Our Liviiii; Resources — The Great Plains 



305 



1944; Bottiell et al. 1964; Cross et al. 1985). In 

 general, the south-central Great Plains is char- 

 acterized by low but intense rainfall, high evap- 

 oration rates, and periodic drought (Zaie et al. 

 1989). Such conditions likely cause great popu- 

 lation changes year-to-year and may even cause 

 local extinctions. 



Extensive agricultural activities and resul- 

 tant demands for irrigation water, coupled with 

 the construction of numerous reservoirs in the 

 Arkansas River basin, have degraded and 

 restricted habitats of the shiner and speckled 

 chub and likely other prairie fishes (Cross and 

 Moss 1987). Successful reproduction or recruit- 

 ment seems to have been impaired. 

 Impoundments have fragmented once contigu- 

 ous populations of the shiner and speckled chub 

 to restricted river reaches with suitable habitat, 

 effectively eliminating movements between 

 populations and colonization of vacant habitat. 

 Although altered flow regimes may be the ulti- 

 mate explanation of the declines of these and 

 other species, the actual pattern of decline dif- 

 fers between species. Overall, these declines 

 indicate that human activities have degraded 

 aquatic prairie ecosystems to the point of 

 endangering parts of endemic tlsh assemblages. 



References 



Bestgen. K.R . S.P. Platania. J.E. Brooks, and D.L. Probst. 

 14S9. Dispersal and life histor>' traits of Nolropis i^iranH 

 (Cyprinifomies: Cyprinidae) introduced into ttie Pecos 

 River. New Mexico. American Midland Naturalist 

 122:228-23,';. 



Bottrell. C.E.. R.H. Ingersol, and R.W. .lones, 1464. Notes 

 on the embryology, early development, and behavior of 

 Hyhapsis aestivelis tetranemiis (Gilbert). Transactions of 

 the American Microscopical Society S,V,^91-.^y9. 



Cross. F.B.. and R.E. Moss. 1987. Historic changes in fish 

 comiriunities and aquatic habitats in plains streams of 

 Kansas. Pages I5-'i-16.'> in W.J. Matthews and D.C. 

 Heins, eds. Community and evolutionary ecology of 

 North American stream fishes. University of Oklahoma 

 Press, Norman. 



Cross, F.B.. R.E. Moss, and J.T. Collins. 198,'i. Assessment 

 of dewatering impacts on stream fisheries in the Arkansas 

 and Cimarron rivers. Final Report. Kansas Fish and 

 Game Commission. Nongame Wildlife Contract 46, 161 

 pp. 



Moore, G.A. 1944. Notes on the early life history of 

 Nnlrnpis girardi. Copeia 1944:209-214. 



Zale. A. v.. D.M. Leslie. Jr.. W.L. Fisher, and S.G. 

 Memfield. 1989. The physicochemistry. flora, and fauna 

 of intermittent prairie streams: a review of the literature. 

 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Biological Report 89(5). 

 44 pp. 



For further information: 



Anthony A. Echelle 



Oklahoma State University 



Department of Zoology 



Stillwater, OK 74078 



Increases or declines in wildlife populations 

 are often the first noted indicators of wide- 

 spread environmental change. Behavioral 

 changes such as diet shifts or habitat-use also 

 may provide sensitive indicators of environ- 

 mental change. The coyote (Canis latrans) is an 

 example of an oppoilunistic wild animal that 

 may show both numerical and beha\ioral 

 responses to environmental change. 



Recent trends in populations and diets of 

 coyotes and other canids (e.g., wolves, foxes, 

 dogs) may reflect changes in land use, especial- 

 ly agricultural changes, and shifts in human 

 populations. This article reviews both published 

 accounts and original research to summarize 

 how coyotes appear to have responded to 

 changes in human populations and land use on 

 the Great Plains. 



Methods 



Data presented in this paper were taken from 

 many published sources (Sperry 1941; Young 

 and Jackson 1951; Fichter et al. 1955; Gier 

 1968; Johnson and Sargeant 1977; Socolofsky 

 and Self 1988) and from original research on 

 coyote diets (Brillhart 1993). Although most of 

 these studies were conducted on specific bio- 

 logical or social issues, we compare them to 

 help understand human and wildlife population 

 changes through time. 



Human Population Changes 



Two large-scale movements of people into the 

 central Great Plains, from Nebraska south 

 through Kansas and Oklahoma, occurred during 

 the 1800"s. The first large influx took place dur- 

 ing the late 1820"s, 30's, and 40's, as displaced 

 Native American tribes were moved to the region. 



Information about wildlife before 1850 is 

 limited, but accounts suggest that bison {Bison 

 hisou). other big game, and wild canids were 

 abundant when eastern Native American tribes 

 moved into the region (Allen 1874; Cragin 

 1885; Mead 1899; Choate and Fleharty 1975; 

 Bee et al. 1 98 1 ). Native Americans on the Great 

 Plains lived a subsistence lifestyle dependent 

 upon these game animals, but even when rela- 

 tively large numbers of Native Americans were 

 moved to the region, they generally left the 

 prairies and wildlife populations intact. 



The second major influx of people occurred 

 from 1860 through the 1880's when thousands 

 of settlers from eastern states and Europe came 

 to homestead or to buy land from the railroads. 

 Settlers and market hunters killed tens of thou- 

 sands of bison yearly; several million bison 

 hides were shipped from Dodge City and other 

 railroad communities (Socolofsky and Self 

 1988). Before the turn of the century, bison and 

 elk (Cemis elaphiis) were extirpated from the 

 region. European settlers converted the prairies 

 into farms, ranches, and towns. They also 



The Coyote: 

 An Indicator 

 Species of 

 Environmental 

 Change on the 

 Great Plains 



by 



Philip S. Gipsoii 



Dennis E. Brillhart 



National Biological Service 



