Data from: Faster and farther: wolf movement on linear features and implications for hunting behaviour

1. Predation by Canis lupus grey wolves has been identified as an important cause of Rangifer tarandus caribou boreal woodland caribou mortality and it has been hypothesized that wolf use of human-created linear features such as seismic lines, pipelines and roads increases movement, resulting in higher kill rates.
2. We tested if wolves select linear features and if movement rates increased while travelling on linear features in north-eastern Alberta and north-western Saskatchewan using 5-minute GPS (Global Positioning System) locations from twenty-two wolves in six packs.
3. Wolves selected all but two linear feature classes, with the magnitude of selection depending on feature class and season. Wolves travelled two to three times faster on linear features compared to the natural forest. Increased average daily travelling speed while on linear features and increased proportion of steps spent travelling on linear features increased net daily movement rates, suggesting that wolf use of linear features can increase their search rate.
4. Synthesis and applications. Our findings that wolves move faster and farther on human-created linear features can inform mitigation strategies intended to decrease predation on woodland caribou, a threatened species. Of the features that can realistically be restored, mitigation strategies, such as silviculture and linear deactivation (i.e. tree-felling and fencing) should prioritize conventional seismic lines (i.e. cleared lines used for traditional oil and gas exploration) and pipelines, as they were selected by wolves and increased travelling speed, before low-impact seismic lines.

1. 灰狼（Canis lupus）的捕食已被证实是北方林地驯鹿（Rangifer tarandus caribou）死亡的重要诱因，且有假说提出，灰狼利用地震勘探线（seismic lines）、管道（pipelines）及道路（roads）等人工线性地貌会提升其移动能力，进而带来更高的猎杀成功率。
2. 本研究以加拿大阿尔伯塔省东北部与萨斯喀彻温省西北部为研究区域，利用6个狼群共22只灰狼的5分钟间隔全球定位系统（Global Positioning System, GPS）定位数据，检验了灰狼是否会优先选择线性地貌，以及在这类地貌上行进时移动速率是否会提升。
3. 灰狼对除两类之外的所有线性地貌类别均表现出选择偏好，选择强度则依地貌类别与季节而异。相较于原生森林，灰狼在人工线性地貌上行进的速度可达2至3倍。在人工线性地貌上提升的日均行进速度，以及用于线性地貌行进的步数占比提升，均推动了日均净移动速率的增加，这表明灰狼利用线性地貌可提升其搜索效率。
4. 综合与应用。本研究发现灰狼在人工线性地貌上行进更快、移动距离更远，这一结论可为旨在降低受威胁物种林地驯鹿被捕食风险的减缓策略提供参考。在可实际开展修复的地貌中，诸如营林修复与线性地貌停用（即伐除植被并设置围栏）这类减缓措施，应优先针对常规地震勘探线（conventional seismic lines，即传统油气勘探所用的清理型线路）与管道展开，因为相较于低影响地震勘探线（low-impact seismic lines），灰狼对前者存在选择偏好且该类地貌会提升灰狼行进速度。