvested species. Wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo ) are a high‐interest species for consumptive and non‐consumptive uses, and female survival is a primary factor influencing turkey population dynamics

Numerous factors such as predation, disease, injury, and environmental conditions (e.g., river flows, hydropower operations) can influence survival rates of fish. Although mortality due to predation is commonly assumed to be additive and result in a directly proportional reduction on survival rates, compensatory processes may work to counteract or negate the effects of predation mortality on survival

Ecology and management programs designed to track population trends over time increasingly are using passive monitoring methods to estimate terrestrial mammal densities. Researchers use motion‐sensing cameras in mammal studies because they are cost‐effective and advances in statistical methods incorporate motion‐sensing camera data to estimate mammal densities. Density estimation involving unmarked

Inefficiencies in monitoring programs waste resources. Ideally, we would predict when and where target species are most detectable and place our effort accordingly. Statistical models can generate predictor functions relating survey conditions to detectability but are phenomenological; they do not incorporate biological constraints and so using them to predict into unsampled time and space is risky

Biomass estimates of potential waterfowl foods are fundamental to estimating foraging carrying capacity of waterfowl habitat by conservation planners and managers of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan‐Gulf Coast Joint Venture (GCJV). Rice and moist‐soil seeds in Gulf Coast rice fields provide principal sources of energy for waterfowl during migration and winter. We investigated spatio‐temporal

Prescribed fire is an increasingly important management tool for eastern deciduous forests, but relativity little is known about the direct effects of fire on the eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina ). We used very high frequency (VHF) transmitters to monitor mortality, movement, and spatial ecology of 118 box turtles in response to 17 prescribed fires across 4 seasons and 3 sites in east

Efforts to halt the decline of the northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus ; bobwhite) across its distribution have had limited success. Understanding bobwhite habitat requirements across the annual cycle and at varying scales is essential to aid efforts to conserve bobwhites. We monitored radio‐tagged bobwhites from 2016 to 2018 on a 165‐km2 portion of Fort Bragg Military Installation in the Sandhills

Efforts to recover Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis canadensis ) throughout western North America have had limited success with the majority of current populations remaining in small and isolated areas on a fraction of their historical range. Prairie environments with rugged topography throughout the Northern Great Plains ecoregion were historically occupied by relatively robust bighorn

Natural wildfire regimes are important for ecosystem succession but can have negative ecological effects depending on fire characteristics. A portion of a granite rock barrens landscape that extends along the eastern shoreline of Georgian Bay, Lake Huron to eastern Ontario, Canada, burned in 2018 during a wildfire that affected >11,000 ha. This landscape is a biodiversity hotspot providing habitat

The pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis ) is endemic to the sagebrush steppe landscapes in the western United States. Pygmy rabbits have adapted to this region by depending on big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata ) as a source of nutrition and concealment from predators. Being a central place forager, and a dietary specialist makes pygmy rabbits an ideal subject to study foraging tradeoffs. Our objectives

An accurate understanding of harvest trends is required for effective wildlife management. Trapper harvest data represent valuable long‐term data for evaluating patterns and trends for wildlife species at broad spatiotemporal scales. Inferring accurate trends from harvest data, however, first requires identifying and controlling for confounding factors that vary independent of abundance. We investigated

Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus ) are widely hunted throughout western North America and are experiencing population declines across much of their range. Consequently, understanding the direct and indirect effects of hunting is important for management of mule deer populations. Managers can influence deer mortality rates through changes in hunting season length or authorized tag numbers. Little is known

Interior Alaska, USA, is the least‐studied region in Alaska for breeding shorebirds because of challenging accessibility and expectations of low densities and abundances. We estimated lowland and upland shorebird population sizes on 370,420 ha of military lands in interior Alaska boreal forest from May–July 2016 and 2017. We modified the Program for Regional and International Shorebird Monitoring (PRISM)

Monitoring annual change and long‐term trends in population structure and abundance of white‐tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus ) is an important but challenging component of their management. Many monitoring programs consist of count‐based indices of relative abundance along with a variety of population structure information. Analyzed separately these data can be difficult to interpret because of

