Bobcats (Lynx rufus) as a Model Organism to Investigate the Effects of Roads on Wide-Ranging Carnivores.

We are using bobcats (Lynx rufus) as a model organism to examine how roads affect the abundance, distribution, and genetic structure of a wide-ranging carnivore. First, we compared the distribution of bobcat-vehicle collisions to road density and then estimated collision probabilities for specific landscapes using a moving window with road-specific traffic volume. Next, we obtained incidental observations of bobcats from the public, camera-trap detections, and locations of bobcats equipped with GPS collars to examine habitat selection.

A multiscale analysis of gene flow for the New England cottontail, an imperiled habitat specialist in a fragmented landscape.

Landscape features of anthropogenic or natural origin can influence organisms' dispersal patterns and the connectivity of populations. Understanding these relationships is of broad interest in ecology and evolutionary biology and provides key insights for habitat conservation planning at the landscape scale. This knowledge is germane to restoration efforts for the New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis), an early successional habitat specialist of conservation concern.

Toward consensus-based actions that balance invasive plant management and conservation of at-risk fauna.

Limiting the spread of invasive plants has become a high priority among natural resource managers. Yet in some regions, invasive plants are providing important habitat components to native animals that are at risk of local or regional extirpation. In these situations, removing invasive plants may decrease short-term survival of the at-risk taxa.

An approach toward understanding wildlife-vehicle collisions.

Among the most conspicuous environmental effects of roads are vehicle-related mortalities of wildlife. Research to understand the factors that contribute to wildlife-vehicle collisions can be partitioned into several major themes, including (i) characteristics associated with roadkill hot spots, (ii) identification of road-density thresholds that limit wildlife populations, and (iii) species-specific models of vehicle collision rates that incorporate information on roads (e.g.

Niche dimensions of New England cottontails in relation to habitat patch size.

We examined physical condition, niche dimensions, and survival of New England cottontails (Sylvilagus transitionalis) that occupied 21 habitat patches of different sizes during winter. Rabbits on small patches (≤2.5 ha) were predominantly males, and both sexes had lower body mass than individuals on large patches (≥5.