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Cougars
in Washington
Impetus for Project CAT comes in part from new questions and concerns
statewide about cougar and human interactions.
Once
associated with backcountry areas, cougars
are now sighted with some frequency in locations
where human development is pushing into former
wilderness. As in other such "interface" areas,
cougar sightings are not a rarity in the Cle
Elum-Roslyn area.
With
human population on the rise and cougar numbers
also believed to be growing, the probability
of interactions rises. In the past decade,
with one million new human residents and a
statewide cougar population estimated at 2,400,
complaints about cougar interactions also
have grown. In 2000, more than 955 complaints
were registered with WDFW, nearly double the
1995 tally.
 Along
with growing populations, shifting citizen
attitudes towards cougars and other carnivores
also are changing cougar management. At one
time, cougars were considered predators with
bounties on their heads. In the 1960s, cougars
were classified as game animals and permits
were required to hunt them. In 1996, a voter
initiative made it illegal to use hounds for
hunting cougars. Over the last few years,
a growing number of incidents of cougar encounters,
pet and livestock depredation, and the injury
of two children in northeast Washington, prompted
the Legislature to pass a law last year reinstating
the use of hounds to hunt cougars by special
permit in areas with a documented recent history
of human-cougar conflicts.
Controversy
over cougar management is fueled partly by
limited understanding of the cougar's role
in the ecological community. Better information
on cougars in rural and suburban areas of
Washington is needed for wildlife management
that maintains viable cougar populations while
mitigating human safety concerns.
 Project
CAT offers improved cougar science
Project CAT will offer scientists more and better cougar data than has
previously existed.
At
present, estimates of Washington's cougar
population are extrapolated from hunter harvest
reports. Besides empirical information on
populations, better information is needed
on the animals' feeding habits, behavior,
mortality and productivity in order to meet
the challenges of managing cougars as fast-growing
human communities encroach upon their habitat.
Cougars
themselves present special wildlife management
challenges , especially in areas of human
encroachment. Cougars require large home ranges
for survival– males dominate areas up
to 100 square miles and females roam areas
30 to 50 square miles. Newly independent juvenile
cats may turn up in residential areas as they
search for vacant space to establish a home
range. Despite their wide-ranging movements,
their elusive nature permits cougars to stalk
unseen much of the time. Although livestock
and pet depredation is frequently attributed
to cougars, it is unknown how much of a role
is played by other adaptable carnivores such
as coyotes and raccoons.
Through
the use of advance technology, Project CAT
promises to unravel some of the mysteries
that thus far have surrounded cougar behavior.
Technology makes the difference– the
Global Positioning System (GPS) collars to
be used collect information on cougar movements
day and night, in all types of weather. By
contrast, VHF radio collars traditionally
used to track cougar movements rely on the
use of a hand-held receiver to pick up a signal
from a collared animal. Such field monitoring
is labor intensive, less accurate and generally
limited to daylight hours.
 By
marking a sample number of cougars with the
high-tech GPS collars, project scientists
will get round-the-clock information on cougar
movements, showing the habitat cougars prefer,
the location and frequency of prey kills,
the areas cougars select for den locations,
and the movement patterns of dispersing animals.
The
GPS collars offer not just more, but better,
information due to the high accuracy of location
readings. The satellite-based technology gives
location data that is accurate within 100
feet, while traditional VHF radio collar locations
may be off by more than 300 feet. More precise
data will allow scientists to more accurately
describe how cougars utilize areas near human
development, and to determine if cougars and
humans use the same space at the same time
of day. These insights in turn are expected
to help wildlife managers develop strategies
to minimize cougar-human conflict.
