Effects of the landscape structure on wild boar

Transcription

Effects of the landscape structure on wild boar
(Sus scrofa L., 1758) abundance and hunting effectiveness
in Atlantic Spain
Pelayo Acevedo, Joaquín Vicente, Diego Villanúa, Vanesa Alzada, Elisa Pérez and Christian Gortazar
Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC, CSIC-UCLM-JCCM) Ronda de Toledo s/n, 13003 Ciudad Real, Spain
Corresponding author: Pelayo Acevedo. Tel.: +34-9-26-29-54-50, fax: +34-9-26-29-54-51, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Catch-effort, density, habitat, monitoring
Extended abstrat
Wild boar populations (Sus scrofa) have increased over the species’ entire Spanish range (e.g. Sáez-Royuela and Tellería 1986;
Castien and Leranoz 1991; Gortazar et al. 2000). The detrimental effects of this generalist species (e.g. Sáez-Royuela and
Tellería 1986) justify the development and improvement of abundance estimate methods. Harvesting information is important
for planning the extraction policy and management goals (e.g. Caughley 1977; Cruz et al. 2005). In forest habitats, the estimation of ungulate abundances becomes extremely difficult, and is frequently of low reliability because of the expensiveness and
required effort (Lancia 1994). Shooting statistics (Sáez-Royuela and Tellería 1988) and game bag analysis (Fernández-Llario
et al. 1999) have been frequently used to study wild boar distributions and population characteristics in Mediterranean habitats
from Spain.
Our objective was to investigate how landscape structure affects wild boar abundance and hunting effectiveness. Based on data
of 44 hunting territories from Asturias, northern Spain (Fig.1), we quantified hunting effectiveness as the proportion of animals
caught in relation to the total seen by hunters. Then, we calculated the corrected wild boar abundance index following the De
Lury method (De Lury 1947). The hunting seasons from 1998 to 2002 were included in our study.
Beats are the most popular hunting discipline in Asturias. Wild boars are moved helped by dogs. Groups limited to 8 to 12
hunters are authorized in the Regional Game Reserves (RGR), helped by not more than 6 beaters (without firearms) and a maximum of 4 dogs. The number of wild boar killed per hunt is limited to 5. These groups are always accompanied of one or several Rural Agents (see http://tematico.princast.es/mediambi/siapa/). Therefore, the conditions of hunting effort are restricted,
with only slight variation between beats. Unfortunately, detailed data for each beat are not available, and data recorded are total
values of total number of hunters, number and location of hunting activities and finally number of killed and seen wild boars
per hunting season for each hunting area. We also obtained from the database information on Iberian wolf (Canis lupus)
presence/absence at hunting area level to study if wolf presence influences the hunting effectiveness and the relative abundance
of wild boar.
Table 1. Generalized linear models for hunting effectiveness and corrected wild boar abundance index,
respectively. The distribution error function is normal
with a identity link function. The models explained
60.606 % and 60.616 % of the original deviance,
Table
1. Generalized linear models for hunting effecrespectively.
tiveness and corrected wild boar abundance index,
respectively. The distribution error function is normal
with a identity link function. The models explained
60.606 % and 60.616 % of the original deviance,
respectively.
Twenty-two factors (landscape structure, topography, and hunting pressure) were studied to detect their effects on wild boar
abundance and hunting effectiveness by means of Generalized Linear Models. We defined 10 different vegetation classes (land
covers) using the Vegetation Map of Asturias (GIS of the Environmental Thematic Cartography, Government of Asturias,
1:25000 scaled): mature forest (oak, beech, chestnut, etc.), pre-forest (holly, birch, ash, etc.), scrub (hazel, laurel, rose, etc.),
broom (the genera Genista and Cytisus), heather (the genera Erica, Calluna, Halymium, etc.), mountain scrub (the genera Ulex
and Juniperus), fern (the genera Pteridium, Osmunda, Dryopteris, etc.), pastures, mountain grass (the genera Festuca,
Arctostaphylos, Luzula, etc.), and others (types of vegetation that rarely occurred in the study area). We calculated landscape
structure indices using Fragstats 3.3 software (McGarigal and Marks 1995): percentage of landscape, average patch size, edge
density, aggregation index and Shannon’s diversity index. The topographic factors data were obtained from a digital elevation
model with a spatial resolution of 100 m. We calculated the percentage of hunting area with each orientation (we considered
north, north-east, east, south-east, south, south-west, west and north-west). We defined 2 types of roads, in relation to their hierPoster Presentations
259
Figure 1. Location of
Asturias and of the
study area within this
region. Wild boar
abundance (low, medium and high categories
were selected following the statistical percentiles) according to
our results is shown for
each hunting area.
archy-class (1-national roads and, 2- regional, local and non asphalt roads), using the Roads coverage of Asturias (GIS of the
Environmental Thematic Cartography, Government of Asturias, 1:25000 scaled). Two Generalized Linear Models (normal error
and identity link function) were used to evaluate the effects of habitat factors on the response variable (hunting effectiveness
and wild boar abundance).
The analysis showed that landscape structure factors relating to visibility and resting places had effects on hunting
effectiveness, while factors relating to food availability had effects on wild boar abundance (Table 1). Our results suggest that
landscape structure and orientation of hunting areas influence the hunting effectiveness. We detected that high effectiveness was
positively related with the percentage of territory with south-west orientation, which could be related with the availability of
resting places (Fernández-Llario, 2004). Topographic factors appear to be less important by themselves for wild boar habitat
use, nevertheless, these variables control the vegetation units that are paramount important for wild boar (Abaigar et al., 1994).
Hunting effectiveness was positively related with the proportion of hunting areas occupied by fern, possibly due to the fact that
fern lands give high visibility for winter hunting.
All RGRs of Asturias follow similar game management schemes, as regards effort of capture (4 dogs, 6 beater and 8-12
hunters). This relatively standardized hunting method provides an excellent opportunity to detect habitat influences on wild
boar abundance. We evidenced strong relationships between landscape structure and wild boar abundance. The percentage of
pre-forest lands and the landscape diversity had positive influence on wild boar abundance. These patches are probably rich in
food and cover in Atlantic forests. High values in the landscape diversity index are also indicating high refuge availability.
These results support the idea that the landscape pattern may be a determinant of a species’ abundance and distribution (Virgós,
2002).
In conclusion, this study showed that hunting effectiveness was a key factor to estimate wild boar abundance index based on
catch-effort methodologies. Moreover, hunting effectiveness was depending on landscape structure parameters. Hence, this
constraints must be considered when using hunting data for abundance estimation. The results also showed that wild boar abundance was related with landscape composition in Atlantic Spain. The availability of food resources and protective cover were
factors that probably determined the wild boar abundance. To discover how these factors may affect wild boar distribution in
different regions, more intensive studies are needed.
References
Abaigar T, del Barrio G, Vericad JR (1994) Habitat preference of wild boar (Sus scrofa L., 1758) in a Mediterranean environment. Indirect evaluation
by signs. Mammalia 58: 201-210
Castien E, Leranoz I (1991) Verbreitung und Dichte des Rehwilds (Capreolus capreolus) im Norden der Iberischen Halbinsen. Z Jagdwiss 37: 99-106.
Caughley G (1977) Analysis of Vertebrate Populations. In: John Wiley & Sons, London (ed.), United Kingdom.
Cruz F, Donlan CJ, Campbell K, Carrion V (2005) Conservation action in the Galàpagos: feral pig (Sus scrofa) eradication from Santiago Island. Biol
Conserv 121: 473-478.
De Lury DB (1947) On the estimation of biological populations. Biometrics 3: 145-167.
Fernández-Llario P (2004) The sexual function of wallowing in male wild boar (Sus scrofa). J Ethol 23: 9-14.
Fernández-Llario P, Carranza J, Mateos-Quesada P (1999) Sex allocation in a polygynous mammal with large litters: the wild boar. Anim Behav 58:
1079-1084.
Lancia RA (1994) Estimating the number of animals in wildlife populations. Research and management techniques for wildlife and habitats. The
Wildlife Society. Bethesda 215-253
McGarigal K, Marks BJ (1995) FRAGSTATS: spatial pattern analysis program for quantifying landscape structure. USDA For. Serv. Gen. Tech. Rep.
PNW-351.
Sáez-Royuela C, Tellería JL (1986) The increased population of Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) in Europa. Mammal Rev 16: 97-101
Sáez-Royuela C, Tellería JL (1988) Las batidas como método de censo en especies de caza mayor: aplicación al caso del jabalí (Sus scrofa) en la provincia de Burgos (Norte de España). Doñana, Acta Vert 15: 215-223.
Virgós E (2002) Factors affecting wild boar (Sus scrofa) occurrence in highly fragmented Mediterranean landscapes. Can J Zool 80: 430-435
260
Poster Presentations
Current number and dynamics of the hunting population
of Russia
Andreyev M.N., Domsky I.A.
State Scientific Institution, Prof. B.M. Zhitkov Russian Research Institute of Game Management and Fur Farming,
Russian Agricultural Academy of Sciences, 79, Engels Street, Kirov, 610000, Russia
Corresponding author: M.N. Andreyev and I.A. Domsky. Tel.: +7-8-33-26-27-705, fax: +7-8-33-26-27-705,
e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: estimates, urban, rural, sport, professional
Abstract
The paper deals with one of the main socioeconomic indices of hunting activity: the number of people in the population
engaged in hunting. Data on the hunting population are given in dynamics for a period of more than 100 years. Recent distribution of hunters within 12 natural-economic regions of Russia is shown. Motives in going in for hunting and the proportion
of hunters in different categories are discussed. The results are of great significance for in-depth socioeconomic studies in the
field of hunting and use of nature, for development of game management systems, estimation of production and consumption
of products and services (the source of which are hunting activities), for improvement of a system for a stable use of game animals.
Introduction
In a given paper the results of the analysis of the number and distribution of hunters over the territory of Russia are shown. This
paper is urgent due to the fact that there are no official data on the number of hunters, and, in addition, proper scientific investigations have not been carried out. The last scientific report on this problem was received in the early 1960s.
Materials and Methods
Materials used for this paper were taken from certain publications, archives of hunting organizations and results of special studies carried out by the authors. The term “hunting population” means the number of persons that go in for hunting both for sport,
and harvesting (economic) purposes. In the paper the number of the resident population age 18 years and older that go in for
hunting per the beginning of a calendar year was estimated. To achieve an agreement in study methodology the data taken from
different sources were subjected to a proper correction if necessary.
The data on the number of hunters from 1975 to 2003 were based on the materials of the census of hunters with hunting
permits. Unregistered (illegal) hunters were not taken into account, as that phenomenon is not widespread. The data on the
numbers of hunters before 1975 also include conservative estimates of unregistered hunters the numbers of which in certain
periods were rather significant.
In those cases where fragmentary data from documentary sources did not provide an opportunity to estimate the number of
hunters in some regions and in certain periods, their number was determined by a calculation-constructive method on the basis
of the state and the trends of game management development in certain territories in relation to the data on the number, structure and dynamics of population in the regions studied.
Results and Discussion
Table 1 presents the recent number of hunters in Russia and their distribution in correspondence with the type of their permit
for the right to hunt.
As follows from the materials given the number of hunters in Russia in 2003 amounted to about 27 million persons. The
majority of them live in European regions of the country (58.3%), the remaining portion – in the Urals (10.4%), West Siberia
(14.4%), East Siberia (8.1%), Far East (8.8%). 53.3% of hunters are members of the largest public organization of hunters and
fishermen in Russia – Association “Russian Hunting and Fishing Union” (RHFU), 8.7% – members of other societies of
hunters. Moreover, about 38% of hunters have hunting permits issued by state game management bodies and hunt mainly on
hunting grounds of common use and are not assigned to any hunting organization.
Comparing recent numbers of hunters with the data of past years (Fig.) it should be noted that the main factors that had an
essential negative influence on the numbers of the hunting population were World War I and the Civil War (1914-1920), as well
as the unfavourable social and food supply situation of the first half of the 1930s. However, the greatest influence on the number of hunters in Russia was World War II. For example, in 1946 the number of hunters in the European Russia (including the
Urals) as compared to 1941 decreased almost twice. The losses among sport hunters during the war years in that part of the
country made up about 350 thousand persons, and professional hunters – 230 thousand persons.
261
Table 1. Number of
hunters with permits for the right to
hunt (as of 01. 01.
2003)
The recovery in the number of hunters in the after-war period was slow and lagged behind the rates of general population
growth. In addition to socioeconomic difficulties that situation was caused by the decrease of the significance of professional
hunting and also the reduction in number of the rural population in respect to the urban one that was less active from the hunting point of view.
Up to 1975 the number of registered hunters was at the level of 1.4 million persons caused to a large extent by the policy of
limiting their numbers. For example, since 1970 the index of “the number of society members” was excluded from the fiveyear plans of RHFU, and the course for the stabilization of the number of hunters was followed. The increase in the number of
society members was planned mainly due to fishermen-sportsmen (Materials of the Council Meeting of the Union of Societies
of Hunters and Fishermen of RSFSR, 1972).
Fig. Number Dynamics of Hunters in Russia (ths persons, years)
Due to the rise of the total number of population and the increase in interest for hunting such policy was comparatively shortlived. Since 1975 the increase in the numbers of hunters has begun, and with varying intensity it has continued till now. In the
1980s the number of the hunting population exceeded pre-war levels (1914, 1941), and by 1989 it reached 2.2 million persons,
that is increased by 23% as compared to 1914, by 41% – 1941, by 97% – 1959 and by 91% – 1970.
In the 1970s-80s the increase in the numbers of hunters was not characterized by a significant decrease of hunting activity, but
in the 1990s the main increase took place due to potential hunters – the part of the hunting population of low activity that does
not go in for hunting every year.
During a ten-year period (1989-1999) the number of hunters increased by 16 %, and as of 1st of January 2000 amounted to 2.5
million persons; the proportion of hunters in the total number of the population was 1.5%.
The growth in the numbers of hunters according to the pattern characteristic of the 1990s continued at the beginning of the
2000s. In 2003 in European Russia its extent reached the maximum for the century. However, due to the decrease of hunting
activity the pressure on hunting resources was the same as in 1985-1989.
262
For Russian game biology science it is traditional to classify the hunting population according to the financial efficiency of
hunting (both in natural, and monetary form). According to that criterion hunters are subdivided into two classes: sport and
professional hunters and among the latter there is a type of half-professional hunters (Buturlin, 1932, Solovyev, 1926).
As a rule, sport hunters do not get a money income from hunting. The game they bag is considerably more expensive than the
similar product on sale in the market. They hunt for relaxation and love of hunting. In contrast to sport hunters professional
hunters do not spend money on hunting, but, on the contrary, they make hunting one of the items in their budget.
Taking into account sociopsychological aspects of a number of hunter types (Andreyev, 2002) that have been discussed during
recent years motives of hunting activity of sport hunters are associated with an activity-oriented motivation, and professional
hunters – with an income-oriented motivation. The proportion between those two categories (classes) of hunters is shown in
Table 2.
It is evident, that the ratio of sport hunters to professional ones (in a similar proportion) corresponds to the ratio of the urban
to the rural population of Russia. That shows the relation between professional hunting and the rural way of life. For example,
even in a number of densely populated parts of southern regions of Russia over 70% of rural residents go in for hunting expecting to obtain financial advantage. In contrast, for urban hunters the main motives for hunting are recreational needs, contact
with nature, relaxation, specific emotional stimulation, etc.
On the whole it is necessary to note that in spite of a considerably decreased financial significance of hunting during more than
a 70-year period it still plays a great role as a source of earnings, food and technical production for a great number of Russian
people, especially rural ones.
Table 2. Proportion of different categories of hunters among active part of hunting population
References
Buturlin S (1932) Handbook for a Hunter. Moscow : p. 21
Solovyev D (1926) Hunting in USSR. Moscow : p. 134
Andreyev M (2002) Moral, Ethical, Legal, Socioeconomic and Organizational Aspects of Hunting and Game Husbandry: on the Motives for Hunting.
In: Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Bear within CIC (3-6 November, 2002, Moscow) Moscow : pp. 216-218
263
Burrow analysis and responses to the capture-recapture with
ferret (Mustela furo) of European wild rabbit (Oryctolagus
cuniculus) in the southeast of Spain (Alicante, Province)
Arques J., Peiró V., Jiménez-García D.
Dept. Ecología. Fac. de Ciencias. Universidad de Alicante. AP. 99-E03080-Alicante. Spain
Corresponding author: J. Arques. Tel.: +34-9-65-90-95-20, fax: +34-9-65-90-36-25, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: burrow, entrances, Oryctolagus cuniculus, sex-ratio, ratio-age, ferret use.
Abstract
The ferret use to capture rabbits is a old-traditional system, which was analyse in the last decades (Lloyd, 1970; Soriguer, 1981;
Boyce, 1983; Villafuerte, 1994; Alves & Moreno, 1996) with scientific purposes in different places around the world. This
method has been used in a site with 86 ha in the south of the Alicante Province (Torremendo). The study area has a
thermomediterranean semiarid system. The dominant vegetation are dry groves (almond and olive tree) and irrigated groves
(oranges and lemon tree).
The capture-recapture was develop once time every 15 days stopped in the reproduction season, to avoid problems with the
pregnancy females and litters. The capture using ferret did not use in the same burrow before pass 50 days.
This methodology allowed check 50 burrows for two years (1995 to 1996). We marked 81 rabbits and we recaptured 29
(10 multi-recaptured).
The more common burrows had 2-6 entrance (92%) and 4-5 (50%). The entrances have been distributed to different heights in
the terrace margin. The 40% of the barrows have once or more entrance on the terrace margin surface or in the terrace surface
with different orientation. The 90% of the burrows are face at the west and are determinate by the terrace margin orientation.
25% of the burrows which have more than 4 entrances have 1 or 2 which the rabbits don not use.
In the study area are a few burrows with a elevate number of rabbits. The 32% of the burrows have not rabbits and only in the
16% we capture more than 4 rabbits. We observe a significant and positive correlation with the capture rabbit number and the
burrow size (r=0.295, p<0.05; n=50). The burrow size were obtained from the entrances number and the average distance
between the more long way entrances (significant and positive correlation, r=0.916, p<0,05; n=5).
Of the 29 recaptured rabbits, the 97% were mark in the study area, of this number the 39% were recaptured in the same burrow, 11% were recaptured in adjacent burrows and the remainder (50%) in a less distance to 100 m. The different use of the
burrows are refuge or use by other family members (Cowan, 1987). In general the familiar groups are stable and the adult
rabbits not usually to leave the birth places or burrows (Calvete, 1999).
The recaptured rabbits, the 33% were recapture after 10 months, which the 5% were recaptured after 18 months and only 2%
were recaptured after 2 years. The data shows a down survival rate in the less age class, because the bigger predation on the
young’s (Schlatter, et al., 1980). Subsequently, this survival tax increase and stabilize in the adult rabbits (King & Wheeler,
1985; Gibb, 1993; Villafuerte, 1994).
The sex ratio has been favoured the females in 67% in the
marked rabbits cases and the 53% in the recapture rabbit,
We obtain the same results than Thompson & Armour
(1951) and Stephens (1952). The female most presence in
burrows is doubt at the most bigger male home-range (Gibb
et al., 1978) and stay more time out the burrows (Cowan,
1983) or simply because the male European rabbit survival
is less than the female (Webb, 1993; Soriguer, 1981).
The age rate has been favoured the adult rabbits (72.84%
of the mark animals). This high percent is doubt the
female, in the study area, reach the adult face with a weight
are bigger than 1025 g and 1125 g in male, between these
weight the rabbits reach the reproductive capacity
(Arques, 2000).
In the reproductive season we capture frequently, only a
pair of rabbits (male and female) for burrow, this phenomenon was watching 7 times in 1995 (from October to
December), and the first breeding were looking in January
Figure 1. Study area location in the Iberic peninsula
1996.
264
Figure 2. Study area vegetation and landuses.
The next year (1996) we observe the same behaviour on 3 times (from October to November), and the first breeding was looking in December in the same year (Arques et al., 1999).
The capture-recapture method has been know the rabbit captured weight, 53% are rabbits bigger than 1200 g (which the 23%
had a weight between 1600 and 1900 g). The 43% had a weigh between 500 and 1200 g and only 4% of the captured rabbits
had a weight less than 500 g.
References.
Alves, P.C. & Moreno, S. (1996). Estudo da reproduçao do coelho-bravo (Oryctolagus cuniculus) em Portugal. Revista Florestal. 9(1):149-166.
Arques, J., Peiró, V. & Candela. M.C. (1999). Analyse des facteurs qui conditionnent la season de reproduction du lapin de garenne dans le sud-est de
l’Espagne. Proc. XXIV th Congress of the International Union of Game Biologists. Thessaloniki, Greece: 474-482.
Arques, J. (2000). Ecología y Gestión Cinegética de una población de conejos en el sur de la provincia de Alicante. Tesis Doctoral. Universidad de
Alicante
Boyce, J.L. (1983). The defence against predation in the European rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.). Tesis Doctoral. Univ. Aberdeen.
Calvete, C. (1999). Epidemia de enfemedad vírica hoemorrágica y mixomatosis en el valle medio del Ebro. Tesis doctoral. Universidad de Zaragoza.
Cowan, D.P. (1983). Aspects of the behavioural ecology of a free-living population of the European wild rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus L. In southern
England. Tesis doctoral., Royal Holloway College.
Cowan, D.P. (1987). Group living in the European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus): mutual benefit or resource localization? Journal of Animal Ecology,
56:779-795.
Gibb, J.A., Ward, G.D. & Ward, C.P. (1978). Natural control of a population of rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus, for ten years in the Kourarau enclosure.
N.Z. Dept. Of Sci. Ind. Res., Bull 223.
Gibb, J.A. (1993). Sociality, time and space in a sparse population of rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus). Journal of Zoology, London, 229:581-607.
King, D.R. & Wheeler, S.H. (1985). The European Rabbit in South-western Australia I. Study Sites and Population Dynamics. Aust. Wildl. Res., 12:
183-196.
Lloyd, H.G. (1970). Post-myxomatosis rabbit populations in west Walles. EPPO Publs (A), 58:197-215.
Schlatter, R. Yañez, J. Nuñez, H. & Jaksic, F. (1980). The diet of burrowing owl in Central Chile its relation to prey size. Auk, 97:616-619.
Soriguer, R. (1981). Biología y dinámica de una población de conejos Oryctolagus cuniculus en Andalucía occidental. Estación biológica de Doñana.
Tesis Doctoral. Universidad de Sevilla.
Stepens, M.N. (1952). Seasonal observation on the wild rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.) in West Wallwes. Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 122:417-434.
Thompson, H.V. & Amour, C.J. (1951). Control of the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus L.). An experiment to compare the efficiency of gin
trapping, ferreting and cyanide gassing. Annals of Applied Biology, 38:464-474.
Villafuerte, R. (1994). Riesgo de predación y estrategias defensivas del conejo, Oryctolagus cuniculus en el Parque Nacional de Doñana. Tesis doctoral. Universidad de Córdoba.
