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Livestock productivity and profitability are threatened by livestock diseases. In this study, we examine farmers' revealed preferences for testing and treating gastrointestinal parasites in sheep in Sweden, taking into account the sequential structure of these decisions. We control for preventive measures, as well as the potential impact of wildlife–livestock disease transmission on farmers' decisions. A zero‐inflated ordered probit model is used to estimate the determinants of farmers' decisions, and we cross‐validate the robustness of the results to alternative model assumptions. Results from the regressions are used to calculate the consequences of these choices for farmers' profits. The results show that treatment decisions are informed by faecal testing, while both testing and treatment are influenced by the grazing practices, the size of the operation and access to information. Contrary to expectations from the conceptual framework, preventive management practices are positively correlated with treatment. Farmers take multiple risk factors into account when deciding on testing, but we do not find that the same factors affect the outcome of treatment. The economic impacts are small and suggest that treatment without prior testing is more profitable for the farmer than informed treatment. If widespread treatment increases drug resistance, this could motivate policies that encourage testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Swedish wild boar (Sus scrofa) population has increased rapidly over the last decades, resulting in conflicts with human activities. Particularly, the increase has been challenging for agriculture as wild boar cause damage on crops and grasslands. To predict under what conditions to expect damage and where to prioritize management actions, basic knowledge about wild boar habitat and space use is needed. In this study, we used data from 99 wild boar equipped with GPS-collars, collected over a large temporal scale and throughout their distributional range in southern Sweden. We investigated wild boar home range size and habitat use across gradients of habitat availability and population density. Functional response in habitat use was assessed by estimating the use and availability of agricultural land on individual level and then, on population-level evaluating how use changed with changing availability. Finally, a potential response in habitat use was evaluated in relation to population density, i.e., the interaction between availability and population density. Home range size was negatively related to population density for both male and female wild boar. Wild boar used agricultural land more intensively with increasing population density and when other habitat types were less available. Our findings show that wild boar spatial behavior is highly context dependent and may vary considerably due to landscape characteristics and local conditions. Wild boars tend to overuse agricultural land at high densities which has strong implications for wildlife management. It is therefore important to consider local conditions when predicting space and habitat use by wild boar. Overall, this study provided a better understanding of the drivers of wild boar distribution and space use in agro-forested mosaic landscapes and how this knowledge can improve management practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ixodes ricinus ticks are Scandinavia's main vector for tick‐borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), which infects many people annually. The aims of the present study were (i) to obtain information on the TBEV prevalence in host‐seeking I. ricinus collected within the Øresund‐Kattegat‐Skagerrak (ØKS) region, which lies in southern Norway, southern Sweden and Denmark; (ii) to analyse whether there are potential spatial patterns in the TBEV prevalence; and (iii) to understand the relationship between TBEV prevalence and meteorological factors in southern Scandinavia. Tick nymphs were collected in 2016, in southern Scandinavia, and screened for TBEV, using pools of 10 nymphs, with RT real‐time PCR, and positive samples were confirmed with pyrosequencing. Spatial autocorrelation and cluster analysis was performed with Global Moran's I and SatScan to test for spatial patterns and potential local clusters of the TBEV pool prevalence at each of the 50 sites. A climatic analysis was made to correlate parameters such as minimum, mean and maximum temperature, relative humidity and saturation deficit with TBEV pool prevalence. The climatic data were acquired from the nearest meteorological stations for 2015 and 2016. This study confirms the presence of TBEV in 12 out of 30 locations in Denmark, where six were from Jutland, three from Zealand and two from Bornholm and Falster counties. In total, five out of nine sites were positive from southern Sweden. TBEV prevalence of 0.7%, 0.5% and 0.5%, in nymphs, was found at three sites along the Oslofjord (two sites) and northern Skåne region (one site), indicating a potential concern for public health. We report an overall estimated TBEV prevalence of 0.1% in questing I. ricinus nymphs in southern Scandinavia with a region‐specific prevalence of 0.1% in Denmark, 0.2% in southern Sweden and 0.1% in southeastern Norway. No evidence of a spatial pattern or local clusters was found in the study region. We found a strong correlation between TBEV prevalence in ticks and relative humidity in Sweden and Norway, which might suggest that humidity has a role in maintaining TBEV prevalence in ticks. TBEV is an emerging tick‐borne pathogen in southern Scandinavia, and we recommend further studies to understand the TBEV transmission potential with changing climate in Scandinavia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In Europe, Ixodes ricinus (Acari: Ixodidae) is the most widespread and abundant tick species, acting as a vector for several microorganisms of medical and veterinary importance. In Northern and Central Europe, the tick has a bimodal activity pattern consisting of a peak in spring to the beginning of summer and a second peak at the end of summer. However, several findings of ticks on animals during winter have been reported, which raises the question of whether this is an overwintering strategy or whether ticks are active during winter in Scandinavia. The objectives of our study were to determine (i) whether ticks were active and finding hosts during winter, (ii) whether they parasitize their hosts, and (iii) what climatic factors—i.e., temperature, snow depth and precipitation—govern tick winter activity. Methods: Throughout three winter seasons, we examined wild-living and free-ranging roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) for ticks on 332 occasions. In total, 140 individual roe deer were captured in two climatically contrasting sites in south-central Sweden, Grimsö and the Bogesund research area, respectively. We re-examined individual roe deer up to 10 times within the same winter or approximately once a week (mean 10 days, median 7 days between re-examinations) and recorded the absence or presence of ticks on the animals, and tested to what extent meteorological factors affected tick activity. To determine the attachment day, we used the coxal/scutal index of 18 nymphs and 47 female ticks. Results: In total, 243 I. ricinus were collected from 301 roe deer captures between 14 December and 28 February at the Bogesund study site during three subsequent years (2013/2014–2015/2016). We found attached ticks every third to every second examination (32%, 48% and 32% of the examinations, respectively). However, we collected only three I. ricinus females from 31 roe deer captures at the Grimsö study site between 17 December 2015 and 26 February 2016. At the Bogesund study site, based on 192 captures of previously examined deer, we collected 121 ticks, and ticks were found at 33%, 48% and 26% of the examinations during the respective winters. The probability of finding an attached tick on a roe deer at a temperature of −5 °C was > 8% ± 5 (SE), and that probability increased to almost 20% ± 7 (SE) if the air temperature increased to 5 °C. Conclusions: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that winter-active nymphs and female ticks have been documented to attach and feed on roe deer during winter (December to February) in Scandinavia. The main weather conditions regulating winter activity for females were temperature and precipitation, and the lowest estimated air temperature for finding an active tick was well below 5 °C. The behaviour of winter-active and blood-feeding ticks was documented over several winters and in two contrasting areas, implying that it is a common phenomenon that should be investigated more thoroughly, since it may have important consequences for the epidemiology of tick-borne pathogens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Incidence of tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) has increased during the last years in Scandinavia, but the underlying mechanism is not understood. TBE human case data reported between 2010 and 2021 were aggregated into postal codes within Örebro County, south-central Sweden, along with tick abundance and environmental data to analyse spatial patterns and identify drivers of TBE. We identified a substantial and continuing increase of TBE incidence in Örebro County during the study period. Spatial cluster analyses showed significant hotspots (higher number of cases than expected) in the southern and northern parts of Örebro County, whereas a cold spot (lower number of cases than expected) was found in the central part comprising Örebro municipality. Generalised linear models showed that the risk of acquiring TBE increased by 12.5% and 72.3% for every percent increase in relative humidity and proportion of wetland forest, respectively, whereas the risk decreased by 52.8% for every degree Celsius increase in annual temperature range. However, models had relatively low goodness of fit (R2 < 0.27). Results suggest that TBE in Örebro County is spatially clustered, however variables used in this study, i.e., climatic variables, forest cover, water, tick abundance, sheep as