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FoxeBasinPolarBearProject2009InterimReportNovember29,2009ElizabethPeacockVickiSahanatienSethStapletonAndrewDerocherDavidGarshelisWildlifeResearchSectionDepartmentofEnvironmentGovernmentofNunavutIgloolik,NunavutCanadaX0A‐0L0PROJECTPERSONNELDr. Elizabeth Peacock, Wildlife Research Section, Department of Environment,GovernmentofNunavut1VickiSahanatien,DepartmentofBiologicalSciences,UniversityofAlbertaSethStapleton,DepartmentofFisheries,WildlifeandConservationBiology,UniversityofMinnesotaDr. David L. Garshelis, Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology,UniversityofMinnesotaDr.AndrewE.Derocher,DepartmentofBiologicalSciences,UniversityofAlberta
1Currentaffiliation,ResearchWildlifeBiologist,USGS,Anchorage,Alaska,USA.
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EXECUTIVESUMMARY(availableinInuktituttranslation)This report summarizesprogresson theFoxeBasinPolarBearProject fromNovember2008 toNovember2009.Springtime fieldwork was conducted in the Foxe Basin polar bear management zone orsubpopulation(FB)inApril2009.Thepurposeofthisworkwasto1)evaluatetheusefulnessofspringtime aerial surveys for abundance estimation of polar bears; and 2) retrieve droppedsatellitecollars;and3)searchforRFIDtags.Weultimatelyretrievedallcollarsthatdroppedoffbearsonland(11).Ninehaddroppedoffbearsbecauseamanufacturer’smalfunctionand2hadslippedoffbecausetheywerefittooloose.Wedeterminedthataspringtimeaerialsurveyonicewould be much less efficient and provide less‐accurate information compared to an autumnaerial survey in FB. The springtimeworkwasplaguedwithpoor sightingprobability and a lowencounterrate,asthereislowpolarbeardensityacrossalargeexpanseofavailablehabitat;weflew 17,000 km and sighted 16 polar bears. In contrast, during the autumn when the vastmajorityofbearsareonlandinFB,lowtopographylandresultsinhighsightingprobability,andtheconcentrationofpolarbearsonlandincreasesencounterrates.Inspring2009,werelocatedzeroofthe32RFIDtagsavailable(1RFIDtaghadalreadybeenharvested)during31helicopterhours.Themainobjectivesoftheautumn2009fieldseasonwereto1)conductacomprehensiveaerialsurveyforpopulationestimationofpolarbearsinFB;and2)deploy25satellitecollarsonpolarbearsintheFBforresearchonpopulationdelineationandhabitatecology.Initialplansweretoconduct a mark‐recapture study for estimation of population parameters (annual survival,abundanceandstatus);theGNdidnotpermitthisprojectin2008and2009,becauseofconcernsfromsomecommunities regarding the immobilizationofpolarbears.Asa result,estimationofannual survival, population status and a total allowable harvest (TAH), based on formulaedictated in the Polar Bear Research and Management Memoranda of Understanding withNunavutcommunities,arenolongerobjectivesoftheFoxeBasinPolarBearProject.Autumnfieldworkwasconductedfrom13Augustto2October2009ontheHudsonBayshoreofNunavik (northernQuebec), islands inHudsonStrait,northernHudsonStraitwestofKimmirut,theFoxePeninsula,all islands,coastalregions inFoxeBasinproper,southtoChesterfield Inlet.WebasedoutofthecommunitiesofPuvirnituq,Ivujivik,Salluit,Kimmirut,CapeDorset,cabinsatNikkuandBrayislands,Igloolik,RepulseBay,ChesterfieldInletandCoralHarbour.Wedeployedsatellitecollarson24adultfemalesandsatelliteeartagon1adultmale.Biologicalsamplesandmeasurementswerecollectedfromall immobilizedpolarbears.Thedistributionof2009collarscomplementsthe2007and2008distribution,resultinginageographicallyrepresentativesampleofinformationtobeusedforpopulationdelineationandhabitatanalyses.Intheautumnof2009,wealsocompletedacomprehensiveland‐basedaerialsurveythroughoutFB.Weemployedacombinationofcoastal‘contour’andinlandtransects,aswellastotalcountsonasampleofsmallislands.Wecoveredapproximately50%ofthecoastduringourcontourtransects.Becausepolarbearsconcentratealongthecoastduringthelate
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summer,ice‐freeseason,wedividedthe‘inland’studyareaintohighdensity(landwithin5kmofthecoast),lowdensity(land5‐15kmfromthecoast),andverylow‐density(land15–50kmfromthecoast)strata.StratadelineationwasbasedonsatellitetaggingdatacollectedinFoxeBasinduring2008–2009.Weallocatedoursamplingeffortsuchthattransectswereconcentratedinthehighdensity,coastalstratum.Samplingprotocolsenabledustocollectbothdistancesamplinganddoubleobserver(sight‐resight)datafromthehelicopterplatform.Duringthe7‐weeksurveyperiod,weflewmorethan40,000km(includingferries)acrossFB.Werecorded814bears,including616independent(i.e.,adultandsubadult)bears.Analyses,whichwillincludecomparisonamongmultipleanalyticaltechniques,areinprogress.WeanticipateobtainingapopulationestimateforFBinspring2010andwillrecommendtechniquemodificationsforthe2010aerialsurveyinFB.AnoriginalintentoftheFoxeBasinPolarBearProjectwasalsototestanddevelopRadioFrequencyIdentification(RFID)eartags.Thesetagscouldbeusedtoreducetheneedtorecaptureanimalsduringmark‐recapturestudies;theintentwastodevelopresearchtechniquesthataremoreacceptabletotheInuitpublic.Weintendedtodeploy300RFIDtags,asamplesizesufficient,duetotherelativetotheabundanceofpolarbearsinFB,toascertaintheretentionanddetectionofthetags.However,wewereonlyabletodeploy55tagsin2008and2009,becausethemark‐recaptureportionoftheresearchwascancelled.In2009,wehadtheabilitytosearchforthe32tagsdeployedin2008.OurtestsindicatethatRFIDtagsaredetectableat4kmat1,000ftabove‐ground‐altitude(AGL)or1kmat400ftAGL.Werelocated6ofthe31tags.Threetagswerefoundtobefirmlyattachedtoears,withnoinfection(1intheharvest,2during2009surveyactivities);2remainingtagswereshedandlocatedduringautumnfieldeffortin2009.Wedeployedanadditional23RFIDtagsonalladult,subadultandyearlingpolarbearscaptured,in2009.In2008–2009wecontinuedanalysisusingsatellitecollarandeartaglocationinformationtoexplorepolarbearmovementsandmulti‐scalehabitatselection.Atthelandscapescaleweconductedapreliminaryanalysisofhabitatselectionbasedontheseaiceconcentration,ageandfloesizeasdescribedbytheCanadianIceServicemaps.Thiswillbethefirstanalysisofthistypecompletedforpolarbearsthatliveinseasonalseaicepopulations,whereicedoesnotremaininsummermonths.Significantprogresswasmadeindevelopinganewmethodforquantifyingfine‐scalehabitatselectionbyusingSARimageryofseaice;SARimageryisavailableduringdarkmonthsandondayswithcloudcover.ThismethodwillhaveapplicationthroughouttheArcticandwillbeusefulformanyseaicedependentspecies.Wepresentthesepreliminaryanalysesinthisreport.
Wepresentmovementmetricsforbothmaleandfemalepolarbearsfor2008–2009:homerangesize;movementrates;anddistancetravelled.InthissecondyearofstudyweobservedgeographicdifferencesinhomerangesizesofFBbearsusingHudsonBayandFoxeBasin,effectsofsmallislandsonmovementsduringtheopen‐waterseason,andsexdifferencesinmovements.Interestingly,wefoundthatfemaleswithcubstravelledfurtherthanthefouradultmalesthatwetaggedin2008.
