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Camera Trap Site Selection
In 2014, CWMP will be selecting field locations based on the sampling model created by
CCCP (2013). CWMP camera teams will sample areas as yet unmonitored by CCCP.
CCCP divided the NCE into hexagonal sample units, each 2500 hectares. Each field team
will be assigned two specific sample units for the summer to be monitored successively
for one month each. Each unit should be sampled with two remote camera traps, set
about 2-3 km apart (minimum 1 km). Each trap should be set for 1 month. Camera teams
should deploy and recover both camera traps on the same visit to the study area.
Selecting a location
Once in the targeted sample area, remote camera teams need to select an appropriate
specific location to set the camera trap. The attractant used for these traps is designed to
appeal to a grizzly bear's foraging curiosity, though it often also elicits a marking
response in bears as well. While the scent lure used for these installations is very
powerful, locating the camera trap in a place where bears will likely be traveling and
foraging naturally will increase the odds of detection of bears at the site.
Grizzly bears in the NCE likely depend on plant foods for the majority of their diet
(North Cascades Grizzly Bear Recovery Team 2004) including glacier lily bulbs, grasses
and sedges, and various species of berries. Subalpine meadows, riparian and wetlands,
and forests or opens with a high density of fruiting berry bushes would all be natural
attractants for grizzly bears. While plant foods likely make up the majority of grizzly
bears' diet in the NCE, this species is opportunistic in its feeding and will seek out
animal foods whenever possible. The carcasses of large animals are a particularly strong
attractant for grizzly bears. Grizzly bears will scent mark by rubbing their bodies against
trees located along travel routes as well as in and adjacent to important food resource
locations.
Besides clear footprints, the foraging digs of grizzly bears are both relatively easy to
detect if present and distinctive making them a particularly useful sign to search for
(refer to Appendix 2 for examples of foraging and marking signs of grizzly bears).
High quality habitat can be predicted based on a review of maps and satellite images
prior to heading into the field and then scouted for actual conditions and suitability for a
camera trap once in the field. Allotting time to scout several possible locations before