indicator species, alone do not explain this pattern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The wild boar population has increased rapidly during the last 2 decades in Southern and Central Sweden. This rise in population size has caused severe damages to agricultural fields through their foraging behavior. Given the hierarchical nature of habitat and resource selection, wildlife management needs to understand the selection on both levels to better understand the ecology of nuisance species and mitigate the damages they infer. Thus, there is an urgent need for more knowledge on the factors that influence habitat selection as a tool in the evidence-based management of wild boar to reduce the losses they cause in the agricultural sector. This study aims to evaluate a common management action (feeding stations) influencing wild boar selection of (1) habitats and (2) resources i.e., crop types, in South-Central Sweden during summer. Eleven wild boars were fitted with GPS/GSM-collars to record movement among different habitats and crops. Wild boar shows a high preference for clear-cuts, agricultural fields, and deciduous forests. The animals showed a high preference for crop fields with oat, spring wheat, and mixed crops. A binary logistic model revealed both a positive and negative significant influence of distance to feeding stations on the selection of different habitats and crop fields. In general, feeding stations influenced the selection of different habitats and crops negatively i.e., the closer a habitat or crop field is to a feeding station, the higher the likelihood of its selection. The study recommends adjustments to wild boar management and cropping systems to reduce damages on highly selected crop fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bacteria of the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato complex are the causative agents of Lyme borreliosis (LB). Even if the conventional diagnosis of LB does not rely on the species itself, an accurate species identification within the complex will provide a deepened epidemiological scenario, a better diagnosis leading to a more targeted therapeutic approach, as well as promote the general public's awareness. A comparative genomics approach based on the 210 Borrelia spp. genomes available in 2019 were used to set up three species-specific PCR protocols, able to detect and provide species typing of Borrelia afzelii, Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto (s.s.) and Borrelia garinii, the three most common and important human pathogenic Lyme Borrelia species in Europe. The species-specificity of these protocols was confirmed on previously identified B. afzelii, B. burgdorferi s.s. and B. garinii specimens detected in Ixodes ricinus samples. In addition, the protocols were validated on 120 DNA samples from ticks collected in Sweden, showing 88% accuracy, 100% precision, 72% sensitivity and 100% specificity. The proposed approach represents an innovative tool in epidemiological studies focused on B. burgdorferi s.l. occurrence in ticks, and future studies could suggest its helpfulness in routine diagnostic tests for health care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prey species may display anti‐predatory behavior, i.e., flight, increased vigilance, and decreased feeding, in response to the true presence of a predator or to the implied presence of a predator through, e.g., acoustic cues. In this study, we investigated the anti‐predatory reactions of moose (Alces alces) to acoustic stimuli related to hunting, at saltlick stones, a known attractant. In before‐during‐after‐control‐impact experiments, we compared the behavioral responses of individuals to: (i) two hunting‐related acoustic stimuli—hunting dog barking and human speaking; (ii) nonpredatory acoustic stimuli—bird sounds and; and (iii) no acoustic stimulus (control). We asked: (1) How does the probability of moose leaving the site differ depending on the stimulus they are exposed to?; (2) What affect do the acoustic stimuli have on the amount of time moose spend vigilant, feeding, or away from the site?; and (3) What affect do the stimuli have on the time between events at a site? We found that when exposed to the human stimulus, moose left the sites in 75% of the events, which was significantly more often compared to the dog (39%), bird (24%), or silent (11%) events. If moose did not leave the site, they spent more time vigilant, and less time feeding, particularly when exposed to a dog or human stimulus. Furthermore, moose spent the most time away from the site and took the longest to visit the site again after a human stimulus. Moose were also more likely to leave the site when exposed to the bird stimulus than during silent controls. Those that remained spent more time vigilant, but their behaviors returned to baseline after the bird stimulus ended. These findings suggest that acoustic stimuli can be used to modify the behavior of moose; however, reactions towards presumably threatening and nonthreatening stimuli were not as distinct as we had expected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Wildlife hosts may serve as reservoirs for strongyles, which can be transmitted to domestic livestock. Therefore, studies evaluating nemabiome compositions in wildlife ruminants are of great use in assessing the possibility of transmission of important nematode pathogens to domestic sheep in Sweden. Methods: First, fecal samples were collected from roe deer (n = 125), fallow deer (n = 106), red deer (n = 18) and mouflon (n = 13) in south central Sweden during the hunting season in 2019. Second, after fecal examination samples were cultured and the larvae were harvested, followed by DNA extractions. Third, all samples were barcoded and processed for sequence analysis on the PacBio platform. Finally, bioinformatic sequence analysis was conducted with DADA2, while species diversity and richness, as well as interactions between the different hosts, were calculated and analyzed in R. Results: Nematode ITS2 sequences were found in 225 of 262 (86%) samples. In total, 31 taxa were identified, among which 26 (86%) to the species level. These were found in different combinations, among which 24 (77%) occurred in roe deer, 19 (61%) in fallow deer, 20 (65%) in red deer and 10 (32%) in mouflon. Five of the species found are known to be associated with livestock (Chabertia ovina, Haemonchus contortus, Oesophagostomum venulosum, Teladorsagia circumcincta and Trichostrongylus axei). However, in the present study the relative abundance and prevalence of most of these species were low. The most striking exception was T. axei, which was relatively abundant in all wildlife hosts. Mostly a wide range of wildlife specific nematodes such as Ostertagia leptospicularis and Spiculopteragia spp. were identified including the invasive nematode Spiculopteragia houdemeri, which was found for the first time in red deer, fallow deer, and mouflon in Sweden. The difference in the number of shared species between mouflon and all cervids (n = 6) was less than among all three cervids (n = 8). Conclusion: In this study, we investigated the community structure of parasitic intestinal nematodes in four wildlife hosts, and we found that the majority of the parasite species identified were wildlife specific. We also found a new, potentially invasive species not reported before. After comparing the nemabiome of the wildlife hosts in this study with a previous study in sheep from the same geographical region, we conclude that the horizontal transmission potential appears to be relatively low. Still, cross-infections of nematodes between game and sheep cannot be completely ignored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antipredator behaviors allow prey to mitigate the impacts of their predators. We investigated antipredator responses of two herbivore species, roe deer and European hare, and one mesopredator, red fox, toward predation risk imposed by lynx and wolf. We collected data (using camera traps) on visitation frequency and vigilance behavior to olfactory predator stimuli during 158 standardized scent trials in five areas across Europe, where lynx and wolves either occurred or had been absent for centuries. After a period without scent, trial sites were either marked with lynx or wolf urine, or butyric acid (unspecific scent used to contrast species‐specific scent responses). We expected the two herbivores to respond aversively (reduced visitation frequency, and increased vigilance) to predator urine, while red foxes (scavengers) might adopt a risk‐sensitive exploration strategy by increasing vigilance near predator urine without reducing visitation frequency. For all species, we expected stronger responses toward the ambush predator lynx than to the pursue predator wolf (cryptic predator hypothesis). If prey responds more strongly to predator stimuli when coexisting with the predator, we expected stronger reactions to predator urine in areas where predators occurred (naïve prey hypothesis). Roe deer significantly avoided lynx urine and butyric acid, but not wolf urine. However, roe deer visitation frequency did not differ between scent treatment with large carnivore urine and butyric acid (suggesting that roe deer generally avoid areas with unfamiliar scent), or between areas where large carnivores were present and absent. Hares did not significantly avoid predator urine. Red foxes were attracted to lynx urine in sympatry, but not in allopatry with large carnivores. They increased vigilance rates in the presence of lynx urine independent of sympatry/allopatry with large carnivores. These findings generally confirm our expectations of predator avoidance by herbivores, and attraction combined with increased vigilance of mesopredators. In all species, lynx urine elicited stronger responses than wolf urine (although not significantly different), which to some extent conforms to the cryptic predator hypothesis. We found no support for the naïve prey hypothesis. However, higher attraction of red foxes to lynx urine in sympatric situations might indicate that positive responses by scavengers are learning based. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Our aim was to analyse the chromogranin A-derived peptides vasostatin and catestatin in serum from wild boar (Sus scrofa) captured in a corral trap. Acute capture-related stress quickly leads to a release of adrenalin and noradrenalin, but these hormones have a short half-life in blood and are difficult to measure. Chromogranin A (CgA), a glycoprotein which is co-released with noradrenalin and adrenalin, is relatively stable in circulation and the CgA-derived peptides catestatin and vasostatin have been measured in domestic species, but not yet in wildlife. Results: Vasostatin and catestatin could be measured and the median (range) serum concentrations were 0.91 (0.54–2.86) and 0.65 (0.35–2.62) nmol/L, respectively. We conclude that the CgA-derived peptides vasostatin and catestatin can be measured in wild boar serum and may thus be useful as biomarkers of psychophysical stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On an evolutionary time scale, competition for food drives species formation by genetic adaptations to the environment and subsequent niche separation. On a short-term scale, animals use different strategies to meet their nutritional requirements, which ultimately influence their fitness. Understanding these adaptations in herbivores is especially important in temperate climates where animals have adapted both physiologically and behaviorally to seasonal variations in order to meet their nutritional requirements. The aim of this project was to investigate temporal variation in chemical composition of rumen content between two coexisting species of large herbivores, the native roe deer (Capreolus capreolus L.) and the introduced fallow deer (Dama dama L.), as well as a potential effect of competition on niche separation (interspecific differences in rumen nutrient composition). We analyzed 345 rumen samples collected from animals at one 95 km2 estate, Koberg, in southwestern Sweden. Based on samples from all seasons, temporal variation in nutrient composition and interspecific differences between the two deer species were investigated under two contrasting fallow deer population densities. Results revealed that nutrient composition varied between species and across seasons. Roe deer had a higher proportion of rumen protein compared to fallow deer, with the highest proportions in spring. In contrast, fallow deer had a higher proportion of rumen hemicellulose compared to roe deer in spring, while no differences in nutrient composition between species could be found in fall. Overall, there were greater differences between the two species when fallow deer density was high and competition likely more pronounced than when fallow deer density was low. The results from this study can be used to understand interspecific competition and how it fosters niche separation between coexisting large herbivores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cloth-dragging is the most widely-used method for collecting and counting ticks, but there are few studies of its reliability. By using cloth-dragging, we applied a replicated line transects survey method, in two areas in Sweden with different Ixodes ricinus tick-densities (low at Grimsö and high at Bogesund) to evaluate developmental stage specific repeatability, agreement and precision in estimates of tick abundance. 'Repeatability' was expressed as the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC), 'agreement' with the Total Deviation Index (TDI) and 'precision' by the coefficient of variation (CV) for a given dragging distance. Repeatability (ICC) and agreement (TDI) were higher for the most abundant instar (nymphs) and in the area of higher abundance. At Bogesund tick counts were higher than at Grimsö and so also repeatability, with fair to substantial ICC estimates between 0.22 and 0.75, and TDI ranged between 1 and 44.5 counts of difference (thus high to moderate agreement). At Grimsö, ICC was poor to moderate and ranged between 0 and 0.59, whereas TDI remained low with estimates lower or equal to 1 count (thus high agreement). Despite a 100-fold lower abundance at Grimsö, the same level of precision for nymphs could be achieved with a 70% increase of dragging effort. We conclude that the cloth-dragging technique is useful for surveying ticks' and primarily to estimate abundance of the nymphal stage, whereas it rarely will be recommended for larvae and adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ticks carry pathogens that can cause disease in both animals and humans, and there is a need to monitor the distribution and abundance of ticks and the pathogens they carry to pinpoint potential high risk areas for tick-borne disease transmission. In a joint Scandinavian study, we measured Ixodes ricinus instar abundance at 159 sites in southern Scandinavia in August-September, 2016, and collected 29,440 tick nymphs at 50 of these sites. We additionally measured abundance at 30 sites in August-September, 2017. We tested the 29,440 tick nymphs in pools of 10 in a Fluidigm real-time PCR chip to screen for 17 different tick-associated pathogens, 2 pathogen groups and 3 tick species. We present data on the geolocation, habitat type and instar abundance of the surveyed sites, as well as presence/absence of each pathogen in all analysed pools from the 50 collection sites and individual prevalence for each site. These data can be used alone or in combination with other data for predictive modelling and mapping of high-risk areas. Measurement(s) pathogen • Ixodida • Abundance • tick instar abundance Technology Type(s) real-time PCR • Manual Count Factor Type(s) geographic location • time of data collection Sample Characteristic - Organism Ixodes ricinus Sample Characteristic - Environment forested area • meadow ecosystem Kingdom of Denmark • Kingdom of Norway • Sweden Machine-accessible metadata file describing the reported data: 10.6084/m9.figshare.12523133 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Little is known about whether female mating tactics vary with age based on their preference for mates. To fill this knowledge gap, we examined how maternal age is related to the age of their mates using detailed individual long-term monitoring of a genotyped and pedigreed European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus Linnaeus, 1758) population. We found that mating between old females and prime-aged males was more frequent than mating between prime-aged females and prime-aged males. This suggests that old females avoid old mates. Old females might be more selective in their mate choice than prime-aged females owing to increased mate-sampling effort. Our finding is in line with the terminal investment/allocation hypothesis. The study of age-related variation in female mating behaviour is particularly important because this behaviour can influence the intensity and direction of sexual selection and the maintenance of variation in male sexually selected traits. Further studies are needed to quantify the exact fitness benefits of age-specific mating tactics in females. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deepened knowledge on response of biota and ecological processes following fire is essential for a future with warmer climate and more disturbances. In 2014 the first mega-fire (13,100 ha) for at least a century in Scandinavia hit south-central Sweden, in a production forest landscape shaped by clearcutting forestry. Ecological dynamics is followed in >20 projects from universities, authorities and citizen science initiatives, rapidly accumulating substantial amounts of data. We outline projects and summarize their results during the first four years, demonstrating a rapid succession of fungi, lichens, vascular plants, birds, mammals, ticks, butterflies, beetles, and drastically altered carbon dynamics. We characterize forest operations including regeneration measures and point to patterns in pest and pathogen infestations. 8,000 ha is set aside for natural succession, with the rest harvested and managed for forest production, offering excellent opportunities for studies on salvage logging effects, already evident for birds. We demonstrate a strong regrowth of deciduous trees, and the protected part will in some decades likely develop into the largest deciduous-dominated area in boreal north Europe outside Russia. Continued studies of biodiversity and ecological processes are urgent for this unique area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Landscapes composed of agricultural land mixed with forest are desirable since they provide a wide range of diversified ecosystem services, unlike specialized agricultural landscapes, but that creates a trade-off between these land uses since wildlife usually feed on crops and reduce yields. In Nordic countries, where human population density is low and game hunting can be a viable economic alternative, mixed landscape systems are particularly interesting. To evaluate the economic sustainability of such systems we need to quantify wildlife damage to crops. One important species, being popular among Swedish hunters and therefore economically valuable, is fallow deer (Dama dama). Our objective was to evaluate the economic sustainability of mixed landscape systems including cultivated fields and commercial hunting of fallow deer. We studied the effects of excluding fallow deer by using 86 exclosures and adjacent plots in winter wheat and oat fields in south-west Sweden. We analyzed yield losses and interactions between spatial and temporal grazing patterns, anthropogenic landscape features, and topological characteristics of the landscape. We found that animals avoided exposed spots, irrespective of distance from human activity. We also found a seasonal grazing pattern related to the different growing periods of winter wheat (more grazed, emerging in autumn) and spring oat (less grazed, emerging in spring). We then compared the costs of crop damage against the commercial value of fallow deer hunting. The damage amounted to 375 ±196 € ha-1 for wheat and 152 ±138 € ha-1 for oat, corresponding to a total cost per animal of 82.7 ±81.0 €, while each animal had an estimated market value of approximately 100 €. Therefore the value of fallow deer presence compensated for the associated cost of crop damage. Profit could be further improved in this case by adopting additional management strategies. In general our study confirmed the economic feasibility of this particular mixed land management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Browsing can reduce forest productivity, particularly when the apical shoots of trees are damaged. Repellents are used widely to reduce browsing, but application is costly. To improve efficiency, it may be possible to take advantage of associational plant refuge effects, requiring repellents to be applied only to some trees or parts of trees, or reapplied less frequently. Using captive moose (Alces alces) and constructed stands of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris), we tested for potential refuges by applying a commercial repellent (HaTe2) to all, alternate or none of the apical shoots, or all of the previous-year apical shoots. We also tested for potential refuges under field conditions, applying the repellent to all, alternate or none of the apical pine shoots in forest stands. Captive moose (two individuals in a 2.1-ha enclosure, ~ 95 individuals km−2) browsed 100% of trees, but were significantly less likely to browse apical shoots treated with repellent. Associational refuge was ineffective both within and between trees. In the field (0.84 moose km−2), only 1.3% of trees sustained browsing damage. Applying the repellent to the apical shoots of pines had no direct repellent effect nor any within-plant associational effects. Trees with treated apical shoots provided some protection for untreated neighbouring trees, but this was not biologically meaningful given the low percentage of trees browsed overall. Here, a simple captive experiment was not predictive of the browsing response observed in the field, demonstrating the need to test repellent application strategies in situ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The most common framework under which ungulate migration is studied predicts that it is driven by spatio–temporal variation in plant phenology, yet other hypotheses may explain differences within and between species. To disentangle more complex patterns than those based on single species/ single populations, we quantified migration variability using two sympatric ungulate species differing in their foraging strategy, mating system and physiological constraints due to body size. We related observed variation to a set of hypotheses. We used GPS‐collar data from 537 individuals in 10 roe Capreolus capreolus and 12 red deer Cervus elaphus populations spanning environmental gradients across Europe to assess variation in migration propensity, distance and timing. Using time‐to‐event models, we explored how the probability of migration varied in relation to sex, landscape (e.g. topography, forest cover) and temporally‐varying environmental factors (e.g. plant green‐up, snow cover). Migration propensity varied across study areas. Red deer were, on average, three times more migratory than roe deer (56% versus 18%). This relationship was mainly driven by red deer males which were twice as migratory as females (82% versus 38%). The probability of roe deer migration was similar between sexes. Roe deer (both sexes) migrated earliest in spring. While territorial male roe deer migrated last in autumn, male and female red deer migrated around the same time in autumn, likely due to their polygynous mating system. Plant productivity determined the onset of spring migration in both species, but if plant productivity on winter ranges was sufficiently high, roe deer were less likely to leave. In autumn, migration coincided with reduced plant productivity for both species. This relationship was stronger for red deer. Our results confirm that ungulate migration is influenced by plant phenology, but in a novel way, that these effects appear to be modulated by species‐specific traits, especially mating strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Faced with rapid environmental changes, individuals may express different magnitude and plasticity in their response to a given stressor. However, little is known about the causes of variation in phenotypic plasticity of the stress response in wild populations. In the present study, we repeatedly captured individual roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) from two wild populations in Sweden exposed to differing levels of predation pressure and measured plasma concentrations of stress-induced cortisol and behavioral docility. While controlling for the marked effects of habituation, we found clear between-population differences in the stress-induced cortisol response. Roe deer living in the area that was recently recolonized by lynx (Lynx lynx) and wolves (Canis lupus) expressed cortisol levels that were around 30% higher than roe deer in the human-dominated landscape free of large carnivores. In addition, for the first time to our knowledge, we investigated the stress-induced cortisol response in free-ranging newborn fawns and found no evidence for hypo-responsiveness during early life in this species. Indeed, stress-induced cortisol levels were of similar magnitude and differed between populations to a similar extent in both neonates and adults. Finally, at an individual level, we found that both cortisol and docility levels were strongly repeatable, and weakly negatively inter-correlated, suggesting that individuals differed consistently in how they respond to a stressor, and supporting the existence of a stress-management syndrome in roe deer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much research on large herbivore movement has focused on the annual scale to distinguish between resident and migratory tactics, commonly assuming that individuals are sedentary at the within-season scale. However, apparently sedentary animals may occupy a number of sub-seasonal functional home ranges (sfHR), particularly when the environment is spatially heterogeneous and/or temporally unpredictable. The roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) experiences sharply contrasting environmental conditions due to its widespread distribution, but appears markedly sedentary over much of its range. Using GPS monitoring from 15 populations across Europe, we evaluated the propensity of this large herbivore to be truly sedentary at the seasonal scale in relation to variation in environmental conditions. We studied movement using net square displacement to identify the possible use of sfHR. We expected that roe deer should be less sedentary within seasons in heterogeneous and unpredictable environments, while migratory individuals should be seasonally more sedentary than residents. Our analyses revealed that, across the 15 populations, all individuals adopted a multi-range tactic, occupying between two and nine sfHR during a given season. In addition, we showed that (i) the number of sfHR was only marginally influenced by variation in resource distribution, but decreased with increasing sfHR size; and (ii) the distance between sfHR increased with increasing heterogeneity and predictability in resource distribution, as well as with increasing sfHR size. We suggest that the multi-range tactic is likely widespread among large herbivores, allowing animals to track spatio-temporal variation in resource distribution and, thereby, to cope with changes in their local environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to analyze the optimal management of two ecologically interdependent, competing species, roe deer ( Capreolus capreolus) and fallow deer ( Dama dama). To this end, we develop a numerical stage-structured model, accounting for species-specific life history characteristics, gender, and stage-specific hunting values. Two contrasting management regimes are considered: optimal joint management of the two species and management where the decision maker is ignorant about interspecific competition. Results from our case study show that the presence of interspecific competition reduces roe deer population size and harvest by 30% and 47%, respectively, and reduces the net present value by 9%. High interspecific competition could lead to the exclusion of the roe deer from the area. In contrast, ignorance about the level and consequences of interspecific competition has no impact on harvest decisions and revenues. The explanation is the higher hunting benefits for fallow deer. Summary for Managers Wildlife managers need bioeconomic models for decisions on ecologically interdependent species., This study investigates optimal joint management of roe and fallow deer when the fallow deer exerts a negative impact on roe deer due to interspecific competition., Results show that interspecific competition reduces the net present value of hunting at the study site by 9%., Regulations will not increase the net present value of hunting in a situation where the manager is ignorant of interspecific competition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wildlife management systems face growing challenges to cope with increasingly complex interactions between wildlife populations, the environment and human activities. In this position statement, we address the most important issues characterising current ungulate conservation and management in Europe. We present some key points arising from ecological research that may be critical for a reassessment of ungulate management in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To understand and reduce the concomitant effects of trapping and handling procedures in wildlife species, it is essential to measure their physiological impact. Here, we examined individual variation in stress levels in non-anesthetized European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), which were captured in box traps and physically restrained for tagging, biometrics and bio-sampling. In winter 2013, we collected venous blood samples from 28 individuals during 28 capture events and evaluated standard measurements for stress (heart rate, body temperature, neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, lactate and total cortisol). Additionally, we assessed stress using the immunological tool, Leukocyte Coping Capacity (LCC), a real-time proxy