Mammal Surveys in Great Basin National Park:Assessment of Historical Faunal ChangeEric Rickart & Shannen RobsonUtah Museum of Natural HistoryUniversity of Utah

METHODSHistorical data sourcesMuseum of Vertebrate Zoology (MVZ)1929-1939 field surveysOther records 1940-1990 Publications MaNIS museum networkUMNH-FMNH survey 2000NPS I&M (UMNH) 2002-2003Recent data sourcesGRBA sight reports 1994-2004

GENERAL SURVEY RESULTSHistorical records (pre-1990)

Park: 390 records 31 species Park region: 893 records 48 species Recent surveys (2000-2003)

4379 trap nights 642 records 26 speciesGRBA sight reports

366 reports 22 species(non-volant mammals)Species Totals Park Greater region

Non-volants 42 54 Total (incl. bats) 49 67

Shrews (small mammal exemplars)Uncommon habitat specialists

2003Historical change

Resurvey protocolRelocate historical collecting sites that were densely sampled Determine historical sampling effortAssess habitat changes (notes and photographs)Do comparable modern samplingInterpret local faunal changesLocal site assessments:Broader scale (landscape) assessments:Shifts in elevation ranges of speciesSpecimen counts as a proxy for effort

Survey localitiesHistorical &RecentSurvey comparison

Resurvey comparisons-- Four elevation binsLow: 5300-6700 ft 67 10 65 12 (ca. 1600-2050 m)

Mid: 7000-8000 ft 125 14 56 7 (ca. 2150-2450 m)

High: 8100-10500 ft 79 7 80 8 (ca. 2450-3200 m)

Alpine: 10700-11200 ft 30 7 28 5 (ca. 3250-3400 m) Historical ModernElevation (1929-1939) (2000-2003) records species records species

Low elevation

Low elevation

Mid elevation

Mid elevation

High elevation

High elevation

Alpine

Alpine

Least chipmunk (Tamias minimus)Great Basin pocket mouse (Perognathus parvus)Species responding to loss/shift of sagebrush habitat

Uinta chipmunk (Tamias umbrinus)Pion mouse (Peromyscus truei)Species increasing with spread of pion-juniper

Species responding to cheatgrass invasionExpandingHarvest mouse (Reithrodontomys megalotis)Long-tailed vole (Microtus longicaudus)

Desert woodrat (Neotoma lepida)Bushy-tailed woodrat (Neotoma cinerea)Declining woodrats

Yellow-bellied marmot(Marmota flaviventris)Porcupine(Erethizon dorsatum)Uncommon species

Cougar(Puma concolor)Beaver(Castor canadensis)Keystone species

Acknowledgements