Beginning in the early 1900s, poly‐factorial, poly‐microbial pneumonia was identified as a disease affecting bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis ) and it continues to threaten bighorn populations, posing an ongoing management challenge. In May and June 2013, a pneumonia outbreak linked to the pathogen Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae led to an all‐age die‐off of desert bighorn sheep (O. c. nelsoni ) at Old Dad

The conservation of many freshwater marsh waterbirds (i.e., waterfowl, shorebirds, wading birds, and secretive marshbirds) in the Laurentian Great Lakes requires managing invasive emergent macrophytes, which degrade waterbird habitat by creating dense, litter‐clogged stands, and excluding plants that produce nutritionally balanced and high‐energy food (seeds, tubers, and submerged aquatic vegetation)

Livestock grazing is a predominant land use worldwide and can influence wildlife populations by altering grassland composition, structure, and productivity. Conceptually, rest‐rotation livestock grazing could increase pasture‐level heterogeneity that would allow wildlife to balance the need for resources with the risk of predation. Prairie‐grouse (Tympanuchus spp.) are recognized as important indicator

Lead remnants from spent ammunition introduce health risks to humans and wildlife that consume game harvested with firearms. Most current research has focused on effects of high‐velocity rifle bullets, whereas low‐velocity lead ammunition has received little attention. We examined whether fragmentation characteristics differed between 3 common low‐velocity ammunition types when shot into the thoracic

North American sagebrush (Artemisia spp.)‐obligate birds are experiencing steep population declines due in part to increased disturbance, mainly human‐caused, across their range. At the eastern edge of the sagebrush steppe, this issue may potentially be exacerbated because of natural disturbance by black‐tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus ). Our goal was to compare local and landscape models

Conservation of shorebirds throughout their breeding and migratory ranges has become a priority as shorebird populations decline globally. Along the North Atlantic Coast, management efforts have particularly focused on preserving nesting habitat for piping plovers (Charadrius melodus ), which are protected under the Endangered Species Act. It is unclear whether these conservation measures suffice to

Wilson, R. R., and G. M. Durner. 2020. Seismic survey design and effects on maternal polar bear dens. Journal of Wildlife Management 84:201–212. Since the publication of this manuscript, readers have noted 2 errors in our analysis. Here, we describe the errors and the changes to the supplemental code that will remedy them. The changes do not affect either the resulting expected number of maternal polar

Understanding how species respond to environmental conditions can assist with conservation strategies and harvest management, especially in arctic and boreal regions that are experiencing rapid climate change. Although climatic influences on species distributions have been studied, broad‐scale effects of climate on survival are less well known. We examined the interactive effects of meteorological

Every year, I am asked why manuscripts are rejected from the Journal of Wildlife Management (JWM ), often by wildlife students and early career professionals. And, whenever I see the statistics on rejection rates for JWM (>50%), my first reaction is to cringe. Rejecting more than half of the submitted manuscripts seems draconian; but then again, rejection rates for most major journals are high. And

Aerial surveys flown at low altitudes allow detection, identification, and enumeration of waterfowl and other waterbirds, but few studies have assessed disturbance to these guilds during the nonbreeding period. Excessive disturbance can potentially increase energy expenditure and exposure to hunting mortality contrary to objectives of many waterfowl sanctuaries where surveys are conducted. We used

Autumn waterfowl habitat management often focuses on providing high energy food resources to attract and concentrate waterfowl for harvest. Similarly, many waterfowl conservation plans assume food resources are the primary, controllable limiting factor influencing waterfowl distribution during migration; however, hunting‐related disturbance also influences waterfowl distribution in autumn. We investigated

An estimate or index of target species density is important in determining oral rabies vaccination (ORV) bait densities to control and eliminate specific rabies variants. From 1997–2011, we indexed raccoon (Procyon lotor ) densities 253 times based on cumulative captures on 163 sites from Maine to Alabama, USA, near ORV zones created to prevent raccoon rabies from spreading to new areas. We conducted

Management and research of moose (Alces alces ) in Alaska, USA, often require chemical immobilization; however, moose may be prone to capture‐induced hyperthermia while immobilized. We chemically immobilized moose with carfentanil citrate and xylazine hydrochloride to measure rump fat depth, collect blood and fecal samples, and to deploy modified vaginal implant transmitters and global positioning