Webb, N.J. (1993). Growth and mortality in juvenile European wild rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus). J. Zool., 230:665-667.
265
Behavioural ecology of Teal (Anas crecca) and other dabbling
ducks at wintering, spring-staging and breeding grounds
Arzel Céline 1,2,3 ,Guillemain Matthieu1, Elmberg Johan2, Marc Lutz1
1
Office
et de la Faune Sauvage, CNERA Avifaune Migratrice, La Tour du Valat, Le Sambuc, 13200 Arles, France.
Office National de la Chasse
C
2
Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Kristianstad university, SE-291 88 Kristianstad, Sweden.
3
Laboratoire d’Ecologie des Hydrosystèmes, Université Paul Sabatier, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse, France.
Corresponding author: Céline Arzel, Tel.: +33-4-90-97-29-46, fax: +33-4-90-97-27-88, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: spring migration, food availability, time-budget
Although dabbling ducks (Anas spp) have been extensively studied at their wintering and breeding grounds in Europe and North
America, large parts of their ecology remain unknown. These gaps are partly due to the fact that winter and summer studies have been
conducted independently, which is especially true for Europe. This lack of knowledge translates into the current inability to predict the
consequences of changes in the environment and harvesting for the population dynamics of ducks. Dabbling ducks are simultaneously flagships of wetlands diversity and important game species (e.g. 330 000 Teal Anas crecca shot in France in 1998-99). Some species
have an unfavourable conservation status (e.g. Pintail Anas acuta and Garganey Anas querquedula).
Successful management for conservation and harvesting must eventually rest on an understanding of survival, recruitment and other fitness-related measures, but we still know fairly little about this. Studies in North America about predation, breeding, and resource-limitation all show diverging patterns, partly because the North American continent offers a variety of environmental conditions, but also
because most of the studies have been carried out in areas with substantial between-year variation in wetland and food availability. Thus,
we can not necessarily extrapolate North American data and models to conditions in Western and Central Europe.
Recruitment, survival, predation and food limitation at the breeding grounds have been studied for some time in Sweden and Finland,
and some patterns are starting to emerge. There are also some data about food resource limitation on the American and European wintering grounds. However, for most species it is still not known what limits population size at this time of year, and when the main harvesting occurs. Moreover, very little is known about the ecology of dabbling ducks on staging areas in spring, despite the fact that this
is supposed to be a crucial period of the year when females refuel during migration and continue to prepare for subsequent reproduction. Because of the high energy requirements, it is very likely that competitive interactions, both intra- and interspecific, will be exacerbated and that density-dependent processes may affect subsequent reproductive output. Depending on their dominance status and
individual levels of foraging efficiency, not all birds will be equally affected by these limiting factors. An individual-based approach
within the dabbling duck community is thus needed.
To understand the population ecology of dabbling ducks in the flyway connecting France with breeding grounds in Sweden-Finland
and more specially to highlight the importance of pre-nesting migration for breeding success we thus need to: (1) adopt an around-theyear approach, studying populations at breeding, staging as well as wintering grounds, (2) find out how individual behaviour and
strategies depend on population density, harvesting and land use, (3) build a bridge between existing data on population -- community level and individual behaviour (natural selection and evolution acts on individuals rather than on populations), (4) adopt a coherent
and partly experimental methodology that can result in predictive models for harvesting and conservation.
The explicit aim of this project is to assess some of the factors that might influence the survival and breeding success of dabbling ducks
and more specifically Teal during their spring migration. Several points are addressed in this study, and presented in this poster:
1) food availability at several sites used along the flyway, from wintering to breeding grounds, to assess potential food resource limitation, density-dependence processes, intra- or inter-specific competition
2) time-activity budget of dabbling ducks on 24 hours survey basis from early spring to the breeding period, to assess changes linked
with the approaching breeding episode.
We show that food availability, at least when considering invertebrates, does not differ markedly between wintering, spring-staging
and breeding grounds at the periods when ducks use these sites. We also underline that peak of migration is taking place before the
peak of invertebrates on wintering ground and spring staging sites. These results suggests that long-distance migration is not necessarily entertained by these birds solely for food abundance considerations.
We highlighted inter-specific differences in time allocated to foraging and in microhabitat used on a spring staging area in southern
Sweden (Arzel & Elmberg 2004). The time activity budget has been done on 24 hours survey to assess potential behavioural differences over the day throughout the study period. From these surveys done at wintering, spring staging and breeding grounds, we noticed
a change in the behaviour of dabbling ducks, especially the fact that ducks are gradually switching from a nocturnal foraging activity
in winter and early spring to a diurnal foraging activity at spring-staging and breeding grounds. These changes in the time budget of
dabbling ducks might be due to energy and nutrient requirements for breeding. Moreover in northern breeding areas, continuous arctic day light provides favourable feeding conditions.
For a proper management of long-distance migratory ducks, further work is still needed to highlight the influence of spring migration
on their annual cycle, and especially on their breeding success. Large-scale international research collaboration should become crucial
in this domain in coming years.
References
Arzel, C., & Elmberg, J. (2004) Time use, foraging behaviour and microhabitat use in a temporary guild of spring-staging dabbling ducks (Anas spp.).
Ornis Fennica 81: 157-168.
266
Ecological networks of national importance: the faunistic corridors of the red deer (Cervus elaphus L.) in Luxembourg
Adil Baghli1, Marc Moes1, Claudio Walzberg1, Ady Krier2 and Edmée Engel3
1
GeoData: 27 rue de Dippach, L-8055 Bertrange, Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg
2
Direction des Eaux et Forêts, Service de la Chasse
3
National Museum of Natural History, Section Zoologie des Vertébrés
Corresponding author: Adil Baghli, Tel.: +352-2-12-70-464, fax: +352-2-65-91-628, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Migration, wildlife, corridor, red deer, large mammals, roadkill, spatial planning, fragmentation, connectivity.
Introduction
For several centuries, the north-western part of Europe has always been under a constant anthropogenic pressure: urbanization, industrialization, intensification of infrastructure, agriculture, watercourses modifications, etc. One of the consequences of this pressure is
the landscape fragmentation, threatening the biodiversity in this area. Habitat fragmentation can be described as the splitting of
natural habitats and ecosystems into smaller, more isolated patches surrounded by a matrix of more intensively utilized areas and
lines wich modifies the ecological interrelations between the patches, e.g., act as barriers against the dispersal of animals (Jaeger
2000). The process of fragmentation is connected to many different factors, of which the direct loss and isolation of natural habitat
are the most important.
In this frame, native large mammals are confronted with very fragmented habitats, where they often inhabit isolated areas. Nowadays,
it is proven that splitting of natural ecosystems into smaller and more isolated units may seriously endanger the survival of animal
species and communities (Shaffer 1981). Therefore, it is important to identify and maintain the connections between the remaining
wildlife habitats. Our project proposes a vision for habitat interconnectedness on a national scale.
In order to counteract the threat of further habitat loss for large-mammal species, we describe a network analysis of Luxembourg.
The species selected to guide the design of the most important corridors for mammals in Luxembourg is the red deer (Cervus
elaphus) because of its key role in ecosystem functioning, and home-range size (Bowman et al. 2002). The results are based on
existing data, processed using a Geographical Information System, as well as on an expert model.
Methods
The survey was focused on the mammal species, which have large home ranges and are most sensitive regarding the size of
passageways. As first indicator species we selected the red deer, and the roe deer was considered as a second indicator species
in areas where red deer is absent.
We collected information on animal-vehicle collisions in Luxembourg from returns of a standardized questionnaire with all
hunters. In the questionnaire, we asked hunters to indicate places were they have observed red deer and to indicate, as exactly
as possible, in a joined map of their hunting area, the potential corridors used by red deers. Moreover, we asked hunters for all
data on roe deer observations on roads and motorways.
Data on the annual hunting statistics of red deer and roe deer were used to show trends in the abundance of these species.
Results and discussion
Results of this work indicate faunistic corridors that could connect red deer populations present in Luxembourg and indicate habitat areas that will support persistent populations only if they are in a network of linked habitats.
Even though it has been proven that ideal structural characteristics of crossings will often be species-specific, the development of an
ecological corridor for red deer will benefit a large range of mammals like roe deer, wild boar, badger, wildcat, pine marten and may
offer a suitable ecological corridor for the recovering lynx. The results of our analysis can be
used for policy decisions on spatial planning.
The knowledge about habitat fragmentation in Luxembourg is still very limited. Few data is
available about fragmentation. There is a need for supplemental research and monitoring on
habitat fragmentation and vulnerable species.
References
Bowman J, Jaeger JAG, Fahrig L (2002) Disperdsal distance of mammals is proportional to home range
size. Ecology 83: 2049-2055.
Jaeger JAG (2000) Landscape division, splitting index, and effective mesh size: new measures of landscape fragmentation. Landscape Ecology 15:115-130.
Shaffer G B (1981) Minimum population size for species conservation. BioScience 31:131-133.
Fig.1. Road and railway infrastructures in Luxembourg (1999) (Data from: Administration du
Cadastre et de la Topographie, © droits réservés à l’Etat du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg)
267
Transportation infrastructures and wildlife conflicts in
Luxembourg: First evaluation of the effectiveness of fauna
passages on the E44 motorway
Adil Baghli1, François Schoentgen2
1
Biologist: 1A, rue du Sentier L-3961 Ehlange, Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg
2
Ministère des Travaux Publics
Corresponding author: Adil Baghli. Tel.: +352-2-12-70-464, fax: +352-2-65-91-628, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Wildlife corridor, landscape planning, motorway, habitat fragmentation, fauna passages, mammals, monitoring.
Abstract
Mobility is not specific to human only. Habitat connectivity is a very important property in the landscapes structures and is
highly significant for sustaining animal movement across the landscape. Anthropogenic barriers such as transportations infrastructures (motorways, roads, canals, railways) intensive agriculture and urbanization may affect wildlife species with large
home ranges and decrease genetic variability across populations. The preservation of habitat connectivity should be a strategic
goal in the environmental policy of the transport sector.
With 2586 km2 and 175 H/km2, Luxembourg presents one of the highest human densities in Europe. Moreover, near 360000
vehicles are registered and 100000 workers from neighbourhood countries using their vehicles to come work in the Grand
Duchy. For these reasons, motorway networks are in constant evolution and there are still projects of motorways planned in the
future.
In this frame, a study was ordered to get the results of the first mitigation measures to limit the negative fragmentation effect
of the motorways built, and to be able to appreciate wildlife mobility when planning new motorways. Wildlife passages can be
considered as a special type of wildlife corridor, linking habitats separated by transportation infrastructures (fig.1).
Fig.1. Photo of the wildlife passage and the E44 motorway
Fig.2. Camera trap units were set in the middle of the passages
This study provides the first data on the effectiveness of the two fauna passages of the E44 motorway (Luxembourg-Trier)
monitored from October 2003 to May 2005 using camera-traps. This motorway was opened to traffic in 1992. It is one of the
first roads in Luxembourg to include culverts adapted as fauna passages and the first motorway with overpasses (“doublefunnel” model) designed for large mammals (fig.2).
The main purpose of this study is to obtain quantitative data of the extent to which passages over the E44 motorway in this
fragmented landscape are used by wildlife. We focused on the widest ranging species in Luxembourg: the red deer (Cervus
elaphus), which is the most sensitive regarding size of home range and size of passages (Maizeret and Camby 1987, Dändliker
and Durand 2001). Moreover, particular attention was considered for protected and vulnerable species such as Meles meles,
Felis silvestris and Mustela putorius.
268
Table 1: Total records (photos) of the use of the passages
Method
The study was conducted along the E44 motorway Luxembourg – Trier. This infrastructure was inaugurated in 1992 with, for
the first time, specific passages designed to mitigate the barrier effect of the fenced motorway. The study was conducted
during two continuous period from September 2003 to March 2004 and from August 2004 to May 2005.
We used Camtrakker brand camera-trap units using a passive infrared motion detector (manufactured by CamTrak South Inc.
Watkinsville, GA, USA). Each unit consisted of one 35mm automatic flash camera triggered by the body heat or motion of an
animal passing within 18m of the infrared sensor. Sensors operated continuously but were set to take only one photograph per
90s. The unit also records the date and time of each exposure. At each of the two passages, the camera unit was set in the exact
middle of the infrastructure to ensure adequate monitoring (fig.2). We analyzed the use of the passages by time (2 hours units).
Overall, of 883 trap-nights of sampling effort was expended spread over 15 months. We recorded 1052 detections as photos
(table 1). Ten mammal species were observed at different rates. Of these records, 574 (54,6%) were Wild boar, 346 (32,9%)
were Roe deer and only 4 (0,4%) were Red deer. For species of conservation interest, passage use varied between sites and
species: 5 records for the Wild cat were for passage 1 and none for passage 2. Badger was recorded once on the passage 1 and
3 times on the passage 2.
When analyzing data by passage, we observe that passage n°1 was the more efficient with a mean of 1,43 record/night, whereas passage n°2 had a mean usage of 0,96 record/night.
Most species used the passages at night. When analyzing use of passage by time, red deer appears to be most sensitive species
(usage only between 0-4 a.m.), whereas roe deer have used the structure all part of the day (table 1).
Automatic cameras have been used in very few studies of animal passage systems and have provided evidence that these structures are used by a large variety of species specially medium and large mammals.
Our data clearly demonstrate regular use of the fauna passage over E44 motorway by wildlife, including species of conservation concern (Wild cat and Badger). However, use of these infrastructures by Red deer seems to be in very low frequencies, but
this is in accordance with the species density in the region.
When analyzing all the red deer photos using the passageways, we observed a very shy behavior. This species seems to be more
sensitive to disturbance of traffic than other large mammal like wild boar and roe deer. It appears that red deer are highly reluctant to move through passageway like those built on the E44 motorway (“double-funnel” model).
We suggest that maintaining and building more adapted passages can be important for protecting native species in areas fragmented by transportation infrastructures like motorways or high level traffic roads in Luxembourg.
References
Dändliker G, Durand P (2001) Bases pour la Directive ≤Planification et construction de passages à faune à travers des voies de communication≤.
Département Fédéral de l’Environnement, des Transports, de l’Energie et de la Communication (ETEC) : 36p
Jackson S D (1999) Overview of Transportation Related Wildlife Problems. in G.L. Evink, P. Garrett, and D. Zeigler, eds. Proceedings of the Third
International Conference on Wildlife Ecology and Transportation. Sept. 13-16, 1999 Missoula, MT : pp.1-4
Maizerait C, Camby A (1987) Les cerfs et l’autoroute - bilan des observations réalisées en Charente-Maritime dans le cadre du suivi écologique de
lÁ10. Office National de la Chasse - Bulletin mensuel 119: pp. 25-34
269
Preliminary results on helminth fauna of canids in Latvia
3
BAGRADE Guna1, VISMANIS Kărlis2, OZOLIN
, Š Jănis , KIRJUŠINA Muza 4
Natural History Museum of Latvia, K. Barona iela 4, LV- 1712, Riga, Latvia,
University of Latvia, Faculty of Biology, Kronvalda bulv.4, LV- 1842, Riga, Latvia
3
State Forest Service
4
State Veterinary Medicine Diagnostic Centre
Corresponding author: Guna Bagrade. Tel.: + 37-1-73-56-028, fax :+37-1-73-56-027,
Key words: wolf, fox, raccoon dog, parasites
1
2
The objective of this research was to determine the species of helminthes parasiting in wild canids; their intensity and extensity of invasion, as well as the role of canids in transmission of helminthes.
Published data on researches of helminth fauna of wild mammals in Latvia so far are available only for lynx (Lynx lynx), otter
(Lutra lutra), representatives of ungulates (Artiodactyla) and brown hare (Lepus europaeus).
Wolf (Canis lupus), red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and racoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides) are the wild representatives of Canidae
family living in the territory of Latvia.
Wolf, fox and racoon dog are game animals in Latvia. Wolf is limited (only restrict harvest allowed) game animal and the hunting season of this animal is from 15 of July to 31 of March, but the hunting season for fox and racoon dog, which are unlimited game animals, is all the year around (Hunting regulations 2003).
Material for the research of wolf helminth fauna was collected and processed from 2003 to 2005; material for helminth fauna
of foxes and racoon dogs - from 2004 to 2005. A total of ten wolves and foxes and two racoon dogs were examined.
The complete helminthological analyses, described by Skrjabin (1928), were used to examine all visceral organs. Determination
of Trichinella was carried out by artificial digestion method. The identification of helminthes was done accordingly to the
method of Kontrimavichus (1969) and Kozlov (1977).
A total of 16 helminthes were found in canids. They belong to the following taxonomic groups: Cestoda – seven species,
Nematoda – seven species and Trematoda – two species. 13 helminthes species were obtained from foxes; eight – from wolves
and five – from racoon dogs (Table 1).
The prevalent helminth species present in foxes were Alaria alata, Thominx aerophilus and Uncinaria stenocephala (Table 1).
All examined animals were identified as having at least four helminth species.
Alaria alata, Taenia hydatigena and Trichilella spp. were the most common among the population of wolves (Table 1). All animals were infected at least with one species, at the maximum with five species of helminthes.
Table 1. Helminth fauna of wild canids in Latvia
270
Alaria alata, Trichinella spp. and Uncinaria stenocephala were the prevalent species of helminthes in racoon dogs (Table 1).
The helminth fauna of canids in Latvia is partly similar to that in neighbouring countries, considering the differences in the
scope of material.
There was presented the data on the occurrence of 25 helminth species of the family Canidae in Lithuania. There had been
detected 16 species of helminthes in wolves, 21 species in foxes and 13 species in racoon dogs. As the prevalent species of
helminthes presented in wolves were mentioned Alaria alata, Taenia hydatigena, Uncinaria stenocephala and Capilaria plica.
The most common species among the population of foxes were A. alata, C. plica and U. stenocephala. The prevalent helminth
species presented in racoon dogs was A. alata (Kazlauskas and Prusaite 1976).
The helminth fauna of foxes in Belarus is presented by 32 species of helminthes, the most prevalent of those are Alaria alata,
Pearsonema plica, Taenia crassiceps, Toxocara canis, Trichinella spp. larvae and Uncinaria stenocephala. Species mentioned
there are considered as significant for medical and veterinary health (Shimalov and Shimalov 2002).
The acclimatization and introduction can make changes in animal’s helminth fauna. For example, in racoon dogs, in their natural range, 32 species of helminthes are found, but only 12 species in the territories of acclimatization. There is data that certain species of helminthes are not occurring in racoon dog’s populations in the territories of acclimatization, due to lack of the
appropriate intermediate hosts of theses helminthes in Europe, otherwise, different species of helminthes are acquired on the
process of acclimatization (Sludski et al. 1981).
Helminth fauna is different in the varied geographical regions; as well there is data that the level of invasion of some helminthes
varies not only accordingly to the geographic distribution, but also to the seasonality (Geptner et al.1967).
The results on researches of helminth fauna of canids in Estonia are not available yet because the researches are completed
recently and the data are submitted (H. Valdmann comment).
Research on helminth fauna has not only a theoretical but also a practical significance. Some carnivore species can be distributors of many helminthoses dangerous to people, domestic animals as well as to wildlife (Kazlauskas and Prusaite 1976).
As the most dangerous helminthes species to people are mentioned Alveoccocus multilocularis (Geptner et al. 1967) and
Trichinella sp. (Geptner et al. 1967, Sludski et al. 1981, Bagrade et al. 2003).
The similarity in helminth fauna of different animals is concerned with the similarity in food habits therefore, simultaneously
with the helminth examination, the analyse of animal’s stomach content is being made in order to figure out better the possibilities of parasite transmission in the relationship predator – prey. The most complete data on food habits are for wolves, but
research on food habits of foxes and racoon dogs have not been made in Latvia. Wild ungulates (cervides and wild boar) and
beaver were the dominant prey in wolves. Several species of small and medium-sized carnivores (domestic dog, racoon dog,
red fox, badger, otter and weasel) as well as some small rodents and insectivores were found in the diet of wolves, however,
their occurrence was comparatively low (Andersone and Ozolins̆
, 2004). Based on published data the main prey for foxes are
small rodents, invertebrates (insects and earthworms), birds, hares and carrions in wintertime; small rodents, insects, birds and
amphibians are the common prey for racoon dogs (Taurins̆
, 1982). Earthworms are listed as intermediate hosts for T. aerophilus,
as well as the earthworms (Lumbricus terrestris and L. rubellus) serve as the intermediate host for helminth C. plica (Kozlov
1977). The frogs and molluscs of family Planorbidae are listed as intermediate hosts for trematoda A. alata (Geptner et al. 1967,
Kozlov 1977); the infection of definitive hosts with U. stenocephala can come up peroraly or percutany (Kozlov 1977).
The helminth fauna not only interprets the food habits of carnivores, but also, to the certain extent, the overlapping of niches
among predators (Valdmann et al. 2004). According to our data the most common helminthes among canids are
A. alata, U. stenocephala, T. areophilus and Trichinella spp. as well as C. plica between wolf and fox. Intraguild predation in
carnivores, in the instant case – wolves feeding on foxes and racoon dogs, probably provides that wolf hosts the same species
of helminthes as its objects of prey. Thus, for example, the research on hunting practices and the prevalence of Trichinella infection in wolves is mentioned that the high prevalence of this parasite in a natural population of carnivores could be explained by
carnivore – carnivore transmission. This transmission is strengthened by hunting practices – skinned wolf carcases were left in
the forest as bait (Pozio et al. 2001).
Preliminary results on this research do not provide the complete information about helminth fauna present in canids and only
the examination of greater scope of material could clarify the real situation in Latvia.
The research is supported by the European Social fund.
References:
Andersone Z̆, Ozolins̆
, J (2004) Food habits of wolves Canis lupus in Latvia. Acta Theriologica 49 (3): 357-367
Bagrade G, Vismanis K, Kirjus̆ina M, Ozolins̆
, J (2003) Preliminary Results on Helminthofauna of Lynx (Lynx Lynx) in Latvia. Acta Zoologica
Lithuanica 13 (1):3-7
Geptner V, Naumov N, Jurgenson P, Sludski A, Chirkova A, Bannikov A (1967) Mammals of Soviet Union. Vol 2. Vyshaja skola, Moskva. [In Russian]
Kazlauskas J, Prusaite J (1976) Helminths of the order Carnivora in Lithuania. Acta Parasitologica Lituanica 14: 33-41 [In Russian]
Kontrimavichus VL (1969) Helminth Fauna of Mustelidae and the way of its Formation. Nauka, Moscow
Kozlov D. P. (1977) Guide for Parasite Determination of Carnivores of Soviet Union. Nauka, Moscow. [In Russian]
Pozio E, Casulli A, Bologov V, Marucci G, La Rosa G (2001) Hunting Practices Increase the Prevalence of Trichinella Infection in Wolves From
European Russia. Journal of Parasitology 80 (6): 1498-1501
Shimalov V, Shimalov V (2002) Helminth Fauna of the Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes Linnaeus, 1758) in southern Belarus. Parasitology Research 89 (1):
77-78
Skrjabin K. I. (1928) The Method for Complete Helminthological Analysis of the Vertebral Animals inter alia Human. Moscow. [In Russian]
Sludski AA, Badamshin BI, Bekenov A (1981) Mammals of Kazakhstan Vol 3. Nauka of Kazakh SSP, Alma-Ata [In Russian]
Taurin, s̆ E (1982) Mammals of Latvia. Zvaigzne, Riga [In Latvian]
Valdmann H, Moks E, Talvik H (2004) Helminth Fauna of Eurasian Lynx (Lynx lynx) in Estonia. Journal of Wildlife Diseases 40(2): 356-360
271
Turtle Dove (Streptopelia turtur) response to habitat structure
in Dadia-Soufli Forest: implications for management
Bakaloudis Dimitrios E. 1, Vlachos Christos G. 2, Chatzinikos Evangelos 3
Forest Service of Soufli, Dept of Forest Management & Protection, 6 Ermou Str., 684 00 Soufli, Greece.
