Snow Leopard Survival Strategy - Panthera

indicate that exploitative competition and interspecific
killing are of potential widespread importance for a
large number of carnivores in Africa, rather than being
restricted to a few selected carnivores highlighted in the
current literature.
Chan, S., A.V. Maksimuk and L.V Zhirnov. 1995. From
steppe to store: the trade in saiga antelope horn.
TRAFFIC Species in Danger report. Compiled by
Stephen Nash. TRAFFIC, Cambridge, UK.
This report examines the history and present use of
Saiga Antelope horn in Chinese medicine, status and
commercial harvesting of the antelope in its range states
and the trade in Saiga horn in East and Southeast Asia.
Clark, P. E., W. C. Krueger, L. D. Bryant and D.
R. Thomas. 2000. Livestock grazing effects on
forage quality of elk winter range. Journal of Range
Management 53(1):97-105.
Carefully-managed livestock grazing has been offered as
a tool to improve the forage quality of graminoids on big
game winter range. Formal testing of this theory has thus
far been done using hand clippers rather than livestock
grazing. We report winter standing reproductive culm,
crude protein, in vitro dry matter digestibility, and
standing crop responses of bluebunch wheatgrass
(Agropyron spicatum [Pursh] Scribn. & Smith), Idaho
fescue (Festuca idahoensis Elmer), and elk sedge (Carex
geyeri Boott) to late-spring domestic sheep grazing. The
study was conducted in 1993 and 1994 on a big game
winter range in the Blue Mountains of northeastern
Oregon. Sheep grazing and exclusion treatments were
applied to 20-ha plots at 3 sites on the study area.
Targeted utilization for grazed plots was 50% graminoid
standing crop removal during the boot stage of bluebunch
wheatgrass. Grazing did not influence the number of
standing reproductive culms per plant in bluebunch
wheatgrass. Crude protein and in vitro dry matter
digestibility of bluebunch wheatgrass in grazed plots
increased by 1.0 and 4.3 percentage points, respectively,
over ungrazed plots. Grazing reduced the standing crop
of bluebunch wheatgrass by 116.9 kg ha-1 DM. Standing
Idaho fescue reproductive culms decreased by 0.7 culms
plant-1 under grazing. Crude protein of Idaho fescue in
grazed plots was 1.3 percentage points greater than in
ungrazed plots. Crude protein and in vitro dry matter
digestibility responses of elk sedge were inconsistent
between years and may be related to utilization or
growth differences between years. The levels of forage
quality improvement in bluebunch wheatgrass and Idaho
fescue obtained in this study could benefit the nutritional
status of wintering Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus elaphus
nelsoni Bailey). More research is needed regarding the
effects of grazing on the winter forage quality of elk
sedge.
Conforti, V. A. and F. C. Cascelli de Azevedoa. 2003.
Local perceptions of jaguars (Panthera onca) and
pumas (Puma concolor) in the Iguaçu National Park
area, South Brazil. Biological Conservation 111(2):
215-221.
Jaguars (Panthera onca) have been killed by local
residents within the boundaries and lands surrounding
Iguaçu National Park (INP), Brazil. Both jaguars and
pumas (Puma concolor) occur in the region, however,
livestock predation by pumas has rarely been reported.
Our objective was to assess the local perceptions about
jaguars and pumas. We identified two major factors
that distinguished the perceptions towards the two
species: less people feared the puma than the jaguar;
and most people believed that jaguars, but not pumas,
were released into INP by local authorities. Interestingly,
despite those major differences in these perceptions,
feelings towards the two species tended to be the same.
Perceptions towards jaguars were not influenced by
the predation history of the properties, suggesting that
the predation impact was not remarkable enough to
influence local perceptions towards carnivores. This is
apparently the first study on local perceptions towards
large carnivores in Brazil.
Cote, S. D. 1996. Mountain goat responses to
helicopter disturbance. Wildlife Society Bulletin 24(4):
681-685.
Mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus) responses
to helicopter traffic were investigated at Caw Ridge
(Alberta) from June to August 1995. A population of
109 marked individuals inhabited the ridge during the
study. As measured by their overt responses, mountain
goats were disturbed by 58% of the flights and were more
adversely affected when helicopters flew within 500 m.
Eighty-five percent of flights within 500 m caused the
goats to move >100 m; 9% of the flights >1,500 m away
caused the goats to move similar distances. Helicopter
visibility and height above ground, number of goats in
the group, group type (bachelor or nursery), and behavior
of groups just prior to helicopter flights did not appear
to influence reactions of goats to helicopters. Helicopter
flights caused the disintegration of social groups on
greater than or equal to 5 occasions and resulted in 1
case of severe injury to an adult female. Based on these
observations, restriction of helicopter flights within 2
km of alpine areas and cliffs that support mountain goat
populations is recommended.
Cronin, M. A., H. A. Whitlaw and W. B. Ballard. 2000.
Northern Alaska oil fields and caribou. Wildlife Society
Bulletin 28(4):919-922.
Caribou (Rangifer tarandus) are a prominent factor in
regulating and managing oil and gas exploration and
development in Alaska. Concerns that the oil fields in the
Prudhoe Bay region of northern Alaska have negatively
affected the distribution and productivity of the Central
74 | SNOW LEOPARD SURVIVAL STRATEGY