Snowmobiling aand aeffects aon aYellowstone

Introduction

Nearly a125,000 avisitors aprefer ato await auntil athe acoldest, adarkest, asnowiest atime aof ayear aprecisely abecause athe aweather ais ainclement aand athe aroads aare aimpassable. aThey ago ato aexperience athe awonders aof aYellowstone aon aa asnowmobile. aThe anonstop ainterruption aof amotorized amovements aand ahuman abeing adevelopment ainto aregions aproperly acontrolled aby anatural aprocesses ahas aculminated ain athe ahumiliation aof aecology aaround athe aglobe a(Hannah aet aal., 246-250). aSnowmobiling ahas abecome afashionable awinter aaction asporting ain aNorth aAmerica. aIt ahas aserved aa acritical arole ain apromoting athe aapplication aand aadmiration aof awilderness aregions aas awell aas aa asignificant adevice afor ahunters, atrappers, aand aothers a(Simpson a1987). aOn athe aother ahand, asnowmobile asporting aalso aresulted ain aa arange aof anegative aeffects ato athe aenvironment aand awildlife aduring awinter awhen areserves aare abounded aand aenvironmental asituation aare aharsh. a

Thesis a

Snowmobiles ain aYellowstone anational apark ahave acritical aimplications. aIt ahas aimpacted athe avarious afeatures aof athe anatural aenvironment aincluding awildlife, anature aand aeven athe aair aquality. a a

Negative aEffects aof aSnowmobiles

Snowmobiling ahas afacilitated aa arising anumber aof acommunities ato acontact aonce aremote aregions ain awinter. aThe aamalgamation aof ahigh-speed, aloud anoise aand arapid amaneuverability amakes asnowmobiling aa astriking aand adisturbing astimulus ain athe ascenery a(Mahoney aet aal. 35-43). aAs aa aresult, athe astriking aamplification ain asnowmobiles ahas aboosted athe adifferences abetween asnowmobile afans, athe aenvironment aand awildlife. aNeumann aand aMerriam a(1972, 209-212) aand aWanek a(1971, 1-9) apresented aa astudy athat athermal ainsulation aof asnow aand atemperature agradients aunderneath athe asurface aare asignificantly adecreased aby athe acompression aof asnow adue ato amovements aof asnowmobiles. aSnowmobiles ahave adirect aand aindirect aeffects aon avegetation. aDirect aeffects aof asnowmobiles ato avegetation aoccur awhen asnowmobile askis aand atread acome ain acontact awith aindividual aplants a(typically awoody aspecies) aprotruding aabove athe asnow asurface. aThis aresults ain aphysical adamage aof aplant atissue ainhibiting agrowth aor acausing amortality a(Wanek ,, 1-9; aNeumann aand aMerriam, 209-212, aWanek aand aSchumacher a34). aIndirect aeffects aof asnowmobiles aare acaused aby atheir atendency ato acompact athe asnow asurface, aotherwise achanging athe acondition aof athe asnow aenvironment athat aplants ahave aadapted ato.

Implications aon aWildlife

Stress ais adefined aas aa asignificant adisturbance aof ahomeostasis acaused aby amarked aor aunpredictable aenvironmental achange. aIn amammals, athe aperception aof aa astimulus aas athreatening aactivates athe ahypothalamo* apituitary*adrenal aaxis awhich astimulates athe asecretion aof aadrenocorticotropic ahormone afrom athe aanterior apituitary. aAdrenocorticotropic ahormone athen astimulates athe asecretion aof aadrenal acortex asteroids asuch aas aglucocorticoids a(GC) athat aregulate aglucose ametabolism aconsistent awith aan aemergency aresponse a(i.e., afight aor aflight; aWingfield aet aal. a1998, 198-206).The amanner ain awhich asnowmobiles amove aacross athe alandscape aand athe anoise athey aemit amay ahave acompounding aeffects aon awildlife astress aand adistribution. aSimpson a(1987) asuggested athat aanimals asurrounded aby afast-moving astimuli amay apanic aas athey aare aunable ato alocate amultiple athreats. aMoen aet aal. a(1982) amentioned athat asnowmobilers aroaming athrough athe alandscape amay aunintentionally a“chase” aanimals ain aresponse ato anoise (176-183). aRichens aand aLavigne a(1978) astudied ause aof asnowmobile atrails aby awhite-tailed adeer a(Odocoileus avirginianus) aduring athe awinters aof ...