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Existingcollections(IgloolikOralHistoryProject,ParksCanadaOralHistoryProject,HudsonBayProgram)of InuitQaujimajaiugangit(IQ)werereviewedin2006and2007butlittleinformationabout polar bear habitat use and distribution was found.We collected new IQ on polar bearhabitat use in 2009 fromelders and hunters across FB in 33 individual interviews and 2 focusgroups.INTRODUCTIONTheDepartmentofEnvironment(DOE)oftheGovernmentofNunavut(GN)isresponsibleforthemanagementandconservationofpolarbear(Ursusmaritimus)populationswithinitsjurisdiction.Thisresponsibility isoutlinedintheNunavutLandClaimsAgreement(NLCA,1993).Further,thefederal government entrusts the Nunavut Territory and other polar bear jurisdictions withinCanadawiththefulfillmentoftheInternationalAgreementoftheProtectionofPolarBearsandtheir Habitat, ratified in 1974. This task traditionally involves periodic population inventories,which are comprised of geographic delineation and estimation of demographic parametersincluding birth and death rates, population size and status. With this information, the GNrecommends the Total Allowable Harvest (TAH) for the population to the Nunavut WildlifeManagementBoard(NWMB).Inaddition,undertheNLCA,theGNisrequiredtomanagewildlifeunder theprinciples of conservation; climate change and its consequences for polar bears hasbeenhighlightedasaconservationconcern,andthereforeasubstantivepartoftheFoxeBasinPolar Bear Project includes research on polar bear habitat ecology. Finally, as indicated in theNLCA (1993), our research and management system must take into consideration uniqueperspectiveandtraditionalknowledgeoftheInuit;ourprojectincorporatessignificanteffortstosystematicallycollectInuitQaujimajaiugangit(IQ)ofpolarbearsinFB.The Foxe Basin polar bear management zone or subpopulation (FB; Figure 1) has receivedrelativelylittlerecentresearchattention(Lunnetal.1987,Tayloretal.1990,Tayloretal.2006b).No population boundary delineation using satellite telemetry (Taylor et al. 2001) has occurredanddemographicrateshavenotbeenestimated.FBiscurrentlydefinedasboundedinthesouthby northern Hudson Bay, western Baffin Island, the Fury and Hecla Straits and the MelvillePeninsula and covers approximately 1.1million km2. Seven communities inNunavut (Kimmirut(10),CapeDorset (10), Igloolik (10),HallBeach (8),RepulseBay (12),Chesterfield Inlet (8) andRepulseBay (12))harvestpolarbears fromFB (TAH inparentheses).Polarbears inFBarealsoharvestedbycommunitiesinNunavik(northernQuebec;Puvirnituq,Akulivik,IvujivikandSalluit)at a combined rangeof 0–7polarbearsper year from1997‐2005. Theharvest inQuebec isneitherregulatednorconsistentlymonitored.ThemeanpopulationsizeforpolarbearsinFBfrom1989to1994wasestimatedtobe2,197±260SE(Tayloretal.2006b).Inrecentyears,localknowledgeinNunavutindicatedanincreaseinpolarbearnumbers,resultinginanincreaseinthe2005NunavutTAHfrom97to106polarbears,whichwasconsideredsustainablewithapopulationestimatedat2,300bears.PopulationDelineationandInventory
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The Foxe Basin Polar Bear Project includes several components to address the managementmandate for polar bears in FB. Science‐based population delineation will assist in therecommendation of distribution of harvest quotas across the Hudson Bay complex. Hitherto,boundarydelineationofpolarbearsubpopulationshasusedsatelliteinformationcollectedfromadult females, because the circumference of necks of adultmales is too large towear collars.Advancements in technology show promise (E. Born, personal communication; Peacock et al.2008)forasatelliteeartag(MikkelVellumJensen,DenmarkandWildlifeComputersInc.,USA)tocollectdataonmalepolarbearmovement.Ourdatafromfivemalepolarbearswillbeusedinadditiontothedataonfemalemovementfordelineationandhabitatanalyses.A second crucial part of population inventory for the establishment of TAH is a populationinventory,which traditionallyencapsulatesestimationofpopulationsize,birthanddeath rates(Peacock2009).With thesedemographic figures,wecan thenusepopulationviabilityanalyses(PVA) to estimate population growth rate, or status (stable, increasing, decreasing) of thepopulation. TAH has historically been set to maximize harvest opportunities for the Inuit ofNunavut, and is set such that the population is managed to be stable. In order to maximizeharvest,themark‐recapturemethodhasbeenusedtoestimateprecise(confident)andaccurate(lowbias)populationparameters(Tayloretal.2002,Tayloretal.2006a,2008,2009).In2008and2009,theDOEdidnotpermitamark‐recapturestudyduetocommunityconcernsregardingthephysicalcaptureofpolarbears.Assuch,wewillnotbeestimatingsurvivalratesinorstatusofFB.WerecommendthattheDOEinvestigatealternativemeasurestoestablishascience‐basedTAH.ThereisbroadsupportwithintheDOE,NWMBandcommunitiesforwildliferesearch,whichdoesnot involve chemical immobilization of wildlife. In deference to Inuit Societal Values, we aredevelopingandhaveimplementedaless‐invasiveaerialsurveymethodforpopulationestimationofpolarbears.In2008weconductedapilotstudytooutlinethemethods(McDonaldetal.1999,Bucklandetal.2001,Peacocketal.2008)neededfortheaerialsurveys.Herewereportonthecomprehensive2009aerialsurvey.Wealso report summaryzoological statisticsofpolarbearscaughtduring theFoxeBasinPolarBearProjectaspartofthepopulationdelineationandhabitatecologyprojects,asitislikelythatnomore capturewill occur in FB for the foreseeable future.We provide summarized data onrecruitmentandbodymetrics,whichcanbeused forcomparisons todifferent timeframesandothersubpopulations,andpossiblyinaPVA.Finally,aproposedobjectiveoftheFoxeBasinpolarbearprojectwas todevelop theuseofRFID technology to reduce theneedto recapturepolarbears in mark‐recapture studies. We had proposed to deploy 300 RFID tags, a sample sizesufficient todetermine retention rates, given the large sizeof thepolarbearpopulation inFB.Herewereporton theprogressofamuch‐reduced initiative, inwhich55RFID tagshavebeendeployed.HabitatEcologyTheGNDOEmustmanagepolarbearsinthecontextanduncertaintyofclimatechange,giventheirmandateundertheNLCA(1993).Theeffectsofclimatechangehavebeenmanifestedin
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decreasedsurvivalandnatality,anddeclinesinbodyconditionofpolarbearsinsouthern(SH)andwesternHudsonBay(WH;Stirlingetal.1999,Derocheretal.2004,Stirlingetal.2004,Obbardetal.2007)andtheBeaufortSea(Regehretal.2006,Rodeetal.inpress).ThechangesindemographicratesinwesternHudsonBayhaveresultedinadecreasefrom1200to935bearsoverthelast20years(Lunnetal.1997,Regehretal.2007).Thedecreaseinpopulationsizeandhealthismostoftenattributedtochangingiceconditions(Stirlingetal.1999,Regehretal.2007).Polarbearsandtheirpreyaredependentontheseaiceandthusarevulnerabletoclimatechange.Thepotentialeffectsofreductionsinseaiceonpolarbearsaremany:survival;reproductivesuccess;increasedenergyexpendituresanddistribution.Usingthefieldeffortassociatedwithpopulationdelineationweproposetoaddressseasonalmovementandicehabitatselectionofpolarbears.Seaiceextent,thicknessanddurationhavebeendecliningthroughouttheCanadianArctic(SerrezeandRigor2006,IPCC2007,ParkinsonandCavalieri2008).Theeffectsofchanginghabitatavailability,increasinghabitatfragmentation,timingoffreeze‐upandbreakup,proportionsofannualandmulti‐yearseaiceonicedependentspeciesareofincreasingconcern(BlumandGradinger2007,Laidreetal.2008,Durneretal.2009).TheseaiceextentofHudsonBayandFoxeBasinandthedurationoficeseasonhavedeclined;thedeclinesareattributedtoclimatechange(Goughetal.2004,GagnonandGough2005,Moore2006,StirlingandParkinson2006).Further,wehavedocumentedachangeinpolarbearicehabitatinFoxeBasinfrom1979to2006(SahanatienandDerocher2007).Futureclimatechangeeffectsonpolarbearhabitat,distributionandpopulationsareprojectedtobemostpronouncedinregionsofseasonalseaice(BaffinBay(BB),DavisStrait(DS),FB,WHandSH;Derocheretal.2004,Amstrupetal.2007).HerewereportonourprogressonourstudiesonchangesinFBseaiceoverthepast25years,sea‐icehabitatmodelingofpolarbearsandmovementstudiesofpolarbearsinFB.InuitQaujimajaiugangitIntheFoxeBasinPolarBearProjectweareusingInuitknowledge,InuitQaujimajaiugangit(IQ),inseveral importantways.Generallyandinformally,weuselocalknowledgeandIQtodesignourstudies,implementfieldworkandinterpretresults.Morespecifically,weareincorporatingIQorTraditionalEcologicalKnowledge(TEK)frominterviewsintoourhabitatmodelingandtostratifyouraerialsurveys.Intermsofourhabitatmodeling,weareaddressingtherelationshipsofpolarbearmovementtoseaiceconditionsusingbothTEKandscience(seesectiononhabitatecology).Sea ice habitat conditions experienced by polar bears will change with climate warming,potentially negatively affecting population status and Inuit harvest levels. A new approach forincorporatingTEK in researchwillbeexploredbyusingTEKto inform,createandcompare3rd‐orderhabitatselectionmodels.FoxeBasinandHudsonBayoralhistorycollectionsandreportsofTEKofpolarbearswere reviewedand little information related tosea icehabitat,habitatuse,andmovementswerefound.Thus,wefounditnecessarytocollectnewIQasapartoftheFoxeBasinPolarBearProject.PROJECTOBJECTIVES
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I. Population Delineation. To geographically delineate the Foxe Basin polar bear population
(2007‐2013).
II. PopulationInventory.(2009–2011).a. estimatepopulationsizeusingphysicalmark‐recaptureandaerialsurvey
WEREPORTONLYONPROGRESSREGARDINGTHEAERIALSURVEY,ASMARK‐RECAPTUREWASNOTPERMITED
b. developaneffectiveaerialsurveymethodforpopulationestimationc. provide quantitative comparative assessment of the two methods for population
estimationASMARK‐RECAPTUREWASNOTPERMITTED,THISOBJECTIVEWILLNOTBEMET
d. estimatesurvivalandrecruitmentASMARK‐RECAPTUREWASNOTPERMITTED,THISOBJECTIVEWILLNOTBEMET
e. estimatepopulationstatus(trend)ASMARK‐RECAPTUREWASNOTPERMITTED,THISOBJECTIVEWILLNOTBEMET
f. determineTotalAllowableHarvest(TAH)AS MARK‐RECAPTURE WAS NOT PERMITTED, THIS OBJECTIVE WILL NOT BE MET UNTIL NEW GUIDELINES ARECREATEDFORDETERMININGTAHWITHOUTSTATUSINFORMATION.
III. HabitatEcology.ToinvestigatemovementandhabitatselectionofFoxeBasinpolarbearsas
relatedtoiceconditions(2007–2013).
IV. InuitQaujimajaiugangit.TocollectandincludeIQinthedevelopmentofthehabitatecologyandaerialsurveystudiesandinterpretationoftheresults(2007–2011).
