Microhabitat features influencing habitat use by Florida black bears

Understanding fine-scale habitat needs of species and the factors influencing heterogeneous use of habitat within home range would help identify limiting resources and inform habitat management practices. This information is especially important for large mammals living in fragmented habitats where resources may be scarcer and more patchily distributed than in contiguous habitats. Using bihourly Global Position System (GPS) location data collected from 10 individuals during 2011-2014, we investigated microhabitat features of areas within home ranges that received high vs. low intensity of use by Florida black bears (Ursus americanus floridanus) in north-central, Florida. We identified areas receiving high and low levels of use by bears based on their utilization distributions estimated with the dynamic Brownian bridge movement model, and performed vegetation sampling at bear locations within high- and low-use areas. Using univariate analyses and generalized linear mixed models, we found that (1) canopy cover, visual obstruction, and hardwood density were important in defining high-use sites; (2) the probability of high use was positively associated with principal components that represented habitat closer to creeks and with high canopy and shrub cover and higher hardwood densities, likely characteristic of forested wetlands; and (3) the probability of high use was, to a lesser extent, associated with principal components that represented habitat with high canopy cover, high pine density, and low visual obstruction and hardwood density; likely representing sand pine and pine plantations. Our results indicate that the high bear-use sites were in forested wetlands, where cover and food resources for bears are likely to occur in higher abundance. Habitat management plans whereby bears are a focal species should aim to increase the availability and quality of forested wetlands.