COMPOSITIONAL ANALYSIS OF MOOSE HABIAT IN NORTHEASTERN MINNESOTA

Authors

  • Mark S. Lenarz Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
  • Robert Wright Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
  • Michael W. Schrage Fond du Lac Resource Management Division
  • Andrew J. Edwards 1854 Treaty Authority

Keywords:

Alces, home range, habitat preference, compositional analysis, LULC cover types

Abstract

ABSTRACT: It is well accepted that moose often use early successional habitats in the boreal forest.  It is not clear, however, whether use of disturbed habitats represents a preference or simply that moose are more detectable. Previous research based on visual observations assumed that moose were equally detectable in all cover types.  We evaluated habitat selection of moose in northeastern Minnesota using telemetry locations and LULC cover type information. We calculated second- and third-order habitat selection using composition analysis. The analyses indicated that while the Cutover cover type ranked highest in summer and winter in both second- and third-order selection, its rank was not significantly different from most other cover types during the winter. Third-order analysis indicated that the rank of Cutover was significantly higher than other cover types during the summer.  Selection for aquatic habitats during the summer was not evident in our analysis.  Cover types that could provide lower operative temperatures from shade ranked higher than aquatic cover types. Inferences from these analyses should be treated with caution because of inherent weaknesses of use-availability analyses.

Author Biographies

Mark S. Lenarz, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

Group Leader, Forest Wildlife Populations and Research Group, Minnesota DNR

Robert Wright, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

Wildlife GIS Specialist, Minnesota DNR

Downloads

Published

2012-02-03

How to Cite

Lenarz, M. S., Wright, R., Schrage, M. W., & Edwards, A. J. (2012). COMPOSITIONAL ANALYSIS OF MOOSE HABIAT IN NORTHEASTERN MINNESOTA. Alces: A Journal Devoted to the Biology and Management of Moose, 47, 135–149. Retrieved from https://alcesjournal.org/index.php/alces/article/view/89

Issue

Section

Articles