METHODSANDRESULTSI. POPULATIONDELINEATIONTo geographically delineate FB,wewill use data gathered from2007 – 2012 frompolar bearstaggedwith satellite transmitters from2007–2009. In2007,10GEN IIIARGOS/GPS (Telonics,Inc.) collars were deployed on female polar bears in southern FB. In 2008, we deployed 26satellitecollars(GENIVARGOS/GPS)onadultfemalesand4satelliteeartags(M.VellumSPOT5tagandWildlifeComputers)onadultmalesinnorthernandeasternFB(Peacocketal.2008).Inboth years, satellite collars performed poorly (30 of 36 failed prematurely) due to amanufacturer’sdefectinvolvingspringtensionintheCR2‐Areleasemechanism.Inthespringandautumnof2009,weretrieved11collarstohelpthemanufacturerdeterminethesourceofthemalfunction; the remaining collars likely dropped into ice/water. We received 25 new collars(GEN IV and refurbished GEN III), at no cost, and deployed 24, in addition to one additionalsatellite ear tag, in the autumn of 2009. The satellite collars are all still functioning and areprogrammedtodropoffin2012.In 2009, 67 polar bears (Table 1, Figure 2)were captured and immobilized for deployment ofsatellite collars (24) and an ear tag. However, bears were also immobilized if they were 1)dependentyoungofadultfemales;2)wereincloseproximitytoimmobilizedadultfemalesand
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thereforeposedathreattothefocalbear;or3)wereclosetothefieldcamponBrayIsland.Onecollar slipped off an adult female within 1 week, and this collar was redeployed on anotherfemale.Bearswere immobilizedwithpalmer (adults and subadults) or pneu‐darts (cubs‐of‐theyear (COY) and yearlings) with a pneu‐dart gun from a Bell 206L helicopter using Telozol(tiletamine hydrochloride and zolazepamhydrochloride), at a concentration of 250mg/ml andadministeredatapproximately5mg/kg.Thefollowingdataandsampleswerecollected:axillarygirth; zygomatic breadth; straight‐line length; a vestigal premolar tooth (aging); ear puncture(DNA); hair samples (heavy metals); claw tip (stable isotopes); and a fat sample (fatty acidanalysis). Other information collected included sex, field age, and body condition.Wemarkedcapturedbearswitheartagsandliptattoos.After all data are collected (by 2012) analysis on population delineation of FBwill commence.Delineation using cluster‐analysis (Taylor et al. 2001) will incorporate all satellite data, andsatellite data frompolar bears captured in the neighbouringGulf of Boothia (GB; Taylor et al.2009),SH(providedbyM.Obbard,OntarioMinistryofNaturalResources)andWH(providedbyA.Derocher,UniversityofAlberta).Final resultswillbeavailable in2013. Initialgraphicsof theextentsofhome‐rangesofalladultfemalecollaredtodate(Figures3–5)showthatingeneralpolarbearswanderwithinthecurrentboundariesofFB,althoughdousenorthernHudsonBayduringthewinterandspring.II.POPULATIONINVENTORYPopulationbiologyAllphysicalandgeneticmarks(fromearsamples)placedonpolarbearsfrom2007–2009canbeused in potential mark‐recapture‐recovery modeling in the future to estimate polar bearpopulation sizeand survival inFB. In total, therewere168captureeventsofpolarbears from2007– 2009; 162 individualswerenew captures, and6 recaptures. In 2008, one adult femalepolar bear (with 2 COY) was caught in Hudson Strait near Markham Bay, who was originallycaptured in theDavisStraitmanagementzone (DS), ineasternHudsonStrait. In2009,anotheradultfemale(with2unmarkedyearlings)wascapturedonNottinghamIsland,wasalsooriginallycaughtinDS,ineasternHudsonStrait.In2009,twoadultfemales(including2tagged2‐year‐oldsofoneof the females)were recaptured,havingbeencaughtoriginally inFB in2008.NobearswerecaughtinFBfromWHorSHmanagementzones.Thusthereare162physicalmarksintheFB subpopulation, and approximately 80 additional genetic marks from the 2008 the biopsy‐markingpilot study (genetic sampleshavebeen sent toWildlifeGenetics International; data ishousedat theWildlifeResearchSection in Igloolik,NU).AsofNovember2009,1bearmarkedduringinFBfrom2007–2009hasbeenharvested.In2009,wesearchedapproximately17,000kminthespringand40,000kminthefallwiththereceiver enabled to detect radio‐frequency identification (RFID) tags deployed in 2008. Wedetected4of32availableRFIDtags(i.e., thosedeployed in2008minus1harvested inJanuary2009;thisonewasaffixedtothepolarbearandshowednosignofinfection).TwoRFIDtagswerestillattachedtopolarbearears,andshowednosignsofinfection.ThetwootherRFIDtagswere
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detectedbut nopolar bearwas found;we assume theRFID taghaddropped (oneon easternPrinceCharlesIsland,oneoneasternRowleyIsland).In2009,allbears(exceptforCOY)thatwereimmobilizedwerefittedwithaRFIDtagintherightear(n=23).Appendix1showsthefateof55RFIDtagsdeployedin2008and2009.SummarybodymeasurementsofpolarbearscapturedinFBfrom2007–2009arepresentedinTable2;axillarygirthispresentedonanannualbasisforCOYandencumberedfemales(Table3).MeanCOYlittersizes(Table3)inthesampleofcapturedpolarbearsin2008and2009respectivelywere1.63(0.13,SE)and1.64(0.15).Interestingly,themeanCOYlittersizeofthemuchlargersampleobservedduringtheaerialsurveywassmallerat1.57(0.06).Theselittersizesaremuchlargerthanthoseobservedrecentlyinafall‐timestudyinDavisStrait(DS;Peacock2009),wheremeanCOYlittersizefrom2005–2007was1.49(0.15).Ofnote,wecapturedmotherswith2‐year‐olds(anda3‐year‐oldin2007),andcapturedorobserved4tripletlitters(2COY,2yearlings)inFB;neithertripletlittersnorsignificantoccurrences2‐year‐oldsaccompanyingmotherswerecapturedorobservedinDS(Peacock2009).Mostbearscapturedin2008and2009inFBhadevidenceofmarine‐mammalfeedingonfur.In2009,icefloeswerepresentinFBthroughoutthesummerandfall.In2009,wefoundtwobearsthatwereshotandleftontheland.On23September,onesubadultmale(19.7cmzygomaticbreadth)wasfoundonwesternManselIsland(62.05,‐79.34)nearanarcticcharriver,heavilyusedbypeople.Anadultfemalewasfounddeadon5SeptemberonRowleyIsland(69.06,‐78.63).Bothbearswereingoodconditionandneitherhadbeenscavenged.Approximately2kmfromtheadultfemalewasayearlingbeingconsumedbytwoadultmalepolarbears.ThesebearsshouldcomeofftheFBquotafor2009–2010.AerialsurveydevelopmentandpopulationestimationInautumn2008,weconductedapilotstudyinFBtodeterminesightingprobabilitiesandmethodsappropriateforanaerialsurveyofpolarbearsonland(S.Stapleton,unpublisheddata;Peacocketal.2008).In2009,wecompletedacomprehensiveaerial(helicopter‐based)surveyofFBfromAugust15toSeptember29.Polarbearsconcentrateonlandduringtheice‐freeseasoninFB;weusedacombinationofcoastal‘contour’transects(roughlyparalleltothecoastline)andinlandtransectstosurveymainlandportionsofFBandallverylargeislands(islands>35kminwidthsuchasPrinceCharlesandCoatesislands).Duringcoastaltransects,weflewapproximately200minlandoftheshoreline,andcountedbearsouttoabout500montheinlandsideoftheaircraft,thussamplingaswathofabout700m.Becausepolarbearsgenerallyconcentratealongtheshoreduringthelatesummer,inlandtransectswereorientedperpendiculartothiscoastaldensitygradient(Bucklandetal.2001).Wefurtherdividedthestudyareaintomultiplestratabasedonproximitytothecoastline:ahighdensitystratum,includinglandwithin5kmofthecoast;alowdensitystratum,includingland5–15kmfromthenearestcoastline;andaverylowdensitystratum,includingland15–50kmfromthenearestcoastline.SatellitetelemetrydatacollectedinFoxeBasinduring2008–2009wereusedtodelineatethesestrataanddefinetheinlandextentofthestudyarea(datagatheredfromsatellite‐collaredindividualsindicatedthatFBbearsveryrarelyventuremorethan50kmfrom
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anycoast).Allinlandtransectswerespacedat10kmintervals,andweallocatedsamplingeffortsuchthattransectswereconcentratedalongthecoastandinthehigh‐densitystratum.Wesurveyedapproximately50%ofthecoastlinewithcontourtransects,andmaintainedaratioof4:2:1forinlandtransectsextending5,15,and50kminland,respectively.Forislands<35kmwide(e.g.,Rowley,Bray,andtheSpicerIslands),weextendedtransectsacrossthewidthoftheislandsandpooledtheseregionsintothe‘LargeIsland’stratum.WealsosurveyedasampleofverysmallislandsaswellasicefloesremaininginBowmanBay,nearIgloolik,andintheHeclaandFuryStraits.SurveyswereconductedfromaBell206BLong‐Rangeratanaverageairspeedof150km/hr(93mi/hr)andanabove‐groundlevel(AGL)altitudeofapproximately120m(400ft).Wewilluseacombinationoftwoapproachestoestimatethenumberofbearsthatwerenotseenwithinthesurveyedareas:sight‐resight(e.g.,McDonaldetal.1999)anddistancesampling(Bucklandetal.2001).Forsight‐resight,observersseatedinthefrontandrearoftheaircraftfunctionedasseparate,independentteams;bearscouldbeseenbythefront,back,both,orneitherteam.Comparingdetectionsmadebyoneteamversusbothteamsyieldsindividualdetectionprobabilitiesforeachteam,acombineddetectionprobabilityforbothteams(i.e.,theprobabilitythatatleastoneteamspotsabear),andthereforeanestimateofthebearspresentbutnotseenbyeitherteam.Wenotethatobserversintherearoftheaircrafthaveablindspotdirectlybeneaththehelicopter.Wesimultaneouslycollecteddatatomeasurethedistanceoffthetransectlineofeachsightingtofacilitatedistancesamplinganalyses(Bucklandetal.2001).Toobtainthesemetrics,polarbearlocationswererecordedwithaGPSandperpendiculardistancesmeasuredinaGIS(Marquesetal.2006).Sincesightingdistancesdecreasewithincreasingdistancefromtheaircraft,thenumberofbearsnotobservedatvaryingdistancesfromtheflightpathcanbeestimatedbyfittingacurve(detectionfunction)tothesightingdistances(distancesampling).Weadditionallycollecteddemographicdata,includingsexandage‐classandabodyconditionindex(Stirlingetal.2008),aswellasweatherandtopographicdata,whichmayimpactsightingprobabilities.
Duringthenearly7‐weeksurveyperiod,weflewmorethan40,000kmacrossFB(Figure6).Wesighted816polarbears,including616independent(i.e.,adultandsubadult)bears,anddocumentedameanlittersizeof1.57(0.06,SE)forCOY(Table3).Asanticipated,encounterratesweregreatestalongthecoast,onislands,andinthehighdensitystratum,althoughasubstantialnumberofbearswerealsodetectedinthelowandverylowdensityinlandstrata(Tables5and6;Figures7–9).Weexpectthatthe‘inland’bearsightingswillmakeasignificantcontributiontotheoverallpopulationestimategiventheexpansiveinteriorofFB(Aarsetal.2009).Weadditionallyrecorded100bearsontheverysmall,offshoreislandsand4individualsonicefloes.Thedistributionofpolarbearsightingdistancesfromthetransectlinesuggestthatwewillbeabletoobtainarobustdetectionfunctionforthedistancesamplinganalyses(Figure10).PopulationanalyseswillincludecomparisonamongmultipleanalyticaltechniquessuchasMultipleCovariateDistanceSampling(Aarsetal.2009)andintegrativeproceduressuchasMark‐RecaptureDistanceSampling(Laakeetal.2008).Thesemethods,respectively,facilitate
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theinclusionofvariablesthatmayaffectdetectionprobabilitiesandaccountforsituationsinwhichthedetectionprobabilityofanimalslocatedonthetransectlineis<1.Wewillalsoevaluatetheutilityandprecisionofestimatesderivedsolelyfromperpendicular,inlandtransectsversusestimatesderivedfromacombinationofcoastalcontourtransectsandinlandtransects.WewillobtainapopulationestimateforFBinthespringof2010willrecommendtechniquemodificationsforthe2010aerialsurveyinFB.ThefinalFBestimatewillbecomprisedofseparateestimatesofbearsresidingalongthecoast,furtherinland,onlargeislands,onsmalloffshoreislands,andonicefloes.
