1. Stephanie DeMay David Roon, UI Rodrigo Cisneros, UTPL Evaluating the Diet of the Andean Bear http://www.warren-wilson.edu

2. Outline Background & Introduction Objective Methods Importance Project Linkages

3. Study System- Tropical Andes Tropical Andes high in biodiversity (Myers et al. 2000) Includes páramo ecosystem 60% of 5000 páramo plant species endemic (Buytaert et al. 2006) Páramo uses Livestock grazing Agriculture Mining Timber Tourism (Buytaert et al. 2006)

4. Study System- Podocarpus Natl Park Páramo Southern Ecuador Mestizo, Shuar, and Saraguro people (Pohle 2008) Cold, wet, and windy climate (Keating 1999) Contains many bromeliads (Keating 1999) Photo by Rodrigo Cisneros

5. Andean Bear (Tremarctos ornatus) Umbrella species IUCN: vulnerable Threats habitat destruction fragmentation poaching conflicts with farmers and ranchers (Goldstein et al. 2008, Peyton 1999, Ríos-Uzeda et al. 2005) Omnivorous, but primarily eat bromeliads (Suarez 1988, Rivadeneira-Canedo 2008) http://www.quantum-conservation.org

6. Study Objective Determine which, if any, ecological factors are correlated with Andean bear foraging selection on bromeliads.

7. Which Ecological Factors? Each PlotEach Bromeliad Distribution of conspecifics (10 m radius) Distribution of other potential food plants (10 m radius) Distance from cover (GIS) Species Collected water Flowering Size Clippings for future chemical and genetic studies Distribution of bromeliads (photo) Percent bromeliad cover Elevation/ aspect/slope (2 x 2 m and 90 x 90 m) Soil pH Soil depth Soil Texture Microfauna

8. Hypotheses Bears will forage on some species of bromeliads while avoiding others. Foraging will be affected by bromeliad proximity to conspecifics, other food plants, and cover. Soil pH, depth, and texture will influence foraging Elevation, slope, aspect, and microhabitat characteristics (located in a rise or hollow) will influence foraging on bromeliads, perhaps due to their effects on climate and moisture. Bears will forage selectively on plants that collect water or microfauna and/or are flowering. Bears will forage selectively on larger plants.

9. Sampling Design (Garton et al. 2005) Two 5 km transects Twenty plots (2 x 2 m) per transect Walk each transect every 2 weeks and monitor for foraging Additional paired plots

10. Proposed Analysis (Garton et al. 2005) Multivariate logistic regression models Akaike information criterion (AIC) analysis

11. Importance Expand existing knowledge of a vulnerable species and ecosystem Target conservation efforts

12. Team Project Linkages Assess plant species diversity/ composition across a páramo gradient Developing a plant reference collection for diet of the Andean bear Social and cultural importance of the páramo ecosystem

13. Literature Cited Buytaert, W., R. Célleri, B. De Bièvre, F. Cisneros, G. Wyseure and J. Deckers. 2006. Human impact on the hydrology of the Andean páramos. Earth-Science Reviews 79:53-72. Garton, Edward O., John T. Ratti, and John H. Giudice. 2005. Research and Experimental Design. Chapter 3 In Braun, Clait (ed.). Techniques For Wildlife Investigations and Management. The Wildlife Society, Bethesda, MD. Goldstein, I., X. Velez-Liendo, S. Paisley and D. L. Garshelis. 2008. Tremarctos ornatus. In: IUCN 2010. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.4.. www.iucnredlist.org Keating, P.L. 1999. Changes in páramo vegetation along an elevation gradient in southern Ecuador. Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society 126: 159-175. Myers, N., R. A. Mittermeier, C. G. Mittermeier, G. A. B. Da Fonseca and.J Kent. 2000. Biodiversity Hotspots for Conservation Priorities. Nature 40:853-858. Peyton B. 1999. Spectacled bear conservation action plan. In: Servheen C, Herrero S, Peyton B, editors. Bears, status survey and conservation action plan. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN: 157–9 Pohle, P. 2008. The people settled around Podocarpus National Park. E. Beck et al. (eds.). Gradients in a Tropical Mountain Ecosystem of Ecuador. Ecological Studies 198. Ríos-Uzeda, B., H. Gómez and R. B. Wallace. 2005. Habitat preferences of the Andean bear (Tremarctos ornatus) in the Bolivian Andes. Journal of Zoology 268:271-278. Rivadeneira-Canedo, C. 2008. Estudio del oso andino (Tremarctos ornatus) como dispersor legítimo de semillas y elementos de su dieta en la región de Apolobamba-Bolivia. Ecología en Bolivia 43:29-39. Suarez, L. 1988. Seasonal distribution and food habits of spectacled bears Tremarctos ornatus in the highlands of Ecuador. Studies on neotropical fauna and environment 23:133-136.

14. Questions?