Download History of Non-Native Mammal Management on Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
History of
Non-native Mammal
Management
on Kodiak National
Wildlife Refuge
McCrea Cobb, Wildlife Biologist
Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Why introduce new animals?
•  New source of protein
and sport hunting
–  “easier rugs and
roasts should be
available and in more
places”
–  “improving on a
paradise of game”
•  Domesticated species
•  Food for other
introduced animalsNational Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Introductions in AK
•  Long history
–  Russians introduced
foxes to islands in
mid-1700s.
•  Peaked in the 1920s
–  AK Game
Commission (1925)
•  FWS took lead in
1940
•  State control in 1959
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Widespread
National
Wildlife Refuge System
(Paul 2009)
Species
Release Site
U.S.
Fish & Wildlife Release
Service Date
Sitka Black-tailed Deer 1887,1930, 1934 Long & Kodiak Island
Black Bear
c.1922
1924
Alitak Bay
Muskrat
1925
NE Kodiak, Afognak
Roosevelt Elk
1929
Afognak Island
Snowshoe Hare
Raccoon
Mountain Goat
~50-80,000 (?)
Spruce Island
Reindeer
Beaver
Current Status
1925 & 1929
1934
Kodiak & Raspberry Is.
Kodiak & Afognak Is.
pre-1936 & 1980 Long & Kodiak Islands
1952-53
Hidden Basin, Kodiak
XX
~300-350
(Chiniak Bay)
~600 (2011)
~30-50,000 (?)
~100,000 (?)
Likely XX
~2,500 (2011)
Marten
1952
Afognak Island
~2-3,000 (?)
Mink
1952
Kodiak Island (Karluk)
XX
Red Squirrel
1952
Afognak & Kodiak Is.
~10-15,000 (?)
Ground Squirrel
?
Spruce Grouse
1957 & 1959
Woody Island
XX
Dall Sheep
1964-65
Kodiak Island
XX
Moose
1966-67
Kodiak Island
XX
European Wild Hog
1984
Kodiak?
Marmot Island
National Wildlife Refuge System
1000s
XX
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Irruptive Population Growth
•  General trend in
growth similar across
many introduced
populations
–  Limited predation
–  Abundant resources
•  Examples of this
pattern worldwide
–  New Zealand thar
–  Kaibab deer
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Sitka Black-tailed Deer
•  1924, ‘30, ’34:
•  25 deer from SE AK
to Long Island and
Kodiak
•  1940-50s:
•  Population limited to
northern Kodiak
•  1960-70s:
•  Deer disperse across
Kodiak
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Sitka Deer (1980s – current)
•  Population
limited by winter
conditions
–  High mortality
during cold, wet,
long winters
•  Harvests average
~8,000/year
•  ~50-80,000 deer
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Feral Reindeer
•  1924:
–  32 introduced to Lazy
Bay, Kodiak
–  Managed by Akhiok
residents
•  Herd peaked at 3,000
in 1950
•  Herded until 1961
Red River 1945
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Feral Reindeer
•  1965-1990s:
–  Declared feral
–  Open season and
no bag limit
–  same-day-airborne
hunting approved
•  2009:
–  Same-day airborne
prohibited
–  Reclassified as
“caribou” with goal
of 200-500
Lichens extirpated?
3000
Estimated Abundance
•  2002:
3500
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
No dedicated surveys
0
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Roosevelt Elk
•  1929: 8 calves
introduced to
Afognak
•  1952:
•  ~300 elk and 1st hunt
•  1960:
•  State assumed
management
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Elk
1600
1400
Estimted Population Size
•  1965:
Population
peaked at
~1,400
•  Fluctuated
with winter
weather
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
1929
1939
1949
1959
1969
1979
1989
National Wildlife Refuge System
1999
2009
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Mountain Goats
•  Successful
introduction to
Baranof Island
•  Efforts to introduce
goats to Kodiak
began in 1948
•  1952-53: 18 goat
introduced to
Hidden Basin,
Kodiak from Kenai
Peninsula
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Mountain Goats
•  Draw hunt
•  Increasing in
south
•  Registration hunt
3500
3000
Minimum Count
•  Slow initial
population growth
•  2011: est. 2,500
mountain goats
•  Population
stabilized in north
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
National Wildlife Refuge System
R² = 0.98
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Kodiak Refuge Founded 1941
•  “To protect the native
feeding and breeding
grounds of the brown
bear and other
wildlife”
•  Accompanying letter
with executive order:
–  “provide a natural
environment for other forms
of wildlife such as elk,
reindeer, deer, snowshoe
hares, and fur animals such
as beaver and muskrat”
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Early management (1940s- 1950s)
•  Law enforcement and
maintaining
populations
•  Conservative hunting
regs and access
allowed rapid growth
•  Evidence of impacts to
landscape
–  Browse surveys on
Afognak and Kodiak
road system
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Transfer of Authority
•  Alaska statehood
(1959)
–  State assumes
management
control of
introduced
mammals
–  First deer
harvested on
Refuge
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Refuge Goals Refined
•  ANILCA (1980)
–  Conserve fish and
wildlife population
in their natural
diversities
–  Provide
opportunities for
continued
subsistence uses
for local residents
–  Comprehensive
Conservation PlansNational Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Comprehensive Conservation Plan
(1987)
•  “Natural integrity”
•  “Apparent
naturalness”
•  Exotic species
introduction not
permitted
–  Not native to N.A.
•  Management of
introduced species not
explicitly stated National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Refuge Research
•  Estimating Deer
Abundances and
Impacts
–  Scan surveys, aerial
hairpile surveys,
pellet surveys, FLIR
surveys, coastal
surveys, alpine
surveys, browse
surveys
•  Mt. Goat surveys
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Comprehensive Conservation Plan
(2006)
•  “Manage nonnative species
to minimize impacts on
native resources, while
continuing to provide
opportunities for harvest”
•  “Provide the opportunity for
local residents to continue
their subsistence use on the
Refuge, consistent with the
subsistence priority and
with other refuge purposes
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Introduced Species Workshop (2000)
•  Interagency meeting
•  Priorities defined
–  Complete vegetation
map
–  Study effects of deer
and hare on browse
–  Study effects of
mountain goats on
alpine plant
communities
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Mountain Goat Research
•  Management Goal
–  Avoid negative impacts
to landscape and
maintain hunting
opportunities
•  Study Goals
–  Determine goat diet and
feeding site selection
–  Develop nutritionalbased carrying capacity
model
–  Compare results among
populations
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Future Impacts?
•  Climate change
–  Milder winters
•  Larger introduced
ungulate
populations?
•  Greater population
swings?
•  Habitat shifts and
novel habitats
•  Refuges will need to
adapt to a changing
environment
National Wildlife Refuge System
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Questions?
National Wildlife Refuge System