for stress measuring oxygen radical production by leukocytes. Finally, the behavioral response to handling was recorded using a scoring system. Results: LCC and therefore stress levels were negatively influenced by the time animals spent in the box trap with human presence at the capture site prior to handling. In contrast, none of the classical stress measures, including total cortisol, nor the behavioral assessment, were correlated with the stressor tested (time of human presence prior to handling) and thus did not provide a clear depiction regarding the extent of the animals short-term stress response. Conclusions: Overall our study verifies the LCC as a strong method to quantify short-term stress reactions in wildlife. Moreover, our results clearly show that human presence at the trapping site prior to handling should be kept to an absolute minimum in order to reduce stress levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Partial migration, when only part of the population migrates seasonally while the other part remains resident on the shared range, is the most common form of migration in ungulates. Migration is often defined by spatial separation of seasonal ranges and consequently, classification of individuals as migrants or residents is usually only based on geographic criteria. However, the underlying mechanism for migration is hypothesized to be movement in response to spatiotemporal resource variability and thus, migrants are assumed to travel an 'ecological distance' ( ED) or shift their realized ecological niches. While ecological and geographic distances should be related, their relationship may depend on landscape heterogeneity. Here, we tested the utility of ecological niche theory to both classify migratory individuals and to understand the underlying ecological factors for migratory behavior. We developed an integrative approach combining measures in geographic and ecological niche space and used this to classify and explain migratory behavior of 71 annual roe deer ( Capreolus capreolus) movement trajectories in five European study areas. First, to assess the utility of the ED concept for classifying migratory behavior, we tested whether roe deer sought the same ecological conditions year-round or moved to different ecological conditions by measuring the annual ED travelled and the seasonal niche overlap using multivariate statistics. Comparing methods to classify migrants and residents based on geographic and ecological niche space, we found that migratory roe deer switched between seasons both in geographic and in ecological dimensions. Second, we tested which seasonal ecological factors separated resident from migrant niches using discriminant analysis and which broad-scale determinants (e.g., spatiotemporal forage variation and population density) predicted migration probability using generalized linear models. Our results indicated that factors describing forage and topographic variability discriminated seasonal migrant from resident niches. Determinants for predicting migration probability included the temporal variation (seasonality) and also the spatial variability of forage patches. Last, we also found suggestive evidence for a positive relationship between population density and migration probability. By applying the ecological niche concept to the study of partial migration in ungulates, our work underlines that partial migration is a form of behavioral plasticity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herbivory pressure on a forest stand and each plant individual may be affected by the spatial distribution of conspecific and allospecific plants on the site; whether the plants are standing in solitary or groupwise settings; or by the differences in the preference of plants in relation to each other. The study was conducted in southwest Sweden, where 120 plots (1508 m2) were visited and 1280 individual woody plants evaluated and measured. We tested the hypothesis that preferred woody plants can protect unpreferred conspecific and allospecific woody species against herbivory in a system with one dominant, generalist herbivore, the fallow deer (DamaL.), and that the effectiveness of this protection varies depending on the relative preference of the neighboring conspecific and allospecific woody species placed in conspecific groups or standing solitary. Our results support the hypothesis that preferred woody plants can protect unpreferred conspecific and allospecific woody species against herbivory in the case ofPicea abiesdominating stands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supplemental feeding for ungulates is a widespread practice in many human-dominated landscapes across Europe and North America, mainly intended to seasonally support populations. Surprisingly, little consideration was given so far to the effect of supplemental feeding on ungulate spatial ecology at a large scale, in management and conservation studies. Analyses of the main ecological drivers influencing the use of supplemental feeding sites by ungulates across a gradient of abiotic and biotic factors are currently lacking. We conducted a large-scale assessment of ecological and management drivers of use of feeding station sites in roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), a small cervid widely distributed across Europe that is particularly sensitive to winter severity. We tested four competing hypotheses by comparing the time spent at feeding station sites by 180 individual Global Positioning System-collared roe deer from nine populations spanning a wide latitudinal and altitudinal gradient. We found that roe deer used feeding station sites highly opportunistically in response to winter severity across its range. The harshest weather conditions at the northern range limit or the highest elevations provoked an intense use of feeding station sites, which typically peaked at the end of winter, in accordance with the adverse weather and nutritional condition hypotheses. consistently, milder winters corresponded to a reduced and/or more homogeneous use of supplemental feeding. in general, intensively used feeding station sites heavily conditioned spatial behavior of roe deer. Importantly, biotic factors such as the presence of competitors decreased roe deer use of supplemental feeding station sites. Our results emphasize the importance of this human-induced alteration to resource distribution, especially in the context of the rapidly occurring climate change that is modifying resource availability for ungulate populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dietary choices are central to our understanding of ecology and evolution. Still, many aspects of food choice have been hampered by time consuming procedures and methodological problems. Faster and cheaper methods, such as DNA metabarcoding, have therefore been widely adopted. However, there is still very little empirical support that this new method is better and more accurate compared to the classic methods. Here, we compare DNA metabarcoding to macroscopic identifications of rumen contents in two species of wild free-ranging ungulates: roe deer and fallow deer. We found that the methods were comparable, but they did not completely overlap. Sometimes the DNA method failed to identify food items that were found macroscopically, and the opposite was also true. However, the total number of taxa identified increased using DNA compared to the macroscopic analysis. Moreover, the taxonomic precision of metabarcoding was substantially higher, with on average 90% of DNA-sequences being identified to genus or species level compared to 75% of plant fragments using macroscopy. In niche overlap analyses, presence/absence data showed that both methods came to very similar conclusions. When using the sequence count data and macroscopic weight, niche overlap was lower than when using presence-absence data yet tended to increase when using DNA compared to macroscopy. Nevertheless, the significant positive correlation between macroscopic quantity and number of DNA sequences counted from the same plant group give support for the use of metabarcoding to quantify plants in the rumen. This study thus shows that there is much to be gained by using metabarcoding to quantitatively assess diet composition compared to macroscopic analysis, including higher taxonomic precision, sensitivity and cost efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Research on climate change impacts has focused on projecting changes in the geographic ranges of species, with less emphasis on the vital rates giving rise to species distributions. Managing ungulate populations under future climate change will require an understanding of how their vital rates are affected by direct climatic effects and the indirect climatic and non-climatic effects that are often overlooked by climate impact studies. We used generalized linear models and capture-mark-recapture models to assess the influence of a variety of direct climatic, indirect climatic, and non-climatic predictors on the survival of roe deer ( Capreolus capreolus) at 2 sites in Sweden. The models indicated that although direct climatic effects (e.g., precipitation) explained some variation in survival, indirect climatic effects (e.g., an index of vegetation production), and non-climatic effects (hunting by lynx [ Lynx lynx] and humans) had greater explanatory power. Climate change is likely to increase vegetation productivity in northern Europe, and, coupled with the positive effects of vegetation productivity on roe deer survival, might lead to population increases in the future. Survival was negatively affected by lynx presence where these predators occur and by human harvest in the site that lacked predators. In the future, managers might find that a combination of increased harvest and predation by recovering carnivore populations may be necessary to mitigate climate-induced increases in roe deer survival. Considering vegetation availability and predation effects is likely to improve predictions of ungulate population responses to variation in climate and, therefore, inform management under future climate change. © 2016 The Wildlife Society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Breeding