My Project (the dry stuff)

First things first, what do I research?

I'm looking at two species of flying squirrels (Glaucomys) in Ontario. Southern flying squirrels (G. volans) are moving north with climate change, and that could have impacts on the populations of northern flying squirrels (G. sabrinus) that live further north.

What are my objectives?

I'm interested in the possibility that these two species could be competing for nest trees (cavities) when they live in the same area. As well, southern flying squirrels could be passing a parasite to northern flying squirrels that northerns are not adapted to. Both of these interactions could put negative pressure on northern flying squirrels.

How will I test my objectives?

Nest cavities would be most critical in winter, when temperatures are low. I will record tree cavity temperatures during that time, and model which cavities are warmest using measurements from inside the cavities.

I want to know if southern flying squirrels are nesting in the warmest cavities, so I will also measure known flying squirrels nest cavities to see where they fit in the model. I think that in sites where they are only one species, both northerns and southerns would use the warmest cavities. In areas where there are both species, I think that southerns would use the warmest cavities (they have been shown to be more aggresive than northerns in defending nest boxes).

I will also test both species for the parasite Strongyloides robustus. It lives in the intestine and has no measureable effect on southerns, but causes harm to northerns. To test for the parasite, I will collect scat samples on a north-south gradient in Ontario, to see if it is moving north with southerns.

So that's the gist of it - my Coles Notes version :) Now onto the interesting part, field work - the good, the bad, and the ugly... stay tuned