Matt Weldy

USDA Forest Service · Pacific Northwest Research Station

Effective conservation and management of small mammals require knowledge of the population dynamics of co‐occurring species. We estimated the abundances, autocorrelations, and spatiotemporal associations of 4 small‐mammal species from 2011–2016 using live‐trapping mark‐recapture methods on 9 sites across elevation and canopy openness gradients of a...

Knowledge of the spatiotemporal variability of abundance and vital rates is essential to the conservation of wildlife populations. In Pacific Northwest forests, previous small mammal research has focused on estimating abundance; few studies have focused on vital rates. We used robust design temporal symmetry models and live-trapping data collected...

American beaver (Castor canadensis) have been translocated for population restoration, reduction of human‐wildlife conflict, and enhancement of ecosystem function. Yet few studies have assessed dispersal of beaver, making it difficult to determine at what scale translocations are appropriate. Genetic studies can provide inferences about gene flow,...

Age- and sex-specific survival estimates are crucial to understanding important life-history characteristics and variation in these estimates can be a key driver of population dynamics. When estimating survival using Cormack–Jolly–Seber (CJS) models and capture–recapture data, emigration is typically assumed to have a negligible effect on estimates...

Cryptic, nocturnal or rare species pose a conservation challenge. Aardvarks (Orycteropus afer) occur across sub-Saharan Africa, but local or regional distribution is frequently unclear. We investigated the habitat relationships of aardvarks within Kruger National Park, South Africa, using non-invasive driving and walking surveys of aardvark sign. W...

1. Automated analysis of bioacoustic recordings using machine learning (ML) methods has the potential to greatly scale biodiversity monitoring efforts. The use of ML for high-stakes applications, such as conservation research, demands a data-centric approach with a focus on utilizing carefully annotated and curated evaluation and training data that...

An annotated acoustic dataset.

Managing forests for biodiversity conservation while maintaining economic output is a major challenge globally and requires accurate and timely monitoring of imperiled species. In the Pacific Northwest, USA, forest management is heavily influenced by the status of northern spotted owls (Strix occidentalis caurina), which have been in continued popu...

The success of long-term wildlife monitoring programs can be influenced by many factors and study designs often represent compromises between spatial scales and costs. Adaptive monitoring programs can iteratively manage this tension by adopting new cost-efficient technologies, which can provide projects the opportunity to reallocate costs to addres...

Animal species living in small populations with small ranges may be particularly vulnerable to habitat loss and fragmentation. We investigated genetic population structure of the camas pocket gopher (Thomomys bulbivorus), a species endemic to the Willamette Valley, Oregon, an area strongly affected by human development. Pocket gophers collected acr...

Age-and sex-specific survival estimates are crucial to understanding important life history characteristics, and variation in these estimates can be a key driver of population dynamics. When estimating survival using Cormack-Jolly-Seber (CJS) models, emigration is typically unknown but confounded with apparent survival. Consequently, especially for...

There is a growing interest and investment in restoring riparian areas in the Pacific Northwest to protect biodiversity and water quality, and to restore quality habitat for threatened fish species. However, these management activities change vegetation conditions and potentially impact terrestrial species in these ecosystems. Our objective was to...

Live trapping is a common tool used to assess demography of small mammals. However, live-trapping is often expensive and stressful to captured individuals. Thus, assessing the relative tradeoffs among study goals, project expenses, and animal well-being is necessary. Here, we evaluated how apparent bias and precision of estimates for apparent annua...

Pearson’s correlation coefficients for a priori spatial variables estimated once during 2016 on our sites across the H. J. Andrews Experimental Forest, Oregon, USA. We removed variables from consideration for the same demographic parameter if the correlation coefficient was >0.8 or <−0.8. The variable CWD is the site-level average coarse woody debr...

Pearson’s correlation coefficients for a priori temporal variables. We used weather recordings from the Central Meteorological Station in the H. J. Andrews Experimental Forest, Oregon, USA, during 2011–2016. We removed variables from consideration for the same demographic parameter if the correlation coefficient was >0.8 or <−0.8.

Year- and grid-specific average body masses of adults and juveniles and proportion of adult males to adult females for Humboldt’s flying squirrels (HFS), Townsend’s chipmunks (TC), western red-backed voles (WRBV), and deer mice (DM) in a late-successional forest in the H. J. Andrews Experimental Forest, Oregon, USA, during 2011–2016. In the ratio c...

Informed conservation of small mammals, ecosystems, and predators requires a detailed understanding of how small mammals species and communities vary in both space and time, as well as the relative cyclicity and synchrony of this variation. This variation can be especially informative to land managers interested in manipulating the abundance or den...