Recolonizing wolves influence the realized niche of resident cougars

Zoological Studies

Table 1 Annual estimates of wolves reported by USFW, elk availability (elk per wolf), deer availability (deer per elk), cow elk to calf ratios, and mean snow depth in the Southern Yellowstone Ecosystem, WY, USA, followed by the percentage of elk and deer that constituted cougar diets, the percentage of the total elk killed that were calves, and the percentage of kill sites found in forested habitat for summer seasons

Year	Wolves	Elk/wolf	Deer/elk	Cow:calf	Snow depth (cm)	% elk	% deer	% calves	% forest
2002	15	997.07	0.012	20	72.29	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
2003	19	708.26	0.014	28	67.87	86.7	13.3	42	60
2004	15	915.33	0.006	26	77.51	63	18.8	60	78.1
2005	36	350.28	0.008	22	82.7	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
2006	30	428.50	0.007	25	69.68	26.3	68.8	40	68.6
2007	58	220.29	0.008	25	89.57	68.1	28.6	50	70
2008	81	155.33	0.004	27	78.22	9.9	63.4	60	82.2
2009	74	169.59	0.002	20	56.61	53.3	33.3	64	83.3
2010	91	128.47	0.010	21	92.93	16.3	63.8	50	95.4
2011	85	140.92	0.008	17	54.9	41.7	52.8	100	76.4
2012	83	144.36	0.002	25	60.11	27.3	69.8	83	79.1