Conservation Northwest

14 CAMERA INSTALLATIONS Depending on the target species and location of each survey area, remote camera installation setup can vary. CWMP follows specific protocols for remote camera installations based on the target species or monitoring activity. The application of scent lure or bait in our project adheres to guidelines established by our Advisory Council. Wildlife use scent markings as important means of communication to establish territories, find mates and prey, assess levels of danger, and interact with other individuals within the same vicinity. 26 Scent lure mimics this natural mode of communication and acts as an attractant, bringing individual wildlife to the remote camera installation. No artificial attractants are used for the I-90 Corridor where the proximity of the installation is close to the roadway and we do not want to attract wildlife towards the road. All installations targeting wolves or I-90 structures have a similar setup that includes motion-triggered cameras secured to trees with scent lure applied nearby, unless specifically instructed otherwise (Appendix II & Appendix VII). In addition to scent attractants, wolf sets focus on travel such as junctions between game trails and closed or lightly traveled roads. Generally, two cameras are placed within a designated survey area, which can range in scale from ten to several hundred square miles, spaced far enough apart to potentially capture different individual animals (spacing varies depending on the target species or monitoring goals for the survey area), and potentially moved over the course of the year to increase the area surveyed. Installations targeting grizzly bears use a special lure developed by the U.S. Forest Service containing fermented cattle blood and fish oil. This lure is highly attractant to bears and is poured over a large pile of brush and sticks constructed by volunteers maintaining these installations (Appendix III). Cameras are positioned to capture bears as they smell and explore the brush pile and lure. Though these installations do not include hair snares, if grizzly bears are suspected to have visited the installation, volunteers are instructed to collect hair if available. The majority of installations targeting wolverine have a setup conducive to capturing visual documentation of their chest blazes (Appendix IV). These installations, called run-pole stations, are constructed with natural materials on-site. Wolverine run-pole stations include two cameras: a run-pole camera, set directly across from the run pole, and a vicinity camera, off to the side. These cameras are accompanied by bait, strung strategically above the run-pole. The hope is that the wolverine will stand on the run-pole and look up at the bait, allowing the run-pole camera to document its chest blaze. Wild bait (deer, elk, etc., often from road killed animals) is preferred for these installations. However, in cases where wild bait is unavailable, bait is purchased at butcher shops. In addition to the bait, each installation designated for wolverine detection is equipped with snags for hair collection as well as a scent attractant. Though individual wolverines can be identified visually from chest blaze photographs, DNA analysis is important to confirm individuals and retrieve additional information. The hair snag system that CWMP employs consists of a gun brush belt with five gun brushes attached horizontally. This belt is attached just below the run-pole around the tree. In the field, if photographs from remote cameras indicate the target species has visited the site, hair samples are removed from the gun brushes using latex gloves and are immediately sent for lab analysis. 26 Fredrick V. Schlexer, "Attracting Animals to Detection Devices," in Noninvasive Survey Methods for Carnivores, by Robert A Long (Washington, D.C.: Island Press, 2008).

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