University of Thessaloniki, Dept of Forestry & Natural Environment, Lab of Wildlife & Freshwater Fisheries
3
4th Hunting Federation of Sterea Hellas
Corresponding author: D.E. Bakaloudis. E-mail: [email protected]
Key words: discriminant analysis, breeding habitats, forest management
1
2
Extended abstract
Introduction:
Turtle Doves (Streptopelia turtur) have declined both in range and abundance across Europe (Heath et al 2000) mainly due to
nesting habitat degradation and removal (Browne et al 2004) and dietary changes which caused by the spatial and temporal
availability of food during the breeding season (Browne and Aebischer 2003). In addition, other factors that contributed in
Turtle Doves decline are associated on wintering grounds and during migration (Browne and Aebischer 2001). The principal
habitat requirement for nesting Turtle Doves is woodland areas close to open weedy patches for feeding (Gillings and Fuller
1998, Hinsley and Bellamy 2000, Browne and Aebischer 2003, Browne et al 2004). Forested areas provide important breeding
habitats for Turtle Doves in Dadia-Soufli Forest Complex, north-eastern Greece.
Aim:
To investigate the nesting habitat requirements of Turtle Doves in wooded areas and to propose appropriate management practices in order to maintain suitable breeding habitats for the species.
Study area:
Dadia-Soufli forest is well known for its valuable raptor and reptile populations (Bakaloudis et al 1998a, 1998b) as well as for
its wildlife diversity. It is located in the central part of Evros Province with elevations from 20 to 620 m above sea level. The
area comprises of different habitat types, namely pine forest, oak forest, mixed pine-oak forest, degraded oak forest, scrublands,
grasslands, rocky areas, intensively and non-intensively cultivated land but it is characterised by a high landscape diversity and
a patchy distribution of habitat types.
Methods:
We censused the birds at 60 sites in two forested habitat types (pine forest and mixed pine-oak forest) using the
point-count technique during the breeding season (from mid April to mid June) in 2001 and 2002, six times in total (Bibby
et al 1993, Calladine et al 1999, Slabbekoorn et al 1999). We analysed vegetation structure at the same sites by measuring horizontal (tree species and density in different size classes) and vertical (percent canopy closure in dominant, intermediate, suppressed and shrub layer) characteristics within 0.04 ha circular plots centred on the established points using a modification of
methods of James and Shugart (1970). Variables expressed as percentage were arcsine transformed and those expressed as nonpercentage were √x transformed prior to statistical analyses (Zar 1996). Univariate two-tailed tests were used to compare vegetation structure between used and unused sites. Multivariate statistical techniques were employed to examine the response of
Turtle Dove presence to habitat differences between used and unused sites (Noon 1981, McGarigal et al 2000). A two-group
Discriminant Function Analysis (DFA) was conducted in order to determine which vegetational variables were best discriminated between used and unused sites, to assess the relative importance of each variable to this discrimination and to generate
hypotheses explaining why Turtle Doves breed in some kind of habitats and not in others (Cavallaro et al 1981).
Results:
We recorded presence of breeding Turtle Doves in 27 plots (used sites), while we didn’t observe birds in the remaining 33 plots
(unused sites) during the six censuses of the study.
Univariate comparisons showed that 6 of 12 variables differed significantly (P < 0.05) between used and unused sites. Used
sites were in areas with a greater percentage of canopy cover of dominant and intermediate trees and a higher density of medium size class (pineDBH3 = 21-30 cm) pine trees. Unused sites were more often in stands with greater percentage canopy cover
of suppressed trees and percentage of canopy cover of shrubs, and a higher density of mature (pineDBH5 > 45 cm) pine trees.
The results confirm that used sites were not randomly distributed within the forested land in the study area.
272
The stepwise discriminant analysis resulted in a significant discrimination (Wilk’s lambda = 0.417, F(2, 57) = 39.827,
P < 0.0001, eigenvalue = 1.397) between used and unused sites by Turtle Doves based on 12 habitat variables. The relative
importance of the independent variables in predicting the dependent was determined from the standardized function coefficients. Density of pine trees 21-30 cm and percentage of canopy cover of intermediate tree layer were the most important contributors to the separation of the groups. These two variables were identified by the stepwise DFA as the subset of variables that
achieve the maximum discrimination between used and unused sites, and they were weighted positively (standardized function
coefficients: 0.895 and 0.653, for pineDBH3 and % intermediate, respectively) towards the used sites, indicating that sites with
high values for these variables were associated with potential breeding sites while sites with low values were not suitable for
breeding.
Overall, the discriminant function correctly classified 85% of the sites indicating high success of classification for used and
unused sites. Of the 27 used sites, 23 (85.2%) were classified correctly, while 5 (15.2%) of the 33 unused sites were classified
incorrectly as used sites.
Discussion:
Both univariate analysis and discriminant function analysis show that habitat structure is an important factor determining its
suitability for Turtle Dove during the breeding season in Dadia-Soufli Forest Complex.
In the study area, birds bred in forested stands with a low percentage of suppressed trees and shrubs layer, a smaller number of
mature pine trees, a high density of medium size class pine trees and a higher percentage of canopy cover of intermediate layer
than at unused sites. This habitat features most commonly occur on medium age pure pine stands, but also in mixed pine-oak
mature stands where pines dominated over oaks and these stands were thinned to reduce the vegetation of understory (shrubs
and young trees). Similar findings have been reported for woodland areas in United Kingdom (Fuller and Moreton 1987,
Hinsley et al 1995, Browne and Aebischer 2003, Browne et al 2004).
However, it is known that the forested land in the study area supported high densities of birds of prey where most of them are
nested in mature pine forest stands (Bakaloudis et al 1998a, 2001). For conservation purposes and to aid the biodiversity of the
area, the maintenance of the proportion of the existing land uses (open land/forested land) should be followed to establish both
feeding and nesting habitats for wildlife species (Bakaloudis et al 1998b). Particularly, forest management practices that
enhance the feature of suitable breeding habitats for Turtle Dove should be carefully applied in conjunction with those that benefit raptor breeding habitats. Finally, methods of maintaining appropriate breeding habitat for Turtle Dove in Dadia Forest,
which are in conflict with commercial forestry, are discussed.
References
Bakaloudis DE, Vlachos CG, Holloway G (1998a) Habitat use by Short-toed Eagle Circaetus gallicus and their reptilian prey during the breeding season in Dadia Forest (North-eastern Greece). J Appl Ecol 35: 821-828
Bakaloudis DE, Vlachos CG, Nastis A, Holloway G (1998b) Distribution of raptors and reptiles in different habitat types in Dadia-Lefkimi-Soufli forest complex, north-eastern Greece. In: Waterhouse A, McEwan E (eds) Landscapes, Livestock and Livelihoods in European Less Favoured Areas. SAC
Auchincruive, UK, Ayr: pp. 63-67
Bakaloudis DE, Vlachos CG, Papageorgiou NK, Holloway G (2001) Nest site habitat selected by Short-toed Eagle (Circaetus gallicus) in DadiaLefkimi-Soufli forest complex, north-eastern Greece. Ibis 143: 391-401
Bibby CJ, Burgess ND, Hill DA (1993) Bird Census Techniques. Academic Press, London
Browne S, Aebischer N (2001) The role of agricultural intensification in the decline of the turtle dove Streptopelia turtur. English Nature Research
Project No 421, Peterborough, UK
Browne S, Aebischer N (2003) Habitat use, foraging ecology and diet of Turtle Doves Streptopelia turtur in Britain. Ibis 145: 572-582
Browne S, Aebischer N, Yfantis G, Marchant J (2004) Habitat availability and use by Turtle Doves Streptopelia turtur between 1965 and 1995:
an analysis of Common Bird Census data. Bird Study 51: 1-11
Calladine J, Buner F, Aebischer NJ (1999) Temporal variations in the singing activity and the detection of Turtle Doves Streptopelia turtur:
implications for surveys. Bird Study 46: 74-80
Cavallaro JI, Menke JW, Williams WA (1981) Use of discriminant analysis and other statistical methods in analyzing microhabitat utilization of Duskyfooted woodrats. In: Capen, DE (ed.) The use of multivariate statistics in studies of wildlife habitats. USDA Forest Service, GTR RM-87, Vermont: pp.
222-231
Fuller RJ, Moreton BD (1987) Breeding bird populations of Kentish sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) coppice in relation to age and structure of the
coppice. J Appl Ecol 24: 13-27
Gillings S, Fuller RJ (1998) Changes in bird populations on sample lowland English farms in relation to loss of hedgerows and other non-crop
habitats. Oecologia 116:120-127
Heath M, Borggreve C, Peet C (2000) European Bird Populations: Estimates and Trends. BirdLife International (Birdlife Conservation Series No 10),
Cambridge
Hinsley SA, Bellamy PE (2000) The influence of hedge structure, management and landscape context on the value of hedgerows to birds: A review. J
Wildl Manage 60:33-49
Hinsley SA, Bellamy PE, Newton I, Sparks TH (1995) Habitat and landscape factors influencing the presence of individual breeding bird species in
woodland fragments. J Avian Biol 26: 94-104
James FC, Shugart HH Jr (1970) A quantitative method of habitat description. Aubudon Field Notes 24:727-736
McGarigal K, Cushman S, Stafford S (2000) Multivariate Statistics for Wildlife and Ecology Research. Springer, Berlin London
Noon BR (1981) Techniques for sampling avian habitats. In: Capen, DE (ed.) The use of multivariate statistics in studies of wildlife habitats. USDA
Forest Service, GTR RM-87, Vermont: pp. 42-52
Slabbekoorn H, de Kort S, ten Cate C (1999) Comparative analysis of perch-coo vocalizations in Streptopelia doves. Auk 116:737-748
Zar JH (1996) Biostatistical Analysis. Prentice-Hall, Inc., London
273
Using bed characteristics to identify red deer (Cervus elaphus) and roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) in the field
Baltzinger, Christophe1, Galan Maxime2, Denis, Michel1, Pepin, Dominique3
1
Cemagref, UR Ecosystèmes Forestiers, Domaine des Barres, 45290 Nogent-sur-Vernisson, France
2
C.B.G.P., Campus International de Baillarguet, 34 988 Montferrier-sur-Lez, France
3
INRA-CEFS , BP 27, 31326 Castanet-Tolosan, France
Corresponding author: Christophe Baltzinger. Tel.: +33-2-38-95-66, fax: +33-2-38-95-03-44-75,
Key words: signs, hair, sympatry, habitat selection, genetic identification
Introduction
The geographic and demographic expansion of large herbivores in Europe leads to situations where many species live in sympatry: this is the case for red and roe deer in France.
To monitor a given species, indirect methods based on signs like faeces, tracks or beds have been used for a long time. They
are generally cheap and accurate. However, signs look similar between red and roe deer even though the former is larger than
the latter.
Our goal was to test if different bed characteristics (size, scraping) and adjacent signs (tracks, faeces, rubbing, …) are sufficient
to reliably distinguish between red and roe deer presence in the field. This practical question is part of a larger project on bed
site selection by sympatric red and roe deer (Baltzinger, 2003).
Materials and methods
Study area
Our study site was located on mountainous terrain in the Bougès Forest, Massif Central (France, 44°20’ N, 3°50’ E).
On this site, red and roe deer hunting plan quotas were respectively increasing and decreasing.
Tracking procedure
We covered evenly distributed transects during winter and summer 1999/2000. We detected the beds from the transects and
checked each one for the presence of shed hairs that testified the bed was recent. Collected hairs were also used for genetic
identification of the species (Galan et al., 2005). Only 148 beds yielded positive results, surprisingly, equal numbers for both
species: 74 roe deer and 74 red deer beds.
Bed characteristics and other deer signs
We measured bed length and width. We noted the presence of foot tracks, pellets, fraying and barking, recorded the number of
beds in a 10m radius and determined whether the bed had been scraped.
Data analysis
We compared bed dimensions by t-test and tested differences in sign presence between red and roe deer by χ2 statistics on contingency tables.
Results
Bed size
The length (76,2 ± 1,8 cm) and width (59,0 ± 1,7 cm) of red deer beds are significantly larger than the length (64,0 ± 1,8 cm)
and width (49,7 ± 1,7 cm) of roe deer beds (t-test for length: t=4,72 ; p<10-5 and for width: t=4,67; p<10-5). However, an overlap exists between red and roe deer beds, with some small red deer beds and some very large roe deer beds (figure 1).
274
sample size
Table 1. Observed (obs.) and expected under H0
(exp.) samples of scraped and unscraped beds
by deer species.
Figure 1. Bed site size index, defined as (length+width)/2,
for 73 red deer and 74 roe deer beds (a red deer bed had not
been measured).
Scraped or unscraped beds
Our null hypothesis (H0) is that red deer scrape their beds as often as roe deer do. In fact, roe deer tend to scrape their beds
more often than red deer do : 50% and 20% respectively (χ2(1) = 14,35 ; p=2.10-4), (table 1). Patterns are similar for separate
winter and summer data.
Groups of beds
Our null hypothesis (H0) is that the proportion of red and roe deer beds are similar in any conditions (n=1, n=2 or n>2).
Actually, the proportion of paired beds is more important for the red deer than for the roe deer and inversely for groups of more
than 2 beds (χ2(2)=9,62 ; p = 0,008), (table 2).
The patterns on groups of beds are similar for winter and summer data but difficult to explain.
Other signs
We found no difference in fraying or barking occurrence next to red and roe deer beds. Red deer and roe deer pellets were
respectively found more often near red deer and roe deer beds. Foot tracks on beds were rare but surely identified the species.
Table 2. Number of beds per species observed (obs.)
and expected under H0 (exp.) in a 10m radius.
Discussion
Bed size
As shown by Chen et al. (1999) in China in winter, lengths and widths of red deer beds are significantly bigger than roe deer
ones. However, we show (figure 1) that this does not exclude a considerable overlap in bed size between species. This means
that the following bed size alone cannot be used as a species predictor in the field.
We propose non-exclusive explanations: 1) red deer fawns are present in summer thus accounting for smaller beds - however,
the overlap persists even if we only treat winter data; 2) the size of unscraped beds evolves faster than for scraped ones, yet the
overlap persists if we treat scraped and unscraped beds separately; 3) red deer show high body size dimorphism and 4) red deer
may bed on old roe beds.
Scraping behaviour
Mysterud & Østbye (1995) observed that 50% of roe deer beds were scraped in winter. Our data confirm that pattern, contrary
to Chen et al. (1999) who showed roe deer always scraped their bed, whereas red deer never did. Merrill (1991) observed that
wapitis in open areas scraped their beds in summer. Bed scraping may be a valid tool to distinguish between the two species in
China, but not in our study area where scraping alone cannot be used as a species descriptor.
275
Conclusion
This study provides some rare data on red and roe deer bed characteristics and suggests how to combine different signs to
improve discriminating power. In some cases, we may recommend the use of genetic analysis or microscopic hair identification.
Acknowledgements
We thank Matthieu Mandret for his help with the field work
References
Baltzinger, C. (2003) Sélection des sites de repos par le Cerf (Cervus elaphus L.) et le Chevreuil (Capreolus capreolus L.) vivant en sympatrie en forêt
tempérée de moyenne montagne. PhD., ENGREF, PARIS.
Chen, H., Li, F., Luo, L., Wang, H., Ma, J., & Li, F. (1999) Winter bed-site selection by red deer Cervus elaphus xanthopygus and roe deer Capreolus
capreolus bedfordi in forests of northeastern China. Acta Theriologica, 44, 195-206.
Galan, M., Baltzinger, C., Hewison, A.J.M., & Cosson, J.F. (2005) Distinguishing red and roe deer using DNA extracted from hair samples and the
polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method. Wildlife Society Bulletin (in press).
Merrill, E.H. (1991) Thermal constraints on use of cover types and activity time of elk. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 29, 251-267.
Mysterud, A. & Østbye, E. (1995) Bed-site selection by European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) in southern Norway during winter. Canadian Journal
of Zoology, 73, 924-932.
276
Non-parametric trend analysis of migrating waterfowl
Lilla Barabás1, Dr. Béla Barabás2, János T_gye3 & Dr. Sándor Faragó1
1
University of West Hungary, Faculty of Forestry, Institute of Wildlife Management
H-9400 Sopron, Ady E. u. 5. Hungary
2
Budapest University of Technology and Economics,
3
Hungarian Ornithological and Nature Conservation Society
Corresponding author: Lilla Barabás. Tel.: +36 99 518 351 fax: +36 99 518 350
Key words: Kendall’s test, monitoring, population assessment, Theil’s test
Abstract
In spite of the significant effort spent on assessing waterfowl populations in spring and fall, the results of these population
counts often remain poorly analyzed. We used two non-parametric methods to process data on quantities of migrating duck
species. The generally applied regression models for trend estimations usually assume a normal distribution that cannot be
expected in this case. We adopted the Kendall’s test (Kendall, 1962) and the Theil’s statistics (Miller & Miller, 1993) to
examine changes in the number of migrating ducks. The validity of these tests does not depend on the probability distribution.
We showed the applicability of these methods on a 10-year long dataset for 4 different duck species on a Hungarian fishpondsystem. Even though this relatively short time-period of a decade only allows us to detect quite strong trends, we can also calculate the probability of detection for different levels of changes.
References
Kendall MG (1962) Rank correlation methods. Griffin, London.
Miller JC, Miller JN (1993) Statistics for Analytical Chemistry. Ellis Horwood PTR Prentice Hall, Analytical Chemistry Series, 3rd ed., pp. 159-161
277
The preference for browsing in floodplain forest - the role of
abundance and nutrient content
Baranc̆ková Miroslava, Prokes̆ová Jarmila, Homolka Miloslav, Kamler Jir̆í
Institute of Vertebrate Biology AS CR, Kv_tná 8, 603 65 Brno, Czech Republic
Corresponding author: Miroslava Baranc̆ková. Tel.: +42-5-43-42-25-43, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: deer, NIRS analyses, shrub layer
Browsing impact of deer can have a substantial influence on species composition and the abundance of the shrub layer (Gill
2000; Kirby 2001). Ungulates often prefer some woody plants to others (Gill 1992; Motta 1996). The attractiveness of single
plant species to animals is related to several factors such as abundance and nutritional value, especially levels of nitrogen and
fibre (Hobbs et al. 1983; Danell et al. 1994).
The shrub layer of the studied floodplain forest is well developed, despite the high density of ungulates, and contains species
that are of economic interest as well as those of no interest to man. The vegetation of the floodplain forests of Southern Moravia
(Czech Republic) can provide food sources of high nutritional level and high abundance for relatively high numbers of ungulates (Prokes̆ová et al. in prep.). In our study we analysed the browsing preference of deer for the species of the shrub layer that
are/are not of economic interest to man and the role of nutrition in their choice. The aim of our study was to find out if the economically important species Quercus and Fraxinus are able to outgrow the browsing under current conditions.
The study was carried out in the floodplain forest on the bank of the Morava River between the villages of Mikul_ice and
Tvrdonice (Czech Republic) (Baranc̆eková 2004). Forest stands of the study area consist of Quercetum and FraxinetoQuercetum, with Acer (average cover (a.c.) = 11.35 %), Fraxinus (a.c. = 3.58 %) and Quercus (a.c. = 5.75 %) as the dominant
genera in the shrub layer. Browsing intensity was monitored on 9 sample plots (4 x 10m). One thousand shoots were examined on each monitoring plot in March (winter browse) and October (summer browse) in 2002 and 2003. The samples of the
three most abundant tree species (oak and ash that are of economic interest, field maple that is of no economic interest) were
collected during the year 2003 for near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy analyses (NIRS) of nitrogen, lipid and fibre levels. To
assess the preference of ungulates for browsed species we used the preference ratio formula PR = Ui / Ai, where Ui is percentage utilization and Ai is percentage availability (Malan & Van Wyk 1993).
The total browsing intensity in 2002 was 37.5% during the winter season and 25.4% during the summer season. The browsing intensity in the next year decreased significantly both in the winter (21.87 %; p = 0.043) and summer season (8.17 %; p =
0.003). Single woody plant species of the shrub layer were browsed with different intensity during both years as well as seasons of the study. The most preferred species was oak (PR = 1.57), which was simultaneously the second most abundant species
on the sample plots. In contrast the preference for ash, also an economically important species, was quite low. Field maple, the
most abundant species of the floodplain forest, had the second highest preference ratio (PR = 1.17). The least preferred woody
plant was hawthorn (PR = 0.47).
Fig. 1. Average values of the preference ratio (PR) for single woody-plant species in the floodplain forest during winter and summer.
278
Fig. 2. Average level of nitrogen (N), lipids (L) and fibre
(F) in three tree species in the summer period (X) and winter period (III.) (** - p < 0.01 level).
The highest average content of all three analysed components (nitrogen, lipids and fibre) was found in oak, the most browsed
species, during the vegetation period. On the other hand, the NIRS analyses showed that the second least browsed species,
ash, contained the lowest level of lipids and fibres (Fig. 2). In winter, the highest level of nitrogen was found in oak, which
in this period was the second most preferred species. The lowest level of nitrogen and lipids during winter was found in ash
(Fig. 2). The level of single nutrient components differed in summer and winter periods. A significant increase of fibre in
field maple samples and a significant decrease in level of nitrogen for all tree species (ash, field maple, oak) were found (Fig.
2).
Intensity of ungulate impact on vegetation is dependent on a wide variety of factors and can cause various changes in vegetation structure and development (Gonzáles Hernández & Silva-Pando 1996; Reimoser & Gossow 1996; Van Hees et al.
1996). Impact of ungulates is usually expressed as the browsing of leading shoots and leaves, which represent the most nutritional parts of plants, and thereby are very attractive to ungulates (Bryant & Kuropat 1980; Harper 1989; Gill 1992; C̆ermák
1998). Ungulates often prefer some plants to others for browsing (Gill 1992; Motta 1996). Different preferences of woody
plants for browsing were found by Chevallier-Redor (Chevallier-Redor et al. 2001), König (König & Baumann 1990) and
Dzieciolowski (1980). In our study oak, a species of high interest to man in floodplain forest was the most preferred species.
