دانلود رایگان مقاله تاثیر اکولوژیکی انسان و سگ در حیات وحش

Abstract

The establishment of protected areas is a key strategy for preserving biodiversity. However, human use of protected areas can cause disturbance to wildlife, especially in areas that allow hunting and if humans are accompanied by dogs (Canis familiaris). We used citizen-science run camera traps to investigate how humans, dogs and coyotes (Canis latrans) used 33 protected areas and analyzed behavioral responses by three prey species: whitetailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) and northern raccoon (Procyon lotor). We obtained 52,863 detections of native wildlife, 162,418 detections of humans and 23,332 detections of dogs over 42,874 camera nights. Most dogs (99%) were on the trail, and 89% of off-trail dogs were accompanied by humans. Prey avoided dogs, humans and coyotes temporally, but did not avoid them spatially, or greatly increase vigilance. Our results indicate that humans are perceived as a greater risk than coyotes, and this increases when dogs accompany their owners. The concentration of dogs on the trail with their owners, and relatively minor behavioral impacts on prey, contrasts the strong negative ecological effects found in studies of freeranging dogs. We found dog management to be effective: prohibiting dogs in protected areas reduced their use of an area by a factor of 10 and leash laws increased leashing rates by 21%. Although millions of dogs use natural areas in North America each year, regulations enacted by protected areas combined with responsible management of dog behavior greatly reduce the ecological impact of man's best friend.

5. Conclusions

We found that dogs are the most common non-human mammal using protected areas in the Eastern USA, but that their activity is highly concentrated along trails. We found relatively little spatial or behavioral response of prey species to dogs or humans, but temporal avoidance suggests that humans are perceived as a greater risk by wildlife relative to unattended dogs and coyotes. Furthermore, dogs walking with humans increase the perceived risk, causing wildlife to avoid an area for a greater amount of time than in response to humans alone. Freeranging dogs were not perceived as a high risk by wildlife, contrasting strong negative ecological effects found in other studies of freeranging dogs (Vanak and Gompper, 2009; Vanak et al., 2009; Young et al., 2011). These results show how the responsible control of dog behavior by their owners can minimize disturbance of wildlife. We also found that regulations by protected area managers succeed in reducing the impact of dogs; prohibiting dogs in protected areas reduced their use of an area by a factor of 10 while leash laws increased leashing rates by 21% (45% leashed with leash law, 24% without). Although millions of dogs use natural areas each year, regulations enacted by protected areas combined with responsible management of dog behavior by pet owners work together to reduce the ecological impact of dogs and increase outdoor enjoyment by hikers and their pets.