Species distributions reflect the suite of resources and range of environmental conditions required by a species. Distributions of many species change seasonally, however, in response to changes in resource availability and environmental conditions, many of which are projected to shift in response to climate change. We sought to identify environmental and anthropogenic factors associated with seasonal changes in the distribution of vertebrates that inhabit the Madrean Archipelago in southern Arizona, which is important for identifying mechanisms through which climate change may affect these species. From July 2012 to February 2015 (966 days), we used remote cameras to survey 200 sites across 16 mountain ranges for a total of 69,434 trap days and used dynamic occupancy models to determine how landscape features, vegetation composition, and anthropogenic factors influenced the distributions and seasonal rates of local colonization and extinction of 13 vertebrates. For these 13 species, we recorded 37,888 detections, with gray foxes, skunks, and squirrels detected most frequently. Bobcats, cottontails, gray foxes, skunks, squirrels, javelina, puma, and coatimundis were all detected across the entire range of elevations surveyed, from 935 to 2395 m. Black bears and wild turkeys were never detected below 1270 m, Sonoran opossums never detected above 1980 m, and coyotes and ringtails never detected above 2020 m. Composition and structure of vegetation in the understory, midstory, and overstory influenced initial occupancy of several species, including skunks, coatimundis, Sonoran opossums, and cottontails. Season, either directly or as an interaction with the estimated amount of solar radiation reaching a site, influenced local extinction rates of all 13 target species and local colonization rates of 9 of 13 species. Elevation influenced local colonization rates of black bears and coatimundis positively, and coyotes, Sonoran opossums, and cottontails negatively, and local extinction rates of skunks negatively and coyotes and black bears positively. These patterns indicate that the distributions of many species in this region change seasonally, likely as a mechanism to meet dietary, behavioral, or physiological needs in response to shifts in environmental conditions and resource availability. Therefore, species that depend on seasonal resources may be at higher risk of distributional shifts or range contractions if the distribution and phenology of these resources change in response to changes in climate.

Despite being a top carnivore, there is relatively scant information on pumas (<i>Puma concolor</i>) in the neotropics especially compared to the more well-studied jaguar (<i>Panthera onca</i>). Understanding long-term puma distribution can affect land management decisions such as appropriate size of buffer zones around protected areas since pumas influence, and are influenced by, sympatric carnivore populations, lower trophic levels, and habitat. We used single-species, single-season and multi-season occupancy modeling to explore factors influencing distribution and persistence of pumas across the country of Belize. We used camera trapping data from 7 protected areas over 20 years with 2,198 camera stations covering ~5,000 km2. For both approaches, detection was mostly affected by distance to roads, enhanced vegetation index (EVI), and elevation, with variable directionality depending on site. In single season modeling, Occupancy increased at lower elevations and intermediate EVI in one site, and closer to water sources at another, while in multi-season modeling, intermediate EVI and canopy cover influenced occupancy. Biotic covariates were highly variable across sites and methods, but detection and occupancy were generally positively associated with prey, jaguar and ocelot trap rates, canopy cover, and elevation, while human trap rates negatively affected occupancy at one site. Colonization was positively affected by deer (<i>Odocoileus virginianus</i> and <i>Mazama americana</i>) trap rates while extinction had no supported covariates. Puma occupancy ranged from 0.41-0.96 in single season models and 0.55-0.90 in multi-season models across all site/years. Compared to other single-season studies, Belize generally had higher occupancy, even in areas of selective logging, however there are no other multi-season studies to compare. While sites with heavy human impacts had lowest occupancy, these areas are still used and likely serve as steppingstones between protected areas of higher occupancy. Such areas could be targets for protection to preserve landscape connectivity. Additionally, due to high occupancy and colonization across varying habitat and biotic factors the jaguar is likely an effective umbrella species for puma space use, however more analysis on other species is needed to ensure efficiency for more than just pumas. / Master of Science / The neotropics is an important global zone known for high biodiversity and carbon sequestration. Felids (wild cats) play an important role in maintaining biodiversity and structure in ecosystems, however, they are facing threats to their survival due to habitat loss and fragmentation, and negative human-wildlife conflict. To protect ecosystem health, managers often employ the umbrella species concept, meaning if they protect the jaguar with its large spatial requirements, other wildlife species that fall within that area will also be protected. However, there have been few studies on the effectiveness of this strategy, especially for species like the puma, that might be competitive with jaguars. Occupancy modeling is a powerful tool in wildlife management that uses presence absence analysis to determine where species occur on a landscape. We used camera trapping data across multiple protected areas over 20 years to determine what influences pumas across the landscape. We found pumas were affected by differing variables depending on habitat. Important variables were: thickness of vegetation, elevation, distance to roads and water, prey and there were positively associated with jaguars and ocelots. Additionally, pumas were more likely to move into a new site if the activity of their favored prey, deer, was high. Pumas occurred at 41-96% of camera stations depending on site, across all years, indicating they are widespread across Belize. Compared to 11 other occupancy studies from Latin America, Belize generally had higher occupancy, even in areas of selective logging, compared to the other available studies in the neotropics. While sites with heavy human impacts had lowest occupancy, these areas are still being used by pumas and likely serve as steppingstones between protected areas of higher occupancy. Such areas could be targets for protection to preserve landscape connectivity across Belize, which is rapidly developing in infrastructure. Overall, jaguars appear to be a suitable umbrella species for the puma, however, further analysis is needed for more specialized species such as threatened Baird's tapir, crested guan, black howler monkey, and smaller cat species, the margay and jaguarundi, to ensure that the jaguar is a suitable umbrella species that supports a wide variety of species within the community.