Book Chapters

Logging has often been implicated in the decline of caribou (Rangifer tarandus), but its effects are incompletely understood. We used a distance-based approach to assess the effects of progressive clearcut logging on the summer (28 May to 15 Sep) range of caribou in Newfoundland, Canada. We compared distances of random locations and of caribou, from 9 years of radiotelemetry, to landcover types across 3 spatial scales: population range, individual ranges, and radiolocations.

The use of day beds for extended periods during the transition into and out of the physiological state of hibernation has been documented in many bear populations, but has never been quantifi ed. Additionally, den abandonment by black bears Ursus americanus has rarely been observed at northern latitudes except after den visits by researchers.

In March 1975, Newfoundland Hydro announced that four hydroelectric developments were being considered to meet the forecast provinical energy requirements up to 1983. The proposed development resulted in a major wildlife study of great prominence in Newfoundland and nationally. The Upper Salmon caribou project served to convince Newfoundland Hydro that provincial wildlife managers were serious about environment protection.

Historical perspectives of the wildlife conservation movement reveal the complex interplay between evolving states of knowledge and evolving societal values and expectations. Wildlife science has matured greatly since its first beginning, but like many other disciplines finds difficulty in striking a balance between its historical focus and the knowledge requirements imposed by current social and ecological realities. Nevertheless, to maintain its relevance in the 21st century our discipline must find this balance.

Upon North America's settlement by Europeans wildlife, harvested for commercial use, suffered great losses in population numbers. The North American Model emerged as a sustainable solution to manage wildlife by maintaining wildlife as a public trust, prohibiting the commerce of wildlife products, allocating wildlife by law, using wildlife for legitimate purposes, preserving hunting for all, recognizing wildlife as an international resource, and using science as the basis for management and policy.

Millais's work, reprinted after a century, is both a classic work of its period and an irreplaceable commentary in our understanding of Newfoundland's recent past and culture. The text offers valuable insight into the abundance and quality of Newfoundland caribou a century ago, and provides detailed descriptions of landscapes then undisturbed, but now increasingly altered by human intrusion and development.

Adaptive management in wildlife conservation emerged from the wildlife profession's search for better solutions to increasingly complex conservation challenges. Adaptive management is an effective process for wildlife managers to employ to (1) deal with uncertainty in the management system, (2) learn from their management actions, and (3) achieve desired results. Being adaptable or flexible in your management approach is not the same as managing adaptively or conducting adaptive management. Adaptive management requires adhering to a stepwise process and fully executing each step.