| Elemental deficiencies and digestive disorders of wild ungulates may be improved by soil ingestion at lick areas. I related seasonal patterns of lick use with the composition of lick soils and forage to assess the importance of licks to four ungulate species. Behavioural observations of elk ( Cervus elaphus), moose (Alces alces), Stone's sheep (Ovis dalli stonei), and mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus) were conducted at two wet licks and three dry licks in the Tuchodi watershed, north-central British Columbia. Three indices of lick use (attendance numbers, length of visit, and time spent licking per visit) from 558 h of observations and remote trail camera data (May--August 2002) were used to estimate species- and sex-specific peak periods of licking activity. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
