| Education: 2000
B.Sc. Environmental Biology, Millersville University of Pennsylvania
2000
B. A. Applied Geography, Millersville University of Pennsylvania
Investigating habitat selection, home ranges, and movements
of feral pigs on Fort Benning, Georgia.
Objectives:
Feral pigs are an invasive species with the potential to negatively
affect native ecosystems. This study is a manipulative experiment
designed to examine habitat use, movements, and home ranges
of feral pigs on Ft. Benning. It has the following objectives:
- To provide detailed information on the home ranges, movements,
and habitat use of feral pigs on Ft. Benning through the
use of GPS and VHF telemetry.
- Examine changes in these variables
during an intensive
removal campaign.
- Identify habitats at Ft. Benning that
are especially at risk to impacts of feral pigs.
Progress:
A combination of techniques including lethal hunting and trapping
has been used to remove pigs in the treatment area. This effort
has removed over 200 pigs from the treatment area since the
beginning of the project. The final mark-recapture session
was completed in July 2006. This summer we captured 126 pigs
222 times. This data will be used to estimate pig density in
the control and treatment areas.
We have retrieved data from 26 sows affixed with GPS\VHF radio
collars resulting in over 7,000 GPS locations and all collars
have been retrieved at this time. Increasing our knowledge of
the habitat use and movements of feral pigs on Fort Benning should
improve efficiency of control efforts. Pig exclosures and damage
survey transects were also sampled again this summer. Information
collected through exclosures and damage survey transects should
provide information on potential impacts to sensitive species
and habitats.
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