The non‐native pet trade contributes directly to species invasions, thereby threatening wildlife. Biological invasions influence environmental change, resulting in species extinctions and biodiversity loss. To mitigate the pet trade invasion risk, interventions are required to prevent trade in non‐native animals with high invasion potential, impulse or ill‐informed purchases of non‐native pets by individuals

Conflicts between humans and wildlife have become increasingly important challenges for resource managers along the urban‐wildland interface. Food conditioning (i.e., reliance by an animal on anthropogenic foods) of American black bears (Ursus americanus ) is related to conflict behavior (i.e., being bold or aggressive toward humans, consuming human food or garbage, causing property damage) and often

Sandhill cranes (Antigone canadensis ) inhabiting the midcontinent of North America have been hunted since the 1960s under management goals of maintaining abundance, retaining geographic distribution, and maximizing sustainable harvest. Some biologists have raised concerns regarding harvest sustainability because sandhill cranes have lower reproductive rates than other game birds. We summarized demographic

Radio‐telemetry is a commonly used scientific technique that allows researchers to collect detailed movement, habitat use, and survival data of animals; however, evidence indicates that using telemetry can affect behavior and survival. Using multiple breeding colonies and years, we investigated the effects of attached radio‐transmitters on growth and survival of Forster's tern (Sterna forsteri ) chicks

As wind turbine‐caused mortality of birds and bats increases with increasing wind energy capacity, accurate fatality estimates are needed to assess effects, identify collision factors, and formulate mitigation. Finding a larger proportion of collision victims reduces the magnitude of adjustment for the proportion not found, thus reducing opportunities for bias. We tested detection dogs in trials of

The ability to predict energy and protein allocation to different body condition parameters according to environmental constraints is a key component in understanding the processes underlying population dynamics. We investigated the influence of a proxy of population density and environmental factors on individual body condition parameters of female white‐tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus ) based

Scientific progress depends upon the accumulation of empirical knowledge via reproducible methodology. Although reproducibility is a main tenet of the scientific method, recent studies have highlighted widespread failures in adherence to this ideal. The goal of this study was to gauge the level of computational reproducibility, or the ability to obtain the same results using the same data and analytic

Abundance of mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus ) in western North America is often considered lower than desirable for hunting. Some coastal populations of Columbian black‐tailed deer (O. h. columbianus ) in California, USA, near urban development, however, are perceived as a nuisance and may be overabundant. To determine the density of a potential nuisance population in Marin County, California, we used

In the western United States, wolverines (Gulo gulo ) typically occupy high‐elevation habitats. Because wolverine populations occur in vast, remote areas across multiple states, biologists have an imperfect understanding of this species' current distribution and population status. The historical extirpation of the wolverine, a subsequent period of recovery, and the lack of a coordinated monitoring

The Wildlife Society (TWS) Council requires reports on the status of The Journal of Wildlife Management (JWM) and readers regularly ask the staff about various aspects of production. Thus, we continue to update interested readers about journal metrics (e.g., turnaround times, number of submissions, Associate Editors) and summarize changes made to production of JWM.

Understanding environmental factors influencing the abundance of species is important for developing strategies to manage wildlife effectively. Long‐term studies provide the most reliable information upon which to base management decisions. This is particularly important when considering threatening processes, like drought and climate change, and a species' future security. We collected data on abundance

Understanding space‐use patterns by elk (Cervus canadensis ) is essential to alleviating human‐elk conflicts, particularly when crop depredation by elk can make it harder to justify to the public the need to restore elk populations to regions with agricultural landscapes. In 2016–2017, we used global positioning system data from 20 female elk to investigate their selection for agricultural cover during

Beginning in 1977 the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife conducted annual surveys to determine statewide golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos ) occupancy and productivity. Current interest in the regional and national status of the species prompted our investigation to determine utility of historical data in assessing trends in reproduction, and to test efficacy of a sampling protocol that surveyed

There is a long and contentious history of brown bear (Ursus arctos ) harvest management in Alaska, USA, the state that hosts the largest brown bear population in North America. In the mid‐1990s, the Alaska Board of Game set the population objective for brown bears in Game Management Unit 13 A, located in interior southcentral Alaska, to be reduced by 50% to improve survival of moose (Alces alces )