Introduction
Location Map
Base Map
Database Schema
Conventions
GIS Analyses
Flowchart
GIS Concepts
Results
Conclusion
References
Using GIS to Understand Native Felid Habitat Suitability in Urbanizing Areas and Interaction Risk with Humans and Domestic Cats
Ashley Gramza and Adam Dillon
Introduction
Habitat fragmentation is one of the most serious threats to biological diversity worldwide, and rapid urbanization is a leading agent of fragmentation and cause of species endangerment in the United States. In the Western US, development is taking place more rapidly in rural areas relative to urban areas, and this exurban development often intrudes on natural wildlife habitat and intensifies human-wildlife conflict. Some of the greatest conflicts occur between predators and humans where human, pet, and livestock safety is often an issue.
One of the greatest challenges that face wildlife managers is how to minimize the risk of human wildlife conflicts, but these conflicts are often very difficult to predict. For our final project we are using GIS to locate areas of potential human conflicts with bobcats and mountain lions on the Western Slope and Front Range of Colorado using habitat suitability analysis. We assume that areas of high conflict potential will occur where bobcat or mountain lion suitable habitat overlaps with private land parcels. We are also interested in determining how mountain lion and bobcat suitable habitat changes over different levels of urbanization (urban, rural, and exurban). As an additional proxy of human-wildlife conflict, we also wanted to determine the potential interactions between domestic cats and wild felids since they often have antagonistic interactions and may transmit diseases to one another. This domestic cat-wild felid risk potential can then be compared to human risk perceptions that will be measured in the coming months through mail surveys.
Knowing interaction risks can help wildlife managers and human dimensions of wildlife specialists target risk mitigation communication strategies. When analyzed on the individual parcel level, these professionals can further target their messages to specific neighborhoods, making the messages more effective and efficient.