Its high
preference was to some extent influenced by its high abundance as well as by a high level of highly digestible nitrogen and
lipid. The abundance of oak is great in planted areas, but its seedlings are very rare in natural regeneration. On the other
hand, ash, the second man planted species, is relatively common in natural regeneration. This may be the result of its relatively low browsing preference probably caused by a relatively low nitrogen and lipid content. The most abundant species of
the shrub layer is field maple. This species is of no economic interest to man and its high abundance is the result of natural
regeneration. Despite the quite high fibre content, especially in winter, it is readily browsed by ungulates and has a relatively
high preference ratio. These results suggest that the preference of tree species cannot be explained by abundance and nutrient
content alone
The absence of oak from natural regeneration and the high browsing preference for planted oaks suggest, that this economically interesting species is not able to outgrow the browsing pressure without protection by fencing. On the other hand, it
looks as if the economically important ash is able to grow under current browsing pressure even in naturally regenerated
shrub layer.
This research was supported by GA AV C̆R (S6093003).
References:
Baranc̆eková, M (2004) The roe deer diet: is floodplain forest optimal habitat? Folia Zool 53: 85-292
Bryant, JP, Kuropat, PJ (1980) Selection of winter forage by subarctic browsing vertebrates: the role of plant chemistry. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 11:261285
C̆ermák, P (1998) The influence of ungulates on forest ecosystems in Moravia. Lesnictvi - Forestry 44:278-287
Danell, K, Utsi, PM, Palo, T, Eriksson, O (1994) Food plant selection by reindeer during winter in relation to plant quality. Ecography 17:153-158. (In:
Tixier and Duncan 1997)
Dzieciolowski, R (1980) Impact of deer browsing upon forest regeneration and undergrowth. Ekol Pol 28:583-599
Gill, RMA (1992) A review of damage by mammals in north temperate forests. 1. Deer. Forestry 65:145-169
Gill, RMA (2000) The impact of deer on woodland biodiversity. Forestry Commission.6 pp.
Gonzáles Hernández, MP, Silva-Pando, FJ (1996) Grazing effects of ungulates in a Galician oak forest (northwest Spain). Forest Ecol Manag
88:65-70
Harper, J (1989) The value of a leaf. Oecologia 80:53-58
Hobbs, NT, Baker, DL, Gill, RB (1983) Comparative nutritional ecology of montane ungulates during winter. J Wildlife Manage 47:1-16
Chevallier-Redor, N, Verheyden-Tixier, H, Verdier, M, Dumont, M (2001) Foraging behaviour of red deer Cervus elaphus as a function of the relative
availability of two tree species. Anim Res 50:57-65
Kirby, KJ (2001) The impact of deer on the ground flora of British broadleaved woodland. Forestry 74:219-229
Kittredge, DB (1995) Impact of deer browsing on regeneration in mixed stands in southern New England. NJAF 12:115 - 120
König, E, Baumann, B (1990) The influence of roe deer browsing on the natural regeneration in mixed-conifer stands. In: Trans. 19th IUGB Congress,
Trondheim 1989. Pp. 515-522
Malan, JW, van Wyk, AE (1993) Bark structure and preferential bark utilisation by the African Elephant. IAWA J 14:173 - 185
Motta, R (1996) Impact of wild ungulates on forest regeneration and tree composition of mountain forests in the Western Italian Alps. Forest Ecol
Manag 88:93-98
Prokes̆ová, J, Barans̆eková, M, Homolka, M Distribution of red and roe deer in relation to distribution of food sources in the floodplain forest. (in prep.)
Reimoser, F, Gossow, H (1996) Impact of ungulates on forest vegetation and its dependence on the silvicultural system. Forest Ecol Manag
88:107-119
Tixier, H, Duncan, P (1997) Food selection by European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus): effects of plant chemistry, and consequences for the nutritional value of their diets. J Zool, Lond. 242:229-245
van Hees, FM, Kuiters, LAT, Slim, PA (1996) Effects of browning on silver birch, pedunculate oak and beech regeneration. Forest Ecol Manag
88:55- 64
Westoby, M (1978) What are the biological bases of varied diets? Am Nat 112:627-631
279
The use of pellet count for ungulate census: a modified method
Toralf Bauch, Michael Eger , Ronny Kursch, Sven Herzog
Chair of Wildlife Ecology and Management, Dresden University of Technology, Pienner Strasse 8, D-01737 Tharandt, Germany
Corresponding author: Toralf Bauch. Tel.: +49-3-52-03-38-31-338, fax: +49-3-52-03-38-31-397,
Key words: Ugulates, Cervus elaphus, defecation rates, detectability of excrements
In order to quantify the abundance of ungulates as a basis for sustainable management, a huge number of direct, indirect or
mathematical-statistical methods is available. Counts of game droppings being quite common nowadays is an example for an
indirect assessment method.
The excrements spread over sample areas distributed over a certain regions are assessed by game species and amount. Fulfilling
some certein preconditions, they may serve as an more or less reliable indicator of abundance.
Two of these preconditions, often neglected in this context, are the rate of defecation or the probability of finding the pellets.
The concrete assessment of the defecation rates appears to be crucial for this method. Regarding previous approaches concerning red deer (Cervus elephus L.), defecation rates are proofed in enclosures. The food supply in enclosures being qualitatively
and quantitatively more comprehensive has led to the suggestion of different defecation rates as compared to the field observations.
STUBBE et al. (1997) ascertained that there tended to be higher defecation rates for red deer when involving additional food
supply, however neither food amounts were determined nor were analyses made of the energy content of the supplied food.
Moreover, in all experiments it was assumed that the assessment by means of sample plots or sample sectors, respectively,
imply a high reliability, assuming that those assessments could be regarded to be representative of the entire area.
Surveys (EGER unpublished) conducted in ‘Waschleite” enclosure revealed that a complete assessment (total area survey)
yielded completely different (lower) defecation rates than were obtained from a sampling-like survey (systematical stand
assessment) within the same period. An analysis of food conducted in two other enclosures (Grillenburg and Moritzburg) likewise showed higher defecation rates (KURSCH unpublished) due to the food available which clearly exceeded the physiological minimum (Fig. 1).
Fig.1
*complete survey
Another open and often neglected question concerns the probability of finding the dropped excrements. As it was expected,
this probability critically depends on habitat/vegetation type and season. It can be assumed that on areas of sparse vegetation
cover all game droppings can be found. For areas of a more dense vegetation, correction factors have to be included.
Thus, previous but nevertheless widely used approaches (TOTTEWITZ 1997) for game census by pellet counts can be
improved by the development and application of correcting factors.
For red deer, first applications of our modified counting methods in the field give good correlations to minimal population densities revealed by other methods.
References
STUBBE, C.; TOTTEWITZ, F.; PIEGERT, H.; SACKMANN, H.-J.; WILKE, G.; GLEICH, E. (1997): Zum Einfluss des Futterangebotes aut die
Defäkationsrate von Rot-, Muffel- und Rehwild. Beiträge zur Jagd- und Wildtierforschung, Bd. 22, 343-346
Tottewitz, F. (1997): Entwicklung eines Monitoringsystems zur Kontrolle von Wilddichten, PhD Thesis, Technische Universität Dresden.
280
Prevalence and medical importance of Streptococcus suis
genotypes in wild boars of Northwestern Germany
Baums, Christoph G. 1, Verkühlen, Gerd Josef 1, Rehm, Thomas 1, Beyerbach, Martin 2, Pohlmeyer, Klaus 3,
Valentin-Weigand, Peter 1
Institut für Mikrobiologie, Zentrum für Infektionsmedizin, Stiftung Tieraerztliche Hochschule Hannover, Bischofsholer
Damm 15, 30173 Hannover, Germany
1
2
Institut für Biometrie, Epidemiologie und Informations-verarbeitung, Stiftung Tieraerztliche Hochschule Hannover
3
Institut für Wildtierforschung, Stiftung Tieraerztliche Hochschule Hannover
Corresponding author: Christoph Baums. Tel: +49-5-11-85-67-563, fax: +49-5-11-85-67-697,
Key words: zoonosis, multiplex-PCR, virulence-associated genes, epf*
Abstract
Invasive serotype 2 (cpsJ2+) strains of Streptococcus suis cause meningitis and other diseases in pigs and also, though less common,
in humans. Occupational processing of porc is the major risc for this zoonosis (Arends and Zanen, 1988). In addition, four case reports
of S. suis meningitis in hunters suggest transmission of S. suis through dissection of wild boars (Rosenkranz et al., 2003). However,
prevalence of virulent S. suis strains in wild boars is unknown. In this study tonsils collected from 200 wild boars shot at different
locations in Northwestern Germany were tested for prescence of S. suis. S. suis was isolated from 92.8% of all tested tonsils (n = 200).
A total of 244 S. suis wild boar isolates were genotyped with a multiplex-PCR to detect serotype specific genes (e. g. cpsJ2), the
hemolysin gene sly, and the virulence-associated genes mrp and epf (Fig. 1). Additional monoplex-PCRs were used to differentiate
variants of mrp and epf. Prevalence of the cpsJ2+ genotype among strains from wild boars was comparable to that of control strains
isolated from domesticated healthy carrier pigs. Twenty-one of the 22 cpsJ2+ wild boar strains were also positive for mrp, sly and epf*,
the large variant of epf. Interestingly, epf* was significantly more frequently in cpsJ2+ strains from wild boars than in those from
domesticated pig carriers (Table 1). Serotype 2 strains with an epf* genotype are considered to be less virulent for piglets in comparison to serotype 2 strains expressing the normal variant of EF (epf+). However, epf* is also typically found in European S. suis
isolates from humans such as the liquor isolate from a German hunter included in this study (Smith et al., 1993). These results suggest that at least 10% of wild boars in Northwestern Germany carry S. suis strains that are potentially virulent for humans. Additional
AFLP-typing supported this hypothesis since homogeneous clustering of these epf* mrp+ sly+ cpsJ2+ strains from wild boars with
invasive human and porcine strains was observed.
Fig. 1. Representative MP-PCR of S. suis strains.
Lane 1, 100-bp ladder; 2, liquor isolate from a
German hunter (strain 199); 3-9, isolates from tonsils
of wild boars (w183.1, w168.1, w102.2, w162.1,
w151.2, w184.1); 10, water; 11, serotype 2 reference
strain P1/7; 12, serotype 1 reference strain DSM 9683;
13, mixture of different reference strains.
References
Table 1. Prevalence of different S. suis serotype 2 and 9 genotypes in wild boars and domesticated pig carriers of Northern Germany
Arends JP, Zanen HC (1988) Meningitis
caused by Streptococcus suis in humans.
Rev Infect Dis 10:131-137
Rosenkranz M, Elsner H-A, Stürenburg H
J, Weiller C, Röther J, Sobottka I (2003)
Streptococcus suis meningitis and septicemia contracted from a wild boar in
Germany. J Neurol 250:869-870
Smith H E, Reek F, Vecht U, Gielkens A,
Smits M (1993) Repeats in an extracellular
protein of weakly pathogenic strains of
Streptococcus suis Type 2 are absent in
pathogenic strains. Infect Immun 61:33183326
281
Population dynamics of moose (Alces alces) in Poland –
results of hunting without counting animals
Bobek Boguslaw, Fr˛ackowiak Witold, Meta Dorota, Wi’sniowska Lidia
Department of Ecology, Wildlife Research and Ecotourism, Institute of Biology, Pedagogical University of Kraków,
Podbrzezie 3, 31-054 Kraków, Poland
Corresponding author: Boguslaw Bobek. Tel.: +48-1-26-62-66-87, fax: +48-1-26-62-66-82, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: guess-estimate, overharvest, policy, management units, population census
World War II threatened the existence of the moose population, leaving only 10-15 animals by 1945. The species was then
declared protected and an intensive reintroduction program was undertaken using a large enclosure in Kampinos National Park
(Serafi_ski, 1969). Based on hunting statistic, the population was estimated at 425 animals in 1965 and 3,250 in 1975.
Harvesting of moose started in 1967, with progressively increasing number of animal harvested each year. Moose continued to
increase however, and the population was estimated at 6,181 individuals in 1981. Then, harvest quota was increased to 1,115
animals for the 1981/82 hunting season and 1,613 in the 1982/83 season (Bobek and Morow 1987). During 1987-1991 hunting statistic showed increase in number of moose from 4,100 animals to 5,400 individuals. Therefore during 1989-91 hunting
seasons, the harvest quota was increased to approximately 1,660 animals per year. This hunting pressure badly affected population dynamic of moose in next decade. Hunting statistic showed a serious decrease of moose numbers to 1,718 animals in
2000. A national ban on moose hunting was imposed in 2001 in response to this decline in moose abundance. It is expected that
the ban will remain in effect until moose numbers recover. Unfortunately the Polish governmental administration did not work
out a moose management strategy for future at the national level. This problem must be solved very soon as the moose numbers during last 4 years increased markedly. It caused serious conflict with forestry and traffic.
In March 2004, population density and number of moose was estimated by so called "Carpathian method" on area of 15 Forest
Districts which are 227 thousands ha big (Table 1). This method is based on the relationship between absolute population density (N/1000 ha), and a snow track density index i.e. tracks per km (Bobek et al. 2004 a, b). The relationship was measured with
32 sampling plots of 400-500 ha each, in northeastern, eastern and central Poland. It was estimated that in 3 study areas there
were 743 individuals of moose, and population density between study areas ranged from 2.56-4.58 animals per 1000 ha. About
500 people took part in this census: foresters, hunters, wildlife scientists and students. Earlier, observation of sex structure and
autumn recruitment took place. Simulation of population dynamics showed that in 2005 there will be a 30% increase of the
moose population. Based on reliable data, we suggested to the Ministry of Environment to harvest 50% of the annual recruitment (which means 112 animals) in the study area during 2004/2005 season. Harvest of these animals was to be done in the
areas where moose make damages to forests and cause car accidents. Unfortunately, the Ministry of Environment did not
approve of our proposal. In March 2005, estimation of moose population number was repeated, and a 25.6% increase of moose
population in the study area was shown (Bobek et al., unpubl. data).
Decrease in moose population in Poland was caused by overestimating the population number by hunters. The main reason was
the non-objective (guess-estimate) nature of the official estimates that were based on personal speculation of hunting club members. Population simulation results (Bobek 2004 a) indicate that if there had been 6,200 moose in Poland in 1981, the harvest
of 1,115 and 1,613 animals in the 1981/82 and 1982/83 hunting seasons would not have caused decline in population numbers
as official hunting statistics claimed (Fig. 1). There were probably no more than 4,400 moose in Poland in 1982. According to
population simulations results the harvest during the 1980s caused only a small decline of moose number in Poland. During the
late 1980s and 1990s, harvesting 1,650-1,670 animals per year resulted in a large decline in the moose population, which was
not recorded by official estimates. At that time, according to official hunting statistics, there was an increase in moose population in the entire Poland (Fig. 1). It is likely that at the end of moose hunting season in March 2000 there were only about 800
moose in all hunting districts, substantially lower than the official estimate of 1,917 (Fig. 1).
The second reason was that harvest was planned by each hunting club separately for particular hunting district, which are too
small and do not include annual home range of local moose population. There is no national policy which would obligate the
hunters to use objective methods of estimating population numbers and to plan the harvest on large management units which
include whole year home range of moose population instead of small hunting districts (3-5 thousand ha). That is why, the
authors of this paper proposed to change the policy of moose management. First, 3 large management units were chosen: in
Northeast Poland (420 thousand ha), in Central Poland (145 thousand ha) and in East Poland (120 thousand ha). Estimating the
population would be carried out by hunting clubs under Forest District Service supervision, based on moose tracking on line
transects. Next, the data would be sent to appropriate Regional Direction of State Forest (RDLP) where processing and estimating population size for the whole management unit would take place. A decision about moose harvest number would be
taken by RDLP, which would also divide this number between hunting clubs. This kind of feed-back mechanism would enable
to control the dynamics of moose population number in 3 management units, which constitute about 75% of moose population
282
in Poland (Bryliński et al., 2004). The authors of this work prepared a procedure of gradual moose harvest in places where the
animals make a high level damage to forest, or where they often cause car accidents. Unfortunately, the Ministry of
Environment is not interested in this solution, although it does not have any own plan of saving the problem of conflict between
man and moose. Such a plan is necessary, so that the situation from the last 2 decades, when a poor management of moose harvest caused a threat to a minimum viable population size of this species, will not happen again.
Summing up, described in this paper are the population dynamics of moose as one of the many signs of a deep crisis presently in the game management system in Poland. Contrary to official declaration of a state administration and the Polish Hunting
Association, hunting is only partly based upon principles of sustainable use of the wildlife populations.
References:
Bobek B and K Morow (1987) Present status of the moose (Alces alces) in Poland. Swedish Wildl. Res. Viltrevy 1:69-70.
Bobek B, D Merta, and P Sulkowski (2004a) Moose recovery plan in Poland: main objectives and tasks. Alces. 39: 281-288.
Bobek B, W Frackowiak, D Merta, A Kareta and M Kolecki (2004b) Metody oceny liczebnos̀ci i preferencji siedlisk leśnych populacji losia
w Polsce Pólnocno-Wschodniej i na Polesiu Lubelskim. Zeszyty Naukowe Komitetu „Czlowiek i Środowisko”, PAN 2004 (38): 303-312.
Bryliński R, R Dziedzic, D Piasecki and L Walenda (2004) Liczebność i rozmieszczenie losi w Polsce w latach 2000-200.4. Pages 55-63 in:
W: Materialy konf. „Aktualna sytuacja populacji losia w Polsce” Biebrzański Park Narodowy, 23-24 października 2004
Serafiński W (1969) Reproduction and dynamics of moose (Alces alces L.) population in the Kampinos National Park. Ekol. Pol. A.
17(37):709-718.
283
Positive serological responses to Bovine Respiratory
Syncytial Virus (Paramyxoviridae) in wild ungulates from
Central Italian Alps
Bertoletti I.1, Bianchi A. 1, Gaffuri A. 2, Andreoli E. 3, Mattiello S. 3
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell’Emilia Romagna, Sezione Diagnostica di Sondrio, Via Bormio
30, 23100 Sondrio, Italy
1
2
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell’Emilia Romagna, Sezione Diagnostica di Bergamo
3
Istituto di Zootecnica, Facoltà di Medicina Veterinaria, Univ. di Milano
Corresponding author: I. Bertoletti. Tel. +39-0-34-22-14-312, fax: +39-0-34-25-15-024
Key words: Sondrio, wild ungulates, sanitary monitoring, bovine respiratory syncytial virus, pneumonia.
A careful monitoring of sanitary conditions of wild fauna is a crucial point for wildlife management. Several pathogenic agents can be transmitted from domestic to wild animals and vice versa, and some of them may also be responsible for the transmission of zoonosis. For over
five years, the Istituto Zooprofilattico, in agreement with the State Veterinary Service of Sondrio, has been carrying out a wildlife monitoring programme, to collect epidemiological data on the main diseases of different wild species. Furthermore, it also analyses different samples coming from specific monitoring plans or research programmes. The aim of this monitoring programme is to increase the knowledge
about the sanitary status of free-living animals and to check for the presence of diseases which can be transmitted to domestic animals or to
man, in order to allow the optimal management of wild species, at the same time preserving the health of domestic stock.
In the frame of this monitoring programme, in 2004 the "Sezione Diagnostica di Sondrio dell’Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della
Lombardia e dell’Emilia Romagna" (I.Z.S.L.E.R.) carried out gross examinations on 11 wild ungulates found dead by the Provincial Police
(Table 1).
One of these animals (a 16 month old male chamois from Val
Fontana, a small valley located on the Retico side of the
Valtellina, Province of Sondrio) had been found, still alive, in
a very poor nutritional status, showing symptoms of dyspnoea,
with emission of a foamy secretion from its nostrils. The animal was immediately taken to the nearest Wildlife Rescue
Centre, where it died during the night. Postmortem examination showed a severe bilateral interstitial pneumonia. A lung
sample was taken and stored in 10% formalina solution until it
was submitted to immunohistochemical dying for virological examination, carried out by the Laboratory of Histology of the I.Z.S.L.E.R.
(Milan Section). This sample was positive for the infection to bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV).
After this finding, it was considered important to analyse thoroughly the serological prevalence of BRSV in wild ungulates (red deer, roe deer
and chamois) living in the same area (Val Fontana). For more than 10 years, the "Istituto di Zootecnica" of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
of the University of Milan has been monitoring the sanitary status of wild ungulates culled in Val Fontana. In 2004, 43 sera samples (27 red
deer, 2 roe deer and 14 chamois) from this area were delivered to the I.Z.S.L.E.R. (Sondrio Section) for serological analysis. The sera were submitted to a test against BRSV using blocking ELISA (De Simone et al. 1986), at the I.Z.S.L.E.R. (Bergamo Section). The results showed not
only a high prevalence of positive cases in chamois (7 out of 14), but also the presence of some positive cases in red deer (1 out of 27) and in roe
deer (1 out of 2). This confirmed that wild bovids and cervids are receptive to BRSV, which had previously been isolated in domestic cattle,
sheep and goats and which leads to acute respiratory syndromes in young animals (Citterio et al. 2003, Fenati et al.2003, Giovannini et al. 1988).
BRSV can be transmitted only by direct contact: Therefore, its transmission from domestic to wild ungulates and vice versa can be achieved
only in areas where spatial overlap between wild and domestic species occurs, such as alpine mountain ranges (e.g. Val Fontana) during the
summer. Our findings suggest that the presence of wild and domestic species in the same area represents a condition for BRSV to find new
hosts in order to maintain the epidemiological circle and that the possibility of transmission of BRSV in such areas is a concrete risk.
Furthermore, the presence of pathological lesions due to BRSV in the young chamois suggest that this virus may play an important pathogenic role not only for conventional domestic species, but also for wild species, as observed in other alpine regions (Citterio et al. 2003). In
the light of this findings, it seems advisable to re-examine the causes of juvenile mortality in alpine chamois, which are commonly attributed
mainly to parasitic or bacterial diseases.
References :
Citterio C.V, Luzzago C., Sironi G., Lanfranchi P., Sala M., Gatti P., Gaffuri A. (2003) Serological study of a population of alpine chamois (Rupicapra
rupicapra) affected by an outbreak of respiratory disease. The Veterinary Record 153:592-596.
De Simone F., Brocchi E., Archetti Y.L., Gamba D., Foni E. (1986) Diagnosi diretta e sierologica della malattia da virus respiratorio sinciziale mediante anticorpi monoclonali. Atti Società Italiana delle Scienze Veterinarie 40:903-906.
Fenati M., Guberti V., De Marco M.A., Martini M. (2003) Epidemiologia delle virosi respiratorie nel capriolo in provincia di Bologna. Jurnal of Mt.
