User:Andygagliardi/Pika

Activity (intended to append the "Activity" section on the Pika page with a version that includes citations on all the info)
Impacts of human activity on the Tundra ecosystems where Pikas live have been recoded dating back to the 1970s. Rather than hibernate during winter, Pikas forage for grasses and other forms of plant matter and stash these findings in protected dens in a process called 'haying' which they sustain themselves with during winter seasons. Sometimes Pikas think that humans are predators, so they sometimes respond to humans as they do to other species which may actually be preying on the Pikas. Such interactions with humans have been linked to Pikas having reduced amounts of foraging time, consequentially limiting the amount of food they can stockpile for winter months. Pikas are unable to safely withstand surrounding temperatures above 25° C, so they must spend their time in shaded regions and out of direct sunlight when temperatures are high. A link has also been found between temperature increases and lost forging time, where for every increase of 1° C to the ambient temperature in alpine landscapes home to Pikas those Pikas lose 3% of their foraging time.