THE IMPACT OF HUMAN RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES: MOOSE AS A CASE STUDY

Continual expansion of human development and recreational activity into previously undisturbed environments and wildlife habitat highlights the need for better understanding of behavioral impacts of human-induced disturbances on wildlife, especially where harvest is the main source of mortality. In a controlled field experiment in northern Sweden, we exposed 29 adult free-ranging GPS-collared female moose (Alces alces) to either off-trail hiking or snowmobiling activity to study individual response to non-lethal human activities. Both experimental disturbances resulted in significant increase in movement rates and diurnal activity ranges, and prompted moose to leave the area. Movement rates were elevated for 1 and 2 h following hiking and snowmobiling, respectively. We found that the overall moose response to human-induced disturbances was short in duration, suggesting negligible effect on the overall energy budget of moose in good condition when disturbances occur at moderate frequency