Ecology 7 (Suppl.):287-290
Giovannini A.,Cancellotti F.M. & Guberti V. (1988) Ricerca di anticorpi nei confronti del virus respiratorio sinciziale bovino (BRSV) in cervidi e bovidi selvatici in Italia. Atti Società Italiana delle Scienze Veterinarie 42:763-765.
284
First report of Chlamydophila psittaci and Chlamydophila
abortus in wild rock partridge (Alectoris graeca saxatilis)
in the Central Alps
Bertoletti, Irene1 – Bianchi, Alessandro1 – Magnino, Simone2
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell’Emilia Romagna “Bruno Ubertini”
1
Sezione Diagnostica di Sondrio, Via Bormio 30, 23100 SONDRIO, Italy
2
Sezione Diagnostica di Pavia, Centro di Referenza Nazionale per Clamidiosi
Corresponding author: Irene Bertoletti. Tel.: +39-0-34-22-14-312, fax: +39-0-34-25-15-024, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Sondrio, disease, chlamydiae, PCR
The rock partridge is a wild avian species hunted in the Province of Sondrio, Italy, whose typical ecological niche overlaps with
that of domestic animals in traditional alpine pastures.
Since 2003 it has been tested for the presence of chlamydiae (Chlamydophila spp.) by the Sondrio branch of the Istituto
Zooprofilattico della Lombardia e dell’Emilia Romagna.
In total, 35 samples (N=10 for 2003 and N=25 for 2004), consisting of liver, spleen and intestine sampled during the hunting
season (October-November) were tested by a specific Polymerase Chain Reaction – Restriction Fragment Length
Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) assay targeting a portion of the 16S ribosomal gene of Chlamydiaceae, employing a modified procedure slightly different from the one proposed by Ossewaarde and Meijer (1999) (Vicari et al., 2004). The aim of these investigations were to identify chlamydiae and to detect the prevalence of infection in this avian species. In 2004,
PCR-positive samples were also cultured in order to isolate the organisms, employing L929 cells grown in flat-bottomed vials
and standard techniques (OIE, 2004).
Two species of Chlamydophila were identified by PCR-RFLP, according to the specific patterns visualized in agarose gel after
digestion of the amplicons: Chlamydophila psittaci and Chlamydophila abortus, both of which are agents of a disease in wild
and domestic animals as well as in humans (Everett et al., 1999). The organisms could not be isolated in cell culture, possibly
due to their loss of viability. The rock partridge has not been included in the list of avian hosts of Chlamydophila spp. recently published by Kaleta and Taday (2003). Thus, this is the first report of Chlamydophila spp. in this avian species in the
Province of Sondrio. The agent has been detected with an overall prevalence of 17% throughout the sampled area, suggesting
a possible role of this species in the epidemiology of chlamydiosis.
C. psittaci (previously known as Chlamydia psittaci) is the causal agent of avian chlamydiosis, a disease transmittable also to
mammals, including humans (where it is known as ornithosis or psittacosis). The health risk for humans is not negligible, since
it has been often demonstrated that chlamydiae can be transmitted by specific hosts such as captive parrots or domestic pigeons,
and also by casual hosts such as wild birds and feral pigeons (Farina and Scatozza, 1995). Moreover, there could be a serious
direct risk for the rock partridge: in fact, chlamydiosis is highly contagious in the closely related chukar partridge (Alectoris
chukar), where it causes respiratory and enteric symptoms and is considered a factor that influences the population growth of
the species (Erbeck and Nunn, 1999). As a matter of fact, the alarming decline of the rock partridge, not only in the Sondrio
province (Gatto et al., 2003), but more generally across the Alps (Petretti, 2003), could also be explained by the spread of novel
pathogens such as chlamydiae.
The presence of Chlamydophila spp. in this wild avian species could be related to the unregulated release of individuals from
local farms, which are not subjected to health inspections on a regular basis. The transmission of Chlamydophila psittaci from
typical hosts such as pigeons to other avian species would most probably be facilitated in the promiscuous environment of a
family-run breeding nucleus, as compared to professionally-run breeding centres, or natural populations.
C. abortus (formerly Chlamydia psittaci serovar 1) causes abortions in ruminants (Aitken et al., 2000). The presence of this
chlamydial species in the rock partridge could be due to direct or indirect contact between this avian species and infected mammals. In fact, the rock partridge is known to frequent pastures at mid- to high altitudes, where it often feeds in close proximity
to cowherds’ lodgings and fenced enclosures. In addition to the reciprocal transmission of the pathogen in overlapping ranges,
it is also possible that the rock partridge becomes infected by contact with aborted foetuses of wild or domestic animals, that
have not been properly disposed of. Incidentally, C. abortus has recently been identified from a mummified roe deer (Capreolus
capreolus) foetus close to the area of our study.
285
The epidemiological role of the rock partridge in the spread and maintenance of chlamydiosis has not been studied. Further
investigations could clarify whether the rock partridge may act as a reservoir or simply as a vector for either Chlamydophila
species.
References :
Aitken I.D., Clarkson M.J., Linklater K. (1990). Enzootic abortion of ewes. Veterinary Record 126: 136-138
Erbeck D.H. and Nunn S.A. (1999). Chlamydiosis in pen-raised bobwhite quail (Colinus virgininus) and chukar partridge (Alectoris chukar) with high
mortality. Avian Diseases 43 (4): 798-803
Everett K.D.E., Bush R.M. & Andersen A.A. (1999). Emended description of the order Chlamydiales, proposal of Parachlamydiaceae fam. nov. and
Simkaniaceae fam. nov., each containing one monotypic genus, revised taxonomy of the family Chlamydiaceae, including a new genus and five new
species, and standards for the identification of organisms. International Journal of Systematic Bacteriology 49: 415–440
Farina R. and Scatozza F. (1995). Malattie infettive degli animali. UTET, Torino
Gatto M., Paris G., Ranci Ortigosa G., Scherini G. (2003). Metodi quantitativi per la gestione della fauna selvatica in provincia di Sondrio. Journal of
Mountain Ecology 7: 17-26
Kaleta E.F. and Taday Eva M.A. (2003). Avian host range of Chlamydophila spp. based on isolation, antigen detection and serology. Avian Pathology
32 (5): 435-462
Office International des Epizooties (OIE) (2004). Chapter 2.7.4. Avian chlamydiosis. In: Manual of diagnostic tests and vaccines for terrestrial animals
(web edition). 5th Edition, Paris
Ossewaarde J.M. and Meijer A. (1999). Molecular evidence for the existence of additional members of the order Chlamydiales. Microbiology 145:
411-417
Petretti F. (2003). Gestione della fauna. Calderini Edagricole, Bologna
Vicari N., Santoni R., Vigo P.G., Magnino S. (2004). A PCR-RFLP assay targeting the 16S ribosomal gene for the diagnosis of animal chlamydioses.
Proceedings of the Fifth Meeting of the European Society for Chlamydia Research, September 1-4, 2004, Budapest, Hungary, p. 297
286
The role of wildlife species in epidemiology of encephalomyocarditis virus
Billinis Charalambos1, Spyrou Vassiliki1, Birtsas Periklis2, Maslarinou Olga2, O. Papadopoulos3
1
Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly,
Trikalon 224, GR-43100 Karditsa,Greece.
2
Hunting Federation of Macedonia and Thrace
3
Laboratory of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Aristotle University
Corresponding author: Prof. C. Billinis. Tel.: +30-2-44-10-66-011, fax: +30-24-41-06-60-92, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: EMCV, epidemiology, wildlife
Abstract
From 1994 until 2002, two hundred and nineteen blood and tissue samples were collected from sixteen wildlife species in
Greece. EMCV was isolated only from one animal (Rattus rattus). In addition, antibody titres were recorded in sera from 39
black rats (Rattus rattus), 1 wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) and 1 common vole (Microtus arvalis).
Introduction
Encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) is a member of the genus Cardiovirus of the Family Picornaviridae, with a worldwide
distribution (King et al., 2000). Rodents are considered to be the natural hosts, in which the virus normally persists without
causing disease (Acland, 1989). Several other species are susceptible to EMCV, including pigs, elephants, non-human primates
and humans (Zimmermann et al., 1994). In domestic pigs, EMCV has been recognised either as a cause of mortality in young
pigs, due to acute myocarditis, or of reproductive failure in sows (Zimmermann et al., 1994). Each form of the disease in pigs
seems to be restricted to certain geographical areas, probably due to viral strains originating from local rodent populations.
With respect to EMCV infections in pigs, at current two routes of infection are suggested for the introduction and/or subsequent
spread of the virus within a pig farm. At first, pigs might get infected by the ingestion of substances (e.g. faeces or carcasses)
of infected rodents (Acland 1989; Littlejohns and Acland 1975; Seaman et al., 1986). The second route is horizontal pig-to-pig
transmission during the short period of viraemia (Billinis et al., 1999a; Koenen et al., 1999) or after reactivation of EMCV persistence (Billinis et al., 1999). From a recent study by Spyrou et al. (2004) in which the EMCV transmission from rat-to-rat
contact was experimentally quantified, it can be concluded that each infected rat would at least infect one other rat in a totally
susceptible population. This implies that EMCV can persist in the rat population by rat-to-rat virus transmission alone, which
makes the rat population a potential reservoir for EMCV on commercial pig farms.
The objective of the current work was to search for possible reservoir hosts of EMCV in wildlife species.
Two hundred and nineteen animals from sixteen wildlife species in Greece were collected, both inside and outside of the
endemic region, between 1994 and 2002. Blood samples were collected for the presence of antibodies against EMCV. After
euthanasia of wildlife animals, necropsy was performed and samples from brain, thymus, heart, lung, liver, spleen, kidney, pancreas and Peyer’s patches were collected for virus isolation.
The EMCV strain ATCC 129B passaged on Baby Hamster Kidney (BHK-21) cells was used for serological analysis. The virus
infectivity of the stock was 106 TCID50/ml.
A virus-neutralisation test (VNT) was performed for serological analysis. Twofold dilutions of serum were made in minimum
essential medium (MEM) in 96-well flat-bottomed micro-titration plates (Nunc, Denmark). One hundred TCID50 of EMCV was
added in equal volume. Plates were incubated at 37°C in a 5% CO2 atmosphere for 1 hour before BHK-21 cells were added.
Results were usually read after 48 hour incubation.
Virus isolation was attempted on all tissue samples from wildlife species (not from endangered species) as previously described
(Billinis et al., 1999b). Briefly, tissue supernatants were incubated on BHK-21 cell monolayers. On samples with evidence cytopathic effects, a neutralisation test was performed using specific EMCV-antiserum to identify the isolate. Samples with negative results were subjected to 3 blind passages consisting of 3 days each.
The endemic area (Prefecture of Serres) was considered to be the specific region in Greece where clinical outbreaks of EMCV
often occurred.
287
Nine rats (Rattus rattus), were trapped inside a farm with clinical EMC in the endemic region. Virus was isolated from one rat.
In addition, antibody titres were detected in 6 rats. Molecular studies suggest that rodent isolate and pig isolate from this farm
were similar. This finding suggest a common local origin, but not necessarily that the virus source were rodents.
Forty-two rats (Rattus rattus), were trapped inside 5 pig farms, with a history of clinical EMC in the past (3-6 years earlier), in
the endemic region. Virus was not isolated, but antibodies titres were recorded in 35 rats (Table 1).
A pig farm was selected, with a history of clinical EMC in the past, in the endemic region. Six years after the last outbreak, traps
were placed around the farm, in a distance of 200-500 metres. A total of 23 animals from 7 wildlife species were trapped. Virus was
not isolated, but antibodies titres were recorded in four sera from 2 Rattus-rattus, 1 Apodemus sylvaticus and 1 Microtus arvalis. In
the same farm we capture with nets 17 birds from six different species. All the sera tested were negative (Table 2).
Table1. Serological survey in rats (Rattus
rattus) from EMCV affected pig farms
Table 2. Serological and virus isolation survey in wild-life
Four rats (Rattus rattus) were trapped near a clinically affected farm outside the endemic region. Traps were placed around the
farm, in a distance of 200-500 metres. Virus was not isolated, but antibodies titres were recorded in 2 rats.
Finally, a total of 136 samples of 5 wildlife rodents species, were trapped in a region with no history of EMC (outside of the
endemic region). Virus was not isolated and all the sera tested were negative.
In conclusion, rodents could play a critical role in the epidemiology of EMCV infections on pig farms by either serving as a
reservoir host or as a transmitter of the virus to the pigs. However, more insight is needed, in the contact structure within the
rat population and their behaviour on pig farms.
Acknowledgements: This work was supported by grants from the European Union (FAIR CT98-4146).
References
Acland H.M. (1989) Encephalomyocarditis virus. In: Pensaert, M.B (ed.) Virus Infections of Porcines. Elsevier Science Publishers,
Amsterdam: pp. 259-264.
Billinis C, Paschaleri-Papadopoulou E, Anastasiadis G, Psychas V, Vlemmas J, Leontides S, Koumbati M, Kyriakis CS, Papadopoulos O (1999a) A
comparative study of the pathogenic properties and transmissibility of a Greek and a Belgian Encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) for piglets. Vet
Microbiol 70:179-192.
Billinis C, Paschaleri-Papadopoulou E, Psychas V, Vlemmas J, Leontides S, Koumbati M, Kyriakis CS, Papadopoulos O (1999b) Persistence of
encephalomyocarditis virus infection in piglets. Vet Microbiol 70:171-177.
King AMQ, Brown F, Christian P, Hovi T, Hyypiä T, Knowles NJ, Lemon SM, Minor PD, Palmenberg AC, Skern T, Stanway G (2000) Picornaviridae.
In: Van Regenmortel MHV, Fauquet CM, Bishop DHL, Calisher CH, Carsten EB, Estes MK, Lemon SM, Maniloff J, Mayo MA, McGeoch DJ, Pringle
CR Wickner RB (ed.) "Virus Taxonomy. Seventh Report of the International Committee for the Taxonomy of Viruses". Academic Press, NewYork: pp.
657-673.
Koenen F, Vanderhallen H, Castryck F, Miry C (1999) Epidemiologic, pathogenic and molecular analysis of recent encephalomyocarditis outbreaks in
Belgium. Zentralbl Veterinarmed B 46:217-231.
Littlejohns IR, Acland HM (1975) Encephalomyocarditis virus infection of pigs. 2. Experimental disease. Aust Vet J 51:416-422.
Seaman JT, Boulton JG, Carrigan MJ (1986) Encephalomyocarditis virus disease of pigs associated with a plague of rodents. Aust Vet J 63:292-294.
Spyrou V, Maurice H, Billinis C, Papanastassopoulou M, Psalla D, Nielen M, Koenen F, Papadopoulos O (2004) Transmission and pathogenicity of
encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) among rats. Vet Res 35:113-122
Zimmermann JJ (1994) Encephalomyocarditis. In: Beran, GW and Steele, J H (ed.) Handbook of Zoonoses, 2nd edition. Section B: Viral.. CPR Press,
Boca Raton: pp. 423-436.
288
Population dynamics of moose (Alces alces) in Poland –
results of hunting without counting animals
Bobek Boguslaw, Fra, ckowiak Witold, Merta Dorota, Wi’ssniowska Lidia
Corresponding author: Boguslaw Bobek. Tel.: +48-1-26-62-66-87, fax: +48-1-26-62-66-82, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: guess-estimate, overharvest, policy, management units, population census
World War II threatened the existence of the moose population, leaving only 10-15 animals by 1945. The species was then
declared protected and an intensive reintroduction program was undertaken using a large enclosure in Kampinos National Park
(Serafi_ski, 1969). Based on hunting statistic, the population was estimated at 425 animals in 1965 and 3,250 in 1975.
Harvesting of moose started in 1967, with progressively increasing number of animal harvested each year. Moose continued to
increase however, and the population was estimated at 6,181 individuals in 1981. Then, harvest quota was increased to 1,115
animals for the 1981/82 hunting season and 1,613 in the 1982/83 season (Bobek and Morow 1987). During 1987-1991 hunting statistic showed increase in number of moose from 4,100 animals to 5,400 individuals. Therefore during 1989-91 hunting
seasons, the harvest quota was increased to approximately 1,660 animals per year. This hunting pressure badly affected population dynamic of moose in next decade. Hunting statistic showed a serious decrease of moose numbers to 1,718 animals in
2000. A national ban on moose hunting was imposed in 2001 in response to this decline in moose abundance. It is expected that
the ban will remain in effect until moose numbers recover. Unfortunately the Polish governmental administration did not work
out a moose management strategy for future at the national level. This problem must be solved very soon as the moose numbers during last 4 years increased markedly. It caused serious conflict with forestry and traffic.
In March 2004, population density and number of moose was estimated by so called "Carpathian method" on area of 15 Forest
Districts which are 227 thousands ha big (Table 1). This method is based on the relationship between absolute population density (N/1000 ha), and a snow track density index i.e. tracks per km (Bobek et al. 2004 a, b). The relationship was measured with
32 sampling plots of 400-500 ha each, in northeastern, eastern and central Poland. It was estimated that in 3 study areas there
were 743 individuals of moose, and population density between study areas ranged from 2.56-4.58 animals per 1000 ha. About
500 people took part in this census: foresters, hunters, wildlife scientists and students. Earlier, observation of sex structure and
autumn recruitment took place. Simulation of population dynamics showed that in 2005 there will be a 30% increase of the
moose population. Based on reliable data, we suggested to the Ministry of Environment to harvest 50% of the annual recruitment (which means 112 animals) in the study area during 2004/2005 season. Harvest of these animals was to be done in the
areas where moose make damages to forests and cause car accidents. Unfortunately, the Ministry of Environment did not
approve of our proposal. In March 2005, estimation of moose population number was repeated, and a 25.6% increase of moose
population in the study area was shown (Bobek et al., unpubl. data).
Decrease in moose population in Poland was caused by overestimating the population number by hunters. The main reason was
the non-objective (guess-estimate) nature of the official estimates that were based on personal speculation of hunting club members. Population simulation results (Bobek 2004 a) indicate that if there had been 6,200 moose in Poland in 1981, the harvest
of 1,115 and 1,613 animals in the 1981/82 and 1982/83 hunting seasons would not have caused decline in population numbers
as official hunting statistics claimed (Fig. 1). There were probably no more than 4,400 moose in Poland in 1982. According to
population simulations results the harvest during the 1980s caused only a small decline of moose number in Poland. During the
late 1980s and 1990s, harvesting 1,650-1,670 animals per year resulted in a large decline in the moose population, which was
not recorded by official estimates. At that time, according to official hunting statistics, there was an increase in moose population in the entire Poland (Fig. 1). It is likely that at the end of moose hunting season in March 2000 there were only about 800
moose in all hunting districts, substantially lower than the official estimate of 1,917 (Fig. 1).
Data base
RDLP Biaáystok
RDLP
- Lublin
RDLP Warszawa
Total
Forest area (thousand ha)
95.4
28.3
103.3
227.0
Length of the line transects (km)
475.0
113.0
515.0
1 103
Number of sampling plots
12
4
16
32
Area of sampling plots (ha)
4,722
1,880
7,615
14,217
Number of moose (N)
437
42
264
743
Population density (N/1000 ha)
4.58
1.50
2.56
3.27
Table1. Estimation of the moose population size
by the line intercept snow track index in 15 Forest
Districs located in 3 Regional Directions of State
Forest (RDLP) in Bialystok, Lublin and Warsaw
during March and February 2004.
289
Figure 1. Dynamics of moose population in Poland. Data
represent official statistic records on moose numbers inhabiting hunting districts, population harvest and result of simulation moose population dynamics.
Figure 2. Proposed 3 large management units for moose population in northeastern (A), eastern (B), and central (C)
regions of Poland. White dots indicate location of 15 Forest
Districts where population size of moose was estimated by
snow tracking along line transects during March 2004.
The second reason was that harvest
was planned by each hunting club separately for particular hunting district,
which are too small and do not include
annual home range of local moose
population. There is no national policy
which would obligate the hunters to
use objective methods of estimating
population numbers and to plan the
harvest on large management units
which include whole year home range
of moose population instead of small
hunting districts (3-5 thousand ha).
That is why, the authors of this paper
proposed to change the policy of
moose management. First, 3 large
management units were chosen: in
Northeast Poland (420 thousand ha),
in Central Poland (145 thousand ha)
and in East Poland (120 thousand ha).
Estimating the population would be
carried out by hunting clubs under
Forest District Service supervision,
based on moose tracking on line transects. Next, the data would be sent to
appropriate Regional Direction of
State Forest (RDLP) where processing
and estimating population size for the whole management unit would take place. A decision about moose harvest number would
be taken by RDLP, which would also divide this number between hunting clubs. This kind of feed-back mechanism would
enable to control the dynamics of moose population number in 3 management units, which constitute about 75% of moose population in Poland (Bryli_ski et al., 2004). The authors of this work prepared a procedure of gradual moose harvest in places
where the animals make a high level damage to forest, or where they often cause car accidents. Unfortunately, the Ministry of
Environment is not interested in this solution, although it does not have any own plan of saving the problem of conflict between
man and moose. Such a plan is necessary, so that the situation from the last 2 decades, when a poor management of moose harvest caused a threat to a minimum viable population size of this species, will not happen again.
Summing up, described in this paper are the population dynamics of moose as one of the many signs of a deep crisis presently in the game management system in Poland. Contrary to official declaration of a state administration and the Polish Hunting
Association, hunting is only partly based upon principles of sustainable use of the wildlife populations.
References:
Bobek B and K Morow (1987) Present status of the moose (Alces alces) in Poland. Swedish Wildl. Res. Viltrevy 1:69-70.
Bobek B, D Merta, and P Sulkowski (2004a) Moose recovery plan in Poland: main objectives and tasks. Alces. 39: 281-288.
Bobek B, W Frackowiak, D Merta, A Kareta and M Kolecki (2004b) Metody oceny liczebności i preferencji siedlisk leśnych populacji losia w Polsce
Pólnocno-Wschodniej i na Polesiu Lubelskim. Zeszyty Naukowe Komitetu „Czlowiek i Środowisko”, PAN 2004 (38): 303-312.
Bryliński R, R Dziedzic, D Piasecki and L Walenda (2004) Liczebność i rozmieszczenie losi w Polsce w latach 2000-200.4. Pages 55-63 in: W:
Materialy konf. „Aktualna sytuacja populacji losia w Polsce” Biebrzański Park Narodowy, 23-24 października 2004
Serafiński W (1969) Reproduction and dynamics of moose (Alces alces L.) population in the Kampinos National Park. Ekol. Pol. A. 17(37):709-718.
