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About The Bulletin. (Bend, OR) 1963-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 13, 2022)
A2 THE BULLETIN • SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2022 The Bulletin LOCAL, STATE & REGION How to reach us CIRCULATION Didn’t receive your paper? Start or stop subscription? 541-385-5800 PHONE HOURS 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday LIVE CHAT 8 a.m. -12 p.m. Monday-Friday GENERAL INFORMATION 541-382-1811 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday ONLINE www.bendbulletin.com CONTACT THE NEWSROOM Main number ..........................541-382-1811 After hours ...............................541-383-0348 Fax ................................................541-385-5804 Main email .........news@bendbulletin.com EMAIL THE NEWSROOM Business ........business@bendbulletin.com City Desk .............news@bendbulletin.com Features.................................................................. communitylife@bendbulletin.com Sports ................. sports@bendbulletin.com OUR ADDRESS Street .............. 320 SW Upper Terrace Drive Suite 200 Bend, OR 97702 Mailing ........... P.O. Box 6020 Bend, OR 97708 ADMINISTRATION Publisher Heidi Wright ..............................541-383-0341 Editor Gerry O’Brien .............................541-633-2166 DEPARTMENT HEADS Advertising Brian Naplachowski .................541-383-0370 Circulation/Operations Maria Johnson ..........................541-617-7830 Finance Wendy Dougherty ...541-383-0324 Human Resources ................541-383-0340 TALK TO AN EDITOR City Julie Johnson ...................541-383-0367 Business, Features, GO! 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Box 6020 Bend, OR 97708 Phone ......................................... 541-617-7829 CORRECTIONS The Bulletin’s primary concern is that all stories are accurate. If you know of an error in a story, call us at 541-383-0367. TO SUBSCRIBE Call us ......................541-385-5800 • Home delivery and E-Edition ..........................$7 per week • By mail .................................$9.50 per week • E-Edition only ...................$4.50 per week To sign up for our e-Editions, visit www.bendbulletin.com to register. TO PLACE AN AD Classified ......................................541-385-5809 Other information ....................541-382-1811 Study: Wildlife are more sensitive to humans than we thought “Our study indicates that if people want to recreate and minimize their impact on wildlife, it would actually be better to go hiking on busier trails because those sites are disturbing wildlife anyway. I think, unfortunately, there is a trade-off with the human’s experience and the impact on wildlife.” BY ELI FRANCOVICH Idaho Statesman We have a people problem. That was the message Laura Prugh received from the U.S. Park Service in Glacier Bay, Alaska, several years ago. For Prugh, who studies hu- man-wildlife interactions in the relatively crowded state of Washington, the claim seemed a bit overstated. After all, only 40,000 peo- ple visit the 3.2-million-acre park annually — absurdly low numbers for anyone ac- customed to recreating in the Washington or Oregon Cas- cades, for instance. In fact, Glacier Bay is only accessed by boat or plane and 94% of visitors come via cruise ship. Yet, park service employ- ees reported increasing num- bers and they wanted to know how — or if — that trend was impacting native wildlife. So Prugh, an associate professor in the University of Washing- ton School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, visited. “I was just shocked at how few people there were,” she said. “And I thought ‘Wow, these people have really lost perspective on what a lot of visitors are.’ ” Still, she agreed to conduct the study. Over the course of two summers, she col- lected images from 40 mo- tion-activated cameras across 10 sites focusing on wolves, black bears, brown bears and moose. She fully expected to find little to no “difference in animal activity between the high-use sites and the low-use sites.” She was wrong. In a study published this month, Prugh and her co-au- thors found if humans were present, the cameras detected fewer than five animals per week across all four species studied. In most cases, this likely meant that animals avoided areas where humans were present. Second, in back- country areas, wildlife detec- tions dropped to zero each week once outdoor recreation levels reached the equivalent of about 40 visitors per week. The researchers note that in some places where animals are more habituated to humans the reaction to human pres- ence will be less. While it’s just one study, in one place, the findings have implications for recreation management. “Our study indicates that if people want to recreate and minimize their impact on wildlife, it would actually be Sorin Colac/Dreamstime Ice calving at Margerie Glacier in Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska. better to go hiking on busier trails because those sites are disturbing wildlife anyway,” she said. “I think, unfortu- nately, there is a trade-off with the human’s experience and the impact on wildlife.” A developing field The question of how, or even if, outdoor human rec- reation of the nonhunting va- riety impacts wildlife is “kind of an emerging field,” Prugh said. Despite its relative youth, numerous recreation ecology studies have shown that ani- mals do change their behavior in response to human pres- ence. Some mammals have be- come more nocturnal, for- going their normal daytime routines in hopes of avoiding human presence. In Montana, wolverines and bighorn sheep avoid areas where backcoun- try skiers shred. Wild reindeer flee farther and longer from backcountry skiers than from snowmobiles, according to an- other study. That’s all well documented; however, what hadn’t been looked at was the minimum threshold of disturbance or, in simpler terms, just how many humans does it take to send a grizzly packing, said Joel Berger, a professor at Colo- rado State University and the author of “The Better to Eat You With: Fear in the Animal World.” The UW study begins to answer that question, he said. Berger was not part of Prugh’s study and hasn’t met her, al- though he said he’s admired her research. “The Prugh study provides the first quantitative evidence, in my impression, on re- sponses of species of wildlife when exposed to people in these low-density situations,” he said. He said it also showed vari- ation in species response to human activity, noting that Prugh’s study found that moose were more active if people were around, indicat- ing the large ungulates were using human presence as a shield against warier animals, like wolves. That’s known as the human-shield hypothesis, a term coined by Berger. “The question is, what does it take for animals to learn?” he said. “To be able to adopt this anti-predator anti-harass- ment disturbance strategy.” In addition to those ques- tions the study also raises a conundrum for recreation planners and outdoor enthusi- asts, both in remote and more urban settings. Implications for recreation The balance between rec- reation and wildlife is some- thing Paul Knowles, Spokane County’s park planner, consid- ers often. “As a land manager you sac- rifice some areas, in a sense, so that others can be primarily dedicated to wildlife habitat,” he said. When county planners de- sign and build trails they try to include “wildlife disturbance buffers.” These buffers are built using the best available science on how much space species need from humans. In an urbanized environment like Spokane County, however, it’s not always possible to in- clude that space. — Laura Prugh, an associate professor in the University of Washington School of Environmental and Forest Sciences Anecdotally, at least, Knowles said he’s heard “time and time again” that once a property is acquired by the county and developed for recreation, wildlife sightings plummet. “We acquire these conser- vation areas for multiple pur- poses and multiple benefits, including recreation,” he said. “So we have to find a way to balance those out. It’s tough.” That’s the larger point, Prugh said. She has no desire or intention to tell people they shouldn’t hike. But recreation- ists should be aware that their activity — no matter how peaceful seeming — affects wildlife. “It’s not that people should stop recreation,” she said. “But what is the best way to balance these trade-offs?” “I don’t paint things. I paint the difference between things.” - Henri Matisse MICHELLE LINDBLOM 103 NW Oregon Ave. • Downtown Bend 541-306-3176 • redchairgallerybend.com TM INC FLU & COLDS ARE HERE OBITUARIES No death notices or obituaries are published Mondays. When submitting, please include your name, address and contact number. Call to ask about deadlines, Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Phone ..........................................541-385-5809 Email .......................obits@bendbulletin.com “Breathe Mor” May Help Reduce SEVERITY & TIME You’re SICK! LEGAL NOTICES Can be used in CPAC or Sprayed on Pillow For Much Better Sleep & Breathing Email .....................legals@bendbulletin.com OTHER SERVICES Back issues ..................................541-385-5800 Photo reprints ............................541-383-0366 Apply for a job ..........................541-383-0340 ONLY $24.98 All Bulletin payments are accepted at the drop box at City Hall or at The Bulletin, P.O. Box 6020, Bend, OR 97708. 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