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- Larger Work: This publication is Chapter 5 of Arctic Refuge coastal plain terrestrial wildlife research summaries
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Abstract
The Porcupine caribou herd has traditionally used the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, for calving. Availability of nutritious forage has been hypothesized as one of the reasons the Porcupine caribou herd migrates hundreds of kilometers to reach the coastal plain for calving (Kuropat and Bryant 1980, Russell et al. 1993).
Forage quantity and quality and the chronology of snowmelt (which determines availability and phenological stages of forage) have been suggested as important habitat attributes that lead calving caribou to select one area over another (Lent 1980, White and Trudell 1980, Eastland et al. 1989). A major question when considering the impact of petroleum development is whether potential displacement of the caribou from the 1002 Area to alternate calving habitat will limit access to high quantity and quality forage.
Our study had the following objectives: 1) quantify snowmelt patterns by area; 2) quantify relationships among phenology, biomass, and nutrient content of principal forage species by vegetation type; and 3) determine if traditional concentrated calving areas differ from adjacent areas with lower calving densities in terms of vegetation characteristics.
Study Area
| Publication type | Report |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Federal Government Series |
| Title | Forage quantity and quality |
| Series title | Biological Science Report |
| Series number | 2002-0001 |
| Chapter | 5 |
| Year Published | 2002 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | U.S. Geological Survey |
| Publisher location | Reston, VA |
| Contributing office(s) | Alaska Science Center |
| Description | 5 p. |
| Larger Work Type | Report |
| Larger Work Subtype | Federal Government Series |
| Larger Work Title | Arctic Refuge coastal plain terrestrial wildlife research summaries (Biological Science Report USGS/BRD/BSR-2002-0001) |
| First page | 46 |
| Last page | 50 |
| Country | Canada, United States |
| State | Alaska, Northwest Territories, Yukon Territory |
| Other Geospatial | Arctic Refuge Coastal Plain, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |