Differences in social-space–time behaviour of two red deer herds (Cervus elaphus)

Abstract

Social-space–time-behaviour has developed very differently (e.g. a, loner, a herd, a pack) in the animal kingdom and depends on many different factors, like food availability, competition, predator avoidance or disturbances. It is known, that red deer are differently distributed in human disturbed areas compared to areas with less anthropogenic influences. But knowledge about the potential influence of human presence on social associations and interactions is rare, albeit differences may result in changing impacts on the environment, such as habitat utilization and feeding damage. Therefore, we investigated differences in the space use and social association of red deer. We studied two radio-collared herds of non-migratory populations in two study areas, which were comparable in landscape structure and vegetation structure, but differed in accessibility for visitors and the extent of their presence. Between the two study sites we compared the home range size, the differences in the extent of home range overlap within each study site and the space–time association (Jacobs Index) of individuals. Additionally, we present data on seasonal variations of home range sizes and social association all year round. In order to compare human activity in the study sites, we used the data from our long-term camera trap monitoring. The herd in the area with more human activity had significantly smaller home ranges and had greater year-round social associations in almost all seasons, except summer. We assume that smaller home ranges and higher association between animals may result in a higher feeding pressure on plants and a patchier utilization in areas with higher disturbances.