,This data package was produced by researchers working on the Shortgrass Steppe Long Term Ecological Research (SGS-LTER) Project, administered at Colorado State University. Long-term datasets and background information (proposals, reports, photographs, etc.) on the SGS-LTER project are contained in a comprehensive project collection within the Digital Collections of Colorado (http://digitool.library.colostate.edu/R/?func=collections&collection_id=3429). The data table and associated metadata document, which is generated in Ecological Metadata Language, may be available through other repositories serving the ecological research community and represent components of the larger SGS-LTER project collection. Additional information and referenced materials can be found: http://hdl.handle.net/10217/83458. The abundance and diversity of small mammals in shortgrass steppe is strongly influenced by the structure and composition of vegetation. Vegetation structure provides cover from predators and harsh abiotic conditions. Plant species composition affects the types of seeds and herbaceous material available to granivores and herbivores, and influences arthropod populations, which are important prey for the omnivorous species that dominate in shortgrass steppe. Both vegetation structure and plant community composition are sensitive to the availability of precipitation as well as the activity of large mammalian herbivores. In 1999, we began measuring vegetation structure and plant community composition on the three grassland and three shrubland trapping webs where we live-trap small mammals. Vegetation measurements are made once each year, usually in mid-July. Percent canopy cover of each plant species was estimated visually in 30 0.10-m2 Daubenmire quadrats on each web. To estimate habitat structure, we measured the height of grass, forb and shrub plants adjacent to each quadrat, the density of half-shrubs, small mammal mounds and burrows, harvester ant mounds and the dimensions of large shrubs and animal mounds.,,

,This data package was produced by researchers working on the Shortgrass Steppe Long Term Ecological Research (SGS-LTER) Project, administered at Colorado State University. Long-term datasets and background information (proposals, reports, photographs, etc.) on the SGS-LTER project are contained in a comprehensive project collection within the Digital Collections of Colorado (http://digitool.library.colostate.edu/R/?func=collections&collection_id=3429). The data table and associated metadata document, which is generated in Ecological Metadata Language, may be available through other repositories serving the ecological research community and represent components of the larger SGS-LTER project collection. Additional information and referenced materials can be found: http://hdl.handle.net/10217/83458. The abundance and diversity of small mammals in shortgrass steppe is strongly influenced by the structure and composition of vegetation. Vegetation structure provides cover from predators and harsh abiotic conditions. Plant species composition affects the types of seeds and herbaceous material available to granivores and herbivores, and influences arthropod populations, which are important prey for the omnivorous species that dominate in shortgrass steppe. Both vegetation structure and plant community composition are sensitive to the availability of precipitation as well as the activity of large mammalian herbivores. In 1999, we began measuring vegetation structure and plant community composition on the three grassland and three shrubland trapping webs where we live-trap small mammals. Vegetation measurements are made once each year, usually in mid-July. Percent canopy cover of each plant species was estimated visually in 30 0.10-m2 Daubenmire quadrats on each web. To estimate habitat structure, we measured the height of grass, forb and shrub plants adjacent to each quadrat, the density of half-shrubs, small mammal mounds and burrows, harvester ant mounds and the dimensions of large shrubs and animal mounds.,,

,This data package was produced by researchers working on the Shortgrass Steppe Long Term Ecological Research (SGS-LTER) Project, administered at Colorado State University. Long-term datasets and background information (proposals, reports, photographs, etc.) on the SGS-LTER project are contained in a comprehensive project collection within the Digital Collections of Colorado (http://digitool.library.colostate.edu/R/?func=collections&collection_id=3429). The data table and associated metadata document, which is generated in Ecological Metadata Language, may be available through other repositories serving the ecological research community and represent components of the larger SGS-LTER project collection. Additional information and referenced materials can be found: http://hdl.handle.net/10217/83452. Body size is a fundamental biological measurement that is known to be related to an organism's physiology, life-history and ecology. Estimates of body size are also widely used in comparative evolutionary and ecological studies, including food web and diet studies that require estimates of biomass. Beginning in 1994, small mammals are live-trapped twice each year on the three grassland and three shrubland trapping webs. Individuals are weighed (to nearest 0.5 g using a Pesola spring scale) when first captured during a given trapping session but not upon recapture during the same session. Weights are calculated by subtracting the weight of an empty capture (ziploc) bag from the weight of animal in the bag. Individuals are classified into age classes (adult, subadult, juvenile) in the field based on a combination of size and pelage characteristics. This dataset gives means, standard deviations, minimum and maximum values for body weight, in grams, of small mammals captured between September 1994 and September 2008. All sites and sampling periods were combined. Most individuals (~93%) were classified as new captures, although a few individuals that were captured multiple times across different trapping sessions may appear in the dataset more than once. Values may differ from estimates calculated using the entire capture dataset because age and weight data were screened more closely to omit obvious errors and outliers.,,

