Ricerc@Sapienza

The value of ants to bears is a topic of substantial relevance for the small and highly endangered population of Apennine brown bears (Ursus arctos marsicanus) in central Italy. Following a previous food-habit study (2006–2009) based on scat analysis, we used the same data set to further investigate patterns of ant consumption by Apennine bears at a greater taxonomic and temporal resolution. We observed a great diversity of ant species in bear scats, comprising 15 genera and > 42 species.

Despite its critical conservation status, no formal estimate of the Apennine brown bear (Ursus arctos marsicanus) distribution has ever been attempted, nor a coordinated effort to compile and verify all recent occurrences has ever been ensured. We used 48331 verified bear location data collected by qualified personnel from 2005?2014 in the central Apennines, Italy, to estimate the current distribution of Apennine brown bears.

Brown bears in the Apennines, central Italy, survive in a precarious conservation status but the reproductive performance of the population has never been formally assessed. Each year, from 2006-2014, we conducted surveys of females with cubs (FWC) to estimate the minimum number of female bears that reproduced and annual productivity in this bear population. We discriminated unique family groups based on simultaneity of sightings, presence of individually recognizable bears, and ad hoc distance-based rules developed using GPS relocations from 11 adult female bears in our study population.

Although knowledge of reproductive parameters is critical to project the chances of persistence of small populations, no data on basic reproductive traits have ever been estimated for the relict Apennine brown bear population (central Italy). From 2005-2014, as part of an ongoing ecological investigation, we compiled re-sight data on marked adult female bears (3 ? n ?