The
GPS collars each contain an electronic chip
that stores location data. Collars can be
programmed to collect GPS locations at whatever
interval research scientists require. Each
collar is programmed to transmit back the
GPS locations at a specified time. Location
coordinates are downloaded and data is entered
into a computer to determine the animal's
annual home- range size and daily and seasonal
activity patterns. The locations will be overlain
onto Geographic Information System (GIS) maps
which scientists can correlate to habitat,
topographical features, riparian areas, and
proximity to human residential and recreation
areas. Because the locations are stored within
the collar, the data can also be retrieved
once the animal is recaptured and the collar
removed, or when the collar is discarded by
the animal. The collars emit a radio signal
which field biologists can use to retrieve
the collar and its stored data.
Besides
gathering information on movement patterns
to estimate the number of individual cougars
occupying the study area, WDFW will develop
mark-resight models comparing DNA profiles
from blood and tissue samples of captured
individuals to DNA profiles collected from
hair traps and scats collected in the field
to provide an alternative estimate of cougar
numbers.
 Information
on the time and location of cougar activity
allows wildlife managers and community planners
to better define areas of potential cougar-human
conflict and to develop plans for mitigating
displaced cougar and prey populations.
Carnivore research team
Carnivore scientists from the world-renowned Hornocker Wildlife Institute
will work side-by-side with WDFW scientists to gather data for Project
CAT. Besides its scientific expertise, the Institute will provide field
assistance and logistical support for the project.
The
Institute's founder, Dr. Maurice Hornocker,
conducted pioneering research on cougars that
charted a new understanding of cougar ecology,
conservation, and management four decades
ago. Since then, carnivore conservation has
been bolstered by the Institute's continued
research on cougars, bears, and wolves throughout
the western United States, including cougar
research in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, New Mexico
and California. The institute's work has been
featured in numerous scientific publications
as well as popular magazines and National
Geographic documentaries.
CAT
in the classroom
Project CAT is geared toward integrating the study of cougars and their
environment into the school science curriculum from kindergarten through
grade 12.
Students will participate in the real-life science project by including
CAT project learning tasks into math, biological and physical sciences
curriculum. English and journalism classes would produce CAT news and
web pages to share information and experiences.
As
part of the project, elementary school students
will learn basic observational and record-keeping
skills, through activities such as track identification
and study of animal life cycles. Middle school
students would undertake simple wildlife and
community surveys, map study and species-habitat
associations. High school students would undertake
field trips to learn to observe animals' and
prey species' tracks and signs. Older students
might be selected to accompany wildlife biologists
on field observations.
 Older
students will learn to analyze field data
with Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
technology to develop predictive models ,
indicating what wildlife will be in their
community in 10 to 25 years.
In
addition, students will undertake community
service projects to inform other community
members how to live safely and responsibly
in cougar country.
From
kindergarten to fourth grade, students involved
in Project CAT will study the life cycles
of wildlife in their community– where
the animals live, what they eat, when and
where their offspring are born and how to
identify animals through field marks and tracks.
In
grades five through eight, Project CAT studies
will become map-based. Students will learn
to map their field observations, study wildlife-habitat
associations and the presence of cougar prey
species such as elk and deer, and examine
historical records for indications of former
habitat qualities and wildlife presence.
During
grades nine through 12, students involved
in the project will go on field trips to learn
how to observe tracks and signs that indicate
the presence of cougars and prey animals.
Selected students will accompany ildlife biologists
to observe cougar capture and collaring. Using
data they have collected, students will learn
to develop models that predict future wildlife
presence.
A
key tool for students involved in Project
CAT is expected to be the NatureMapping Program.
Created by the Washington Department of Fish
and Wildlife's Project WILD, which provides
workshops to teachers on fish and wildlife
ecology, and the University of Washington
Gap Analysis Program, Nature Mapping, promotes
biodiversity studies through citizen and school-based
data collection. NatureMapping involves learners
of all ages in field investigation and civic
participation through observing, collecting,
reporting and analyzing field data.
 CAT
and the community
Besides offering schools a vehicle for teaching scientific observation
skills and role for integrating technology into learning, Project CAT
provides a means for students to meet the state-mandated service learning
project requirement for high school graduations. In Project CAT, students
can contribute to their community public information activities. By doing
so, students can share findings from the study with the public to help
develop informed community responses.
