Habitat Quality Affecting the Body Mass of Golden-mantled Ground Squirrels

Abstract

In conservation, it is vital to understand how organisms use their habitat and what constitutes high quality habitat. This has become increasingly urgent in ecosystems impacted by direct or indirect human disturbances such as habitat loss or climate change. High elevation ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to climate change, putting pressure on the organisms in these systems. However, local and micro-scale heterogeneity across the landscape potentially offers a buffer against climate change by creating small-scale differences in habitat quaility. Small hibernating Commented [BS1]: Could insert a transition sentence mammals such as the golden-mantled ground squirrel (Callospermophilus lateralis) may leverage microclimates to cope the effects of a warming climate. This study used drone imagery to collect fine scale data on factors contributing to habitat quality within home ranges of golden- mantled ground squirrels in the vicinity of Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory. Thermal variation, food resources, and the abundance of perches for individual home ranges were compared to body mass, which is a strong indicator of survival and fecundity. The goal of this study is to further our understanding of how local differences in the landscape enhance habitat quality for golden-mantled ground squirrels. No significant trends were found when the average temperature, abundance of food resources, or number of perches were compared to mean body mass. However, further analysis and the comparison to other methods of assessing habitat effects on fitness may provide insight the role of habitat quality in this system.