An initial record of a long-distance dispersal route of a male sika deer in central Japan

Abstract

We conducted a global positioning system (GPS) tracking of a male sika deer (Cervus nippon) and his mother in the eastern foothills of the northern Japanese Alps, central Japan. Sika deer exhibited similar seasonal movement patterns; however, the male deer left his natal group at 11 months of age. At 15 months of age, the male deer settled in the neighboring mountain, which was 74 km away from his natal range. This is the first record of long-distance (>50 km) natal dispersal of the sika deer. Our findings might help to explain the expanding distribution of the sika deer.

Habitat utilization distribution of sika deer (Cervus nippon)

“…On the North Island of New Zealand, the distance from the collar-tagged position to the hunter-kill location was recorded to be 2.2 km after an average of 16.9 months [ 103 ]. Moreover, the mean seasonal migration distances vary among different habitat patches, ranging from 3.2 to 22.9 km (Kirigamine Highland) [ 93 ], 7.2–101.7 km (Hokkaido) [ 2 ], 4.0–69.9 km (Takkobu) [ 73 ], approximately 74 km in the eastern foothills of the northern Japanese Alps (Japan) [ 36 ], and 80–160 km in Kadyna, Poland [ 104 ]. There is a need for future research into the specific individual behavior of deer in the current study area and other habitat regions.…”

“…Monitoring species behavior and inventory programs are essential for the generation and distribution of reliable data to formulate policy models, manage invasive species, and perform socioecological impact assessments [ 31 ]. Several studies have analyzed home ranges and deer behavior in various countries and regions [ [32] , [33] , [34] , [35] , [36] , [37] ]. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that explores the UDs of deer using available literature and experimental approaches.…”

Prediction of the visit and occupy of the sika deer (Cervus nippon) during the summer season using a virtual ecological approach

“…Some animals engage in periodical round trip movements between seasonal home ranges [6][7][8] . For example, seasonal migration from high elevations to mid-or low elevations are common for ungulates, such as the sika deer (Cervus nippon) 6,9,10 , roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) 11 , takin (Budorcas taxicolor) 8 , and moose (Alces alces) 12 . Some species of ungulates are known to exhibit large-scale movements within a particular season (type 1) and between seasons (type 2).…”

“…In the present study, a virtual ecology approach was used to predict the visit and occupy of sika deer during the plant growing season. Although sika deer migrate between the summer and winter seasons 6,10,34 , this study focused on the summer season based on the driving factors of visit and occupy, especially the availability of food resources, which is the most important factor triggering migration of large herbivores 5,7,9,11 . The sika deer tend to visit and occupy areas within a home range with high accessibility to food resources.…”