PIKAS: OCHOTONA PRINCEPS

http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/americanpika.htm

Videos first

http://www.arkive.org/american-pika/ochotona-princeps/video-00.html

http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/news/animals-news/pika-in-peril-missions-wcvin.html

Range

The American pika can be found in western North America from central British Columbia in Canada to Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Nevada, California and New Mexico.

where it has a widespread but discontinuous distribution

A widespread, discontinuous habitat

Habitat

Isolated rocky alpine regions called talus formations

Elevation in the north: sea level to 3,000 meters

Elevation in the south: above 2500 meters

Niche: primary consumer

Predators: eagles, hawks, coyotes, bobcats, foxes, and weasels

Eats a variety of green plants like grasses, sedges, thistles and fireweed.

It will eat some food on the spot and it will carry some food away and store in a pile or "haystack." 

Niche

Predator Alert System for other animals: Between mowing the

grass and herbs Barking at predators

Haying

http://raysweb.net/wildlife/images/pika_new.jpg

http://www.animalspot.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Picture-of-American-Pika.jpg

Haystack Photos

http://wwwdelivery.superstock.com/WI/223/1990/PreviewComp/SuperStock_1990-18500.jpg

Another Haystack

http://www.nps.gov/features/yell/slidefile/mammals/pika/Images/01645.jpg

Population Size

?????? Really—after looking hard, I couldn’t find a

single site with an actual number. A study conducted between 1994 and 1999

found that 7 of 25 monitored American pika populations had become extinct, partially due to climate change

More studies are being done

Status

The American pika is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List

Status In view of its decreasing populations, six

subspecies of the American pika are categorized by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as ‘Species of Concern’, meaning it is important that their populations are monitored

Status?

Was considered as a potential addition to the endangered species list

Obama administration rejected it: not enough evidence of population loss

Size

Length: 6.2 – 8.5 inches and Weight: 4 – 6.3

http://media-3.web.britannica.com/eb-media/16/3516-004-67E3395A.jpg

Adaptations

The pika is a very vocal animal Warns of predator intruders Males sing during mating season

Adaptations

Emerging from den in winter.Dense fur for surviving winter

Threats

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5KcjBHOyF0

Threats: Climate Change may be one of the first mammals

impacted appears to have contributed to local

extinctions of pika populations 'canary in the coal mine' when it comes

to the response of alpine and mountain systems to global warming.

From the World Wildlife Fund

Threats: Climate Change

Mountaintop habitat means they cannot move further up the mountain (no refuge)

Cannot migrate across valleys to a taller mountain (too risky and too hot and too far).

Other animals are moving into their habitat

Climate may be interacting with other factors such as proximity to roads and smaller habitat area to increase extinction risk for pikas, creating detrimental synergistic effects.

Nest just a bit underground

Young in the nest

Video Link: http://www.arkive.org/american-pika/ochotona-princeps/video-09.html

A nest is shallower than a burrow.

Entering nest

Threats continued

Pikas do not inhabit burrows which could mitigate extreme temperatures and are highly active aboveground during the hottest months of the year.

In the Spring and Summer, they hay. If plants mature faster, they cannot hay fast

enough to store enough for winter. Dense fur may cause them to overheat.

Threat

Freezing in the winter due to less snow pack

Snow acts as insulation.

Other Threats: Habitat Loss

Domestic and feral cattle American pika populations

are smaller where cattle graze.

Non-native plant species are also spreading across the American pika’s habitat

Wildfires Reduces food availability

Related to a rabbit!

Conservation

The American pika is afforded protection in a number of reserves

Conservation Priorities

developing management plans for its populations, with further research into its population numbers, trends and range, as well as its habitat status and threats, and the identification of new protected areas

Law

it is illegal to hunt this species throughout its range

Technology

Suitability modeling: Geographic Information System

Help to predict when and where pika populations will decline

Summary

http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/climate-weather/videos/assignment-earth-pikas-and-climate-change

Question How come many scientists say that Pikas

are like the 'canary in the coal mine' when it comes to the response of alpine and mountain systems to climate change?