Facts from Faeces: Prey Remains in Wolf, Canis lupus, Faeces Revise Occurrence Records for Mammals of British Columbia's Coastal Archipelago

Abstract

Archipelagos often harbour taxa that are endemic and vulnerable to disturbance. Conservation planning and research for these areas depend fundamentally on accurate and current taxonomic inventories. Although basic ecological information is in its infancy, the temperate rainforest islands of coastal British Columbia are undergoing rapid human-caused modification, particularly logging. We report herein new mammal records for these islands as determined by prey remains in the faeces of Wolves (Canis lupus), the area’s apex mammalian terrestrial predator. Of particular interest is our detection of Marten (Martes americana) on islands previously inventoried and island occupancy by Moose (Alces alces), which have apparently migrated recently to coastal British Columbia. Remains in faeces provided valuable new species occurrence information, but more extensive and focused inventories are required to generate predictions of island occupancy by mammals based on biotic and abiotic landscape features.