Orrido di Botri Natural Reserve and Orecchiella Natural Park are placed on the Tuscan side of the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines National Park, located at different altitudes (from 800 to 2054 m a.s.l.); 90-95% of its territory is dominated by woodland and the remaining area is grazing/pasture. This area is rich in red deer (Cervus elaphus)1, in mouflon (Ovis ammon ammon)2. in wild boars and there is an increasing number of wolves (Canis lupus) that, in Italy, is a strictly protected specie. This trial was carried out from January to April 2008, through some different methods of study: 1) pellet count method, walking twice a month along nine transepts, georeferenced trough Arc View 3.2 (five transects in the Orecchiella Reserve and four transects in the Orrido di Botri; transects were differently placed: four were at low altitude (1000-1300 a.s.l.) for a total of 36 km, four were at a medium altitude (1300-1500 a.s.l.) for a total of 24 km, and one was at high altitude (1500-2000 a.s.l.) for a total of 6 km; 2) pellet composition; 3) snow tracking, within 24 h from the fall of the snow, to facilitate the findings of the footsteps on the same transect described above3; 4) wolf-howling, before sunrise and after sunset of those days characterised by a wind speed lower than 12 km/h; 5) occasional findings of sign of predation, sleeping site, and so on. Data are reported in a database Excel and analysed for average value. The pellet count method permitted to find a total of 50 excrements definitely attributable to wolves (diameters equal or more than 2.5 cm)4: the higher total number were found in the Orecchiella Park (32 vs 18). If the comparison is done on the length of the transects, results are opposite because we find an average value of 1.52 pellet in Orecchiella Natural Park and an average of 4.5 in Orrido di Botri Reserve: this fact is explaining since this last area is very wild and unfrequented by man, being an excellent refuge for this animal5. Independently from the two different areas, the highest number of pellet was recorded in the ecotone ambient (22 pellets) followed by pasture (10 pellet), beech (9), chestnuts (2) and meadow (1). Even the altitude modifies the findings of pellet: only 2 were find in the highest zone, 25 in the medium and 23 in the lower zone, probably because at the highest altitude there was a lower number of the animal preyed by wolf. As regard pellet composition, in 17 pellets there was wild ruminant ungulates hair (roe and red deer, mouflon), in 13 there was wild boar hair, in 12 there were traces of bones and only in 8 there were even grass of various type; the fact that we find only wild ungulates hair is explainable from the fact that, in this zone, there is no presence of domestic animal like ovine and so on: in fact, it is well known that wolves prefer to prey domestic animal, more easy to capture6. Snow-tracking permitted to identify 8 wolf tracks on which we found fresh pellet, sleeping size, carcass preyed an other presence signals. From the observation of the footsteps it was possible to deduce the presence of one male and two females. Wolf-howling is the method that, in our case, gives the worst result: in fact only one time wolves reply to the registered howl, but the obtained result is in agreement with the one of snow-tracking as regards the number of wolves. In conclusion, results of this first trial confirm the presence of a little pack of wolves that find the optimal condition for living in the studied areas.
The presence of wolves in the Orecchiella Natural Park and in the Orrido di Botri Natural Reserve: preliminary results
RUSSO, CLAUDIA;
2011-01-01
Abstract
Orrido di Botri Natural Reserve and Orecchiella Natural Park are placed on the Tuscan side of the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines National Park, located at different altitudes (from 800 to 2054 m a.s.l.); 90-95% of its territory is dominated by woodland and the remaining area is grazing/pasture. This area is rich in red deer (Cervus elaphus)1, in mouflon (Ovis ammon ammon)2. in wild boars and there is an increasing number of wolves (Canis lupus) that, in Italy, is a strictly protected specie. This trial was carried out from January to April 2008, through some different methods of study: 1) pellet count method, walking twice a month along nine transepts, georeferenced trough Arc View 3.2 (five transects in the Orecchiella Reserve and four transects in the Orrido di Botri; transects were differently placed: four were at low altitude (1000-1300 a.s.l.) for a total of 36 km, four were at a medium altitude (1300-1500 a.s.l.) for a total of 24 km, and one was at high altitude (1500-2000 a.s.l.) for a total of 6 km; 2) pellet composition; 3) snow tracking, within 24 h from the fall of the snow, to facilitate the findings of the footsteps on the same transect described above3; 4) wolf-howling, before sunrise and after sunset of those days characterised by a wind speed lower than 12 km/h; 5) occasional findings of sign of predation, sleeping site, and so on. Data are reported in a database Excel and analysed for average value. The pellet count method permitted to find a total of 50 excrements definitely attributable to wolves (diameters equal or more than 2.5 cm)4: the higher total number were found in the Orecchiella Park (32 vs 18). If the comparison is done on the length of the transects, results are opposite because we find an average value of 1.52 pellet in Orecchiella Natural Park and an average of 4.5 in Orrido di Botri Reserve: this fact is explaining since this last area is very wild and unfrequented by man, being an excellent refuge for this animal5. Independently from the two different areas, the highest number of pellet was recorded in the ecotone ambient (22 pellets) followed by pasture (10 pellet), beech (9), chestnuts (2) and meadow (1). Even the altitude modifies the findings of pellet: only 2 were find in the highest zone, 25 in the medium and 23 in the lower zone, probably because at the highest altitude there was a lower number of the animal preyed by wolf. As regard pellet composition, in 17 pellets there was wild ruminant ungulates hair (roe and red deer, mouflon), in 13 there was wild boar hair, in 12 there were traces of bones and only in 8 there were even grass of various type; the fact that we find only wild ungulates hair is explainable from the fact that, in this zone, there is no presence of domestic animal like ovine and so on: in fact, it is well known that wolves prefer to prey domestic animal, more easy to capture6. Snow-tracking permitted to identify 8 wolf tracks on which we found fresh pellet, sleeping size, carcass preyed an other presence signals. From the observation of the footsteps it was possible to deduce the presence of one male and two females. Wolf-howling is the method that, in our case, gives the worst result: in fact only one time wolves reply to the registered howl, but the obtained result is in agreement with the one of snow-tracking as regards the number of wolves. In conclusion, results of this first trial confirm the presence of a little pack of wolves that find the optimal condition for living in the studied areas.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