AsourpreviouspilotresearchonSouthamptonIslandsuggested(S.Stapleton,unpublisheddata;Peacocketal.2008),thelatesummerdistributionofbearswashighlyclumpedandconcentratedalongthecoastin2009(Figures7–9).WenotethatFBpolarbearsshowsomeevidenceofsex‐andage‐classsegregation,andwehypothesizethatthisbehavior,combinedwiththelatesummermovementoficearoundFB,aresignificantdeterminantsofpolarbeardistributiononland.WewillusepolarbearlocationsinaGIS‐basedanalysistofurtherevaluateparameterspotentiallyimpactingbeardistributionandsegregation,includingseaice(usingremotesensingdataobtainedfromtheCanadianIceService),proximitytothecoastline,proximitytocommunities,andtopography.Thesedatawillhelptospatiallystructurefutureaerialsurveyresearchandalsomayhelpidentifypotentialhotspotsforhuman‐polarbearconflict.AdditionalresearchinFBduring2010willbecriticaltothecontinueddevelopmentandrefinementoftheaerialsurveytechnique,toexaminetheconsistencyofpopulationestimatesderivedfromthismethod,andtofurtherevaluatethefactorsaffectingthedistributionofpolarbearsduringtheice‐freeseason.AlldataandresultsfromtheFBaerialsurveywillbeincorporatedinS.Stapleton’sPh.D.dissertation.II. HabitatEcology
ThissectiondescribesprogressonanalysisoficehabitatchangeinFoxeBasinandnorthernHudsonBay,andpolarbearhabitatecologyandmovementstudiesfromthe2007and2008collaringefforts.Wealsoprovidesomepreliminaryinformationoninitialmovementsofbearscollaredintheautumnof2009.
Throughout,wehavedefinedtheseasonsasfollows:open‐water(August–October),freeze‐up(November–December),winter(January–March),spring(April‐May)andbreak‐up(June‐July).Allseasonsbutspringreflectseaicephenology;springisthemainringedsealpuppingseason.
ChangeinpolarbearhabitatinFoxeBasinWecompletedanalysesofseaiceconcentrationandavailablepolarbearhabitatintheFoxeBasinpolarbearpopulationareaforthetimeperiod1979–2004(SahanatienandDerocher2007).Monthly(October–June)seaiceconcentrationmaps,derivedfromsatelliteimages,werereclassifiedtofourpolarbearhabitatclassesusingArcGIS:seaiceclass1(0–30%oropen
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water),seaiceclass2(30–60%orveryopenice),seaiceclass3(60–85%oropenice)andseaiceclass4(85–100%orclosedice).Theareaofeachseaicehabitatclasswascalculatedbymonthandyear.Overtime,leastsquaresregressionanalysisshowedsignificantdeclinesoverthe26yearsinthetotalareaofavailablehabitatofseaiceclasses3and4inNovember,December,MayandJune.Further,meanmonthlyairtemperaturewassignificantlycorrelatedwithamountofavailableseaicehabitatinOctober,NovemberandDecember.LandscapemetricswerecalculatedusingFRAGSTATS(McGarigaletal.2002)toassessfragmentationofpolarbearseaicehabitat.Duringthestudyperiod,thenumberofpatchesofallseaicehabitatclassesincreasedandthemeanpatchsizeofseaiceclasses3and4decreasedinNovember,December,January,MayandJune.Overall,availablepolarbearhabitat(seaiceclasses3and4)inFoxeBasinduringfallandspringdecreasedandbecameincreasinglyfragmented.Thishabitatfragmentationanalysiswillbeupdatedtoinclude2005–2009seaicedataandpreparedforpublicationin2010.TheseresultswillbeincludedinV.Sahanatien’sPh.D.thesis.HabitatSelectionWeareinvestigatingseasonalhabitatselectionofpolarbearsinFBusingacombinationofsatelliteimagery,seaicemapsandpolarbearlocationinformationtodevelopspatial,predictiveResourceSelectionModels(RSM).Theanalyseswillbuildonpreviousunderstandingandapproachestomodelingpolarbearhabitatselection(Arthuretal.1996b,Fergusonetal.2000,Mauritzenetal.2003,Wiigetal.2003,Durneretal.2009).Polarbearhabitatselectionwillbestudiedusingahierarchicalapproach;landscapescale(coarse)or2nd‐orderandatthefeaturescale(fine)or3rd‐order(Johnson1980,Durneretal.2009).Habitatselectionwillbestudiedusingtheuse‐availabilityapproachandRSMsofindividualbearswillbeestimated(Manleyetal.2000).Habitatselectionoffamilygroupstatus,sex,andage‐classwillbecomparedbyyear,monthandseason.Seasonaldefinitionsaretobedeterminedandwillbebasedonthetimingoftheseaicecycleandringedseal(Phocahispida)lifehistoryinFB.LandscapeScaleHabitatSelectionSecond‐orderhabitatselectionmodeldevelopmentwillusediscretechoiceanalysis,theapproachusedforspeciesthatexperiencechanginghabitatavailability(Arthuretal.1996).Discretechoiceanalysisisappropriatebecausepolarbearseaicehabitatisdynamic,undergoingtheannualcycleoffreeze‐upandbreak‐up,aswellas,beinginfluencedbycurrentsandtides.FBisaparticularlydynamicsystem,withcontinuouslymovingiceoccupyingcentralFoxeBasinandHudsonStrait.Itisnotreasonabletousesingleorevenseasonalseaicehabitatmaps,astheavailablehabitatchangesonafastertemporalscale.WeareusingweeklyseaicechartsproducedbytheCanadaIceService(http://ice‐glaces.ec.gc.ca/app/WsvPageDsp.cfm).Theresolutionofthechartsisapproximately35x35km.
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Polarbearlocationsforeachtimeperiodwillbeintersectedwithseaicechartsandassociatedseaiceattributeinformation.Attributedataincludeinformationoniceconditions:totaliceconcentration;partialiceconcentration;stageofdevelopment(proxyforicethickness);andicefloesize.Wewillalsoincludeseaicehabitattypesasvariables:openwater;icefree;bergywater(icebergs(inHudsonStraitonly)andsmalllow‐densityicefloes);andfastice.Additionalattributevariablesincludedinmodelsare:distancetoland;distancetolandfastice;andoceandepth.Theseattributeswillbeusedasthechoicesetofhabitatvariablesavailabletothepolarbears.Wewillthencomparetheusedhabitatchoicesetswithavailablehabitatchoicesetstodeterminehabitatselection.Theavailablehabitatchoicesetswillbegeneratedbyintersectingrandompointsontheseaicechartswithinaselectedradiusaroundtheactualbearlocation.Herewepresentanexploratoryanalysisofthehabitatusebyfemalepolarbearscollaredin2007.Nostatisticsarepresented,astheseanalysesaremerelyexploratorytofirstunderstandbasicaspectsofhabitatuseofpolarbearsinFB;finalanalyseswillbepresentedwithinthestatisticalframeworkofRSM.Theinformationpresentedhereispooleddatafrom13femalepolarbearswithcubs.Wedefinedavailablehabitatastheseaicehabitattypesandtheirrelativeproportionat10randomlocationswithina25‐kmbufferofeachbearlocation.Wedefinedusedhabitatastheseaicetypeateachbearlocation.Ingeneral,wefoundsomeevidenceofhabitatselection,asused‐habitatinsomecasesexceedsavailable‐habitat.Withsubsequentmoredetailedanalysisdescribedabove,wewilldetermineishabitatselectionoccursorifthebearssimplyuseseaicehabitataccordingtoitsavailability.InOctober,collaredfemalepolarbearsmovedontotheseaiceassoonasitwasavailableandmadeuseoflowerconcentrationsofseaice(50–70%)aswellashigherconcentrations(90–100%).Astimeprogressedthebearsshiftedtheirusetohigherconcentrationsofseaiceuntilwinterwhenallusedlocationswerein100%iceconcentration.Inspring,100%iceconcentrationwasusedmostoften(Figure11).Thereappearstobepreferencefordifferenticethicknessdependingonmonth(Figure12).InNovember,seaiceof10–15cmthicknessisusedingreaterproportionthatavailable,inDecemberandJanuary30–70cmisusedsimilarly.InFebruaryandMarch,thefemalepolarbearsbegantousethickerice(>120cm).Inspring,habitatusefocusedalmostexclusivelytoseaiceof10‐15cminthickness.Earlyinthefallpolarbearsusedsmallfloes(20–500mindiameter),thenshiftedtomedium(0.5–2.0km)andvast(>2km)floesasthesefloesizesbecameavailable(Figure13).Inwinterwhentheseascapewasdominatedbyvastfloestherewassomeuseofmediumfloes,indicatingsomehabitatselection.ThispatternedcontinuedinAprilandMay;inJuneandJulytherewasuseoflandfasticeandsmallfloes,aswellasvastfloes.FeatureFineScaleHabitatSelectionTodevelopbetterunderstandingofclimatechangeeffectsonpolarbearpopulationsitisimportanttoquantifyfinescalehabitatselectionandtherelationshipofpolarbearsmovementstoseaicestructure.Greaterknowledgeoffinescaleseaicehabitatwillguidedevelopmentofregionalscalehabitatmodels.