As
an information conduit, Project CAT is expected
to improve community understanding about ecological
processes and citizens' place in the natural
environment.
The
future of CAT
If full funding is secured, it is anticipated that Project CAT could
continue through 2009. Besides the Cle Elum-Roslyn area, the project
could eventually be replicated in two other areas of the state with contrasting
environmental conditions, cougar population characteristics and human
disturbance levels. Each study would be linked to local public schools.
Cle
Elum-Roslyn would provide baseline data about
cougars in a fairly remote, rural setting
where there is no history of serious human-cougar
interactions. Another location in the more
developed Puget Sound region eventually would
be selected for study of cougars in suburban
environments where there is a history of human-cougar
interactions. Eventually, a third study site
could be selected in rural eastern Washington
where a number of human-cougar conflicts have
occurred. The studies would be initiated in
three phases, with the Cle Elum-Roslyn serving
as the control and template for the other
studies.
 Other
cougar research
WDFW has been conducting studies of movements and survival of juvenile
cougars in western Washington over the past several years. This work
has been conducted mostly in Pierce and King counties. The field work
has been completed and WDFW is in the process of conducting data analysis
and writing the final report. The final report is expected to be completed
and available on the Internet by the end of June 2001.
WDFW
is currently funding a research project at
Washington State University (WSU) to determine
the relationship between cougars and woodland
caribou in the Selkirk Mountains of Northeast
Washington, Idaho and southern British Columbia.
Specifically this research is designed to
determine the relationships between predator
mortality, landscape-level forest structure
and predator/prey dynamics. A WSU graduate
student is looking at hunting regimes and
forestry practices that will minimize cougar
predation on mountain caribou. Results could
be used for both immediate (cougar management),
short-term (forest management), and long-term
(forest restoration) solutions to high predation
impacting ultimate recovery of the endangered
mountain caribou. Field activities will be
completed in 2001, with the dissertation scheduled
for completion in 2002.
Related
Website Links:
The
Hornocker Wildlife Institute
http://www.hwi.org/
Mountain
Lion Research
http://www.bigcats.com/reference/puma.html
Mountain
Lion.Net
http://www.mountainlion.net
Living
With Washington Wildlife: Cougars
http://wdfw.wa.gov/wlm/game/cougar/cougar.htm
NatureMapping
Program
http://wdfw.wa.gov/outreach/education/naturmap.htm
Author
Biographies
 Gary
Koehler is a Research Scientist with
the Wildlife Management Program for the
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.
He is Principle Investigator on the Project
CAT cougar study. He recently completed
a comprehensive field investigation of black
bears at three study sites in Washington.
Prior to joining WDFW in 1994 he was a lecturer
in Wildlife Management at Moi University
in Kenya where he studied African lions
and predation. He has conducted surveys
for the Endangered South China tiger in
China and has worked on carnivore projects
in India. He has also conducted research
and has published on studies of pine martens,
wolverine, bobcats, lynx, cougars, and coyotes
in Washington, Idaho, and Montana. Gary
is a native of Washington state. He received
a B. A. degree in Biology from Western Washington
University and M.S. and Ph.D.degrees in
Wildlife Management from the University
of Idaho.
 Margaret
Tudor is Project WILD Coordinator and
NatureMapping Education Director for the
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife,
as well as Education Coordinator for WDFW's
role in Project CAT. She has worked nine
years with WDFW in Education and Outreach.
She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in
Zoology and Geology and a Diploma of Education
in Science Education from the University
of Adelaide, Australia; a Masters in Public
Health degree in Environmental Health from
the University of Hawaii, and a Ph.D. in
Education from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
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Article
Archives
Nestled
on the eastern slope of the Cascade Mountains,
the town of Cle Elum is surrounded by undeveloped
habitat that is the home of many species of
wildlife and a rapidly increasing number of
humans.