290
Transforming data of drive hunts into population density
of big game animals
Bobek Boguslaw1, Merta Dorota1, Frackowiak Witold1, Rembacz Wojciech2, Wisniowska Lidia1
1
Department of Ecology, Wildlife Research and Ecotourism; Pedagogical University of Kraków;
2
Mysliborz Forest District
Corresponding author: Boguslaw Bobek. Tel.: 48-1-26-62-66-87, fax: +48-1-26-62-66-82, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Poland, forest, roe and red deer, wild boar, harvest success, observation records
In December 2004 and January 2005 there was collected data during 155 drive hunts conducted in 8 Forest Districts situated in
north-west Poland (Bierzwnik, Debno, Drawno, Miedzyrzecz, Myslibórz), in Sudety Mountains (Bardo), on Hel Peninsula
(Wejherowo) and in the southern part of the country (Niepolomice). Total area of these Forest Districts is 128 902 ha.
Table 1. Data base of 155 drive hunts carried out in 8 Polish Forest
Districts during December 2004 and January 2005. Number of
animals shot in parenthesis.
Fig. 1. Relationship between density of animals
seen during drive hunts (N1/1000ha of drive hunt
area) and population density (N/1000ha of Forest
District) calculated on the basis of line transect
snow tracking data in 8 Polish Forest Districts.
Fig. 2. Relationship between density of animals
shot during drive hunts (N2/1000ha of drive hunt
area) and population density (N/1000ha of Forest
District) calculated on the basis of line transect
snow tracking data in 8 Polish Forest Districts.
291
Drive hunts were conducted on the area of 9.5 thousands ha of forest (Table 1). Each hunting team consisted of 16-20 hunters
and drivers, usually in a fifty-fifty proportion. There were also 5-8 hunting dogs in each team. All red deer, roe deer and wild
boars observed during drive hunts, were registered. Harvested animals were also recorded. These data were calculated per 1000
ha of drive hunt area, separately for each Forest District.
In February 2005 density and population number of red, roe deer and wild boar were estimated by a line transects snow tracking method (Bobek et al. 2003; Bobek et al. 2004) in 8 studied Forest Districts. Next, received population density (N/1000 ha)
was compared with density of animals seen during drive hunts (N1/1000 ha) and density of animals harvested at that time
(N2/1000 ha). The results are presented in Figures 1 and 2. Relevant statistics correlation between density of animals seen during drive hunts and density of population estimated in February 2005 was demonstrated. The coefficient of correlation was the
highest for roe deer (r = 0.907, p = 0.0048), average for wild boar (r = 0.884, p = 0.0036) and the lowest for red deer (r = 0.743,
p = 0.558). Correlation coefficients between density of harvested animals and population density were not statistically significant and varied from 0.205 (red deer) to 0.545 (wild boar).
It seems that data from drive hunts, can turn out a cheap and efficient method of estimating population density of big game
animals. However locations of the drive hunt areas must take place according to systematic placement on the whole area of particular Forest District, as well as standardizing of a hunting effort (Caughely 1977) i.e. size of hunting team, proportion of
hunters in the team and number of hunting dogs have to be similar. The data can be also helpful for estimating age and sex
structure of red deer, roe deer and wild boar.
References.
Bobek B, Ciepluch Z, Merta D, Mikos J, Rembacz W, Wasilewski R, Wisniowska L (2003) Planowanie pozyskania populacji jelenia: ocena liczebnosci.
Brac Lowiecka 12: 22-25. (in Polish)
Bobek B, Frackowiak W, Merta D, Kareta A, Kolecki M (2004) Estimation of population density and habitat selection by moose in northeastern Poland
and in Polesie Lubelskie. Zeszyty Naukowe Komitetu “Czlowiek i Srodowisko”. PAN 38: 303-312 (in Polish with English summary)
Caughely G, (1977). Analysis of Vertebrate population. J. Wiley and Sons. London-New York-Sydney-Toronto.
292
Population dynamics of brown hare (Lepus europaeus) and grey
partridge (Perdix perdix) in the Bottom Valley of Vistula River
Boguslaw Bobek1, Renata Zajac2, Katarzyna Szmyd-Golba2, Roman Wasilewski3
1
Department of Ecology, Wildlife Research and Ecotourism, Pedagogical University of Cracov,
Podbrzezie 3, 31-054 Krakow, Poland
2
International Institute of Ecology
3
Regional Directorate of State Forest in Gdansk
Corresponding author: Boguslaw Bobek. Tel.: 48-1-26-62-66-87, fax: +48-1-26-62-66-82, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: distance sampling, fox harvest, northern Poland
Hunting districts from Bottom Valley of Vistula River are situated on rich brown soils, which have high agriculture production.
In this area, from 1960 to 1970 annual harvest rate of brown hares (Lepus europaeus) ranged from 18 to 23 animals/1000ha
and grey partridge (Perdix perdix) from 21 to 27 individuals /1000ha of farmland. During the following years, there was a sharp
decrease in harvest rate. Nowadays, partridge harvest is banned. The hare harvest in the last four years varied from 0.3-1.0 animals/1000ha. Probably one of the reasons of decrease in population dynamics of brown hare and grey partridge is growing fox
(Vulpes vulpes) population. That is why, this work is suppossed to estimate population dynamics of these both species and
examine the relationship between fox density and harvest rate in this area, and population density of brown hare and grey partridge.
From 2002 to 2005 brown hare and grey partridge population size were estimated in 23 hunting districts located in Bottom
Valley of Vistula River in northern Poland, on the total area of 93,800 ha. With a topographic map 59 line transects were estabilished by a systematic placement method. Total length of line transects was 185.78 km. Using unfixed line transects and distance sampling models (Caughley 1977; Buckland et al. 1993) estimating brown hare and grey partridge population numbers
took place there every March. A research team consisted of 5 persons and 2 hunting dogs. Guide of the team decided walking
direction with GPS. An area adjoining each side of a line transect was penetrated by one person with one hunting dog. The other
two persons were with the guide, and in the case of noticing an animal(s), they measured penpendicular distance of an animal(s)
from transects. They measured collected data were used to estimate probability of sightings of a particular animal with a linear
regression (Fig. 1). The total population number of brow hare and grey partridge on 400 m wide (2 x 200 m) area was estimated on the basis of a number of observed animals. The number of animals that a team probably failed to see was added to this.
Next, a population density from line transects was used to determine number animals in hunting districts. Data about fox numbers and harvest were obtained from local hunting clubs.
The results show a slow but constant increase in hare population in previous 3 year, from 1 264 animals (2003) to 1 660 animals (2005). Partridge population grew systematically every year. In 2002, there was a population of 957 animals, while in 2005
Figure 1. Numbers of brown hare and grey partridge seen in
relation to penpendicular distance from line transects. Data
were collected in March 2004 and 2005 using 59 line transects
(total length 185.775 km) located in 23 hunting districts
in the Bottom Valley Vistula River, northern Poland.
Figure 2. Population dynamics of brown hare and grey partridge in relation to annual hunting bag of foxes. Data refers
to 93.8 thousands ha of agricultural land located in Bottom
Valley of Vistula River, northern Poland.
293
Figure 3. Relationship between fox harvest (data from
2004/2005 hunting season) and population density of brown
hare and grey partridge (census in March 2005) estimated in
Bottom Valley of Vistula River, northern Poland.
it reached 1 917. At the time, hunting bag of fox was on a level of 506 animals in 2002, and it sharply grew in next
3 years, when number of harvested animals ranged from 874 to 899. Analysis of data about brown here and grey partridge population density in relation to fox harvest was carried out on basis of hunting districts (Fig.3). There was a positive correlation
between fox harvest and brown hare density (r=0.53; p=0.024), as well between fox harvest and grey partridge density (r=0.709;
p=0.007).
Relationship presented by Figure 3 did not clearly answer question regarding impact of fox population upon density of prey
population. One explanation is that high harvest rate of fox resulted in decline of fox population number what reduced predation rate and consequently it was responsible for high population density of prey species in some hunting districts.
Unfortunatelly, the relationship between fox population density and population density of brown hare and grey partridge is not
statisticaly significant (r=0.122, p=0.654; r=0.080, p=0.804 respectively). However one have to remember that hunters records
regarding population number are not reliable because they are based upon guessestime and speculations. The second explanation is that harvest rate of fox is correlated with fox population density. In this case, the presented relationship
(Fig. 3) shows a positive influence of prey density upon fox population density.
Management of small game animals is under a deep crisis in Poland. In the previous 5 hunting seasons grey partridge harvest
ranged from 20-25 thousands animals a year (Kamieniarz and Panek 2004). It stands in a sharp contrast with hunting bag of
these animals in the 60-ties and 90-ties, when it reached about 800 thousands and 240 thousands respectively. Also hunting bag
of brown hare shows a sharp decrease. In the 60-ties hare harvest was about 700 thousands animals a year. In the beginning of
the 90-ties 250 thousands were shot a year, while in hunting season 2001/2002 only 66 000 (Kamieniarz and Panek 2003).
These hunting bags when recalculated per one square kilometer are much smaller then data from most of the countries in EU.
Preparing a national recovery plan for brown hare and grey partridge is an urgent matter for small game management in Poland.
The weather factors modify numbers of both species in short time periods (Szmyd-Golba 2004). However, to a longer run these
factors can not influence population number dynamics because of hare and partridge high reproductive rates. It seems that
changes in agricultural structure of farms and influence of predators on these species may be responsible for the present situation. However, hunting clubs should not be blamed for the present situation. The fault is at the side of local and central headquarters of Polish Hunting Associations which failed in recognizing the real reasons of decline in hare and grey partridge population. They also did not introduce solutions which are used in other EU countries. Such programmes should be prepared by
on expert team appointed by the Ministry of Environment together with Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
This work showed that population density of brown hare and grey partridge from Bottom Valley of Vistula River is very low,
but during last four years it has slightly increased. However, we cannot answer if this increase was caused by higher fox harvest, as data about population density of this predator received from hunters are not reliable.
References
Buckland ST, Burnham KP, Anderson DR and Laake JL (1993) Density estimation using distance sampling. Chapman Hall. London. England.
Caughely (1977) Analysis of vertebrate populations. J. Wiley and Sons. London – New York – Sydney – Toronto.
Kamieniarz R, Panek M (2003) Mniej zajecy, wiecej kuropatw. Wyniki monitoringu zwierzyny drobnej w latach 2001-2002. Lowiec Polski 2:
10-13 (in Polish).
Kamieniarz R, Panek M (2004) Wyniki monitoringu zwierzyny drobnej w latach 2002/2003. Lowiec Polski 5: 11-14 (in Polish).
Szmyd-Golba K (2004) wplyw klimatu na liczebnosc zwierzyny drobnej. Brac Lowiecka 1/2004 (70): 16-18 (in Polish).
294
Influence of landscape structure on the populations
of medium-size predators
·
Gediminas Brazaitis, Ke, stutis Petelis,
Remigijus Z̆alkauskas
Lithuanian University of Agriculture, Forest Faculty,
Student˛u 11, Akademija LT-53361, Kauno r., Lithuania
Corresponding author: Brazaitis Gediminas. Tel.: +37-6-12-20-544; fax: +37-3-77-52-379, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: wolf, red fox, raccoon dog, marten, Lithuania
Medium size predators are important game species in Lithuania. Annually 50-80 wolfs Canis lupus, 12 000-17 000 red foxes
Vulpes vulpes, 3 500-5 500 raccoon dogs Nyctereutes procyonoides and 350-850 pine/stone martens Martes sp. are shot. The
game bag amounts vary significantly among Lithuanian districts. One of the main reasons is the differences in landscape structure. Hunting of carnivores in Lithuania is limited to an established hunting season for wolf and marten sp. and is unlimited for
red fox and raccoon dog, but in both cases, the game bag is not limited. Due to this reason we presume the game bag
corresponds with population size and we can analyse the dynamics of populations using shooting statistics. This study analyses the dependence among landscape characteristics and the amount of animals shot. We determined the most important landscape level factors for every analysed species.
Landscape parameters of the districts were evaluated by GIS technologies and Fragstats software. The main reference maps
were: Lithuanian map (1:50 000) of cosmic view (Anonymous 2001), map of forests (1:50 000) according to their management
intensity regime groups (Anonymous 2000), vectorised layer of forest blocks and forests stands database (Anonymous 2004)
from the State Forest Survey Service.
Analysed criterions cover various aspects of the environment.
Spatial characteristics:
The density of forests edges (m/ha) (Dfe); forest patch density (units/1000 ha) (Fpd); the average nearest distance to forest
patch (m) (And), land cover of agrarian landscape Shannon diversity index (Sha) (Z̆alkauskas and Kavaliauskas 2004); proportion of forest cover (Cov); proportion of forests core area (Cor) – forest area in >500 m depth; density of rivers and ditches (< 30 m width) in the forest area (m/ha) (Riv); proportion of patches not coveredby trees in the forest area (Fld); mean stand
area (of the forest management plan; ha) (Saa).
Fig. 1. Redundancy analysis diagram
shows the relationship structure
among carnivores and environment
features. The horizontal and vertical
axes are the first and the second
RDA axes respectively.
295
Fig. 2. Redundancy analysis diagram
shows the relationship structure
among carnivores and environment
features. The horizontal and vertical
axes are the first and the third RDA
axes respectively.
Vegetation characteristics:
Proportion of area dominated by various tree species (Pin – Pinus sylvestris; Pic –Picea abies) and their various grouped ages;
proportion of overall soft deciduous (Sdc) and overall hard deciduous (Hdc) tree species; the tree species mosaic in forest blocks
(Dsb): Dsb = ∑Psi*(1-Psi), Psi – proportion of dominating tree specie (i) in forest blocks. Tree species mosaic at the district
level (Dsd) was calculated as weighted average of Dsb; districts with dominated (>30%) forest cover of Scotch pine Pinus
sylvestris (DPin), Norway spruce Picea abies (DPic) and deciduous (DDec) tree species.
Site conditions:
Humidity (H[n-dry; l-normal; u-overflowed]) and fertility (F[ab-poor; df-rich]), proportion of high moor areas (Hmo).
Prey availability:
Game animal abundance (Alc – Alces alces; Cer – Cervus elaphus; Cap – Capreolus capreolus; Sus – Sus scrofa; Lep – Lepus
europaeus; Cas – Castor fiber).
Human disturbance:
Proportion of urbanized areas in the landscape (Urb); proportion of forest area under intensive management (Int) – non protected forest mainly used for commercial purposes.
Redundancy analysis (RDA) was applied to find the relationship structure among carnivores and environment features (spatial
and vegetation characteristics, site conditions, prey availability and human disturbance). Before the analysis a log transformation of the response variables data was performed to prevent a few high values from unduly influencing the ordination (Leps̆
and S̆milauer 2003). Parameters were standardized due to different measurement units. The obtained diagrams display the
standardized response variables data and correlations instead of co-variances. Standardization by error variance was chosen –
in result of that, the better a response variable is described by the explanatory variables provided, the greater weight it has in
the final analysis. The scaling was focused using inter species scaling. The statistical significance of the relationship between
the response variables and the set of explanatory variables, given co-variables, were tested by Monte Carlo permutation tests the test of statistical significance obtained by repeatedly shuffling the samples (499 random permutations were set).
Additionally we tested relationships by correlation analysis (Pearson r), in the results showing only statistically significant correlations.
The results of RDA analysis show 82.1% of the total variation in the response data can be explained by explanatory variables
(Fig. 1 and Fig. 2). Districts in a spruce dominating landscape were most favourably related with predators, deciduous dominating landscape – more positive than neutral and pine dominating landscapes – highly negative.
The density of rivers and ditches was positively related with the game bag of all analyzed carnivores: red fox (r=0.53), wolf
(0.43), raccoon dog (0.34) and martens (0.34). Similarly, the average nearest distance to forest patches were in close correlation with red fox (0.70) as well as correlation with martens (0.45) and raccoon dog (0.36) were not so strong. Proportion of
non-forested patches at the forest area was positively related with wolf (0.44) and red fox (0.36) as well as mean stand area
with game bag of martens (0.42). Forest cover proportion was negatively related with red fox (-0.71), raccoon dog (-0.50) and
not so strong with martens (-0.36) and wolf (-0.32). Land cover of agrarian landscape Shannon diversity index was negatively
related with red fox (-0.69), martens (-0.41) and wolf (-0.36). Forest patch density was negatively related with red fox (-0.41),
wolf (-0.36) and martens (-0.33) as well as the density of forest edges with red fox (-0.53) and martens (-0.34). Finally we found
relationships between the proportion of forests core area with game bag of raccoon dog (-0.41) and red fox (-0.36).
296
Tree species mosaic at the district level was significantly positively correlated with raccoon dog (0.49), red fox (0.46) and
martens (0.31) game bags. The proportion of spruce was positively related and significantly correlated with wolf (0.57), red fox
(0.41) and martens (0.37) and, opposite, the proportion of pine was negatively related and significant correlations observed with
all predator species: Red fox (-0.63), raccoon dog (-0.54), martens (-0.44) and wolf (-0.39). Deciduous species influence positively. Red fox (0.74), martens (0.49) and raccoon dog (0.47) were correlated with overall hard deciduous species proportions
as well as raccoon dog (0.43) and red fox (0.37) with overall soft deciduous species proportion. Additionally, martens (0.54)
and wolf (0.38) were correlated with proportion of overall soft deciduous species older than 100 years.
The raccoon dog (0.38), martens (0.33) and wolf (0.31) were positively related with the proportion of intensively managed forest as well as only red fox with the proportion of urbanized areas (0.39).
All the analysed species were positively related with the proportion of normal humidity soils (red fox - 0.61; wolf and raccoon
dog - 0.47; martens - 0.44) and negatively with dry soils (red fox – -0.54; raccoon dog - -0.48; martens - -0.41; wolf - -0.39).
The results on site type fertility were similar: positive correlations with fertile (red fox - 0.50; martens - 0.43; raccoon dog 0.40) and negative correlation with poor soils (red fox – -0.58; raccoon dog - -0.51; martens - -0.39). The wolf was not significantly related with soil fertility.
All analysed species were positively related with the abundance of red deer (martens - 0.53; raccoon dog - 0.49; red fox - 0.46;
wolf - 0.33) and European beaver (red fox - 0.70; raccoon dog - 0.62; martens - 0.56; wolf - 0.49). Roe deer and wild boar were
positively related with red fox (0.56 and 0.36 respectively) and raccoon dog (0.40 and 0.33). Finally the game bag of grey hare
showed significant correlation with red fox (0.40). Moose with other analysed predator species didn’t show any significant relation.
The results of RDA analysis shows that requirements on the landscape structure of all analyzed predator species were more or
less similar. The corresponding vectors of predators environmental requirements show positive interrelations. The analysis of
spatial forest characteristics shows that forest cover proportion is not limiting factor for predators in Lithuania (average 32%)
as well as higher population abundances of the medium sized predators is expected in more isolated areas with less dense forest patches as well as more non-forested areas inside the forest and higher density of rivers and ditches. Predator species prefer normal humidity fertile soils and avoid dry poor soil areas. The tree mosaic at district level was related positively with all
analyzed predator species as well as most of them with spruce and hard deciduous. These could be related with prey abundance
that was positively correlated with predator game bag also. The human disturbance were not limiting factor for analyzed predator species. All (exception of red fox) were positively related with intensively managed forest proportion as well as only red
fox with proportion of urbanized areas.
The districts in the spruce dominating landscapes mostly positively related with the game bag of carnivores, and opposite, the
districts in the pine dominated landscapes – mostly negative. This are related with most of analyzed factors: axis 1 explained
higher total variability and related with the tree species dominating in the landscape, analyzed criterions and game bag of carnivores. Due to this reason some relationships with spatial characteristics require additional investigation and this could be done
analyzing spatial characteristics in different tree species (pine, spruce and deciduous) dominating landscapes separatelly.
References:
Anonymous (2000) Map of distribution of forests (1:50 000) according to their regime groups (M1:50000) (2000) © Lithuania Forest Management and
Inventory Institute.
Anonymous (2004) Vectorised layer of forest blocks and Forests stands database © Lithuania Forest Management and Inventory Institute.
Anonymous (2001) Lithuania Geographic Map (M 1:50 000) according to Cosmic View vectorised data LTDBK50000 - V © National land service
under the Ministry of Agriculture.
Leps̆ J., S̆milauer P. 2003. Multivariate Analysis of ecological Data using CANOCO. Cambridge University Press, 269 p.
Z̆alkauskas R, Kavaliauskas P (2004) Motivation of forest cover enlargement topicality in respect to sustainable development. Mis̆kininkystė 2 (56):
21-38. ISSN 1392-2041. (in Lithuanian).
297
Habitat configuration effects on home range size of red-legged
partridge (Alectoris rufa) in spain; implications for its
conservation
Buenestado F J 1, Rouco C 1, Ferreras P 1, Delibes M 1, Tortosa F 2, Villafuerte R 1
1
Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC, UCLM-CSIC-JCCM), PO Box 535, E-13080 Ciudad Real, Spain
2
Departamento de Zoología, Universidad de Córdoba
Corresponding autor: F.J. Buenestado. Tel.: +34-9-26-29-54-50, fax: +34-9-26-29-54-51,
e-mail address: [email protected]
Key words: compositional analysis, GIS, agricultural evolution.
Abstract
During the last few decades, populations of farmland birds have
declined across Europe, especially the Galliformes, due mainly to
agricultural changes (Pain and Pienkowski 1997). In Europe, redlegged partridge is classified as SPEC category 2, (“Species of
European Conservation Concern”), based on both: a marked population decline, and its population distribution limited to Europe
(Meriggi and Mazzoni 2004). Within its natural range of distribution,
about 75% of red legged partridge populations are located in Spain,
where it is probably the most important small game species. The
increasing hunting demand on this species, as well as other socioeconomic factors, have changed traditional wild management, therefore nowadays about 4 millions of farm-reared red legged partridges
are released and 5 millions of partridges are harvested yearly.
Following the trend found in the rest of Europe, during the last two
decades partridge population in Spain sharply declined, likely due to
changes in land use and loss of wild managment (Ballesteros, 1998),
and possibly alterations in the populations genetics because of
restocking with hybrids (Negro et al. 2001). Local populations of red
legged partridge have decreased more where hybrid individuals have
been released (Dowell 1992). Many aspects of red-legged partridge
biology are not investigated yet and many of the studies done until
now are related to habitat structure and selection (i.e. Birkan 1977;
Potts 1980; Borralho et al. 1998; Lucio 1991; Ricci 1985; Pepin and
Blayac 1990).
In order to understand the causes of the rapid decline suffered by redlegged partridge in Spain, we carried out the first radiotracking study
in free living partridges within the most important areas of its distribution. A total of 275 individuals were captured during 2000-2002, in
four study areas of different environmental and handling characteristics: Area 1: private hunting estate of 1200 ha located in Medina
Sidonia (Cádiz Southern Spain, 05° 58’ W, 36° 27’ N). This agrosystem includes large beetroot, wheat and sunflower, and only 5% of the
surface is covered by a thermo-Mediterranean scrub of Pistacia
lentiscus and Olea europaea. The altitude ranges from 44 to 148 m a.
s. l. and the average annual rainfall for the period 1975-2000 was 674
± 192 mm. Game management practices include artificial water supply and supplementary feeding of wheat from June to October, and an
intense predator persecution. We radio-tagged in this area 46 adults
partridges between March and May 2000, and 74 juvenils between
June and September 2000. Hunting modality: driven partridge
shooting
Fig. 1. Study areas, showing patch sizes and three representative
home ranges of red-legged partridge in Spain. Areas A2 and A3
are so close that are represented jointly in a map.
