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Status,
distribution and effects of sport hunting on cottontails at the Cape Cod National
Seashore |
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Principal Investigator: |
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Dr. John Litvaitis |
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Institution: |
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University of New Hampshire |
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Project Starting Date: |
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February 2004 |
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Objectives: |
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The status of New England cottontail (NEC) on the Cape Cod National
Seashore is unknown. As part of an effort to identify remaining populations of NEC
throughout the species historic range, Litvaitis et al. (2003) recently reported that
NEC were still present on portions of Cape Cod. However, investigators involved with
that study did not search Cape Cod National Seashore. Currently, hunting of all
cottontails is permitted on the Seashore. The effects of hunting on remnant
populations of NEC are unknown. Likewise, there is no information on what affects
hunting may have on populations of eastern cottontails. What is needed is information
on the status and distribution of NEC on the Seashore, and an evaluation of how
hunting mortality affects the abundance of NEC and eastern cottontails on the
Seashore. Therefore, I propose to conduct a field investigation on the Seashore
that will address the following objectives.
1. Determine the distribution and relative abundance of New England and eastern
cottontails.
2. Determine if hunting mortality is an additive or compensatory form of mortality.
Results of this study should provide new insight on the status of NEC and eastern
cottontails and reveal what effects current management activities are having on
cottontail populations within the Seashore. |
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