counting wolves & other carnivores (with a little help from our friends) jane e. wiedenhoeft...

Counting Wolves &

Other Carnivores(with a little help from our friends)

Jane E. Wiedenhoeft

Sarah Boles

Adrian P. Wydeven

Welcome to Wisconsin Welcome to Wisconsin Volunteer Carnivore Volunteer Carnivore Tracking ProgramTracking Program

Who made this trail?

Who Can Become

a

Volunteer

Tracker?INDIVIDUALS GROUPS Outdoor

enthusiasts Families

Retirees Conservation

organizations Hunters &

Trappers School groups

What’s Expected of

Volunteer Trackers?

1. Attend training -

Wolf Ecology Workshop

Track Training Course

Wolf Ecology Workshops

Wisconsin CanidsF4 h4 C

Gray Wolf

Coyote

Dog

Red Fox

Gray Fox

Track Training CoursesTrack Training Courses

State of Wisconsin

Department of Natural Resources Carnivore Track SurveyBox 7921, Madison, WI 53707-7921 Form 1700-052 (R 7/03) Page 1 of 2

Volunteers are an essential part of the Wisconsin Carnivore Tracking Program ’s success. We appreciate your hard work and dedication.Thank you for participating.

Notice: Use this voluntary form to monitor and report carnivore tracking activities. Information reported to the Department will be used for research andmanagement purposes. Personally identifiable information is not intended to be used for other purposes. Wisconsin’s Open Records law requires theDepartment to provide this information upon request [ss. 19.31 - 19.69, Wis. Stats.].

Observers Sarah R. Boles Sheet __1_____ of ___2____

Survey Information Weather and Track InformationSurvey Block Counties (List all counties tracked) Snow Depth New Snow Depth on Road

38 Ashland 28" total 2" f resh 2"

Pack Name or General Area Temperature (at start of survey) Time of Last Snowfall (In hours if less than 48, else days)

Torch River 10 48 hrs.

Begin Survey (Also indicate on accompanying map) Cloud Cover x 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

Section Township Range E / W

28 42 N 4 Past Weather Precipitation (Last 24 Hours)

Survey Date Start Time End Time Hi: 30 Low: 5 0 2-1-02 0800 1545 Track Conditions Poor x OK Good Excellent

Canids: C =Coyote D =Dog F=Fox W =Wolf Mustelids: B =Badger FI=Fisher O=Otter S=Skunk Felids: BC = Bobcat CT = Cat L = Lynx PM = Puma Other: BR = Bear BV = Beaver P = Porcupine R = Raccoon

Roads and Direction of Travel Mileage Canida Mustelids Felids Other Notes and Comments

GG & FR 335 N .0 335 1.2 1 FFR 335 & FR 168 N 2.5 168 2.8 1 FI " 3.1 2 W Enter f rom E >24 hrs " 3.7 Sec. 11 T42N R4W " 4.2 1 F (F 4.5"x3.75", 4"x3.8") " 4.5 1 FI Stride 38" " 5.0 1 FI TW's exit to W@3.7FR 168 & Hwy. 77 E 5.2

Hwy 77 & FR 170 S 8.1 170 8.3 Lots of snowmo. traffi c " 8.5 1 W Crossed E W <12 hrs " 8.8 1 BCFR 170 & FR 168 W 11.1 168 12.2 2 W Crossed S N ~12 hrs.FR 168 & FR 335 S 12.5Backtrack to GG

Hwy GG S 15.0 Not Trackable

Hwy GG & FR 164 E 18.2 Logging Operation, Lots

Totals Deer sign

Track Test

What is Expected of Volunteer Trackers?

1. Attend training

2. Conduct 3 good track surveys following DNR guidelines

What is Expected of Volunteer Trackers?

1. Attend training

2. Conduct 3 track surveys

3. Notify coordinator of 1st wolf, or any other rare species tracks you encounter

Rare Mammal Observation Card(Use for Timber Wolf, Cougar, Lynx, Moose & Marten)

Observer: Description of Animal: Name_________________________ Estimated Size_____________________Address_______________________ Tail Length (stub, 1/4 body, 1/2 body,______________________________ long as body):____________________Phone( )______________________ Track Size: Length______Width_______Observers Background:___________ Coloration______________________________________________________ _________________________________No. & Species___________________ Other Descriptions__________________Sex______Adult_____Young_______ _________________________________Location: GPS________/__________ Photo Taken______________________ Sec_______Twn______Range______ General Comments_________________County_________________________ _________________________________Road & Nearest Town_____________ ________________________________________________________________ _________________________________Habitat_________________________ Reviewed by______________________Date & Time_____________________ Agency______Phone( )____________

Code: PB PS NL

Jane Wiedenhoeft

VT

2 wolves - tx

16 37N 1E

PriceCross Cut Rd.