dispersal, defined as the net movement between successive breeding sites, remains a poorly understood and seldom reported phenomenon in mammals, despite its importance for population dynamics and genetics. In large herbivores, females may be more mobile during the breeding season, undertaking short-term trips (excursions) outside their normal home range. If fertilisation occurs, leading to gene flow of the male genome, this behaviour could be considered a form of breeding dispersal from a genetic point of view. Here, we investigated ranging behaviour of 235 adult roe deer using intensive GPS monitoring in six populations across Europe within the EURODEER initiative. We show that excursions are common from June to August among females, with 41.8 % (vs. 18.1 % of males) making at least one excursion. Most individuals performed only one excursion per season and departure dates for females were concentrated in time, centred on the rutting period, suggesting a link with reproduction. The distance females travelled during excursions was significantly greater than the site-specific average diameter of a male home range, while travel speed decreased once they progressed beyond this diameter, indicating search behaviour or interaction with other male(s) outside the resident male's territory. Because adults are normally highly sedentary, the potential for mating with relatives is substantial; hence, we conclude that rut excursions could be an alternative tactic enabling females to avoid mating with a closely related male. To understand better the ultimate drivers at play, it will be crucial to explore the genetic causes and consequences of this behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In southern Sweden, maintaining high cervid densities through supplemental feeding has become a common management practice. We aim at investigating deer browsing pressure on young Norway spruce in relation to distance from supplemental feeding sites. Because available forage is considered important in understanding browsing patterns, we modeled several factors affecting food availability, and their interaction effect with distance. We confirmed earlier studies about a locally high browsing pressure on natural vegetation adjacent to supplemental feeding sites where browsing pressure declined with distance and alternative forage abundance. Novel is that browsing on spruce occurred in 27.6% of the investigated plots. The browsing pressure of those plots averaged 9%. Distance was the most important factor in relation to browsing. The interactive effect of occurring field layer (FL), and deciduous trees was also highlighted as these significantly affected the relationship between browsing pressure on spruce and distance. In the studied conditions, browsing pressure ceased at ca. 205 m, whereas in scenarios of an abundant FL, browsing levels were negligible already at 0 m from supplemental feeding sites. We suspect that most of the browsing was caused by fallow deer in our study area. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Because many large mammal species have wide geographical ranges, spatially distant populations may be confronted with different sets of environmental conditions. Investigating how home range ( HR) size varies across environmental gradients should yield a better understanding of the factors affecting large mammal ecology., We evaluated how HR size of a large herbivore, the roe deer ( Capreolus capreolus), varies in relation to seasonality, latitude (climate), weather, plant productivity and landscape features across its geographical range in Western Europe. As roe deer are income breeders, expected to adjust HR size continuously to temporal variation in food resources and energetic requirements, our baseline prediction was for HR size to decrease with proxies of resource availability., We used GPS locations of roe deer collected from seven study sites ( EURODEER collaborative project) to estimate fixed-kernel HR size at weekly and monthly temporal scales. We performed an unusually comprehensive analysis of variation in HR size among and within populations over time across the geographical range of a single species using generalized additive mixed models and linear mixed models, respectively., Among populations, HR size decreased with increasing values for proxies of forage abundance, but increased with increases in seasonality, stochastic variation of temperature, latitude and snow cover. Within populations, roe deer HR size varied over time in relation to seasonality and proxies of forage abundance in a consistent way across the seven populations. Thus, our findings were broadly consistent across the distributional range of this species, demonstrating a strong and ubiquitous link between the amplitude and timing of environmental seasonality and HR size at the continental scale., Overall, the variability in average HR size of roe deer across Europe reflects the interaction among local weather, climate and seasonality, providing valuable insight into the limiting factors affecting this large herbivore under contrasting conditions. The complexity of the relationships suggests that predicting ranging behaviour of large herbivores in relation to current and future climate change will require detailed knowledge not only about predicted increases in temperature, but also how this interacts with factors such as day length and climate predictability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An understanding of mortality patterns, and especially the variation in juvenile mortality, is an important component in vertebrate population dynamics. Our study investigates, for the first time, neonate mortality and two levels of spatial behaviour, in a free-ranging fallow deer Dama dama population in southwestern Sweden. In the summers of 2008 and 2009, 36 fawns were marked with radio-collars. Neonate mortality calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method was 23.6%. Mortality caused by predation was low, since only one of eight non-surviving fawns died from predation, probably by red fox Vulpes vulpes. The spatial behaviour of the neonates was examined by habitat selection at home-range level, which in fact is a selection made by the mother, and at bed-site level within that habitat. Compositional analysis revealed a significant preference for arable land, pasture and coniferous forest between 5-15 m high, compared to young forest. Selected bed sites showed significantly lower visibility and higher amount of canopy cover than random sites. Surprisingly, we did not find any relationship between canopy cover and visibility in selected bed sites while it showed a significant and negative relationship at random bed sites. We interpret this finding as while high canopy cover and low visibility covary at the habitat level, fawns seem to select these two bed-site variables independently, perhaps for thermoregulatory reasons. Since there are few predators in our study area and predation pressure is low, this behaviour is not connected to actual survival rates in this area, but would rather be in support of the hypothesis of 'pleiotropy' as thermoregulatory reasons for bed-site selection in neonate fawns might be the most important contemporary selection force in the absence of large predators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ungulate populations exhibiting partial migration present a unique opportunity to explore the causes of the general phenomenon of migration. The European roe deer Capreolus capreolus is particularly suited for such studies due to a wide distribution range and a high level of ecological plasticity. In this study we undertook a comparative analysis of roe deer GPS location data from a representative set of European ecosystems available within the EURODEER collaborative project. We aimed at evaluating the ecological factors affecting migration tactic (i.e. occurrence) and pattern (i.e. timing, residence time, number of migratory trips). Migration occurrence varied between and within populations and depended on winter severity and topographic variability. Spring migrations were highly synchronous, while the timing of autumn migrations varied widely between regions, individuals and sexes. Overall, roe deer were faithful to their summer ranges, especially males. In the absence of extreme and predictable winter conditions, roe deer seemed to migrate opportunistically, in response to a tradeoff between the costs of residence in spatially separated ranges and the costs of migratory movements. Animals performed numerous trips between winter and summer ranges which depended on factors influencing the costs of movement such as between-range distance, slope and habitat openness. Our results support the idea that migration encompasses a behavioural continuum, with one-trip migration and residence as its end points, while commuting and multi-trip migration with short residence times in seasonal ranges are intermediate tactics. We believe that a full understanding of the variation in tactics of temporal separation in habitat use will provide important insights on migration and the factors that influence its prevalence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little is known about traits under sexual selection in territorial mammals with low sexual size dimorphism. We examined the potential for sexual selection on male body mass and antler length in the European roe deer Capreolus capreolus, a territorial ungulate in which males are less than 10% heavier than females. Independently, both body mass and antler length (irrespective of age) had a positive effect on male yearly breeding success. However, when corrected for body mass, antler length at a given mass only had a slight effect on male breeding success. This suggests that: (1) ‘bigger is better’ and (2) sexual selection is responsible for at least part of the observed variation in body mass and antler length in roe deer. High body mass and large antlers may be advantageous to males for two reasons: (1) they enhance fighting ability and dominance, so allowing males to defend better their territory and hence access mates, and (2) they attract females because they are honest signals of male phenotypic quality. This suggests that, even in weakly dimorphic ungulate species, sexual selection may lead to a marked influence of body mass on male breeding success, as long as body mass is also strongly selected in females. