HABITAT SUITABILITY ANALYSIS OF THE BIG CHICO CREEK ECOLOGICAL RESERVE FOR MAMMALIAN CARNIVORES

Paige E Munson; CSU Chico ; pa.munson490@gmail.com;

Predator abundance and activity in an ecosystem can indicate the overall ecological health of an area. To my knowledge the habitat suitability of the Big Chico Creek Ecological Reserve hasn’t been assessed for mammalian predators. These analyses are among the first to identify suitability for the target species gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus), black bear (Ursus americanus), bobcat (Lynx rufus), and mountain lion (Puma concolor). At the Big Chico Creek Ecological Reserve (BCCER), several projects have helped document the presence and distribution of these mammalian predators, including camera trapping as part of the Adopt-an-Acre Program, unpublished graduate work by Karina Haddad, and a scat survey I designed and conducted with a group of students as part of a field ecology course. One limit of these projects has been accessibility based on established trails and access roads. As a result, much of the available habitat in the reserve has not been surveyed, leaving many areas without distribution estimates. I conducted an expert-informed habitat suitability analysis for the aforementioned target species. My results indicated that the reserve contains the most suitable habitat for fox and bear species, and less suitable habitat for bobcat and mountain lion species.

Poster Session  InPerson Presentation