298
Fig. 2. Number and averaged size of properties (solid and dotted
lines respectively) from 1962 to 1999 in Spain (MAPA, 2000).
Area 2: nature reserve of 2000 ha, located in Ruidera (Ciudad Real
Central Spain, 02º 50’ W, 38º 54’ N) characterized by the predominance of scrub (65%) and 15% of open holm-oak with a small proportion of surface devoted to ecological agriculture. This area is a
zone without hunting activities and scarcely human management.
The altitude ranges from 850 to 920 m a. s. l. and the average annual rainfall is approximately 400 mm. Forty-one adult and 13 juvenile partridges were radio-tracked during years 2001and 2002 in
this area.
Area 3: private hunting estate bordering the natural reserve of area
2 with similar environmental characteristics, but here the hunting
practice and management is similary to area 1. In this area we radiotagged 19 adult and 5 juvenile partridges during 2001 and
2002. Hunting modality: shooting partridge over dog.
Area 4: Private hunting estate of 5000 ha of surface located in Alcubillas (Ciudad Real Central Spain, 03º 07’ W, 38º 45’ N) . The
landscape represent a mosaic of smallholding composed of cereals, vineyards, olives and some irrigated land. The natural vegetation is made up of small patches of grass. Game management consisted in artificial water supply and supplementary food of
wheat from June to September, as well as predator control, mainly magpies. The average altitude is around 800 m a. s. l. (climatologia). We radio-tagged during April and May 2002 19 adults partridges. Hunting modality: driven partridge shooting.
Sixty-nine adults and 23 juveniles were radio-tracked for studying their local patterns of space use (home range and core-area sizes
and habitat selection; see Fig. 1). Average size of annual home range were 44.4 ± 24.3; 53.9 ± 25.6; 84.4 ± 22.8 and 27.7 ± 12.8
ha (mean ± SD respectively for area 1, 2, 3 and 4). Fig. 1 shows typical home range size and habitat patch size for our study areas.
Differences were not found for home range size (either annual or seasonal) among sex or age categories within the same study
area. However significant differences were found among areas, for annual home range size GLM (F1,65 = 9.648; p = 0.007), and
for core areas ( F2,55=5.280; p=0.008), being controlled in both cases for the number of locations. No significant effect of sex was
found in any case.
In order to evaluate the main factors affecting the home range size of red-ledgged partridges, a multivariate model was computed
using a backward stepwise multiple linear regressión between annual home range size and the landscape variables in 4 study areas.
Variables used for the spatial models were: landscape composition variables; S: sex; IM1: road and track surface (ha)/ home range
(ha); IM2: index of degree of human disturbance for partridges, based upon agriculture activities required for each crop type,
derived from interviews to farmers; H’: Shannon diversity index of vegetation; TMP: average patch size; DCC: for each home
range, distance from centroid to nearest point of water and food supply ; DA2: surface of the cultures + surface of the pasture /
home range size; IT: topographical index; IB: length edge / home range size. We employed a natural logarithm transformation of
the home range area and some variables to comply with assumptions of multiple regression analysis. Only three of them (zone,
average patch size and agricultural disturbances) explained 68% of variability in home range size.
Landscapes have changed in Spain towards a quick loss of habitat heterogeneity during the last 20 years, through an intensification of agriculture, affecting strongly the optimal habitats of red-legged partridge. Ours results show that both patch size and agricultural disturbances affect the spatial ecology of the species, factors that have strongly changed since the 1960’s decade along
with Spanish agricultural evolution, being probably one of the most important factors affecting the, coincident decline of red
legged partridges, which started at the beginning of 1970’s decade (fig.2).
References
Ballesteros F (1998) Las especies de caza en España. Biología, ecología y conservación. Estudio y Gestión del Medio, Colección Técnica. Oviedo.
Birkan M G (1977) Population de perdrix et agriculture: une étude sur un territoire de chasse pres de Provins. In : Pesson P, Birkan M G (eds.) Ecologie
du petit gibier et aménagement des chasses. Paris: pp. 55-77
Borralho R, Rego F, Simoes H, Vaz Pinto P (1998) Summer distribution of red legged partridges Alectoris rufa in relation to water availability on
Mediterranean farmland. Ibis 140:620-625
Dowell S D (1992) Problems and pitfalls of gamebirds reintroduction and restocking: an overview. In: Birkan M, Potts G R, Aebischer N J, Dowell S
D (eds). Perdix VI, First International Symposium on Partridges, Quails and Francolins. Gibier Faune Sauvage 9:773-780
Lucio A J (1991) Selección de hábitat de la perdiz roja (Alectoris rufa) en matorrales supramediterráneos del noroeste de la cuenca del Duero.
Aplicaciones para la gestión del hábitat cinegético. Ecología 5:337-353
Meriggi A, Mazzoni R (2004) Dynamics of a reintroduced population of red-legged partridges Alectoris rufa in central Italy. Wildlife Biology 10:1-9
Negro J J, Torres M J, Godoy J.A (2001) RAPD analysis for detecting and eradication of hybrids partridges (Alectoris rufa x A. graeca) in Spain. Biol
Conserv 98:19-24
Pain D J, Pienkowski MW (eds.) 1997. Farming and Birds in Europe: The Common Agricultural Policy and its Implications for Birds Conservation.
Academic Press, London 436 pp.
Pépin D, Blayac J (1990) Impacts d’un aménagement de la garrigue et de l’intauration d’un plan de chasse sur la démographie de la perdrix rouge
(Alectoris rufa) en milieu méditerranéen. Gibier Faune Sauvage 7:145-158
Potts G (1980) The effects of modern agriculture, nest predation and game management on the population ecology of partridges. Advances in
Ecological Research 11:1-79
Ricci J C (1985) Utilisation de quelques ressources du milieu par les nichées de Alectoris rufa dans un agrosystéme de type polyculture élevage. Gibier
Faune Sauvage 2:15-38
299
Influence of technogenic factors and urbanization on ungulates
(Artiodactyla: Cervidae, Suidae) in steppe zone of Ukraine
Bulakhov Valentin, Pakhomov Olexandr, Reva Olexandra
Dept. of Zoology and Ecology, Dnipropetrovsk National University, Naukova St. 13, 49050 Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine.
Corresponding author: Valentin Bulakhov. E-mail: [email protected]
Key words: megapolis, ecosystem, technogenic transformation, population, ecological sustainability.
Steppe Ukraine has found itself in a zone of concentration of large industrial cities and advanced network of a various kind of industrial production. Urbanization process is constantly accompanied by development of mining, metalworking and chemical industry. As
a result, powerful industrial megapolises were generated, among which the outstanding place is occupied by Dnipropetrovsk and
Zaporizhzhya. In these East European regions the strongest influence of technogenic factors is felt. Pollution
of soil, air and water exceeds allowable levels of pollution many times. For a long time the most critical environmental conditions in
Europe developed in the region (Prisnyakov et al, 1993). As a consequence of aggressive offensive at natural systems only
0.3-1.0 % of not transformed and 15-20 % of transformed ecosystems remain in industrially polluted areas. Other natural environment
is modified and occupied with anthropogenic systems – agrocenosis and urbosystems. Formation of adverse environmental conditions,
frequently close to critical, has affected the general state of biodiversity. Among various groups of animals the most sensitive are ungulates ordo Artiodactyla – elk Alces alces, roe deer Capreolus europaeus (Cervidae) and wild boar Sus scropha (Suidae). They sharply
react both to environmental contamination, and to the trouble factors existing at territories adjoining to the megapolises.
The basic methods of research consist in determination of number, age and sex structure of animals populations in rather structurally
equal ecosystems, distinguished by a level of environmental pollution according to parameters of Maximum Allowable Concentrations
of pollutants. The key attention of researchers is concentrated basically on studying influence of anthropogenic factors on number of
ungulates’ populations (Devishev, 1975; Gursky, 1975. Sokolov, 1979, etc.) At the same time the state of populations’ number is a
result of complex influence of anthropogenic factors. It is important to find out a degree of influence of these factors and on the intermediate stages of occurring changes. Such parameters can be: structure of populations and reproductivity, which are still insufficiently studied. In this regard researchers, first of all, are paying attention to developing sustainability of animals’ populations to influence
of anthropogenic factors at a genome level, attaching great importance to change of types of metabolic processes (Koval’chuk,
Mishkevich, 1995) and reproductive adaptation (Vershinin, Pyastolova, 1995). Therefore, our research aimed at studying influence of
a degree of environmental contamination on number, population structure and reproductive features.
The 25 years (1980-2005) research allows presenting the following results. The elk is the most sensitive to influence of technogenic
factors. In rather identical forest ecosystems, the number of elks gradually increases with the spread of distance from the urbosystems.
Therefore, the elks number has made up 0.5-1.1 per 1000 ha in the habitats are 10-20 km distant from urbosystems, 1.5-2.0 spec/ha –
50-60 km from megapolises, 2.7-4.8 spec/ha – 80-600 km. The roe deer takes second place: 4-6 spec/ha, 12-18 spec/ha and 16-44
spec/ha respectively. The wild boar is the most adaptive: 4-7 spec/ha, 6-9 spec/ha and 8-11 spec/ha respectively. Decrease in its number is connected to a complex of factors, among which the trouble from megapolis ranks first.
In rather similar types of ecosystems (ravine oak forests), but distinguished by only the pollution level (according to Maximum
Allowable Concentration – MAC) with a priority of heavy metals, sharper decrease in number of the animals was marked. It is accompanied by change of population structure of ungulates. Four pollution degrees of ravine oak forests were stated as numerical exceed
of MAC – 0-1; 3-5; 8-10 and more than 10-fold excess. The following changes in animals number were traced according to the four
pollution degrees: the elk – 4-6; 2-3; 0.1-1.0 and 0 spec/ha; roe deer – 30-44; 16-18; 2-3 and 0-0.1 spec/ha; wild boar – 12-16; 4-6;
1-2 and 0-0.2 spec/ha respectively. As a general regularity, the senescence of the ungulates population in polluted areas was found,
that is connected with increased loss of young individuals of the populations. As this takes place, the increase in productivity was
marked. For the elk and roe deer – on 3-5 %, for the wild boar – on 4-7 %. In new (young) populations the increase of females in the
population sex ratio was marked in mostly polluted ecosystems. It should be considered as a certain reaction of populations to losses
and necessity of their indemnification.
Thus, technogenic press and urbanization strengthening under conditions of the steppe zone of Ukraine are depressing factors determining the state of important big game – ungulates. It demands creation of “silence” zones and reduction of pollution by industrial
emissions.
References
Devishev RA (1975) Action of factors of anxiety by the example of the Saratov province on a population of the elk. In: Ungulates of fauna of the USSR.
Science, Moscow: 84-85. (in Russian)
Gursky IK (1975) Wild boar, deer, elk, noble deer in northwest Black Sea Coast In: Ungulates of fauna of the USSR. Science, Moscow: 79-80. (in Russian)
Koval’chuk LA, Mishkevich NV (1995) Mechanisms of adaptation of animals to climatic and anthropogenic factors of environment. In: 1st Conf Sustainable
Development: Environmental Pollution and Ecological Safety. DSU, Dnipropetrovsk: 52-53. (in Russian)
Prisnjakov VF, Vinnichenko AN, Shpak NV (1993) Environmental conditions in Pridneprovsky region. Bull. Dnepropetrovsk Univ: Biology Ecology 1: 4-6.
(in Russian)
Sokolov VE (1979) Taxonomy of mammals. Higher School, Moscow. 3. (in Russian)
Vershinin VL, Pyastolova OA (1995) Theoretical basis of sustainability of animals populations under conditions of anthropogenic influence. In: 1st Conf.
Sustainable Development: Environmental Pollution and Ecological Safety. DSU, Dnipropetrovsk: 50-51. (in Russian)
300
Role of game mammals in creation of homeostasis
mechanisms in natural and transformed ecosystems
Bulakhov Valentin
Dept. of Zoology and Ecology, Dnipropetrovsk National University, Naukova St. 13, 49050 Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine
Corresponding author: Valentin Bulakhov. Tel.: +380 0562 469282, fax: +380 056 7768906, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: fossorial activity, functional elements, edaphotope, blocking of heavy metals, cycle
Severe technogenic pressure on the natural environment causes intensive processes of ecosystem transformation. The formation of critical environmental conditions affects the transformation of ecosystems especially strongly in industrial regions of
East Europe. (Prisnjakov et al, 1993). The impoverishment of biodiversity is conducive, as a rule, to the impairment of the
functional structure of the system and amplification of the transformation process (Yemel’yanov, 1994; Bulakhov, 1997). Under
the given conditions it is very important to establish the role of biocenosis components with environment forming activity to
block the destructive action of technogenic factors and promote preservation of homeostasis in ecosystems. Special attention
in this respect should be paid to the role of game mammals in forming the environment. Not only is there a problem here in the
organization of rational hunting methods without undercutting reproductive capacity, but there is also the necessity of considering the preservation of the integrity of the functional elements of the ecosystem to promote the development of homeostasis
under severe technogenic conditions.
We carried out experimental research at the International Prysamarsky Biospheric Station. We studied the influence of various
kinds of environment forming activity of game mammals on the stability of homeostasis of the most important ecological block
of the ecosystem – the edaphotope. Among industrial emissions the main pollutants are, as a rule, heavy metals. In trophic
chains these pollutants are included in a circulation, which gradually weakens the functional homeostasis of the ecosystem. The
most important aspect of the inclusion of heavy metals in the circulation is the system "soil–plant". Therefore the necessary
basis of the preservation of the systems’ homeostasis is an interruption of the transfer of heavy metals into the system. The
transformation of mobile compounds of heavy metals into inactive and immobile forms plays an important role in such an interruption. Fossorial activity of the wild boar and excrements of all wild mammals play the leading role in this process.
Wild boar (Sus scrofa) and badger (Meles meles), as active fossorial animals, and the elk (Alces alces) and European roe deer
(Capreolus capreolus), as game mammals influencing an ecosystem by their excrements, are subjects of our inquiry. Research
was carried out on control sites (without any influence of animals) and experimental ones (with influence of animals) under
identical levels of soil pollution with heavy metals. The following results were obtained.
Under the influence of digging activity of wild boar and badger the process of blocking heavy metals by way of formation of
inactive and immobile metalloorganic compounds was marked. In slightly polluted, medium polluted and strongly polluted
soils the amount of mobile forms of metalloorganic compounds is reduced by 4.3-39.1 %; 16.5-54.2 % and
12.2-25.1 % respectively. Under the influence of the ungulates’ excrements these parameters are 4.2-49.3 %; 9.9-50.1 % and
7.2-29.7 % respectively. In all cases the ratio between immobile forms of metals and the mobile ones in places with animal
influence was much higher than in control sites. The blocking of heavy metals and interruption of their inclusion in the cycle
of substances by plants is aided by the change of physical and chemical properties of the soil. This is especially promoted by
an increase of __ and of the soils’ organic substances involved in reactions on transformation of the metals to immobile forms.
Many researchers have pointed out that organic substances and __ parameters are frequently the determining ecological factors
causing a degree of mobility of the heavy metals (Andersson, 1976; Christensen, Christensen, 1995; Mikheev, 1996; Jansson
et al, 1997). Increase of humus content and intensity of humus formation play especially pronounced role in this respect
(Piccolo, 1989).
As a result of digging and excremental activity of mammals the biodiversity rate of the edaphotope increases (Bulakhov,
Pakhomov, 1987; Pakhomov, 1997, 1998). The increase in the biodiversity of microbe decomposers – microorganisms and
saprobes – causes an increase in the level of ecological stability of the system through the mechanism of their production of
organic matter and blocking the heavy metals.
So, in the presence of fossorial activity of wild boar quantitative development of microorganisms in soils polluted by heavy
metals increases by 21-56 %, species diversity and number of soil fauna – saprobes – grow by 27-31 % and 8-12 % respectively. Organic matter of excrements promotes an increase of these components by 42-61 %, 25-30 % and 9-16 % respectively.
Thus, game mammals are an important ecological part in the maintenance of the ecological sustainability of ecosystems. It is
essential to take this into account for the rationalization of game mammal hunting.
301
References
Andersson A (1975-1976) Influence of organic fertilizers on the solubility and availability to plants of heavy metals in soils. Crundforbattring
4: 159-164
Bulakhov VL, Pakhomov AE (1987) Fossorial activity of mammals as an ecological factor of soil processes in steppe forests of Ukraine. In: Soil fauna
and soil fertility. Science, Moscow: pp. 287-289 (in Russian)
Bulakhov VL (1997) Biodiversity as a factor of ecologically sustainable ecosystems in conditions of strong anthropogenic pressure. In: Conservation
of biodiversity in Ukraine. EGEM, Kyiv: pp. 20-21 (in Russian)
Christensen TH, Christensen IB (1995) The effect of dissolved organic carbon on the mobility of cadmium, nickel and zinc in crow-water.
In: Biogeochimie des elements traces. Paris: p. 275
Jansson GK, Oborn IE (1997) A field study on cadmium content in carrots and the influence of soil factors. In: Fourth Int. Conf. Biogeochemistry of
trace elements. University of California, Berkeley: pp. 123-124
Mikheev OV (1996) Accumulation and biogeochemical migration of cadmium in forest ecosystems of steppe Prydniprov’ya. Thesis for a candidate
degree by speciality “Ecology”. Dnipropetrovsk State University, Dnipropetrovsk (in Ukrainian)
Pakhomov AE (1998) Biogeocenotic role of mammals in soil forming processes of steppe forestss of Ukraine. Vol. 1, 2. DNU Publ., Dnipropetrovsk
(in Russian)
Piccolo A (1989) Reactivity of added humic substances towards plant available heavy metals in soils Sci Total Environ 81-82: 607-614
Prisnjakov VF, Vinnichenko AN, Shpak NV (1993) Environmental conditions in Pridneprovsky region. Bull. Dnipropetrovsk Univ: Biology Ecology
1: 4-6 (in Russian)
Yemel’yanov IG (1994) Diversity and sustainability of biosystems. Uspekhi Sovremennoi Biologii [Successes of modern biology] 114, 3: 304-318 (in
Russian)
302
Winter observations of mixed-flocks of Spizella wortheni and
their social relationships
Julio Canales, Laura Scott-Morales, Mauricio Cotera, Marisela Pando
Facultad de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León. Carretera Nacional Km 145,
67700 Linares Nuevo León, México
Corresponding author: Julio Canales. Tel.: 8212124895 139, fax: 8212124895 251, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Spizellla wortheni, mixed flocks, social relationships
Abstract
S. wortheni is an endemic sparrow inhabiting the arid region of Northeastern Mexico. Its habitat is typified as a mixture of
grassland-mesquite or Yucca-Juniperus vegetation association. This bird species has been recorded in eight Mexican provinces
(Thayer 1925, Webster and Orr 1954), however due to habitat loss and fragmentation, its original geographic distribution has
been reduced and, for the last 30 years, only records from the states of Coahuila and Nuevo León are know (Sada 1987, Wege
et al 1993). The few studies on S. wortheni mainly describe the species and refer to the potential geographic range reduction,
stressing the dramatic decline of its populations. However, there is a lack of studies on ecology and behavior of the species.
Moving towards these objectives, the aims of this study are 1)to describe the interspecific association of S. wortheni during
winter, 2)to determine the activity pattern and 3)to determine the social status of the species when associated with mixed flocks.
Hence, in here we present preliminary results about winter ecology of S. wortheni and its social interaction.
The study area is a locality called La Perforadora, 45 km South of Saltillo city in the state of Coahuila, (UTM coordinates:
14299653 E and 2773563 N), comprising 1129 ha (Scott-Morales et al. 2004). Mean annual temperature for the last ten years
is 17.5º C and average annual rainfall 435mm (Rioja, 2003).
The vegetation community is represented by an association of Grama or Navajita grassland characterized by the presence of
Bouteloua gracilis, B. curtipendula, B. eriopoda, B. chasei, Lycurus phleoides, Stipa eminens, Aristida glauca, Muhlenbergia
monticola and by association of a large group of perennial forbs and compositae (Rioja, 2003).
We made observations during January to March 2005, searching intensively for bird groups on lineal transects of approximately one kilometer across and along the study area. Each flock was georeferenced with a GPS. If in the observed group S. wortheni
was not present, we took note of the observed species and continued the route. When a flock with S. wortheni was found, we
followed the group recording all activities of the species until they flew away and despaired. Three main activities of S. wotheni
were recorded: foraging, resting, and vigilance.
To determine the social behavior of S. wortheni, we looked for mixed groups interacting in different activities. To accomplish
this objective, the following criteria were established: indifferent behavior if S. wortheni were resting or foraging near other
species showing no reaction and keeping at least three meters distance between them; tolerant behavior if the distance between
species was of 1-2 meters approximately but the individuals of each species were not mixed during their activities, and associated behavior if two or more species were mixed during foraging or during the rest and keep one meter or less of distance
between them.
The leader species was determined by watching the mixed groups during their activities, especially during foraging, and trying
to detect the one that make the first movement to search for other foraging sites (nuclear species) and what species follows the
nuclear one.
A total of 24 groups was observed, each formed of two up to 50 individuals, with an average number of individuals per group
of 12.5. and foraging as the main recorded activity. Our preliminary data support the observation of Wege et al. 1993,
Berhstock et al. 1997 and Sibley 2000, who stated that during winter this species is found in monospecific and mixed flocks
although they mentioned only mixed flocks with P. gramineus. Our observations during winter this year suggest that
S. wortheni is associated with others 12 species, and that monospecific groups are less frequent that mixed flocks.
The most used stratum for foraging was the ground. The shrub layer (Opuntia imbricata, Zinnia acerosa, Rhus microphylla)
was used for vigilance, rest and as refuge during disturbances. The pick activity was registered during early morning and late
afternoon hours. We used a U Mann-Withney Test (monospecific groups) and W Wilcoxson Test (mixed flocks) to detect
differences between time used for feeding and vigilance. We found that they spent more time in vigilance activities than
foraging (P = < 0.05).
S. wortheni was tolerant to Anthus rubescens, Dendroica coronata, Spizella passerina and Sayornis saya and apparently
indifferent to Salpinctes obsoletus. Associated behavior was registered to Sialia mexicana, Mimus polyglottos, Ambisphiza
bilineata, Eremophila aplestris, Chondestes grammacus and Poecetes gramineus.
303
We found that blue bird (S. mexicana) works as nuclear species, while Worten’s sparrow follows S. mexicana to places where
S. mexicana was feeding. Nevertheless S. wortheni behave as nuclear species in small mixed flocks with individuals of Poocetes
gramineous and Dendroica coronata. They follow the groups to foraging sites and fed mixed or near to S. wortheni.
