Check out Jasper National Park’s Facebook or Twitter links, the IGA webpage, or watch this space for upcoming speakers.
Thursday, March 21: Exploring Predator/Prey Populations Trends Using Remote Cameras
Presented by University of Montana PhD student Robin Steenweg
Fifteen years ago, Jasper National Park biologists began using remote cameras to identify important wildlife movement areas and to understand how wildlife responds to our levels of trail use. We then used them to very successfully monitor wildlife movement through the open wildlife corridor of the reconfigured golf course fence at the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge. We are now testing them as a non-invasive way to monitor grizzly bear populations and have brought in some partners to help us identify the best way to do this.
Robin Steenweg is a PhD student at the University of Montana and comes to this project with a strong background studying large mammals just to the west of us, near Prince George. He has partnered with Jasper National Park, along with the other mountain national and provincial parks to develop a common monitoring approach for carnivores and their prey using remote cameras. This project will focus mostly on grizzly bears. By using the same method for monitoring, we can gather and share the same type of information throughout the region. Robin will describe this project and present preliminary results from the field data collected by park staff using this common methodology.
For his PhD, Steenweg is also exploring questions that go beyond ecological monitoring, using this remote camera data. Because our study area is so large (think: Canada-US Border to the northern tip of Jasper), he is asking how landscape fragmentation and climate affect grizzly bear and wolverine distributions across the Canadian Rockies. We also know that a remote camera captures all wildlife, not just a target species like grizzly bear. Steenwegis taking advantage of this by using the images to understand the drivers of large-mammalian food webs, and how species interact on the landscape.
Come join us for his presentation at the Jasper Legion on Thursday, March 21 at 7 p.m. Steenweg is a dynamic speaker, his research approaches are cutting-edge, and there are sure to be many stunning images of wildlife caught-in-the-act.