,This data package was produced by researchers working on the Shortgrass Steppe Long Term Ecological Research (SGS-LTER) Project, administered at Colorado State University. Long-term datasets and background information (proposals, reports, photographs, etc.) on the SGS-LTER project are contained in a comprehensive project collection within the Digital Collections of Colorado (http://digitool.library.colostate.edu/R/?func=collections&collection_id=3429). The data table and associated metadata document, which is generated in Ecological Metadata Language, may be available through other repositories serving the ecological research community and represent components of the larger SGS-LTER project collection. Additional information and referenced materials can be found: http://hdl.handle.net/10217/83456. Small mammals (rabbits, rodents) are integral components of semiarid ecosystems because of their roles as consumers of plants, seeds and arthropods, as soil disturbance agents, and as food for raptors, snakes and mammalian carnivores. Because of their vagility and intermediate trophic position, populations of small mammals may track changes in vegetation and the abiotic environment that may result from shifts in land-use and other anthropogenic disturbances. However, these populations are variable over space and time, and their response to environmental changes may not be immediately apparent given their behavioral flexibility and relatively long life-spans and generation times. Patterns in the distribution and abundance of small mammals thus may simultaneously reflect and affect the stability of the shortgrass-steppe ecosystem. Long-term studies of population and community dynamics therefore are needed to fully understand the role of small mammals in grassland ecosystems. Thirteen-lined ground squirrels (Spermophilus tridecemlineatus, SPTR) are the most widely distributed rodent species in shortgrass steppe and the most important in terms of abundance and biomass. Like most rodents in shortgrass steppe, they are omnivorous; unlike other species, however, they are diurnal and active aboveground only 5-6 months each year, and therefore required a separate sampling scheme from other rodents. In 1999, we initiated studies to track long-term changes in relative abundance of ground squirrels in representative habitats of shortgrass steppe. We live-trapped squirrels twice each year, which corresponded to periods of high aboveground activity of adults (early June, SPR) and the emergence of juveniles (mid-July, SUM). Three 3.14-ha webs were established in upland prairie (GRASS) and saltbush-dominated (SHRUB) habitats. Each web had 62 Sherman traps, which were spaced 20-m apart on 12 100-m spokes, with 30 degrees between spokes. Two traps were set in the center of the web. Traps were set for four consecutive mornings in each trapping session. Traps were baited with a mix of peanut butter and oats, set at dawn and closed 4-6 hours later. Traps were shaded with pieces of PVC pipe to reduce heat mortality in traps. We recorded sex, age and weight upon first capture of all individuals. Because the ears of squirrels are too small to consistently hold ear tags, all individuals were batch-marked with a colored Sharpie felt marker to distinguish recaptures ® from new (N) individuals, providing the minimum information necessary to use distance-sampling methods to estimate density. NOTE: In this dataset, ages and weights may not correspond well. Weight, combined with sampling date, can be used to better determine age class; contact Paul Stapp for more information.,,

TIME PERIOD COVERED. Seven surveys from March 30, 2000 through October 12, 2017. NUMBER OF RECORDS. There are 2317 detection records. GEOGRAPHIC EXTENT OF THE RECORDS. Carrizo Plains, San Luis Obispo County. BASE DATA STRUCTURE. Comma delimited .txt file. WHAT EACH RECORD REPRESENTS. Each record is the detection of one or more San Joaquin kit foxes from a point identified by the coordinates.

Vector datasets of CWHR range maps are one component of California Wildlife Habitat Relationships (CWHR), a comprehensive information system and predictive model for Californias wildlife. The CWHR System was developed to support habitat conservation and management, land use planning, impact assessment, education, and research involving terrestrial vertebrates in California. CWHR contains information on life history, management status, geographic distribution, and habitat relationships for wildlife species known to occur regularly in California. Range maps represent the maximum, current geographic extent of each species within California. They were originally delineated at a scale of 1:5,000,000 by species-level experts and have gradually been revised at a scale of 1:1,000,000. For more information about CWHR, visit the CWHR webpage (https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Data/CWHR). The webpage provides links to download CWHR data and user documents such as a look up table of available range maps including species code, species name, and range map revision history; a full set of CWHR GIS data; .pdf files of each range map or species life history accounts; and a User Guide.

We developed and report a microsatellite data set composed of 52 microsatellite loci for 2305 individuals from 20 bison conservation herds (17 US federal, 1 tribal, 2 Canadian) and a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data set composed of 5013 biallic loci for 376 individuals from 16 bison conservation herds that were used as part of a broader study. We also developed an algorithm to select a subset of SNPs that captures the genetic variation present in the full SNP data set. Human expansion is a major driver of both declining wildlife species abundance and the contraction of species’ distributions, increasing the risk of genetic erosion and the need for genetic monitoring. Rapidly advancing technology has expanded the types of genetic data that are available for wildlife conservation. However, the use of different genetic markers could result in different management decisions and, thus, must be considered carefully. Rebounding from near extinction in the early 1900s, the majority of plains bison (Bison bison bison) are managed as small and isolated herds. Microsatellite-based analyses are currently used to inform management of the US federal bison conservation herds. Transitioning from monitoring with tens of multiallelic loci (e.g., microsatellite loci) to thousands of biallelic loci (e.g., SNP loci) could increase genotyping efficiency and improve the precision of population genetic inference but would require an understanding of the inferential differences between genetic marker types.