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Ithasbeenhypothesized(Stirlingetal.1993,Stirling1997)andgenerallyacceptedthatlinearandopenwaterseaicefeatures(polynyas,leads,ridgesandlandfasticeedge)areimportanthabitatforpolarbears.Theactualuseofandsignificanceofthesehabitatfeatureshasnotbeenwellstudiedbecauseoflogisticalandtechnologicalchallenges.Forexample,polynyas,unless>650km²,andleadsarenotdetectableonseaicechartsandconcentrationmaps.Todatetwotypesofbasemapshavebeenusedtostudypolarbearhabitatandmovements:theCanadianIceService(CIS)andNationalIceService(NIC)charts(Fergusonetal.2000,BarberandIacozza2004,Durneretal.2004)andSSM/Iimagery(Mauritzenetal.2003,Wiigetal.2003,Durneretal.2009).Distancemetricstoicefloeedge(landfastorfloating)havebeenusedinsomeofthesestudiesbutmoredetailedinvestigationoficestructurehasnotbeenpossibleduetotheresolutionofthebasemaps.Syntheticapertureradar(SAR)satelliteimageryisanappropriatealternatebasemapforpolarbearhabitatandmovementresearchbecauseitisavailableyearround(includingduringdarkseasonsandincloudyconditions).Itisofparticularutilityinpolarbearmovementandhabitatresearchbecauseitisofhighresolution(8–150m),permittingdetectionoffinescalefeaturessuchaspolynyas,leads,floesize,andseaicetexture(ridging,floes)(Figures14–15).TodatetherehasbeenlittleuseofSARinhabitatstudiesoficedependentspecies,withtheexceptionofringedseals(Nichols1999)buttherebeenstudiesusingSARforwildlifehabitatassessmentofotheranimals(Taftetal.2003,Bergenetal.2007,VanderWaletal.2005)Wecompletedapreliminaryanalysisassessingthecomplexityofseaicehabitatusedbythreeadultfemalepolarbearscollaredintheautumnof2008inFBtoassesstheappropriatenessandapplicabilityofourproposedmethod(Sahanatienetal.2009).WeusedEnviSatASARimageryofHudsonStraitforDecember25,28,and312008;January01,13,16,22,19;February06,13,17,20,23,and26;andMarch02,and08,2009.WeusedENVIimageanalysissoftwaretopreparetheimagesthatwereexportedtoArcGIS.InArcGIStheimageswerereclassifiedtoreflecthabitatcomplexityusingamovingwindowanalyses.Theneighbourhoodwas7x7pixels,whichwasequivalenttoanareaof525x525m.Eachpixelwasassignedacomplexityvalue.Habitatcomplexityisanindexoficesurfacetextureorroughness,whichinturnisaproductoficefloesize,theamountandsizeoficeridgesandtherelativeproportionofopenwater,fastice,newiceandfirstyearice.Themovingwindowresultedineachpixelbeingreclassifiedandbeingassignedacomplexityvalue.Complexityvaluesrangedfrom0to3,500with,3,500beingthemostcomplex.Polarbearlocationswerethenintersectedwiththeappropriateimageandhabitatcomplexityinformationrecordedatthatlocation.Thetestanalysiscompletedshowedthatthesefemalepolarbearsusedlowercomplexityvalues(300–600)ofseaicehabitat(Figures16–18).Thisusepatternwasconsistentovertimeandbetweenbears.First,thisexploratoryanalysisindicatesthatourmethodinvolvingSARimagerycanbesuccessfullyusedtodetectyear‐roundfinescalehabitatuseandselection.Secondly,itappearsthatthethreetestcollaredbearsdidshowsomeleveloffinescalehabitatselection,astheyusedseaicehabitatwithlowercomplexitythanthemajorityofhabitat(complexityvalueofapproximately600).
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Adetailedanalysiswillbecompletedin2010usingtimecoincidentEnviSatASARandRADARSATWideSwathSARimageryandallFBpolarbearlocationdatatoquantifyfinescalehabitatselection.Eachimagewillbereclassifiedtodelineateopenwaterseaicefeatures,aseaicehabitatcomplexityindexandland.WewillthendevelopaRSMusingdistancemetrics,featureshapemetrics,andhabitatcomplexityindex.Thisworkwillresultinanewanalyticaltechniqueforinvestigatingpolarbearseaicehabitatselection.Thehabitatselectionanalysesusingthe2007–2010movementdatawillbecompletedearlyin2010andaprogressreportprepared.The3rd‐orderand2nd‐orderhabitatselectionmethodsandresultswillbepreparedforpublicationin2010.AllresultswillbeincludedinV.Sahanatien’sPh.D.thesis.FoxeBasinPolarBearSeasonalandAnnualMovements(2008–2009)
HerewereportonpolarbearmovementsforthetimeperiodAugust2008toOctober2009,basedonpolarbearscollaredduring2008.The2008collarandeartagdeploymenteffortwasreportedoninthe2008FoxeBasinPolarBearStudyReport(Peacocketal.2008).DuringAugust‐September2008,23TelonicsGenIVsatellitecollarsweredeployedonadultfemalepolarbearsandfourSpot5eartagsweredeployedonadultmalepolarbears.
Thereweretechnicalproblemswiththeautomaticrelease(CR2‐A)mechanismusedontheTelonics4satellitecollars(formoredetailsseeabove,METHODSANDRESUTS:POPULATIONDELINEATION).Of23collarsdeployedin2008,onlyonecollarcontinuestooperateatthistime(CTN618542A).InJanuary2009only7of23collarswereactive,byAprilonly4collarsandbyJuly,one.Thislevelofcollarfailuresignificantlyaffectedthevolumeofinformationthatcouldbecollectedin2008–2009,resultingintheadditionalcollardeploymentin2009.
TheGenIIIandmostGenIVsatellitecollarcollectaGPSlocationeveryfourhours,collectinguptosixlocations/day.FouroftherefurbishedGenIVsatellitecollarscollectaGPSlocationeverythreehours;collectinguptoeightlocations/day.TheGPSlocationdataaretransmittedfromthecollarstotheArgossatelliteonce/day.Thesatellitecollarlocationinformationiscodedasgoodorbadquality.Allbadlocationsareremovedfromthedatasetforeachcollaredbear.Theresultantmovementdatahadfromzerotoeightlocations/day.Thesatelliteeartagcollected3locations/day.Eachlocationisgivenanaccuracyclass(3,2,1,0,A,B),3beingmostaccurateandBleast.Weusedthebestlocationclassandnotlessthan1thatwasavailableforeachday.Onelocation/daywasusedinthemalemovementmetriccalculations.Theeartagtransmittedlocationsdaily.Locationqualitydependsonthecollaroreartagandpolarbear’spositionrelativetotheGPSsatellites.ThecollarandeartagdataisreceivedbyCLSAmerica(http://www.clsamerica.com)andemailedtotheUniversityofAlbertaeverythreedays.DataarealsosenttotheGN,WildlifeResearchSection,periodically.
Furtheranalysesofallmovementdatacollectedfrom2007‐2010willbecompletedin2010.TheseanalyseswillbeincludedinV.Sahanatien’sPh.D.dissertationandapublicationwillbeprepared.
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AdultfemalePolarBearHomeRange
AnnualandseasonalhomerangeswerecalculatedusingtheHawth’sToolminimumconvexpolygonmethodinArcMap9.3©.Annualhomeranges(2008–2009)forcollaredFBadultfemalepolarbearswithatleastfourseasons(open‐water,freeze‐up,winter,spring)ofdata(n=4)rangedfrom19,634–160,126km²(Table7).Thetwobears(CTN618542,618536)thatremainedinFoxeBasin(thewaterbody)hadsmallerhomerangesthanbearsthatusedHudsonBay(CTN618527,617098).In2008,bearswerecollaredthroughoutthenorthernregionofFB(seemapinPeacocketal.2008).The2008–2009homerangesweresmallerthanthatobservedin2007–2008(108,348–339,681km²;Peacocketal.2008).In2007–2008,allcollaredbearsbutoneusedHudsonBayduringtheseaiceperiod;in2007polarbearswerecollaredinWagerBay,RoesWelcomeSoundandSouthamptonIsland.WhilebothHudsonBayandFoxeBasinbearsuselargecentralzonesofmovingice,itispossiblethatbearsusingHudsonBayexperienceastrongerenvironmental(wind,currents,andseaicephenology)forcingaffectsthanthoseinFoxeBasin,and,thisisreflectedinthatthebearscollaredinsouthernFB(2007)hadlargerannualhomerangesizes.Prey(seal)densitiesofHudsonBayandFoxeBasinhavenotbeenquantifiedbutbothregionsareconsideredtobeveryproductive;itmaybepossiblethatpolarbearmovementsreflectrelativepreydensity,anditisknowthatringedsealdensityandavailabilityfluctuatesamongyears(StirlingandOritsland1995,Rosing‐Asvid2006).
During2008–2009,meanhomerangesizesofadultfemaleswerelargestduringfreeze‐upandbreak‐upandsmallestduringtheopen‐waterseason(Tables7and8,Figure19;noteFigures3–5arehomerangesofbearscollaredin2007and2008).Thissamepatternwasobservedin2007–2008.Themeanopen‐waterhomerangesizeofthe2009collaredbearswaslessthanthatof2008–2009,althoughtherangeofvalueswassimilar.Collaringlocationisprobablyanimportantfactorinfluencinghomerangesize,asin2009wecollaredmoreindividualsonsmallerislands(Coates,Mansel,NottinghamandtheSpicers)thatareagreatdistancefromotherislandsorthemainland,possiblyrestrictingthebearsmovements.
MalePolarBearHomeRange
Wecalculatedseasonalhomerangesofadultmalepolarbears,taggedin2008(n=4)and2009(n=1)usingtheHawth’sToolminimumconvexpolygonmethodinArcMap9.3©.Threeof4malepolarbearseasonalhomerangesweresmallerduringtheopen‐waterseasonthanduringfreeze‐up(Table9).Thisfollowsthesamepatternasadultfemalepolarbearhomerangesize,butboththerangeofsizesandmeansizeoffemalehomerangesduringeachseasonfrom2008–2009,aremuchgreaterthanformales(Figure19,Tables7,8and13,14).DespitethegenerallyacceptednotionthatmaleUrsidsrangefurtherthanfemales,thedifferencewefoundheremaybyreflectiveofadultfemaleswithcubsusinglargerareastofindappropriatehabitatpatches(forforagingneedsoravoidance),whichmaybespreadoveralargerarea.Thepurposeofthetaggingadultmaleswithsatelliteeartagswasprimarilytotesttheeffectivenessoftheeartag,nottogatherextensivedataonmalepolarbears.However,theseinterestingpreliminaryresultssuggesttheneedforfurtherresearch,anddemonstratetheeffectivenessofthistagdesign.
FemalePolarBearMovements
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WecalculatedmovementdistancesusingtheHawth’sToolmovementparametersmethodinArcMap9.3©.Movementrateswerecalculatedbydividingthedistance(km)movedbytheinterveningtime(hr)betweenlocations.Themovementsofthepolarbearsin2008–2009and2009bearsweredistinctlydifferentthanthe2007–2008.Longdistanceoverlandmovementsweremadebyfourbearsin2008–2009andfivebearsin2009(Figure20)duringtheopen‐waterseason.In2009,fivebearsswamlongdistances,upto35km,betweenislands(Figure20).Onebear(CTN618536)in2008–2009appearedtobeinatemporarydeninDecemberandJanuary(Table12).The2008–2009monthlydistancesmovedwereextremelyvariable(Table12).ThegreatestmeanmonthlydistancestravelledwereinMay,June,July(breaku‐up)andNovember(freeze‐up),and,theleastinAugustandSeptember(open‐water)(Table12,Figures3–5).Incontrast,thegreatestmonthlyratesoftravelwereinJuly,November,FebruaryandMarch(Tables9and10).Generallyrateoftravelanddistancetravelledarepositivelycorrelated,thecontraryvaluesarelikelyareflectionofthelargevariationofindividualmovementratesanddistances.Theopen‐waterdistancesandmovementratesofthebearscollaredin2009weresimilartothosein2008–2009.