1 mi. east of Phillips

Went into tag alders along creek 11-7-03, ~8:00 a.m.

4” 3.5”

Yes - attachedTx of 2 wolves crossed

the road traveling along the creek. Scat on road.

715 762-3204

Park Falls DNR

What is Expected of Volunteer Trackers?

1. Attend training

2. Conduct 3 track surveys

3. Notify coordinator of 1st wolf, or any other rare species tracks you encounter

4. Turn in results of your surveys on time

Goals

1. To determine wolf numbers, distribution, breeding status, & identify wolf packs.

Changes to Wisconsin Gray Wolf Population:

1980-2004335

373

108

25 21 27 19 17 15 16 1828 31 34 40 45 40

57

8399

148

178

205

248257

327

94

5 5 4 5 4 4 5 5 67 11 12 13 12 14 18

2835

4757

66 7081

1980 '81 '82 '83 '84 '85 '86 '87 '88 '89 1990 '91 '92 '93 '94 '95 '96 '97 '98 '99 2000 '01 '02 '03 '04

No. of wolves

No. of packs

Goals1. To determine wolf numbers, distribution,

breeding status, & identify wolf packs.

2. To develop an index of the abundance and distribution of other carnivore species.

Goals

1. To determine wolf numbers, distribution, breeding status, & identify wolf packs.

2. To develop an index of the abundance and distribution of other carnivore species.

3. To determine the existence of rare carnivores such as lynx & puma.

• More wolves in more places

• Limited # of DNR trackers

• No extra

• Initially from wolf ecology workshops

• Personal contacts

• News articles

• Radio

• Pamphlet

• Website

How Many Volunteers?

From 1995-2003

> 450 volunteers

> 5,000 hours

> 40,000 km

Winter Track Surveys in Wisconsin by WDNR and Volunteers

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

9000M

iles

surv

eyed

1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

VolunteersDNR

Survey Blocks Tracked by

DNR &

Volunteers 2003-2004

Can we use the Data Volunteers Collect?

Tracks Detected/100 miles (1995-2000)

Co-surveyed blocks

Untrained volunteers 54% of WDNR rate

Trained volunteers 70% of WDNR rate

Wolf Detection Rates Volunteer vs. DNR Trackers

in Co-Surveyed Blocks

Surveys KmMean

Wolves/100km S.D.

Volunteers 684 23,904 4.429 4.885

DNR 443 13,944 5.961 6.798

Paired T-Test N=176 2-tailed Sig. = 0.005

Wolf Detection RatesDNR vs. Volunteer Trackers

With Varying Experience

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

Mea

n W

olve

s/10

0 k

m

None <40 40-80 >80

Volunteer Experience (hrs)

Volunteers Mean Rate DNR Mean Rate

P=0.003

HOW DO WE USE VOLUNTEER DATA?

To provide information for survey blocks DNR trackers don’t survey

To alert DNR to wolf activity in new areas

To help estimate the state’s wolf population, distribution, and breeding status when volunteers have adequate training & experience

PACK COUNTS 2003

Block PACKCurrent Count

Pilot Observ.

DNR Tracker Vol. Tracker Public Observ.

92 Ada Lake 2 2(winter,obs)P.Harrison

57 Augustine Lake 5 5(1/30 RLU) SB

70 Averill Creek 4 4(3/21) JW 5 (RLU 2/22)Wissink

25 Bearsdale 4 4(1/21 RLU)SB

34 Beaverdam Lake 2 2-3 (2/19 RLU , SB) 3-4(3/8tx)J.Rudloff

28 Bibbon Swamp 8 0(3/2) SB&AW 8(3/3 RLUw/bl 2/22)) Tutland1(2/10obs)E.Westlund

9 Bird Sanctuary 5 5(2/17) 3(2/15) R.Wilson 1(2/15obs)R.Wilson

37 Black Lake 4 2(12/3) 4-5(1/21 RLUw/bl)Moe

20 Blue Hills 2 2(3/5) JW 0(3/5)R.Anderson

53 Bootjack Lake 7 8(2/4) 0(2/14)JW 3(2/23 RLU) Ericksen2(3/21tx)G.Rublee

• More survey blocks

• More training

• Proving the data is useable

• Communication

• Regional coordinators

Where do we go from Here?

• More volunteer administration

• Recognitions

• Certification of trackers?

• Changes in wolf monitoring

• Population estimate vs. counts