Gaynor Kaitlyn M, Hayes Forest P, Manlove Kezia, Galloway Nathan, Benson John F, Cherry Michael J, Epps Clinton W, Fletcher Robert J, Orrock John, Smith Justine A, Aiello Christina, Belant Jerrold L, Berger Joel, Biel Mark, Bright Jill, Bump Joseph, Burchett Michael, Butler Carson, Carlson Jennifer, Cole Eric K, Darby Neal, Degutis Erin, Dewey Sarah, Figura Pete, Gable Thomas D, Gagnon Jeff, Glass Danielle M, Green Jennifer R, Gunther Kerry, Haroldson Mark A, Hersey Kent R, Holton Brandon P, Homkes Austin T, Hoy Sarah R, Hughson Debra, Joly Kyle, Leahy Ryan, Lee-Roney Caitlin, Lester Rob, MacNulty Dan, Magnuson Michael, Martin Daniel, Mazur Rachel, Moore Seth, Orning Elizabeth K, Patrick Katie, Peterson Rolf O, Potvin Lynette, Prentice Paige R, Riley Seth P D, Romanski Mark C, Roug Annette, Sikich Jeff A, Simpson Nova, Sloan William, Smith Douglas W, Sorum Mathew, Sprague Scott, Stahler Daniel, Stephenson John, Stephenson Thomas R, Stroud-Settles Janice, van Manen Frank T, Vucetich John A, Wilmot Kate, Windels Steve, Wolf Tiffany M, Cross Paul C
Department of Zoology and Botany, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z4, Canada.
Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA.
Proc Biol Sci. 2025 Jul;292(2051):20251013. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2025.1013. Epub 2025 Jul 30.
Given the importance of protected areas for biodiversity, the growth of visitation to many areas has raised concerns about the effects of humans on wildlife. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic led to temporary closure of national parks in the United States, offering a pseudonatural experiment to tease apart the effects of permanent infrastructure and transient human presence on animals. We compiled GPS tracking data from 229 individuals of 10 mammal species in 14 parks and used third-order hierarchical resource selection functions to evaluate the influence of the human footprint on animal space use in 2019 and 2020. Averaged across all parks and species, animals avoided the human footprint, whether the park was open or closed. However, although animals in remote areas showed consistent avoidance, on average those in more developed areas switched from avoidance to selection when protected areas were closed. Findings varied across species: some responded consistently negatively to the footprint (wolves, mountain goats), some positively (mule deer, red fox) and others had a strong exposure-mediated response (elk, mountain lion). Furthermore, some species responded more strongly to the park closure (black bear, moose). This study advances our understanding of complex interactions between recreation and wildlife in protected areas.
鉴于保护区对生物多样性的重要性，许多地区游客数量的增长引发了人们对人类对野生动物影响的担忧。2020年，新冠疫情导致美国国家公园临时关闭，提供了一个准自然实验，以厘清永久性基础设施和短暂人类存在对动物的影响。我们收集了14个公园中10种哺乳动物229个个体的GPS跟踪数据，并使用三阶层次资源选择函数来评估2019年和2020年人类足迹对动物空间利用的影响。在所有公园和物种中平均来看，无论公园开放与否，动物都会避开人类足迹。然而，尽管偏远地区的动物始终表现出回避行为，但平均而言，当保护区关闭时，较发达地区的动物从回避转变为选择。不同物种的结果各不相同：一些对人类足迹始终做出负面反应（狼、山羊），一些做出正面反应（骡鹿、赤狐），还有一些有强烈的暴露介导反应（麋鹿、美洲狮）。此外，一些物种对公园关闭的反应更强（黑熊、驼鹿）。这项研究增进了我们对保护区内娱乐活动与野生动物之间复杂相互作用的理解。