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Eurasian lynx ( Lynx lynx) is a common predator of both roe deer ( Capreolus capreolus) and reindeer ( Rangifer tarandus) in Sweden. We investigated the influence of prey availability, latitude, sex, and age on body size and body mass variation of the Eurasian lynx in Sweden, using data from 243 specimens whose locality of capture, year of capture, sex, and age were known. We found that both body size and body mass of the lynx in Sweden are mainly affected by the lynx sex and age but also by the availability of prey during the first year of life. Body size and body mass of lynx as well as the density of roe deer increased from Central Sweden to South. Furthermore, body size and body mass of lynx increased from Central Sweden to North (i.e. within the reindeer husbandry area). Lynx body size was slightly smaller within the reindeer husbandry area (approximately north of latitudes 62°–63°N) compared to outside, probably because reindeer are more difficult prey to hunt, as well as being migratory and thus an unpredictable prey for the Eurasian lynx compared to the non-migratory roe deer. Our results support a growing body of evidence showing that food availability at growth has a major effect on body size of animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The epidemiology of the zoonotic tick-transmitted parasite Babesia spp. and its occurrence in wild reservoir hosts in Sweden is unclear. In European deer, several parasite species, including Babesia capreoli and the zoonotic B. venatorum and B. divergens has been reported previously. The European roe deer, Capreolus capreolus, is an important and common part of the indigenous fauna in Europe, as well as an important host for Ixodes ricinus ticks, the vector of several Babesia spp. in Europe. Here, we aimed to investigate the occurrence of Babesia spp. in roe deer in Sweden. Findings: Roe deer (n = 77) were caught and sampled for blood. Babesia spp. was detected with a PCR assay targeting the 18S rRNA gene. The prevalence of Babesia spp. was 52 %, and two species were detected; B. capreoli and B. venatorum in 44 and 7.8 % of the individuals, respectively. Infection occurred both in summer and winter. Conclusions: We showed that roe deer in Sweden, close to the edge of their northern inland distributional range, are infected with Babesia spp. The occurrence of B. venatorum in roe deer imply that it is established in Sweden and the zoonotic implication of this finding should be regarded to a greater extent in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which examined whether the supplemental feeding of red foxes Vulpes vulpes could increase roe deer Capreolus capreolus recruitment in the boreal forest. Researchers provided red fox vixens with food, supplied as close to active dens as possible and monitored recruitment of radio-marked roe deer in the vicinity of these dens at a realistic management scale. The found no tendency towards increased recruitment of roe deer although red foxes found and consumed the food supplied. They concluded that supplemental feeding of red foxes during the fawning period is not a solution to the management problem.

We investigated age-specific variation in male yearly breeding success (YBS) using genetic estimates obtained from 2 populations of a territorial ungulate, the European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus). YBS in both populations was markedly age-structured, with 3 distinct stages, supporting the dome-shaped pattern of variation commonly reported for age-dependent variation in life-history traits of ungulates. YBS was low at 2 years of age, peaked at 3-8 years of age, and tended to decline afterwards (senescence). Most males successfully reproduced for the 1st time at 3 years of age, which is well after their physiological maturity. The few successful young males (i.e., 2 year olds) were likely fast-growing individuals that could successfully hold a territory. The high variance in YBS and antler size for old males at Bogesund, Sweden, suggests that only some males of this age class are able to maintain large antlers and, hence, retain their territories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1. Territoriality is commonly associated with resource defence polygyny, where males are expected to gain access to females by anticipating how resources will influence female distribution and competing for resource-rich sites to establish their zone of dominance. 2. We tested this hypothesis in European roe deer ( Capreolus capreolus) by simultaneously assessing the influence of resources on female distribution and the influence of female distribution on male distribution and breeding success using paternity analyses. 3. Females did not fully distribute themselves among male territories in relation to resources. As a result, relative female abundance in a male's territory depended on territory size, but not on its habitat quality. In turn, relative female abundance in a male's territory determined, at least partially, his breeding success. 4. Interestingly, male territory size, and hence access to females, was partly determined by male body mass (all males) and by residual antler size (subadults only). The latter result suggests that large antlers may be important to young males for establishing their first territory, which is then usually retained for all subsequent reproductive seasons. 5. To conclude, although territoriality of male roe deer has certainly evolved as a tactic for ensuring access to mates, our results suggest that it does not really conform to a conventional resource defence polygyny strategy, as males seem to gain no obvious benefit from defending a territory in an area of high habitat quality in terms of enhanced access to mates. 6. This may explain the stability of male territories between years, suggesting that male territoriality conforms to an ‘always stay’ and ‘low risk–low gain’ mating strategy in roe deer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An extensive literature is available on browsing preference for certain tree species. However, useful predictive tools for estimating the impact of deer on forests production and biodiversity can still be improved. A step in that direction is not only to rank preference among tree species but also to quantify the relative risk of being browsed. The foraging selectivity of moose was evaluated using three different statistical methods developed to study habitat utilization. The general pattern for the three methods was consistent. From the results, groups of forage species were clustered and a quantitative index of selectivity was calculated for the groups. The selectivity index showed that rowan (Sorbus aucuparia), willow (Salix ssp.) and aspen (Populus tremula) had a 14 times higher probability of being browsed than a group consisting of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) and downy birch (Betula pubescens), while juniper (Juniperus communis) and silver birch (Betula pendula) had a 3.5 times higher probability than Scots pine and downy birch. Since the most preferred species were the least abundant, one should be cautious about the generality of the index between areas, as it may indicate that preference depends on plant species composition. The method used can easily be applied in forest management. Information on quantitative selectivity indices may improve the possibility of managing moose in accordance with acceptable browsing damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Identifying factors shaping secondary sexual traits is essential in understanding how their variation may influence male fitness. Little information is available on the allocation of resources to antler growth in territorial ungulates with low sexual size dimorphism. We investigated phenotypic and environmental factors affecting both absolute and relative antler size of male roe deer in three contrasting populations in France and Sweden. In the three populations, we found marked age-specific variation in antler size, with an increase in both absolute and relative antler size between yearling and prime-age stages, followed by a decrease (senescence) for males older than 7 years. Antler size increased allometrically with body mass. This increase was particularly strong for senescent males, suggesting the evolution of two reproductive tactics: heavy old males invested particularly heavily in antler growth (potentially remaining competitive for territories), whereas light old males grew small antlers (potentially abandoning territory defense). Finally, environmental conditions had little effect on antler size: only population density negatively affected absolute antler size in one of the three populations. Antler size may therefore provide an honest signal of male phenotypic quality in roe deer. We discuss the implications of these results in terms of territory tenure and mating competition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the influence of population density on juvenile body mass in two contrasting roe deer populations, in Sweden (Bogesund) and France (Chizé), in which density was monitored for ≥15 years. We investigated the effect of population density and climatic conditions on cohort performance. We predicted that: (1) body mass of growing fawns should be sensitive to environmental changes, showing marked between-year variation (i.e., cohort effects), (2) fawns in the less productive (weakly seasonal, weakly predictable summer weather) habitat of Chizé should show stronger density-dependent responses due to more severe food competition during summer than fawns in the more productive (markedly seasonal, moderately predictable summer weather) habitat of Bogesund, and (3) fawns at Bogesund should be heavier both in absolute terms and relative to their size than their conspecifics in Chizé due to a higher degree of fat accumulation in northern environments. In both study sites we found marked cohort variation and clear effects of density, with body mass