Risk avoidance during dispersal: Temporal and behavioral shifts in selection by non-resident eastern wolves (Canis c.f. lycaon)

Abstract

Dispersal is important for connectivity and persistence of small, disjunct wildlife populations. However, in human-altered landscapes dispersing animals are often more likely than residents to use anthropogenic features that increase mortality risk. As such, quantifying spatial and temporal responses of dispersing animals to anthropogenic features will improve our understanding of the potential for small, isolated populations to expand in human-altered landscapes. The distribution of eastern wolves (Canis c.f. lycaon; a threatened species in Canada) is limited to portions of eastern Canada within and adjacent to the population core in Algonquin Park. Recently, it was found that non-resident eastern wolves dispersing outside of Algonquin Park survive poorly, primarily due to high rates of human-caused mortality. We deployed Global Positioning System collars on 26 non-resident eastern wolves. We evaluated resource selection of dispersing individuals during different movement states to better understand their behavioral responses to anthropogenic landscape features during this critical, but risky period of their life history. Eastern wolves avoided areas with high building density during the day. However, during directed movements outside the winter period, eastern wolves selected areas closer to unpaved roads and areas with higher building densities at night. During winter, eastern wolves selected areas with high building densities at night while displaying tortuous movements. We demonstrate that harvested species may increase and relax avoidance of anthropogenic features at both daily and seasonal timescales. Failing to account for temporal and state-specific variation in resource selection patterns of dispersing animals may underestimate their ability to move through human-altered landscapes.