Habitat Selection and Activity Patterns of Japanese Serows and Sika Deer with Currently Sympatric Distributions

Seki, Yoichi; Hayama, Shin-ichi

doi:10.3390/ani11123398

Cited by 19 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 96 publications

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“…The clarification of various ecological relationships and coexistence mechanisms between sympatric species must rely on the data of the spatio-temporal distribution of species on large rational scales and long timescales [ 48 , 56 , 57 ]. Some large- and medium-sized, terrestrial, wild animals often have the characteristics of low population density, strong migration ability, and sensitivity to human activities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatio-Temporal Niche of Sympatric Tufted Deer (Elaphodus cephalophus) and Sambar (Rusa unicolor) Based on Camera Traps in the Gongga Mountain National Nature Reserve, China

You

Du³

et al. 2022

Animals

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Clarifying the distribution pattern and overlapping relationship of sympatric relative species in the spatio-temporal niche is of great significance to the basic theory of community ecology and integrated management of multi-species habitats in the same landscape. In this study, based on a 9-year dataset (2012–2021) from 493 camera-trap sites in the Gongga Mountain National Nature Reserve, we analyzed the habitat distributions and activity patterns of tufted deer (Elaphodus cephalophus) and sambar (Rusa unicolor). (1) Combined with 235 and 153 valid presence sites of tufted deer and sambar, the MaxEnt model was used to analyze the distribution of the two species based on 11 ecological factors. The distribution areas of the two species were 1038.40 km2 and 692.67 km2, respectively, with an overlapping area of 656.67 km2. Additionally, the overlap indexes Schoener’s D (D) and Hellinger’s-based I (I) were 0.703 and 0.930, respectively. (2) Based on 10437 and 5203 independent captures of tufted deer and sambar, their daily activity rhythms were calculated by using the kernel density estimation. The results showed that the daily activity peak in the two species appeared at dawn and dusk; however, the activity peak in tufted deer at dawn and dusk was later and earlier than sambar, respectively. Our findings revealed the spatio-temporal niche relationship between tufted deer and sambar, contributing to a further understanding of the coexistence mechanism and providing scientific information for effective wild animal conservation in the reserve and other areas in the southeastern edge of the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatio-Temporal Niche of Sympatric Tufted Deer (Elaphodus cephalophus) and Sambar (Rusa unicolor) Based on Camera Traps in the Gongga Mountain National Nature Reserve, China

You

Du³

et al. 2022

Animals

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“…2015; Cheng et al. 2020; Seki & Hayama 2021). Similarly, the sika deer in LNNR preferentially inhabited deciduous broad‐leaved forests, temperate coniferous and broad‐leaved mixed forests, cold‐temperate coniferous and broad‐leaved mixed forests, and cold‐temperate coniferous forests.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interspecific association of sika deer in terrestrial animal communities of Liancheng National Nature Reserve, China

Cui

Zi-hong

et al. 2023

Integr. Zool.

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The prevention and control of invasive of alien species is an important work for nature reserves. This study analyzes the development trend of the alien species sika deer in Liancheng National Nature Reserve. From October 2019 to June 2020, 3523 valid photos and videos of terrestrial animals were acquired from 130 camera traps, and sika deer were recorded in 21 photos from 13 traps. The survival of the sika deer population was investigated by means of morphological identification, population structure analysis, species relative abundance indices, and species spatial association analysis. A total of 13 sika deer individuals were identified by camera trapping, including two kids and three subadults representing the reproductive capacity of the population. Spatially, sika deer is not associated with any local species and was outside the spatial association network of terrestrial animals in Liancheng National Nature Reserve, indicating that the sika deer population has not been integrated into the local community and has failed to perform its ecological function. It is worth noting that the reserve provides habitat suitable for sika deer and that the population has adequate reproductive capacity. Due to the lack of large apex predators in the reserve, the population size of ungulates such as sika deer, red deer, and Siberian roe deer may expand and lead to population outbreaks and the associated problems for the ecosystem. To restore large-and medium-sized carnivores and avoid the population outbreak of the species, the present challenges require immediate attention in Liancheng National Nature Reserve.

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“…Unfortunately, to the best of our knowledge, there have been no behavioral or morphological rationales regarding the differences in step width of quadrupedal animals thus far. However, a reasonable interpretation might be available from an abductive inference derived from well-known interspecies difference relating to antipredator strategies: namely, serows adopt more stable gait patterns by widening step width since they often use steep slopes or cliffs as refuges from predators (Takada et al 2019), whereas deer prefer enhancing the speed of movement to escape from predators by narrowing step width because they rarely use such terrain (Nowicki and Koganezawa 2001;Seki and Hayama 2021). This possible hypothesis should be a worthwhile challenge for the future.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gait Patterns in Snow—a Possible Criterion to Differentiate Sika Deer and Japanese Serow Tracks

et al. 2023

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There is a compelling need to develop user-friendly and sensitive techniques to monitor sika deer (Cervus nippon) populations in snowy regions, where initial stages of deer invasion have been observed. In snow, we can easily detect footsteps of terrestrial mammals, which often serve as a useful index of population size. Here, we examined the possibility of identifying tracks with similar hoof prints left by two sympatric ungulates, sika deer and Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus), using gait patterns. We then recorded tracks of free-ranging deer and serows on the snow by following ~200-km survey routes in the Tohoku region. We successfully recorded the gait patterns of 27 deer and 34 serows. Our key findings were as follows: 1) the step width of deer tracks (mean and SE, 20.3 ± 0.7 cm) was substantially narrower than that of serow tracks (26.9 ± 0.8 cm); 2) step width was less sensitive to body size and ground conditions for both species; and 3) the step width of 22.5 cm became an optimal threshold to maintain a reasonable classification accuracy (> 80%) for both species. Thus, the gait patterns serve as a possible criterion for identifying the tracks of these two ungulates.

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Habitat Selection and Activity Patterns of Japanese Serows and Sika Deer with Currently Sympatric Distributions

Cited by 19 publications

References 96 publications

Spatio-Temporal Niche of Sympatric Tufted Deer (Elaphodus cephalophus) and Sambar (Rusa unicolor) Based on Camera Traps in the Gongga Mountain National Nature Reserve, China

Spatio-Temporal Niche of Sympatric Tufted Deer (Elaphodus cephalophus) and Sambar (Rusa unicolor) Based on Camera Traps in the Gongga Mountain National Nature Reserve, China

Interspecific association of sika deer in terrestrial animal communities of Liancheng National Nature Reserve, China

Gait Patterns in Snow—a Possible Criterion to Differentiate Sika Deer and Japanese Serow Tracks

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