varying by as much as 29% over years. While neither summer nor winter climate influenced fawn body mass at Bogesund, fawns tended to be lighter after summers with high temperatures at Chizé. In addition, fawns were heavier after acorn mast years experienced in utero at Bogesund. As expected, the strength of the density-dependent response of fawn body mass was greater at Chizé than at Bogesund. For a given density, male fawns were consistently heavier than females in both sites. Lastly, both sexes at Bogesund had higher absolute body mass and were larger for a given body size than in Chizé. Our results clearly demonstrate that absolute density is a poor predictor of roe deer performance and supports the view that habitat quality has an overwhelming importance for determining fawn body mass in roe deer populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How mothers allocate resources to offspring is central to understanding life history strategies. High quality mothers are predicted to favour investment in sons over daughters when to do so increases inclusive fitness. This is the case in ungulates with polygynous mating systems, where reproductive success is more variable among males than females, but information is scarce on sex allocation in less polygynous species. Here, for the weakly dimorphic roe deer, we show that as maternal capacity to invest increases, mothers increase allocation to daughters more than to sons, so that relative allocation to daughters increases markedly with increasing maternal quality. This cannot be explained by a between sex difference in growth priority, hence we conclude that this is evidence for active maternal discrimination. Further, we demonstrate that condition differences between offspring persist to adulthood. For high quality mothers of weakly polygynous species, daughters may be more valuable than sons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medium-sized predators sometimes switch to alternative prey species as their main prey declines. Our objective of this study was to test the alternative prey hypothesis for a medium sized predator (red fox, Vulpes vulpes ), a small cyclically fluctuating main prey (microtine voles) and larger alternative prey (roe deer fawns, Capreolus capreolus ). We used long-term time series (28 years) on voles, red fox and roe deer from the Grimsö Wildlife Research Area (59°40′N, 15°25′E) in south-central Sweden to investigate interspecific relationships in the annual fluctuations in numbers of the studied species. Annual variation in number of roe deer fawns in autumn was significantly and positively related to vole density and significantly and negatively related to the number of fox litters in the previous year. In years of high vole density, predation on roe deer fawns was small, but in years of low vole density predation was more severe. The time lag between number of fox litters and predation on fawns was due to the time lag in functional response of red fox in relation to voles. This study demonstrates for the first time that the alternative prey hypothesis is applicable to the system red fox, voles and roe deer fawns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The study of animal movement in wild, free ranging species is fundamental for advancing knowledge on ecosystem relationships and for conservation. The deployment of bio-logging devices to this purpose (often GPS-collars in large mammals) requires relatively invasive procedures, such as capture, handling and release. Capture and manipulation cause behavioural modifications that are largely understudied in wild species and may affect both the welfare of animals and the output of the studies. We evaluated post capture and release ranging behaviour responses of a small deer species (roe deer Capreolus capreolus) for five different capture methods across 14 study sites within the EURODEER collaborative project. Roe deer showed modifications in their movement behaviour, independently of the capture method. However, individuals recovered rapidly, converging towards the average behaviour within a relatively short interval of time (between 10 days and one month), demonstrating a general resilience to such stressful events. We encourage researchers to continually adapt capture and handling methods so as to minimize stress and prioritize animal welfare. The fitting of tracking devices to wild animals requires capture and handling which causes stress and can potentially cause injury, behavioural modifications that can affect animal welfare and the output of research. We evaluated post capture and release ranging behaviour responses of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) for five different capture methods. We analysed the distance from the centre of gravity and between successive locations, using data from 14 different study sites within the EURODEER collaborative project. Independently of the capture method, we observed a shorter distance between successive locations and contextual shift away from the home range centre of gravity after the capture and release event. However, individuals converged towards the average behaviour within a relatively short space of time (between 10 days and one month). If researchers investigate questions based on the distance between successive locations of the home range, we recommend (1) initial investigation to establish when the animals start to behave normally again or (2) not using the first two to three weeks of data for their analysis. We also encourage researchers to continually adapt methods to minimize stress and prioritize animal welfare wherever possible, according to the Refinement of the Three R's. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated whether adult (≧ 2 years) female roe deer Capreolus capreolus conform to an ideal free or an ideal despotic distribution, in order to understand whether natal dispersal is 'voluntary' or socially enforced. The study was undertaken in a high-density, free-ranging population close to Stockholm, Sweden, during 1989-1994. Data on population density, habitat quality, and five parameters on female reproduction and body condition, in addition to age distribution, were obtained in two nearby located areas, the 'field' and the 'forest', representing contrasting habitats. Population density was estimated by faecal pellet group counting in addition to total counts of culled animals after a major deer harvest. Density in the 'field area' was twice that in the 'forest area' (66 vs 33 deer/km). Habitat quality was determined by analysing the amount of faecal nitrogen from samples of faeces collected in the two areas, and by comparing size of summer home ranges for adults of both sexes with the aid of telemetry. Both estimates indicated a higher nutritional quality and resource abundance, respectively, in the 'field area', with faecal nitrogen content being higher (2.96 vs 2.43%), and ranges being smaller (12.9 vs 20.9 ha). No significant differences were found in any of the parameters on reproduction or body condition obtained from culled females, i.e. number of corpora lutea (1.8 vs 1.8), proportion of females with offspring (71 vs 56%), body mass (16.9 vs 17.3 kg), kidney fat index (91.9 vs 98.5), and length of the lower mandible (152.8 vs 151.4 mm). Neither did the age distribution among females, as determined from tooth wear, differ between the areas. These results are consistent with the prediction of the ideal free hypothesis. This, in turn, suggests that female dispersal in this species is 'voluntary', the underlying proximate cause being maximization of resource gain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Wildlife traps are used in many countries without evaluation of their effect on animal welfare. Trap-capture of wild animals should minimise negative effects on animal welfare, irrespective of whether the animals are trapped for hunting, research, or management purposes. Live-trap capture of wild boar (Sus scrofa) followed by killing inside the trap by gunshot is a recently introduced but disputed hunting method in Sweden. Approval of trap constructions is based on gross necropsy findings of 20 trapped and shot wild boars. For improved animal welfare evaluation, our aim was to study wild boar behaviour during live-trapping in a 16 m2 square corral-style trap. Behavioural assessments were conducted after filming 12 capture events of in total 38 wild boars (five adults, 20 subadults, 13 piglets). Selected behavioural traits were compared with pathological changes (trap-related lesions) found at necropsy of the 20 subadults, to determine if these variables were useful proxies of capture-induced stress in wild boar. Results: The wild boars spent less time resting in the evening than in the night and morning. Using Friedman's ANOVA, there was an overall difference in the time spent foraging. However, we only found a difference between the evening and morning in the Wilcoxon matched pairs test after the Sequential Bonferroni correction, where the wild boars spent more time foraging in the evening than in the morning. Single captured individuals showed more escape behaviours and reacted more strongly to external stimuli than individuals captured in a group. It was more common for animals to charge against the mesh walls of the trap upon human approach compared to upon initial capture when the trap door closed. Trap-related pathological findings due to trauma were documented in 13 of the 20 subadults that were necropsied. Behavioural alterations indicative of capture-induced stress (e.g. charging into the trap walls) were documented in trapped wild boars with no or minor physical injuries (e.g. skin abrasions, subcutaneous haemorrhage). Conclusions: Behavioural assessment provided valuable information for determination of capture-induced stress in wild boar when evaluating live-trapping in a corral-style trap, whereas pathological evaluation through necropsy did not fully reflect the animal welfare aspects of live-trapping. We emphasize the inclusion of species-specific behavioural data assessment for evaluation of capture-related stress during live-trapping and for testing of new trap constructions before approval. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]