Volume 6, March 2016, Pages 783–792
Open Access
Data Article
- a Great Basin Institute (GBI), 16750 Mount Rose Highway, Reno, NV 89511, USA
- b California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), 601 Locust Street, Redding, CA 96001, USA
- Received 20 November 2015, Revised 5 January 2016, Accepted 19 January 2016, Available online 28 January 2016
- Under a Creative Commons license
Abstract
These
data provide additional information relevant to the frequency of fisher
detections by camera traps, and single-season occupancy and local
persistence of fishers in small patches of forest habitats detailed
elsewhere, “Landscape Fuel Reduction, Forest Fire, and Biophysical
Linkages to Local Habitat Use and Local Persistence of Fishers (Pekania pennanti) in Sierra Nevada Mixed-conifer Forests” [10]. The data provides insight on camera trap detections of 3 fisher predators (bobcat [Lynx rufus]). Coyote [Canis latrans], mountain lion [Puma concolor], 5 mesocarnivores in the same foraging guild as fishers (gray fox [Urocyon cinereoargenteus]) ringtail [Bassariscus astutus], marten [Martes americana], striped skunk [Mephitis mephitis] spotted skunk [Spilogale gracilis], and 5 Sciuridae rodents that fishers consume as prey (Douglas squirrel [Tamiasciurus douglasii]), gray squirrel [Sciurus griseus], northern flying squirrel [Glaucomys sabrinus], long-eared chipmunk [Neotamias quadrimaculatus], California ground squirrel [Spermophilus beecheyi].
We used these data to identify basic patterns of co-occurrence with
fishers, and to evaluate the relative importance of presence of
competing mesocarnivores, rodent prey, and predators for fisher
occupancy of small, 1 km2 grid cells of forest habitat.
Keywords
- Carnivores;
- Competition;
- Distribution;
- Foraging guild;
- Predation;
- Tree squirrels
Specifications table
Subject area Biology More specific subject area Wildlife ecology, conservation biology Type of data Text, tables, figures How data was acquired Camera trap surveys Data format Tabular, plotted and analyzed Experimental factors Grid cells, presence/absence Experimental features Standardized camera trap surveys Data source location Sierra National Forest, California, USA Data accessibility Data in this article
Value of the data
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- These data provide new insights on how the distribution and habitat use of fishers is influenced by presence of multiple co-occurring carnivores and rodent prey in California, USA.
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- These data indicated that fishers co-occurred with multiple species of rodent prey, multiple other mesocarnivores in the same foraging guild, and 3 larger predators that commonly attack and kill them.
- •
- These data identified a positive association between fisher occupancy and presence of known prey of fishers, which was suggested previously but without supporting data [7].
- •
- Mesocarnivores consume similar prey [12], and these data identified a negative association between fisher occupancy and presence of other mesocarnivores, indicative of interspecific competition.
- •
1. Data
In
this Data in Brief article we summarize camera trap detections of 3
fisher predators (bobcat, coyote, mountain lion), 5 mesocarnivores in
the same foraging guild as fishers (gray fox, ringtail, American marten,
striped skunk, spotted skunk), and 5 Sciuridae rodents that fishers
prey on (Douglas squirrel, gray squirrel, northern flying squirrel,
long-eared chipmunk, California ground squirrel) in the Sierra Nevada
region of California, USA. These data identify basic patterns of
co-occurrence of rodent prey and other carnivores with fishers, as well
as how presence of these species influence fisher occupancy within
small, 1-km2 patches of forest habitat in California, USA.