,This data package was produced by researchers working on the Shortgrass Steppe Long Term Ecological Research (SGS-LTER) Project, administered at Colorado State University. Long-term datasets and background information (proposals, reports, photographs, etc.) on the SGS-LTER project are contained in a comprehensive project collection within the Digital Collections of Colorado (http://digitool.library.colostate.edu/R/?func=collections&collection_id=3429). The data table and associated metadata document, which is generated in Ecological Metadata Language, may be available through other repositories serving the ecological research community and represent components of the larger SGS-LTER project collection. When the CPER was established in 1939, researchers constructed a .5-1 ha grazing exclosure in each of the pastures. These areas have remained protected from grazing for the past 70 years. The remaining areas have been grazed for the past 20+ years. This collection of pastures and exclosures provided an extraordinary opportunity to reinitiate grazing and protection, and evaluate the balance between degradation and aggradation. We proposed to rearrange fences and expose areas to grazing that have been protected for 50 years, and protect areas from grazing that had been grazed for 50 years. The combinations of grazing conditions were: 1. Long-term protection 2. Long-term grazing (moderate) 3. 50 years of protection followed by grazing 4. 50 years of grazing followed by protection Net primary production, nitrogen dynamics, cattle utilization, and community dynamics of vegetation were measured. Additional information and referenced materials can be found: http://hdl.handle.net/10217/85596.,,

Overabundant deer have harmful effects on forests by preventing regeneration of a number of important canopy tree species, and by preferentially browsing certain native species while avoiding invasive plants. Left unchecked, the combination of deer and invasive species can eliminate forests entirely, transforming them into invasive shrub thickets. Overabundant deer are also a human health risk, through the increased risk of deer-vehicle collisions and because of increased prevalence of tick-borne illnesses. The Northeast Region of the National Park Service is working to encourage resilient forests by managing overabundant deer, removing invasive species, and taking other actions such as planting climate-resilient tree species in key areas. An important part of this Resilient Forests Initiative is monitoring deer. Monitoring is used to determine where the populations are in need of intervention and to track the impacts of management actions. Multiple monitoring methods are possible depending on the park, including aerial forward-looking infrared surveys, camera traps, and spotlighting (with visible or infrared light). This data set represents the spotlight data collected at multiple parks in the Northeastern United States, including Gateway National Recreation Area (GATE), Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park (MABI), Morristown National Historical Park (MORR), Richmond National Battlefield Park (RICH), and Saratoga National Historical Park (SARA). The methods used are based on a protocol developed by the Heartland Inventory & Monitoring Network, and they produce two types of data: 1) bearings and distances to deer seen from a vehicle driving a route through the park, and 2) visibility information denoting how far observers feel they could see deer, taken every 0.05 mile (0.13 km) along the route. Visibility in some years is collected in two separate surveys with 0.10 mi intervals, with the second survey start point offset by 0.05 mi. Monitoring Objective: Estimate deer abundance (an index that approximates the number of deer per square mile) in the surveyed area with sufficient accuracy to support management decision-making. This data package contains a cumulative record of all monitoring data collected at the participating parks through the most recent field season and is organized into three (3) datasets: Deer_Locations_Cumulative_YYYY-MM-DD.csv - processed deer survey event data, including the raw data plus calculated locations of deer. Incidental observations are not included in this data set. Deer_VisibleArea_Cumulative_YYYY-MM-DD.csv - processed visibility survey event data, including the raw data plus calculated coordinates for the limit of visibility on either side of the vehicle. The limits of visibility are used to create a polygon in a Geographic Information System to estimate the area surveyed for each monitoring season and park. Incidental_Sightings_Cumulative_YYYY-MM-DD.csv - Incidental sightings of species other than deer that are recorded during the survey, including count, species, and observer location. Note that the date at the end of each data file represents the date that the dataset was last updated.

The aim of the Wildcount program was to monitor fauna in eastern New South Wales within NPWS estate and identify changes in species populations through occupancy modelling. Surveys commenced in 2012 and were conducted annually at standard sites until 2021. Each field program was conducted in Autumn. The average number of sites surveyed each year was 198. Within each site four Reconyx PC800 cameras were deployed and placed at the corners of a 500 x 500 metre grid. Lures consisting of peanut butter and oats were placed infront of each camera. Each site was surveyed for a minimum of 14 consecutive days. Species were recorded as either present or absent and each species identification was assigned a level of confidence (definite, probable, possible). Summarised results are searchable on the NSW BioNet, under the 'WildCount' dataset. Systematic information is captured in the Fauna Survey module of the BioNet system as well. Information regarding species lists, and site locations, are available on an internal PowerBI. Supporting Information: Website https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/topics/animals-and-plants/surveys-monitoring-and-records/native-animal-monitoring A final report is being produced and will be made available once completed.