Wide ranging nomadic existence
December 2011. An elephant seal, fitted with a satellite tracking device by Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), was tracked travelling an astonishing 18,000 miles in 11 months.
WCS tracked the male seal from December, 2010, to November, 2011. The animal - nicknamed Jackson - was tagged on the beach in Admiralty Sound in Tierra del Fuego in southern Chile. WCS conservationists fitted Jackson with a small satellite transmitter that recorded his exact location when he surfaced to breathe.
Nomadic existence
Jackson swam 1,000 miles north, 400 miles west, and 100 miles south from the original tagging location, meandering through fjords and venturing past the continental shelf as he foraged for fish and squid. During this tracking, the WCS team analyzed the data to better understand elephant seal migratory routes.
Elephant seals are potential indicators of the health of marine ecosystems and may show how climate change influences the distribution of prey species that serve as the basis of Patagonia's rich marine ecosystem. To protect this vast region, conservationists need to know how wildlife uses it throughout the year.
Clues to sustainability
"Jackson's travels provide a roadmap of how elephant seals use the Patagonian Coast and its associated seas," said Caleb McClennen, WCS Director for Global Marine Programs. "This information is vital to improving ocean management in the region, helping establish protected areas in the right places, and ensuring fisheries are managed sustainably without harming vulnerable marine species like the southern elephant seal."
The information WCS gathers will serve as a foundation for a new model of private-public, terrestrial-marine conservation of the Admiralty Sound, Karukinka Natural Park (a WCS private protected area), and Alberto de Agostini National Park. It will help build a broader vision for bolstering conservation efforts across the Patagonian Sea and coast.
Read more here ...
Showing posts with label WCS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label WCS. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
The wolverines that float on snow
Eight-year tracking programme reveals more about mysterious species
December 2011: Born during February in snow-caves at 9,000 feet on the north slope of craggy peaks in the Rocky Mountains, Yellowstone's wolverines are tough.
Now experts at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) are revealing more about this mysterious and awe-inspiring species.
Eight years of capturing and radio-tracking the elusive wolverine revealed that adults live year-round in the high mountains, near the alpine tree-line, and inhabit some of the west's most remote and rugged terrain. Amazingly, the home range of an individual male can more than 500 square miles.
The winter endurance athletes of the animal world
‘Not only do they use an area even larger than a grizzly bear does,' said Kurt Alt, a coauthor with Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, ‘they cover their territory on a fairly regular basis to scent mark it and defend it from other wolverines.'
The wolverine's capability for movement is stunning. Their large feet allow them to float on top of deep snow, and they were documented making winter traverses from one side of the massive Teton Range in Wyoming to the other in just a few hours.
‘They are the winter endurance athletes of the animal world,' said Steve Cain of the National Park Service. ‘We were impressed by their constant movements across large areas of snow-covered and incredibly rugged terrain.'
But covering this terrain comes with its risks, as two of the radio-collared wolverines were killed in avalanches.
One wolverine travelled more than 500 miles
Another wolverine travelled more than 500 miles from near Grand Teton National Park in northwest Wyoming to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. This was the first documented wolverine in Colorado in almost a century. Other young wolverines regularly moved 100 miles or more searching for their own territory.
While bears are hibernating and most ungulates and their predators have moved to low elevation wintering ranges, the wolverine patrols a vast, frozen territory, looking for scraps of meat that they cache under boulders and snow.'
‘We learned that wolverines are adapted to eke out a living in very harsh conditions,' said Robert Inman, conservationist for the WCS. ‘As a result, they naturally exist in low numbers and reproduce slowly.'
The wolverine's reputation as a fierce competitor was also affirmed during the study. One individual challenged a bear probably ten times his size over an elk carcass.
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/wolverine-yellowstone.html
December 2011: Born during February in snow-caves at 9,000 feet on the north slope of craggy peaks in the Rocky Mountains, Yellowstone's wolverines are tough.
Now experts at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) are revealing more about this mysterious and awe-inspiring species.
Eight years of capturing and radio-tracking the elusive wolverine revealed that adults live year-round in the high mountains, near the alpine tree-line, and inhabit some of the west's most remote and rugged terrain. Amazingly, the home range of an individual male can more than 500 square miles.
The winter endurance athletes of the animal world
‘Not only do they use an area even larger than a grizzly bear does,' said Kurt Alt, a coauthor with Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, ‘they cover their territory on a fairly regular basis to scent mark it and defend it from other wolverines.'
The wolverine's capability for movement is stunning. Their large feet allow them to float on top of deep snow, and they were documented making winter traverses from one side of the massive Teton Range in Wyoming to the other in just a few hours.
‘They are the winter endurance athletes of the animal world,' said Steve Cain of the National Park Service. ‘We were impressed by their constant movements across large areas of snow-covered and incredibly rugged terrain.'
But covering this terrain comes with its risks, as two of the radio-collared wolverines were killed in avalanches.
One wolverine travelled more than 500 miles
Another wolverine travelled more than 500 miles from near Grand Teton National Park in northwest Wyoming to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. This was the first documented wolverine in Colorado in almost a century. Other young wolverines regularly moved 100 miles or more searching for their own territory.
While bears are hibernating and most ungulates and their predators have moved to low elevation wintering ranges, the wolverine patrols a vast, frozen territory, looking for scraps of meat that they cache under boulders and snow.'
‘We learned that wolverines are adapted to eke out a living in very harsh conditions,' said Robert Inman, conservationist for the WCS. ‘As a result, they naturally exist in low numbers and reproduce slowly.'
The wolverine's reputation as a fierce competitor was also affirmed during the study. One individual challenged a bear probably ten times his size over an elk carcass.
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/wolverine-yellowstone.html
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