WS-NWRC’s
Predator Research Facility
Julie K. Young, Ph.D.
WS National Wildlife Research Center
Corvallis 
Bismarck

Logan
Fort Collins


Sandusky Philadelphia

Starkville
 Hilo

Gainesville
Staff
Research Grade Scientists
Julie K. Young: Project Leader, Supervisory Research Wildlife Biologist
Stewart Breck & Eric Gese: Research Wildlife Biologists
Animal Care
Stacey Brummer: Colony Manager
Jeff Schultz: Enrichment Specialist
Erika Stephenson & Nate Floyd: Animal Care Technicians (Wildlife)
Support Staff
David Jolley: Wildlife Biologist
Mike Davis: Facilities Manager
Dianne Arnold: Budget Technician
NWRC Predator Research Project
NWRC’s Predator Research Facility houses the only captive coyote population used specifically for research.
The staff applies their knowledge of carnivore behavior, ecology, space use, population dynamics, and
evolution to answer questions that enable carnivores and humans to coexist.
EXAMPLES OF RESEARCH STUDIES
Predator Control Methods
• Livestock protection dogs & wolves
• PAPP as a coyote toxicant
• Social learning & food tracking in coyotes
EXPERTISE
Carnivore behavior
Predator impacts on livestock
Evaluation of nonlethal tools
Carnivores and human health & safety
Development of monitoring techniques
Human-carnivore conflicts
Predator-prey relationships
Predator-predator interactions
Carnivore impacts to T&E species
Predator Ecology
• Coyote-kit fox interactions
• Polar bears & impacts of climate change
• Cougar-coyote dynamics & mule deer recruitment
Urban Carnivores
• Management of urban black bears
• Space use & population estimates of urban bobcats
• Urban coyote behavior & human conflicts
Predator Behavior, Endocrinology, and Genetics
• Seasonal hormone changes in coyotes
• Phenotypic trait inheritance in coyotes
• Captive behavior & post-release space use of rehabilitated
black bear cubs
• Temporal viability of predator DNA
Science
Urban
Behavior &
Physiology
Ecology
Management implications
Urban
Control
Methods
Behavior &
Physiology
Ecology
Predator ecology
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Wild & urban landscapes
Focus on livestock, T&E species, economically/socially valuable species
Monitoring carnivores
Gese
What is the best method to detect small carnivores (kit fox)
• Scat deposition, scent station, spotlight, or trapping
• Determined the probability of detection per method
• Compared to known abundance (via telemetry)
• Best method: scat deposition surveys
• Highest detection probabilities & closest to real abundance
• Low cost, resilient to weather, low labor requirements, & pose no risk to the
study animals
• Second best: scent station
Monitoring carnivores
Gese
Is there a harvest index that can be used by wildlife agencies to
monitor cougar populations
• 236 cougars in 2 study areas over 17 years
• Compared known abundance & survival (via telemetry) vs. 8 harvest indices
collected by UDWR
• Cougar abundance related to cougars treed per day (r = 0.75)
• Annual female cougar survival related to % of harvest >6 years old (r = 0.55)
Population demographics
Gese
Is sport hunting compensatory or additive
• 236 cougars in 2 study areas in Utah over 17 years
• Determined cause-specific mortality
• Sport hunting was partially compensatory in lightly hunted population (Oquirrh)
• Sport hunting was additive to natural mortality in heavily hunted cougar
population (Monroe)
Urban carnivores
Breck, Young, Gese
What are the real vs perceived threats to humans &
to urban carnivores
Studies
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Bobcats (Arlington, Texas)
Coyotes (captive, Denver, Colorado, and national survey)
Black bears (Aspen & Durango, Colorado)
Predator behavior, endocrinology, genetics
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Wild, captive, & urban landscapes
Predator behavior
Young
Do captive behaviors predict post-release fitness
• Captive behavioral assessment tests
• Novel object, startling response, OFT, focal samples
• Post-release monitoring
• Short- & long-term activity patterns, habitat use, den selection, survival,
fecundity
Predator endocrinology
Young
What are hormonal and behavior affects of conspecific cues
during pregnancy in coyotes
• Marked captive territories with odor cues
• Behavioral and hormone samples
• Repeated first and second pregnancies (over 3 years)
• Dominance (females) & investigatory (males) behaviors consistent
• Odor cues increased fecal androgen metabolites (FAMs)
• Pregnancy experience decreased FAMs
• FAMs = litter size
Predator genetics
Piaggio, Gese, Young
What are common degradation rates of forensic DNA
• Gave lamb and calf carcasses to predators (coyote, wolves, & cougars)
• Exposed to elements for 0, 8,12, 24,36, & 48 hours
• Field work complete
• Lab work ongoing
• Expect to make recommendations for forensic DNA sampling
Predator genetics
Piaggio, Young
Can DNA forensics improve predator identification of sage
grouse nests
• Sampled 36 depredated eggs
• Amplified mtDNA
• Detected coyotes, skunk, mouse, cow, & human DNA on eggs
• Increased detection rate
• Produced technique to identify predators of nests
Control methods
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Focus on species-specific nonlethal & lethal tools
Improve specificity, implementation guidelines, & humanness
M44 selectivity
How selective are M44 devices
• Monitor M44 use via camera traps
• Detected 19 species visit M44s
• 2.8:1 non-coyote:coyote visitation rate
• No non-canid activations
Young
M44 selectivity
Young
Can we reduce risk of activation by swift or kit foxes
• Modify design to reduce ability of activation
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Tested on captive coyotes
• Increased height to 7”
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Tested on captive foxes & wild coyotes
Sterilization
Gese
Does coyote sterilization reduce pronghorn fawn predation
• Pronghorn fawn survival rates 2.4x higher in sterile territories
• Surviving fawns recruited into adult cohort (i.e., high winter survival)
• Prey base (small mammals & lagomorphs) not a factor in observed
survival
• Space use, territory fidelity, pair-bonds, & survival similar
Sterilization
Young & Gese
What chemical sterilization method works for coyotes
• Tested Gonacon in males, Gonacon in females, & GnRH implants in males
• Compared to vasectomized males
• Measured hormones and behavior
Sterilization
Young & Gese
What chemical sterilization method works for coyotes
• Tested Gonacon in males, Gonacon in females, & GnRH implants in males
• Compared to vasectomized males
• Measured hormones and behavior
• Behavior is similar
• 15 of 18 pairs had puppies!!!!
Fencing for Black-Footed Ferrets
Can exclusionary fencing increase kit survival
• Measure effectiveness of fence for excluding coyotes, boosting juvenile
survival
• Explore cost-benefits of fence as an alternative to captive breeding
• Fencing effective for excluding medium-sized carnivores
• Kit survival increased 22% or more
• Fencing = $5,400 - $1,700 per kit
Fladry
How can fladry be more effective
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Identify fladry designs less likely to coil
Created 6 designs
Tested each design using 2 materials
• Rip-stop nylon & marine vinyl
Identified 2 best designs
• Currently testing designs with captive coyotes
Fladry
How can fladry be more effective
% Risk of depredation to livestock
0
100
Management implications
0
Cost of control
% Risk of depredation to livestock
0
100
Management implications
0
Cost of control
% Risk of depredation to livestock
0
100
Management implications
0
Cost of control
% Risk of depredation to livestock
0
100
Management implications
0
Cost of control
% Risk of depredation to livestock
0
100
Management implications
0
Cost of control
% Risk of depredation to livestock
0
100
Management implications
0
Cost of NONLETHAL control
Thank you