about us

Our Mission

We support wildlife conservation and management by providing high-end quantitative services to our clients.

Our Portfolio

A collection of recently completed projects that demonstrates our ability to collaborate and produce high-quality and innovative science.

Modeling Fence Lines in Southern Saskatchewan

We worked closely with biologists at Government of Saskatchewan and Alberta Conservation Association to develop a landscape-scale fence density model across the northeastern portion of pronghorn (Antilocapra americana range in the Northern Sagebrush Steppe (NSS) ecosystem. The project estimated fence densities (km/km²) using a rules-based approach that included field observations, landcover, road, and cadastral data, and expert opinion. This work was part of a wider effort to model fence densities to understand their influence on pronghorn movement, habitat selection, and survivorship. Along with producing a final report for the Minister of Environment, our fence density model for Saskatchewan was combined with fence density models from Montana and Alberta to provide complete coverage over the NSS ecosystem.

Predicting Landscape-scale Survivorship for a Northern Ungulate

We partnered with the National Wildlife Federation and Alberta Conservation Association to develop spatial risk models for pronghorn that could potentially predict landscape-scale survivorship. We estimated seasonal home ranges and extracted values for depth (cm) of snow water equivalent (SWE; a proxy for snow depth), road and fence density, and maximum decadal normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), a remotely sensed measure of vegetative greenness. We produced the first-ever spatial predictions of pronghorn survivorship in the Northern Sagebrush Steppe (NSS) ecosystem and found that SWE depth and road density largely explained pronghorn mortality risk. This research was published in Ecosphere (see Eacker et al. 2023).

Summer Elk Calf Survival in a Partially Migratory Population

We contracted with researchers at the University of Alberta-Edmonton and University of Montana-Missoula to evaluate the risk factors driving elk (Cervus canadensis) calf mortality in a partially migratory elk population. We found that bears (Ursus spp.) were the dominant source of elk calf mortality, with calves born to resident mothers having 45% lower survivorship on average compared to migrants. Our time-to-event modeling approach identified that exposure to grizzly bears was less important when calves were in the hiding phase (<11 days after birth) for either tactic, presumably because neonatal behavior reduced vulnerability. This research was published in The Journal of Wildlife Management (see Berg et al. 2023).

Our Story

Daniel R. Eacker

Owner/Consultant

As owner-operator of Taurus Wildlife Consulting, Dan Eacker brings his extensive background in quantitative wildlife ecology, field studies, and statistical analysis to solve complex research problems and deliver results for clients. Dan received his Masters of Science in Wildlife Biology from the Wildlife Biology Program at University of Montana-Missoula in 2015 and has years of experience in wildlife research and analysis. Dan started Taurus Wildlife Consulting in 2020 to continue to collaborate with government agencies, private non-profit organizations, and universities.