Ontheseasonalbasis,themeanmovementratewaslowestduringopen‐water,withasharpincreaseatfreeze‐up(Tables9and10).Therateincreasedslightlyinwinter,decreasedinspringandthenrosetothemaximumduringbreak‐up.In2007–2008,weobservedasimilarpatternexceptthatthewintermovementratewaslessthanduringfreeze‐up.
Asin2007–2008,weobservedmovementsfromtheFoxeBasinstudyareaintoadjacentpolarbearsubpopulations(managementzones):2bearsmovedintoWH;2bearsmovedintoGBforaperiodoftime;and1bearmovedintoDS.Unfortunately,itisnotpossibletoknowiftwoofthebears(CTN617098,618538)returnedtoFoxeBasinasthecollarsfailed.
Asanexample,CTN617087wascapturedontheFoxeBasinsideofMelvillePeninsula,andwasre‐collared(CTN631694A)inasimilararea2009.Inbothyears,shefollowedaverysimilarpathbetweenFBandGB.
MalePolarBearMovements
WecalculateddistancesmovedusingtheHawth’sToolmovementparametersmethodinArcMap9.3©.Movementrateswerecalculatedbydividingthedistance(km)movedbytheinterveningtime(hr)betweenlocations.MalemeandistancesmovedforSeptember,OctoberandNovemberwerelessthanfemalerates(Tables14–16).Maleseasonalmovementrateforopen‐waterwaslessthanfreeze‐up,followingthesamepatternasthatoffemalerates.Onlyonemalebearswam;hemovedfromtheFoxePeninsulatoMillIslandandthentoSalisburyIsland,distancesofapproximately40kmeach(Figure20).
IV.InuitQuajimajatuqangitHabitatecologyWecompleted33individualinterviewsand5focusgroups(2groupsof5,3groupsof2)werecompletedinfiveFBcommunities(Kimmirut,CapeDorset,Igloolik,HallBeach,RepulseBay,and
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CoralHarbour).ItwasnotpossibletoconductinterviewsinChesterfieldInletduetoablizzardonthefirstattemptandonthesecondtriptotheKivalliqtheHTOwasnotavailable.
Wefollowedthesemi‐directedinterviewmethodinwhichasetofquestionsguidedbutdidnotlimitthediscussions(Grenier1998,Huntington2000).WeusedInuktitut‐Englishtranslatorsinallbutfiveinterviews.Interviewsweredigitallyrecordedinaudioandvideoformats.Englishtranscriptionsofallinterviewshavebeencompleted.Inuktituttranscriptionsareinprogress.CopiesofallaudioandvideorecordingshavebeenmadeandarecurrentlyheldbyV.Sahanatien,UniversityofAlberta.Inuitknowledgewasalsorecordedspatially;importantseasonalhabitatforpolarbearswasmarkedonregionalmaps.Themapswillbedigitizedandhabitatattributeinformationattachedtoeachpointandpolygon.
CopiesofallmaterialswillbedepositedforarchivingattheIgloolikResearchCentre.Copiesofeachperson’sinterviewwillbeprovidedtothatperson.Summariesofeachcommunity’stranscripts,mapsandaselectionofvideotapedinterviewswillbecreatedanddistributedtotheHTO.AsummaryreportwillbecreatedanddistributedtoallFoxeBasincommunities,Inuitwildlifemanagementorganizations,NWMB,ParksCanadaandNunavutDOE.ThesummaryreportwillincludeallhistoricalinformationobtainedfromreviewingexistingInuitoralhistoryreports,otherreportsanddatabasesandpublishedinformationonInuitknowledgeofpolarbearhabitatanddistribution.
WeareusingInvivosoftwaretocompletecontentanalysisoftheinterviews.Contentanalysisisexpectedtobefinishedearlyin2010.Atthistimeitappearsthattherewillbesufficientpolarbearseaicehabitatinformationtocreateaspringhabitatmodel.TheframeworkforusingIQinhabitatmodelingisthatbasedonthepremisethatInuitknowledge(traditionalecologicalknowledge)isexpertknowledge(Berkes1999)thuscanbeusedinmodels.Expertknowledgeandopinionhavebeenusedtocreatemodelsinmedicine,transportation,economicsandrecentlyinecology(e.g.imageanalyses,populationstatus,speciesdistribution).SpecifictothisresearchithasbeendemonstratedthatInuithavesignificantseaiceknowledgeandexpertise(e.g.Oozevaetal.2004,LaidlerandElee2008,Laidleretal.2009).Thehabitatmodelingapproachhasnotbeenselectedatthistimebutthereareseveralapproachestochoosefrom:fuzzylogic(Mackinson2001,Pattersonetal2007,PeloquinandBerkes2009),delphi(GrechandMarch2008,O’Neilletal.2009),habitatsuitabilityindex/resourceselection(JohnsonandGillingham2004),Bayesianinference(Martinetal.2007,Wilsonetal.2009)andfrequentistinference(LeleandAllen2006,Hurleyetal2009).TheseresultswillbepreparedforpublicationandincludedinV.Sahanatien’sPh.D.thesis.AerialsurveyWealsoattemptedtogatherinformationfromtheHTO’sandcommunitymemberstoassistinthedesignoftheFoxeBasinaerialsurveyandtoevaluatetheagreementbetweenlocalknowledgeandscienceregardingsummertimepolarbeardistribution.Inmid‐summer2009,wesentregionalmapstoHTO’sandCO’s,requestingthathuntersandeldersidentifyareasofhighpolarbearconcentrationsduringthelatesummer,aswellasabriefquestionnaireassessinganindividual’sseasonalactivities.Wereceivedcompleteddistributionmapsfrom2of7
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communities(KimmirutHTOandtheIgloolikCO).Anadditionalcommunity(CoralHarbour)indicatedthattheentireregionshouldbesurveyed,andanimpromptudiscussionwithanindividualinChesterfieldInlethelpedtoidentifyregionalpolarbearconcentrations.Weinitiallyplannedtousedistributiondatatostratifytheaerialsurveysamplingeffort;however,becauseanindividual’sinterpretationofhighandlowdensityareaisrelativetotheirparticularcommunityandbecauseoflowparticipationoftheHTO’s,wewereunabletostratifytheaerialsurveyin2009withInuitKnowledge.Assuch,thisapplicationofInuitKnowledgeacrosstheFoxeBasinsubpopulationwillbechallenging.Wewillassessnewwaystointegratelocalknowledgeandscienceintheaerialsurveyandcontinuetopromotelocalparticipationintheaerialsurveyfieldwork.ThecompleteddistributionmapswillbedigitizedandsubmittedtotheIgloolikOralHistoryProjectattheIgloolikResearchCentre(NunavutResearchInstitute)forarchiving.Datawillbeincorporatedintothesummaryreportsforcommunities,managementauthorities,andagenciesasappropriate.ApplicationofResultsTheprimaryresultswillinclude,forthefirsttime,thegeographicdelineationoftheFBpolarbearsubpopulationboundaries; the first subpopulationestimate since1994;developmentof anewnon‐invasivemethodofpopulationestimationofpolarbearsinaseasonal‐icepopulation;forthefirst time explicitly incorporating IQ into habitat selectionmodels (and predictive models) forpolarbears;comprehensivelycollectingIQonpolarbearhabitatuse;developinganewmethodoffinescalehabitatselectionforpolarbears,whichincludesfinerscaleyear‐roundresolutionofsatelliteimagery;anddevelopmentofapolarbearRSMforFB.Scientific results will be published in peer‐reviewed literature, at scientific conferences and ininterimreports.Datacanbeusedtoinformmanagementdecisionsonamountanddistributionofharvestandtopredictchangesinhabitatuse,andtheconsequencesof,asclimatewarms.PosterPresentationsSahanatien,V.,Derocher,A.E.,andPeacock,E.2008.Polarbearmovementsinrelationtoseaicestructure,FoxeBasin,NU.ArcticNet–ArcticChangeConference,QuebecCity.
Sahanatien,V.2006.IncorporatingInuitknowledgeinpolarbearresearch.ArcticNetAnnualScienceMeeting.Victoria.
OralPresentationsSahanatien, V. 2007. Sea icescapes and polar bear habitat, Foxe Basin, Nunavut (1979‐2004).October2007:AssociationofCollegesandUniversitiesNorthernStudies(ACUNS),Saskatoon,SK
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Sahanatien,V.,DerocherA.E.2007. Sea icescapesandpolarbearhabitat, FoxeBasinNunavut(1979‐2004). Sixteenth International Bear Research and Management Conference, Monterrey,MexicoSahanatien,V.2008.Polarbearhabitatfragmentation,seaicescapesandclimatechange.ACUNS–AnnualGeneralMeeting,Ottawa.
Sahanatien,V.,Derocher,A.E.,Peacock,EandHaas,C.2009.SARandPolarBearSeaIceHabitat.MarineMammalSociety18thBiennialConference,QuebecCity.
Sahanatien,V.,Peacock,E.,andDerocher,A.E.2009.Polarbearhabitatinaseasonalseaiceecozone.ACUNS–CommunitiesofChangeConference,Whitehorse.
Sahanatien,V.,Derocher,A.E.andPeacock,E.2009.BeyondMapsandStories:Wildlifehabitatmodelingusingtraditionalecologicalknowledge.9thWorldWildernessCongress,Merida,Mexico.
FutureProfessionalPresentationsAsanalysesarefinalized,E.Peacock,S.StapletonandV.Sahanatienwillpresenttheseresultsatscientific conferences including International Conference on Bear Research and Management,BiennialConferenceoftheSocietyofMarineMammals,WildlifeSociety,ArcticNet,ACUNSandEcologicalSocietyofAmerica.DatawillalsobepresentedatthePolarBearTechnicalCommitteeMeetingsandattheworkingmeetingsofthePolarBearSpecialistGroup.REPORTINGTOCOMMUNITIES/RESOURCEUSERSCommunity consultation effortswere sharedbetween theUniversity of Alberta and theGN in2007.In2008and2009,theGNconductedconsultations.Maps of polar bear movements, the 2007, 2008 and current interim reports and posters (FBAerialsurvey,FBpolarbearproject,FBInuitKnowledgeStudy)havebeensenttoallHTOs.CompletedConsultations
• RepulseBay– HuntersandTrappersOrganization(February2007,February2008,February2009,
April2009)– Grades9‐12
• ChesterfieldInlet– HuntersandTrappersOrganization(February2007,February2008,April2009)
• CoralHarbour
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– HuntersandTrappersOrganization(April2007,July2007,February2007,February2008,April2009)
– Radiocall‐inshow(February2008)– PublicMeeting(April2009)
• RankinInlet– HunterandTrappersOrganization(February2007,February2008)– KivalliqInuitAssociation–Lands(February2007,February2008,February2009)– NunavutTunngavikIncorporated,Wildlife(February2007,February2008)– SilaLodgeCo‐Owners(July2007)– NunavutWildlifeSymposium(allHTOs,RWOs,NWMBandNTIattended),March
2009• Igloolik
– Hunters and Trappers Organizations (May 2007, May 2008, November 2008,January2009)
• HallBeach– HuntersandTrappersOrganizations(May2007,May2009)
• CapeDorset– HuntersandTrappersOrganizations(May2007,March2009,April2009)
• Kimmirut– HuntersandTrappersOrganizations(May2007,January2009,May2009,August
2009)– Publicmeeting(January2009)
• BakerLake– HuntersandTrappersOrganization(emailedandmailedinformationonlyin2006,
2007and2008)• Ukkusiksalik Park Management Committee (December 2006, February 2007, January
2008)• QikiqtalluqWildlifeBoard(November2007,November2008)
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
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Table1.PolarbearsimmobilizedandhandledinFoxeBasin,August–October2009.Sex Adult Subadult 2‐YR* Yearling* COY TotalFemale 25 1 3 5 9 43Male 2 4 9 9 24Total 27 1 7 14 18 67*Accompaniedbymother.Notenoteethweretakenfrombearsaccompaniedbymothers,thus2YRandYearlingrepresentfieldages.
