Using participatory science to investigate furbearer habitat associations and co-occurrence in Alberta's boreal forest

Marten ( Martes americana), lynx ( Lynx canadensis), fisher ( Pekania pennanti), and wolverine ( Gulo gulo) are ecologically, culturally, and economically important. We worked with 63 individual trappers across 72 traplines and used remotely triggered cameras at 146 sites to document species occurrence in Alberta, Canada's boreal forest over three trapping seasons. We then evaluated furbearer occurrence as a function of coarse-scale forest harvest, climate, human disturbance, and landcover variables as well as furbearer co-occurrence using a multi-stage generalized linear model framework. Climate and/or anthropogenic-related variables were present in the top models for all species, which may have implications for furbearer distribution as climate and human use patterns change over time. Wolverine occurrence was negatively associated with mean annual temperature, while fisher occurrence was positively associated with it. Landcover was less important; but notably, marten occurrence was negatively associated with conifer forest. Wolverine occurrence was positively associated with lynx occurrence and vice versa. Our work provides an example of successful co-created participatory science. We collected robust data while simultaneously fostering relationships among area trappers and conservation biologists, thereby establishing the foundation for additional collaborative efforts.