561 items found

Led ByJake Ivan

Study AreaStatewide

Project StatusCompleted

Research Objective

• To determine how bark beetle outbreaks have impacted breeding birds and mammals in Colorado.

Wildlife Cameras

As part of a project to learn about the impacts of bark beetle outbreaks on wildlife, Colorado Parks and Wildlife deployed 300 remote wildlife cameras at randomly selected locations throughout spruce/fir and lodgepole pine forests in Colorado.  To the right are samples of the almost 400,000 photos collected from the project.

Project Description

Since 1996, millions of acres of Colorado forests have fallen victim to bark beetle infestations. This unusual epidemic has left researchers wondering how local wildlife living in these forests will respond.

This study will focus on tracking how mammals and breeding birds alter their use of subalpine forests during the course of an outbreak. 

Researchers expect wildlife response to the beetle epidemic to vary by species and forest system. Some species may stay in the area during the full course of the outbreak, while others may disappear once the area is infected. For example, researchers expect red squirrel use of lodgepole pine forests to decrease as the outbreak affects cone-producing trees, which serve as the squirrel's primary food source. 

The focal species for this study are those listed as a priority species under the Colorado Wildlife Action Plan and/or listed as sensitive species by the United State Forest Service Region 2 and/or listed as vulnerable at the sub-national scale by NatureServ. 

These species include:

• American marten
• American Three-toed Woodpecker
• Broad-tailed Hummingbird
• Cassin's Finch
• Cordilleran Flycatcher
• Dusky Flycatcher
• Dusky Grouse
• Evening Grosbeak
• Northern Goshawk
• Olive-sided Flycatcher
• Red Crossbill
• Red-naped Sapsucker
• Williamson's Sapsucker

Two additional species, the snowshoe hare and red squirrel, are focal species as well because together they compromise nearly 100 percent of the diet of the Canada lynx, which is a state and federally listed species.  

Researchers plan to survey the selected mammal species using motion-sensor cameras. Bird species will be surveyed during early morning counts throughout the breeding season (late May to early July). Because the survey methods are general, researchers should be able to gather information about variety of additional game and non-game species beyond those species of concern listed above. Researchers will use this data to determine which species decrease their use of these forests as bark beetle infestations run their course, which species increase their use, and which species are unaffected.

Associated Publications

• href="https://cpw.cvlcollections.org/files/original/865ca0d0d08bec92663ae926d6951206.pdf">Bears and Bird Feeders_What You Need to Know (brochure 2023)
• Camping & Hiking in Bear Country (brochure 2012)
• Camping & Hiking in Bear Country (brochure 2016)
• Don't Feed the Wildlife (brochure 2011)
• Living With Bears (brochure 2009)
• Living With Bears_ How to Avoid Wildlife Conflicts (brochure 2014)
• Living With Bears_ How to Avoid Wildlife Conflicts (brochure 2023)
• Living With Coyotes_How to Avoid Wildlife Conflicts (brochure 2014)
• Living With Mountain Lions_How to Avoid Wildlife Conflicts (brochure 2025)
• Living With Wildlife in Bear Country (brochure 1992)
• Living With Wildlife in Bear Country (brochure 1997)
• Living With Wildlife in Coyote Country (brochure 1994)
• Living With Mountain Lions_How to Avoid Wildlife Conflicts (brochure 2025)
• Living With Wildlife in Bear Country (brochure 1992)
• Living With Wildlife in Bear Country (brochure 1997)
• Living With Wildlife in Coyote Country (brochure 1994)
• Living With Wildlife in Coyote Country (brochure 1998)
• Living With Wildlife in Lion Country (brochure 1991)
• Living With Wildlife in Lion Country (brochure 1998)
• Living With Wildlife in Moose Country (brochure 1999)
• Living With Wildlife in Moose Country (brochure 2011)
• Living With Wildlife in Red Fox Country (brochure 2007)
• The Bear Facts (brochure 1985)
• Watching Deer & Elk (brochure 2014)
• Watching Deer & Elk (brochure 2017)
• Your Guide to Avoiding Human-Coyote Conflicts (brochure 2009)

• Attracting Birds, Not Bears_Help Keep Bears Wild (fact sheet 2012)
• Backcountry Camping in Black Bear Country (fact sheet 2009)
• Be Bear Aware In Colorado Bear Country (fact sheet coloring book 2006)
• Bear Human Conflict Research (fact sheet 5.2014)
• Bearproofing Your Home_Help Keep Bears Wild (fact sheet 2012)
• Bearproofing Your Trash_Help Keep Bears Wild (fact sheet 2012)
• Chronic Wasting Disease in Colorado (fact sheet 11.2018)
• Coyote Conflicts in Your Neighborhood (fact sheet 2009)
• Coyote-Home-Audit-Checklist
• Coyotes are Active in this Area (fact sheet n.d.)
• Colorado's Declining Mule Deer Population and CPW's Proposed Predator Management Strategy (fact sheet n.d.)
• Coyote Exclusions Deterrents and Repellents (fact sheet n.d.)
• Coyote Home Audit Checklist (fact sheet 12.2011)
• Coyote o lobo gris_ Cómo detectar las diferencias (fact sheet 4.2024)
• Coyote or Gray Wolf_ How to Spot the Differences (fact sheet 3.2024)
• Deterrents Can Teach Bears to Stay Away (fact sheet 2012)
• Elk & Moose Comparison (fact sheet 2007)
• Home Audit Checklist_A Bear's Life Depends On It (fact sheet )
• How to Report a Wolf Sighting in Colorado (fact sheet 2023)
• Keeping Your Pets Safe Where Wolves are Present (fact sheet 3.2024)
• Keeping Your Pets Safe Where Wolves are Present (fact sheet 8.2021)
• Lynx Reintroduction (fact sheet 6.2014)
• Mantenga a sus mascotas seguras cuando haya lobos presentes (fact sheet 4.2024)
• Moose Reintroduction (fact sheet 11.2013)
• Most Commonly Asked Questions About Urban Coyotes (fact sheet n.d.)
• Mule Deer in Northwest Colorado (fact sheet 2.2014)
• Threatened and endangered species of Colorado: fact sheets (27 fact sheets, 1993)
• Unwelcome Mats_Help Keep Bears Wild (fact sheet)
• Wildlife Reporting and Your Privacy (fact sheet 5.2024)
• Your Pet and Coyotes (fact sheet 2009)