Table2.Averageandstandarderrorsofbodymetrics(cm)ofpolarbearscapturedduringtheFoxeBasinPolarBearProject2007–2009.Samplesizesareinparentheses. Adult Subadult 2YR* Yearling* COYStraight‐linebodylength Female 193.54±1.35(66) 170.00±4.00(2) 160.17±7.13(3) 158.26±5.50(10) 120.53±1.19(26)Male 230.18±2.65(11) Nonecaptured 163.40±9.70(6) 159.86±3.67(17) 119.90±2.24(27)Zygomaticbreadth Female 20.80±0.18 17.35±0.65 15.9±0.45 16.29±0.33 13.65±0.12Male 26.15±0.69 Nonecaptured 18±0.38 17.26±0.26 13.89±0.10Axillarygirth Female 126.10±2.38 115.80±4.30 107.87±16.75 94.22±4.41 77.42±1.60Male 179.55±9.05 116.95±3.58 106.16±2.56 82.55±2.07
Table3.Littersizes(SE)ofobservedfamilygroupsduringaerialsurveysorcaughttodeploycollarsin2007–2009.Yearandmethod COY Yearling* 2YR* Numberoflitters2007captured 1.13(0.13) 1.60(0.40)** 132008captured 1.63(0.13) 1.56(0.18)** 252009captured 1.64(0.15) 2.00(0.22) 1.40(0.25) 232009observed 1.57(0.06) 1.66(0.09) 1.44(0.13) 127*fieldages;noteethpulled.**pooled2YRandYearlinglittersbecauseofsmallsamplesize
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
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Table4.Meanandstandarderrorsofaxillarygirthincentimeters(samplesize)ofcapturedCOYandencumberedadultfemalepolarbearsinFB,2007–2009.Year COY AdultfemaleswithCOY AdultfemaleswithYRL Adultfemaleswith2YR2007 81.56±6.03(9) 121.25±3.09(8) 122.33±1.45(3) 128.50±9.5(2)2008 81.17±1.44(26) 133.04±3.01(16) 124.86±5.16(7) 117.75±5.25(2)2009 77.06±1.71(18) 114.17±11.39(11) 126.66±2.68(7) 126.44±5.14(5)
Table5.Polarbearobservations,categorizedbysex,age,andsightinglocation,documentedduringtheFoxeBasinaerialsurvey,AugustandSeptember2009.Individualswhichwereseenfrommultipletransects(n=44)areincludedinallrelevantsightinglocationcategories.Bearsobservedoninlandtransectsbetweenpaired5km(n=17)andpaired15km(n=4)inlandtransectsarepresentedintheInland5‐15kmcategory.Note:donotchangefigurestoproportionsofbearsseenindifferenthabitats,ashabitatsweresampledinastratifiedmanner.
Coast Inland<5km Inland5‐15km Inland15‐50km LargeIslandsSmallIslandsandWater
IceFloesFerryand
OffTransect
Total
Males 123 48 5 3 33 45 2 20 279
Females 56 17 7 9 8 13 2 18 130
FamilyGroups* 127(49) 60(23) 50(20) 0 50(20) 34(14) 0 26(9) 347(135)
Subadults 42 19 2 0 13 14 0 10 100
Other** 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 4
Total 348 144 64 12 108 106 4 74 860
*Totalbears(Numberoffamilygroups)**Unidentifiedindependentbears
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
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Table6.Polarbearencounterrates(encountersper1,000km),categorizedbysex,age‐class,andstratum,documentedduringtheFoxeBasinaerialsurvey,August–September,2009.Individualswhichwereseenfrommultipletransects(n=44)areincludedinallrelevantsightinglocationcategories.Bearsobservedoninlandtransectsbetweenpaired5km(n=17)andpaired15km(n=4)inlandtransects,aswellastherespectivetransectdistances,arepresentedintheInland5–15kmcategory.SeeFigure9forgraphicalrepresentationofthesedata.
Kmflown* Males FemalesFamilygroups(individuals)
Familygroups(groups)
Subadults Other** Total
Coast 7,168 17.2 7.8 17.7 6.8 5.9 0 48.6
Inland<5km 4,936 9.7 3.4 12.1 4.7 3.8 0 29.2
Inland5‐15km 5,748 0.9 1.2 8.7 3.5 0.3 0 11.1
Inland15‐50km 2,415 1.2 3.7 0 0 0 0 5.0
Largeislands 1,280 25.8 6.2 39.1 15.6 10.2 3.1 84.4
Total 21,547* 12.9 6.0 16.1 6.3 4.6 0.2 39.9***
*Excludesallferriesandsmallislandsurveyflights**Unidentifiedindependentbears***Totalencounterrateforindividuals
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Table7.Area(km2)ofindividualseasonalhomeranges(MCP)ofsatellitecollaredfemalepolarbears,FoxeBasin2008–2009.CTN Open‐water Freeze‐up Winter Spring Break‐up Annual618542 1076 44320 37359 27129 21391 113483618527 6251 44831 17101 11936 30452 133443618536 7509 297 5695 2393 19634617098 1157 50544 16388 8286 160126618544 3388 21851 9971 618538 4042 23763 28209 618530 11117 1917 3747 618534 41451 6210 617090 13807 21070 618543 9215 30518 617097 574 9259 617087 9422 980 618882 2827 6137 618541 13074 618537 5375 618532 876 618526 2556 618529 261
Table8.Meanarea(km²)ofseasonalhomeranges(MCP)ofsatellitecollaredfemalepolarbears,FoxeBasin2008–2009. Open‐water Freeze‐up Winter Spring Break‐up Annual
Mean 7443 20131 16926 12436 25922 106671
SE 2251 4964 4613 5277 4531 30545
N 18 13 7 4 2 4
Minimum 261 297 3747 2393 21391 19634
Maximum 41451 50544 37369 27129 30452 160126
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Table9.Meanmonthlymovementrate(km/hr)ofsatellitecollaredfemalepolarbears,FoxeBasin2008–2009. August September October November December January February March April May June July
Mean 0.37 0.37 0.41 1.12 1.04 1.07 1.11 1.08 0.88 0.61 0.56 2.26
SE 0.11 0.07 0.05 0.21 0.20 0.23 0.24 0.17 0.20 0.37 0.32
N 13 22 18 14 13 9 7 6 4 4 3 1
Minimum 0.01 0.02 0.11 0.02 0.00 0.01 0.34 0.50 0.48 0.44 1.17
Maximum 1.34 1.34 0.84 2.74 2.64 2.01 1.95 1.59 1.38 1.93 2.27
Table10.Meanseasonalmovementrate(km/hr)ofsatellitecollaredfemalepolarbears,FoxeBasin2008–2009. Open‐water Freeze‐up Winter Spring Break‐up
Mean 0.38 1.10 1.13 1.03 1.69
SE 0.05 0.20 0.19 0.23 0.45
N 22 13 7 4 2
Minimum 0.11 0.07 0.45 0.45 1.24
Maximum 1.08 2.40 1.66 1.47 2.14
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Table11.Meanmonthlydistances(km)ofsatellitecollaredfemalepolarbears,FoxeBasin2008–2009. August September October November December January February March April May June July
Mean 117 181 236 572 482 511 484 530 365 563 643 832
SE 31 32 28 103 95 107 91 71 74 137 158
N 7 22 18 13 11 9 7 6 4 4 3 1
Minimum 26 11 64 18 0 4 208 320 185 312 452
Maximum 268 558 429 1140 1302 1031 918 757 512 950 957
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
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Table12.Monthlydistances(km)movedbysatellitecollaredfemalepolarbears,FoxeBasin2008–2009.CTN August September October November December January February March April May June July
618542 52 351 848 1302 1031 918 585 512 950 957 832
618527 383 95 882 285 405 367 757 305 454 521
618536 529 266 73 0 4 401 687 457 535 452
617098 11 171 845 577 423 208 320 185 312
618544 46 221 818 517 481 304 389
618538 101 61 194 319 474 850 635 443
618530 162 247 187 18 418 595 552
618534 117 180 429 201 331 666
617090 558 359 775 371 146
618543 268 172 77 691 499
617097 32 100 64 699 526
617087 269 124 124
618882 44 286 1140
618541 53 344
618537 120 335
618532 103 370
618526 187 299
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
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CTN August September October November December January February March April May June July
618529 26 59 71
618535 113 219
618540 92
618531 223
618533 279
(Table12continued)
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Table13.Seasonalhomerange(MinimumConvexPolygon)size(km²)ofsatelliteear‐taggedmalepolarbears,FoxeBasin2008–2009.ArgosID Open‐water Freeze‐up84561 3752 1395584562 1817 274984563 2443 190884564 1770 565884565 8028 MeanSENMinimumMaximum
35621173517708028
606727494190813955
Table14.Monthlydistances(km)movedbysatelliteear‐taggedmalepolarbears,FoxeBasin2008–2009.ArgosID September October November December84561 340 55 554 84562 170 142 244 84563 99 159 52 23884564 55 205 84565 96 146 MeanSENMinimumMaximum
15250555340
14124555205
284146352554
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31
Table15.Monthlymovementrate(km/hr)ofsatelliteear‐taggedmalepolarbears,FoxeBasin2008–2009.ArgosID September October November December84561 0.55 0.14 1.05 84562 0.37 0.54 0.47 0.1484563 0.14 0.20 0.10 0.4884564 0.08 0.25 84565 0.16 0.25 MeanSENMinimumMaximum
0.260.0950.080.55
0.280.0750.140.54
0.540.2830.101.05
0.310.1720.140.48
Table16.Seasonalmovementrate(km/hr)ofsatelliteear‐taggedmalepolarbears,FoxeBasin2008–2009.ArgosID Open‐water Freezeup84561 0.36 0.8584562 0.45 0.3584563 0.17 0.3084564 0.14 84565 0.23 MeanSENMinimumMaximum
0.270.0650.140.45
0.500.1830.300.85
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
32
Figure1.BoundariesofCanadianpolarbearmanagementzonesorsubpopulations,includingFoxeBasin(FB).
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
33
Figure2.Satellitecollars(pinktriangles)andtag(bluestar)deployedonpolarbearsinFoxeBasin,August–October2009.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
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Figure3.Homeranges(MinimumConvexPolygons)ofpolarbearscollaredin2007and2008duringtheopen‐waterseasoninFoxeBasin.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
35
Figure4.Homeranges(MinimumConvexPolygons)ofpolarbearscollaredin2007and2008duringthefreeze‐upseasoninFoxeBasin.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
36
Figure5.Homeranges(MinimumConvexPolygons)ofpolarbearscollaredin2007and2008duringthewinterseasoninFoxeBasin.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
37
Figure6.TransectsflownduringtheaerialsurveyforpolarbearsintheFoxeBasinsubpopulation,August–September2009.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
38
Figure7.Distributionof816polarbearsseenofvarioussex,age‐classesandreproductive‐statusduringthe2009aerialsurveyintheFoxeBasinsubpopulation.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
39
Figure8.Distributionofpolarbearsseenofvarioussex,ageandreproductive‐statusduringtheaerialsurveyonSouthHamptonandCoatesislandsinSeptember2009.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
40
Figure9.DataasinTable6.Thestandardizedencounterratesofpolarbeargroupsinrelationtothecoastonthemainlandandlargeislands(>35kminwidth)inFoxeBasinduringthefall‐timeaerialsurveyin2009.
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
Coast Inland<5km Inland5‐15km Inland15‐50km
Encoun
terratesofbearsorfamilygroup
s(p
er100
0km
)
Coast‐‐‐‐‐‐‐>Inland
Adultmales
Adultunencumberedfemales
Familygroups
Subadults
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
41
a.
b.Figure10.Distancedetectionfunctionordistributionofperpendiculardistances(i.e.,fromthetransectline)ofpolarbearssightedduringa.FoxeBasinaerialsurveyinlandsampling,AugustandSeptember2009.Notethatthisfiguredoesnotincludeindividualssightedduringoverlandferriesandb.fordistance‐samplingaerialsurveystudyofpolarbearsintheBarentsSeaforcomparison(Aarsetal.2009);theircoefficientofvariation(CV)was13%.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
0‐175 175‐350350‐525525‐700700‐875 875‐1050
1050‐1225
1225‐1400
1400‐1575
>1575
Observa\o
nsofp
olarbeargrou
ps
Distancefromtransect(m)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
0‐200 200‐400 400‐600 600‐800 800‐10001000‐12001200‐1400 >1400
Observera\o
nsofp
olarbeargrou
ps
Distancefromtransect(m)
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
42
a.b.c.Figure11.Totalconcentrationoficethatwasavailable(solidbars)andused(hashedbars)bythirteenadultfemalepolarbearswithcollarsfrom2007to2008inthea.fall;b.winter;andc.spring.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
43
a.b.c.Figure12.Icethicknessthatwasavailable(solidbars)andused(hashedbars)bythirteenadultfemalepolarbearswithcollarsfrom2007to2008inthea.fall;b.winter;andc.spring.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
44
a.b.c.Figure13.Icefloesizethatwasavailable(solidbars)andused(hashedbars)bythirteenadultfemalepolarbearswithcollarsfrom2007to2008inthea.fall;b.winter;andc.spring.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
45
Figure14.EnviSatASARimageofwesternHudsonStraitandpathsof3adultfemalepolarbearson3January2009.Whiteareasoftheimageareland.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
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Figure15.Pathofacollaredadultfemalepolarbear(2–4January2009)mappedonEnviSatASARimage(3January2009).
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
47
Figure16.AnexampleofseaicehabitatavailabletopolarbearsinHudsonStrait,29February2009.
Figure17.SeaicehabitatusedbythreecollaredfemalepolarbearswithcubsinHudsonStrait,December2008–March2009.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
48
Figure18.Dailyseaicehabitatuse,withrespecttofinescalecomplexity,bythreecollaredfemalepolarbearswithcubs,HudsonStrait,December2008–March2009.
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
49
Figure19.Area(km2)ofcollaredadultfemale(whitebars)andmale(graybars)seasonalhomeranges(MinimumConvexPolygons)betweenAugust2008andJuly2009.Samplesizesaresummer(18);freeze‐up(13);winter(7);spring(4)andbreak‐up(2)forfemales.Displayedaredatafor4males.
0
10000
20000
30000
40000
summer freezeup winter spring breakup
Area(km
2 ,SE)
Season
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
50
Figure20.Pathsoffemale(24)andmale(1,redlineonFoxePeninsula)polarbears,collaredduring2009,duringtheopen‐waterseasonandthebeginningoffreeze‐up,August–November2009.
Figure 21. Annual movements of collared Foxe Basin adult female polar bears 2007 – 2008. The heavy black line shows the Foxe Basin management zone (subpopulation).
Figure 22. Annual movements of Foxe Basin collared adult female polar bears 2008 – 2009. The heavy black line shows the Foxe Basin management zone (subpopulation).
Figure 23. The movements for 5 satellite-tagged adult male polar bears in Foxe Basin 2008 (n = 4) and
2009 (n = 1; light green). The average number of days of ear tag transmitting was 98 ± 11 (SE).
Peacocketal.–FoxeBasinPolarBears–2009
51
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Appendix1.PolarbearsaffixedwithRFIDtagsinrightearsin2008and2009,andthestatusofthosetags.ThistableshouldbeusedasreferenceforsearchingforRFIDtagsduring2010andifthesebearsareharvested,inordertounderstandretentionrateofRFIDtags.Originalnumberofbear Year
Dateofcapture Sex
Capturetype Fieldage‐class
RFIDnumber Status
X35867 2008 August‐7 F M‐CAP ADULT 98370 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetectX35900 2008 August‐15 F M‐CAP ADULT 98586 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35866 2008 August‐7 F M‐CAP ADULT 98763 Deployedin2008;Detectedin2009;onbear;noinfection
X358942008 August‐15 F M‐CAP ADULT 98986
Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009;detected,butsawnobear;likelydropped
X35921 2008 August‐27 F M‐CAP ADULT 99242 Deployedin2008;Detectedin2009;onbear;noinfectionX35885 2008 August‐14 F M‐CAP ADULT 99274 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetectX35870 2008 August‐7 F M‐CAP ADULT 99427 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35872 2008 August‐7 F M‐CAP ADULT 99618 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetectX35924 2008 August‐26 F M‐CAP ADULT 99755 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetectX35891 2008 August‐14 M M‐CAP ADULT 99811 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35876 2008 August‐11 F M‐CAP SUBAD 100435 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetectX35906 2008 August‐17 F M‐CAP ADULT 100715 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X358842008 August‐14 F M‐CAP ADULT 100883
Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009;detected,butsawnobear;likelydropped
X35877 2008 August‐11 F M‐CAP ADULT 100954 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetectX35875 2008 August‐8 F M‐CAP ADULT 101746 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35927 2008 August‐26 F M‐CAP ADULT 102098 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetectX35903 2008 August‐15 F M‐CAP ADULT 102170 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetectX35862 2008 August‐7 F M‐CAP ADULT 102210 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35917 2008 August‐25 F M‐CAP ADULT 102682 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetectX35897 2008 August‐15 F M‐CAP ADULT 102706 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetectX35892 2008 August‐14 M M‐CAP ADULT 102779 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35893 2008 August‐14 M M‐CAP ADULT 102874 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
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57
X35881 2008 August‐13 F M‐CAP ADULT 102898 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35888 2008 August‐14 F M‐CAP ADULT 102935 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35930 2008 August‐27 F M‐CAP ADULT 102955 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35935 2008 September‐5 F M‐CAP ADULT 103098 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35879 2008 August‐11 F M‐CAP ADULT 103427 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35919 2008 August‐25 F M‐CAP ADULT 103587 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35911 2008 August‐19 F M‐CAP ADULT 103794 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X358652008 August‐7 M M‐CAP ADULT 104162
Deployedin2008;HarvestedinFebruary2009;onbear;noinfection
X35914 2008 August‐19 F M‐CAP ADULT 104282 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35933 2008 September‐5 F M‐CAP ADULT 104875 Deployedin2008;Searchedin2009didnotdetect
X35952 2009 September‐3 F M‐CAP ADULT 98571 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35866 2009 August‐25 F M‐RECAP ADULT 98763 note:recapture,notadditionalRFIDtag
X35921 2009September‐13 F M‐RECAP ADULT 99242 note:recapture,notadditionalRFIDtag
X31673 2009September‐18 M M‐CAP YRL 99290 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35399 2009 September‐2 M M‐CAP ADULT 99298 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X31668 2009September‐18 F M‐CAP ADULT 100002 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X31655 2009September‐13 F M‐CAP ADULT 100147 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35397 2009 September‐2 F M‐CAP ADULT 100891 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35945 2009 September‐7 F M‐CAP ADULT 100946 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35940 2009 September‐3 F M‐CAP ADULT 100995 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35398 2009 September‐2 M M‐CAP 2YR 101034 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X31674 2009September‐19 F M‐CAP ADULT 102811 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X31649 2009 September‐8 F M‐CAP ADULT 102827 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35404 2009 August‐27 F M‐CAP ADULT 102858 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X31671 2009 September‐ F M‐CAP ADULT 102883 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
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18
X31653 2009September‐14 F M‐CAP ADULT 102890 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35407 2009 August‐28 F M‐CAP ADULT 102914 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35408 2009 August‐28 F M‐CAP 2YR 102923 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X31675 2009September‐19 F M‐CAP YRL 104275 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X31672 2009September‐18 F M‐CAP YRL 104763 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35406 2009 August‐27 M M‐CAP 2YR 104843 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35949 2009 September‐7 M M‐CAP YRL 104914 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X31650 2009 September‐8 F M‐CAP YRL 104923 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X35948 2009 September‐7 F M‐CAP ADULT 126067 Deployedin2009;Havenotsearchedfor
X31647 2009 September‐8 F M‐CAP ADULT 128395 Deployedin2009;HavenotsearchedforDeployedin2008and2009 55Searchedforasof2009 33Harvestedasof2009 1Droppedasof2009 2Known‐retainedasof2009 3