Interactions between small birds like Worthen’s sparrow and larger bird as Toxostoma. curvirostre, Mimus polyglottos and
Pipilio fuscus can be due to the protection that big and aggressive species provide against predators (Newton 1998).
References
Berhstock, R. A., C. W. Sexton, G. W., Lasley, T. L. Eubanks, and J.P. Gee (1997) First nesting records of Worthen’s sparrow (Spizella wortheni) for
Nuevo León, México, with a habitat characterisation of the nest site and notes on ecology, voice, additional sightings and leg coloration. Cotinga 8:
27-33.
Newton, I. (1998) Population limitation in birds. Academia Press Limited. U.K. p: 358-359.
Orta, D. M. (1988) Influencia del Perrito de las praderas (Cynomys mexicanus) en la vegetación del suelo y pastizal mediano abierto en Coahuila. Tesis
de Maestría. U.A.A.A.N. Saltillo, Coahuila. 113pp.
Rioja, P. T. M. (2003) Comportamiento reproductivo del perrito llanero (Cynomys mexicanus MERRIAM) en el Altiplano Mexicano. Tesis de Maestría
en Ciencias Forestales. Facultad de Ciencias Forestales, UANL. México.
Sada, A. M. (1987) Locations for finding Worthen’s Sparrow (Spizella wortheni) in Nuevo León [Coahuila]. MBA bulletin Board.
Scott-Morales L. L. Estrada, F. Chávez-Ramirez and M. Cotera (2004) Continued Decline in Geographic Distribution of the Mexican Prairie Dog
(Cynomys Mexicanus). Journal of Mammalogy 85 (6), 1095-1101.
Sibley, D. A. (2000). The Sibley guide to birds. National Audubon Society. Chanticleer Press, Inc. N.Y. USA.
Thayer, J. E. (1925) The nesting of the Worthen Sparrow in Tamaulipas Mexico. Condor 27:34.
Webster, J. D., and R. T. Orr. (1954) Summering birds of Zacatecas Mexico, with a description of a new race of Worthen Sparrow. Condor. 56:
155-160.
Wege, D. C., S. N. G. Howell, and A. M. Sada. (1993) The distribution and status of Worten’s Sparrow Spizella wortheni: a review. Bird Conservation
International. 3: 211-220.
304
Habitat use of Rio Grande wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo
intermedia) in Nuevo León, México
Carrillo-Reyes, Arturo, Scott-Morales, Laura, Rioja-Paradela, Tamara M.
Facultad de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León. México
Carretera Internacional. 67700 Linares, Nuevo León, México
Corresponding author: Arturo Carillo-Reyes. Tel.: +52-9-67-67-49-000, fax: +52-9-67-67-49-021,
Key words: wildlife management, telemetry, home range
Actually exist few studies about wild turkey in México (Scott-Morales and Müller-Using 1992; Martínez-Olivares 1996; LafónTerrazas 1997). Lacking knowledge may cause inadequate management of the species as well as the deterioration of the ecosystem. At the moment there is some effort in Mexico in order to recover demised populations of wild turkey through
reintroduction programs (Beasom and Wilson 1992; Westwood 1999). The study presented here is the result of one of such reintroduction programs. Until now, we ignored how turkey population was adapted to their new conditions, how it was affected
by the area management plan, and what are main habitat characteristics that benefit it.
This study was developed in "Campo Santa María" experimental area, a private property located at north Nuevo León, México.
Management program includes presence of artificial water supplies and supplemental feeding. We captured and radiomarked
12 wild turkeys. Home range, daily movements, habitat used by the species, importance of water supplies, dams and artificial
feeding sites have been monitored for one year and a half. We used minimum convex polygon method to determine home range
and daily movements size. The data were analyzed by correlations and regressions in order to determine the influence of the
characteristics of the area on the habits of wild turkey (Lafón-Terrazas 1997).
We found that seasonal and daily movements of turkeys are mainly influenced by rain patterns. Largest home range was found
on females during late springs, because females moved large distances searching for suitable nest and brooding sites (Beasom
& Wilson 1992; Badyaev et al. 1996; Westwood 1999), moving out of our study area, and return again during mating season.
Nest settlement and selection of brooding site were conditioned by herbs presence and accumulations of withered branches over
the ground. This kind of characteristics was not found inside of our study area, which explains why females move out looking
for the nearest suitable habitat (Badyaev et al. 1996). We also found that wild turkey preferred vegetal association of Acacia
berlandieri-A. rigidula, Acacia-Leucophyllum and riparian vegetation. They do not use oak forest (Quercus spp.) like other
studies reported (Leopold 1977; Bidwell et al. 1989; Scott-Morales and Müller-Using 1992; Wakeling and Rogers 1996; LafónTerrazas 1997), probably cause turkey population found all it’s requirements in A. berlandieri-A. rigidula, AcaciaLeucophyllum vegetal association and riparian vegetation. Wild turkey population doesn't use supplemental feeding in important proportion, highest value was found in dry season (Cook and Gore 1984; Beasom and Wilson 1992; Carrillo-Reyes 2001).
We suggest that water troughs and dams should be protected, since vegetation surrounding them (“huizaches” A. farnesiana)
are frequently used as rest areas or as safety cover areas.
References
Badyaev A V, Etges W J, Martin T E (1996) Ecological and behavioral correlates of variation in seasonal home ranges of wild turkeys. J Wildl Manage
60:154-164
Beasom S L, Wilson D (1992) Rio Grande Turkey. In: Dickson J G (Ed) The Wild Turkey. Biology and Management.. A National Wild Turkey
Federation Book. 306-330 pp
Bidwell T G, Shalaway S D, Maughan O E, Talent L G (1989) Habitat use by female eastern wild turkeys in Southeastern Oklahoma. J Wildl Manage
53:34-39.
Carrillo-Reyes A (2001) Determinación de la dieta estacional de una población reintroducida de guajolote silvestre (Meleagris gallopavo intermedia)
en Lampazos de Naranjo, Nuevo León. Tesis de Licenciatura. Escuela Superior de Biología. Universidad Juárez del Estado de Durango. 55-62 pp
Cook R L, Gore H G (1984) Learn about Turkey. A contribution of Texas Pittman-Robertson Project Fw-14-C. Wildlife Restoration. 2-8 pp
Lafon-Terrazas A (1997) Distribution, habitat use and ecology of Gould’s turkey in Chihuahua, Mexico. Ph. D. Thesis. New Mexico State Univ. Las
Cruces, N. M. 58-97 pp
Leopold A S (1977) Fauna Silvestre de México. Edit. Pax-México. 304-312 pp
Martínez-Olivares V (1996) Hábitos Alimentarios y Parásitos Intestinales del Guajolote Silvestre en la Reserva de la Biosfera la Michilía, Durango.
Tesis de Licenciatura. Esc. Sup. Biol. U.J.E.D. 2-4 pp
Scott-Morales L M, Müller-Using B (1992) Aspectos ecológicos de una población de guajolote silvestre (Meleagris gallopavo) al sureste de Nuevo
León, México. Rep. Científico No.30. Fac. Cienc. Forest. U.A.N.L.
Wakeling B F, Rogers T D (1996) Winter diet and habitat selection by Merriam’s turkeys in North-central Arizona. Proc Natl Wild Turkey Symp. 7:175184
Westwood C (1999) Aspects of an avian community in Northeastern Mexico, with an emphasis on mourning and white-winged doves, and Rio Grande
wild turkeys. Master of Science Thesis. Texas A&M University. 69-79 pp
305
Mortality rate differences in two populations of red-legged
partridge (Alectoris rufa) subject to different game
management systems
Casas F., Viñuela J
Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos, IREC (CSIC, UCLM, JCCM),
Ronda de Toledo s/n 13005 – Ciudad Real, Spain
Corresponding author: Fabian Casas. Tel.: +34-9-26-29-54-50, fax: +34-9-26-29-54-51, e-mail: [email protected]
Key Words: predation, game releases, radio-tracking, mortality rate
Among Spanish game animals the red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) is a species with particularly high socioeconomic value.
In some rural areas of the country partridge hunting is important to local economies (APROCA 1998; Lucio 1998; Bernabeu
2000). This species also has a high ecological and conservationist value, since it is a common prey of Mediterranean predators
of the Iberian peninsula, and Spain is the center and main stronghold of its distribution (Cramp and Simmons 1980). However,
red-legged partridge populations have suffered marked declines over all its distribution during at least one century, and it is currently considered as vulnerable (Aebischer and Potts 1994).
Given the problems experienced by red-legged partridge wild populations, in the recent decades game managers have resorted
to releases of farm-bred birds as a management tool of common use. This practice has reached an impressive success among
game managers, with as many as 3-4 million farm-bred partridges estimated to be released every year in Spain. These large
figures, and taking into account that the annual harvest of last years is near 4 million birds, suggests that this management
system is having a considerable impact on wild populations (Gortázar et al. 2000, Baragaño and Otero 2001). Up to now, the
few studies made on the viability of releases suggest that this is a management tool relatively unsuccessful to recover wild
populations (Gortázar et al. 2000, Perez et al. 2004), while habitat management is considered to be the main management tool
for the maintenance of sustainable wild populations (Rands 1987a, Rands 1987b, Duarte and Vargas 2002).
Numerous studies make reference to diverse aspects of the ecology, physiology and taxonomy of the red-legged partridge, like
demography, morphology, census methodology, feeding, reproduction, mortality, habitat selection, and game management
(Calderón 1983, Lucio and Purroy 1992, Green 1983, 1984, Pepin 1985, Potts 1980, 1986, Rands 1987b, Ricci 1985, Nadal et
al. 1996). However, to our knowledge, a through comparison of the ecology and behaviour of released and wild birds in the
same study areas is still lacking.
Research was undertaken at Campo of Calatrava (Ciudad Real), (38º 80´ N, 3º 80´ W), in two adjacent small game hunting
areas with different management models, wild partridge management with no release and intensive releases of farm-bred
partridges.
Thirty-five partridges were captured using baited cage traps or adult red-legged partridges inside the cage as a decoy (10 in the
wild red-legged partridge area, and 25 in the release area or their environs) during the spring of 2003. After the capture each
individual was provided with a necklace radio-transmitter (BIOTRACK, 10 gr.), with mortality sensor. Radio-tagged individuals were located every two days, taking data about habitat selection and social behavior. Individuals were followed up to
January 2004. We do not know exactly when the radiotracked partridges were released, since releases are performed yearly
between August and October.
Annual mortality rate of adult red-legged partridges was relatively high (table 1). 4 individuals (40 % of the marked ones) died
in the area of wild partridges, and 19 (76 %) in the release area, finding a residual signification (Fisher exact, p=0,0592).
Predation mortality was high in the area with released partridges, where nearly 50 % of the marked partridges were killed by
predators. In contrast, no predation of adults in the wild partridge area was detected. In the wild population one adult was killed
by a harvesting machine working at night. It was a male caring 5 chicks, which might have died by the same reasons (chicks
Table 1. Mortality of radio-tagged wild and released
red-legged partridge in Spain during 2003
306
feathers were found near those of the adult). Night harvesting has been considered often as highly negative for small game by
the game sector.
Mortality caused by hunting activity was similar in both areas (30 % in the wild partridge area and 20 % in the release area).
One third is usually considered to be the maximum extraction rate to maintain sustainable partridge hunting in the long term
(Sáez de Buruaga 2000).
The high sensitivity of farm-bred partridges to predation is well known during the weeks that follow release, but our results
suggest that it can even last during months after the release. In theory these partridges should already have been adapted to free
life. We found a greater nest loss rate in the release area, where the agriculture was the main cause of nest loss, followed by
predation (Casas and Viñuela 2004).
It is important to highlight that in the release area predator control (killed foxes and dogs) was more intense that in the wild
partridge area (killed only foxes), and therefore, the differences in rate of depredation cannot be due to this kind of management.
The greater predation rate in the release area could be due to a higher density of predators. This is at least partially true, since
this area includes a patch with high density of rabbits, which may be acting as a centre of attraction for predators, particularly
raptors. Nevertheless, most predation cases were assigned to dogs or foxes (10 out of 12), and we found only two cases of
predation by raptors, eagle owl (Bubo bubo) and marsh harrier (Circus aeruginosus). It was difficult to distinguish predation
by dogs and foxes, but frequent observations of feral dogs, or of domestic dogs (allied to a household) entering and leaving
freely country houses in the study area, suggests that there is a serious problem of predation by dogs.
Conversely, the presence of these predators in the wild partridge area was also frequent, possibly even higher than in the release
area, since there are many more rural houses and this area is located near to a large urban nucleus, which suggests again that
greater predation rate in the release area must be due to a higher susceptibility to predation of farm-bred partridges. This could
mean, that releases are relatively unsuccessful to recover wild populations, and that habitat management, particularly changes
in agricultural management (maintenance of hedgerows, avoiding night harvesting, harvesting delay, maintenance of set-asides
during breeding season, etc.) is the main management tool for the maintenance of sustainable wild populations, as suggested
for improving breeding success in a previous work on this same population (Casas & Viñuela 2004).
References
Aebischer NJ, Potts GR (1994) Red–legged partridge. In: Tucker GM, Heath MF (eds.) Birds in Europe. Their Conservation Status. Birdlife
Conservation Serie nº3, Birdlife Internacional. Cambridge, UK
APROCA (1998) La caza en la provincia de Ciudad Real. Ciudad Real
Bernabeu RL (2000) Evaluación económica de la caza en Castilla-La Mancha. Tesis doctoral, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha
Calderón J (1983) La perdiz roja, Alectoris rufa (L.). Aspectos morfológicos, taxonómicos y biológicos. Tesis Doctoral UCM
Casas F, Viñuela J (2004) Efectos de la agricultura y la gestión cinegética en el éxito reproductivo de la perdiz roja Alectoris rufa. Resultados preliminares. In: Libro de resúmenes del XVII congreso español de ornitología. Madrid: 141
Cramp S, Simmons KEL (1980) The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Vol. II. Oxford University Press. Oxford
Duarte J, Vargas JM (2002) Los sumideros de perdiz roja a lo largo del ciclo anual. In: Lucio A, Sáenz de Buruaga M (eds.) Aportaciones a la gestión
sostenible de la caza. FEDENCE-EEC, Madrid: 101-126
Gortázar C, Villafuerte R, Martín M (2000) Success of traditional restocking of red-legged partridge for hunting purposes in areas of low density of
northeast Spain Aragón. Z Jagdwis 46: 23-30
Green RE (1983) Spring dispersal and agonisitc behaviour of the red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa). J Zool Lond 201: 541-555
Green RE (1984) Double nesting of the red-legged partridge Alectoris rufa. Ibis 126: 332-344
Lucio AJ and Purroy FJ (1992) Red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) habitat selection in Northwest Spain. In: Birkan M, Potts GR, Aebisher NJ, Dowell
SD (eds.) First Intern. Symp. on Partridges, Quails and Francolins. Gibier Faune Sauvage 9: 417-430
Lucio AJ (1998) Recuperación y gestión de la perdiz roja en España. In: La perdiz roja. FEDENCA, Madrid: 63-92
Nadal J, Nadal J, Rodriguez-Teijeiro JD (1996) Red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) age and sex ratios in declining populations in huesca (Spain)
applied to management. Rev Ecol Terre vie 51(3): 243-257
Pepin D (1985) Morphological characteristics and sex classification of red-legged partridge. J Wildl Manage 49: 228-237
Pérez JA, Alonso ME, Gaudioso VR, Olmedo JA, Díez C, Bartolomé D (2004) Use of radiotracking techiniques to study a summer repopulation with
red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) chicks. Poultry Science 83: 882-888
Potts GR (1980) The effects of modern agriculture, nest predation and game management on the population ecology of partridges (Perdix perdix and
Alectoris rufa). Ecological Research 2: 2-79
Potts GR (1986) The partridge. Pesticides, predation and conservation. William Collins Sons and Co., London
Rands MRW (1987a) Hedgerow management for the conservation of partridges Perdix perdix and Alectoris rufa. Biol Cons 40: 127-139
Rands MRW (1987b) Recruitment of grey and red-legged partridges (Perdix perdix and Alectoris rufa) in relation to population density and habitat. J
Zool Lond 212: 407-418
Ricci JC (1985) Utilization of some natural resources by red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) broods in an agricultural habitat of diverse cropping and
stock farming. Gibier Faune Sauvage 44: 15-38
Sáenz de Buruaga M (1991) Los planes de ordenación cinegética. Manual de ordenación y gestión cinegética. IFEBA, Badajoz
307
Supplemental feeding of wild boar Sus scrofa in Luxembourg
Cellina Sandra 1, Schley Laurent 2, Krier Ady 2, Roper Timothy J. 1
1
Department of Biology & Environmental Science, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
2
Direction des Eaux et Forêts
Corresponding author: Sandra Cellina. Tel.: +352061761206, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Stomach content, diet composition, hunting, agricultural damage
Wild boar are an important component of the indigenous European fauna as well as being an economically important game
species (Briedermann 1986). In addition, they impact significantly on agriculture via crop damage and disease transmission
(Briedermann 1986; Geisser 2000; Schley 2000). Since the 1950s, the wild boar population has been growing numerically in
Europe, with a more dramatic increase since the mid 1980s both in Luxembourg (Schley 2000) and elsewhere (Briedermann
1986; Sáez-Royuela & Tellerìa 1986). Although the cause of this increase in population size is likely to be complex
(Briedermann 1986), one possible factor is the widespread practice, by hunters, of providing supplemental food for wild boar
(Geisser 2000; Groot Bruinderink et al. 1994; Hahn 2003). Little is known, however, about the importance of supplemental
food in the diet of wild boar.
To investigate the quantitative importance of supplemental feeding in wild boar diet, we analysed the contents (percentage by
volume of gross constituents: see Eisfeld & Hahn 1998) of 894 stomachs. We were able to distinguish fresh maize (i.e., maize
consumed from growing crops) from supplementally fed maize by the fact that fresh maize is soft and is squeezed by the animal’s teeth, whereas maize used for supplemental feeding is dry and hard, and is broken if chewed. In addition, fresh maize is
only available in large quantities from August to
November, whereas supplemental feeding can occur during the whole year.
Consistent with other studies (Baubet 1998; Dardaillon
1987; Eisfeld & Hahn 1998; Genov 1981), our analysis
shows that the natural part of the animals’ diet is mostly
vegetal, being composed of cereals, seeds (acorn and
beechnut) and roots. Other, less voluminous items are
mammals, birds, snails, worms and insects (see Fig. 1).
However, the largest single component of the diet (50% of
total volume) was supplemental food consisting mainly of
dry maize (>45% of total volume) provided by hunters.
The only other study to have quantified supplemental food
intake by wild boar (Eisfeld & Hahn 1998) found 37% by
volume of supplemental food (33% dry maize) in the diet.
Thus, our results show the highest consumption of
supplemental food that has yet been reported in wild boar.
Fig. 1. Composition of diet (percentage of different foods by vol- The results show that large amount of supplemental food are
ume; n=894) of wild boar in Luxembourg.
eaten by wild boar in Luxembourg, leading us to reflect on
the consequences this could have. All over Europe, wild
boar populations are growing in numbers (see above) and the extent of agricultural damage is correlated with population size
(Schley et al. 2004). The quantity of supplemental food found in the diet of wild boar in our study suggests that this could be
a significant factor contributing to the increase in population size, and that supplementary feeding is not, as has sometimes been
claimed, an effective way of preventing damage to agricultural crops (Vassant 1994, 1997). Given the widespread occurrence
of supplemental feeding of wildlife, not just in the context of hunting but also in urban environments, we suggest that more
research into its ecological consequences should be undertaken.
References
Baubet E (1998) Biologie du sanglier en montagne: biodémographie, occupation de l'espace et régime alimentaire. Université Claude Bernard - Lyon
1. PhD
Briedermann L (1986) Schwarzwild. Neumann-Neudamm, Berlin
Dardaillon M (1987) Seasonal Feeding Habits of the Wild Boar in a Mediterranean Wetland, the Camargue (Southern France). Acta Theriologica 32:
389-401
Eisfeld D & Hahn N (1998) Raumnutzung und Ernährungsbasis von Schwarzwild. Forstzoologisches Institut Universität Freiburg, Arbeitsbereich
Wildökologie und Jagdwirtschaft.
Geisser H (2000) Das Wildschwein (Sus scrofa) im Kanton Thurgau (Schweiz): Analyse der Populationsdynamik, der Habitatansprüche und der
308
Feldschäden in einem anthropogen beeinflussten Lebensraum. Universität Zürich. Dissertation zur Erlangung der naturwissenschaftlichen
Doktorwürde
Genov P (1981) Food composition of wild boar in north-eastern and western Poland. Acta Theriologica 26: 185-205
Groot Bruinderink G W T A, Hazebroek E, Van Der Voot A (1994) Diet and condition of wild boar, Sus scrofa scrofa, without supplementary feeding.
Journal of Zoology 233: 631-648
Hahn N (2003) Ist Fütterung ein sinnvolles Instrument bei der Schwarzwildbewirtschaftung? Schwarzwild, Nürnberg
Sáez-Royuela C & Tellerìa J L (1986) The increased population of the Wild Boar (Sus scrofa L.) in Europe. Mammal Review 16: 97-101
Schley L (2000) The Badger Meles meles and the Wild Boar Sus scrofa: Distribution and Damage to Agricultural Crops in Luxembourg.
University of Sussex. D.Phil.
Schley L, Krier A, Cellina S, Roper T J (2004) Agricultural damage by wild boar Sus scrofa in Luxembourg. Abstracts of the 5th international wild
boar and suidae Symposium, Kraków, Poland
Vassant J (1994) Lágrainage dissuasif: résultat déxpériences. Bulletin Mensuel de l'Office National de la Chasse 191: 101-105
Vassant J (1997) Agrainage et gestion des populations de sangliers. Bulletin Mensuel de l'Office National de la Chasse 227: 1-4
309
Hunting of wild boar Sus scrofa in Luxembourg
Cellina Sandra 1, Schley Laurent 2, Krier Ady 2, & Roper Timothy J. 1
1
Department of Biology & Environmental Science, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
2
Direction des Eaux et Forêts
Corresponding author: Sandra Cellina. Tel.: +35-2-06-17-61-206, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Population dynamics, population structure, hunting techniques
To reduce damages on the agricultural surfaces in Luxembourg, organised wild boar hunting at a larger scale started around
1880 (Faber 1909). Nowadays individual hunting (stalk and lookout) can be carried out all year round but plays a minor role,
whereas battue hunting is allowed only from the 1st of August to the 14th of October in maize plantations and from the 15th of
October to the last of February in the woods. Actually there are no limitations for age, weight or sex. In Luxembourg hunting
is only permitted from one hour before sunrise until one hour after sunset.
Data is provided by the Administration des Eaux et Forêts: every year since 1900 the hunters have to inform the Administration
about the number of wild boar shot on their hunting area (Schley et al. 1998) (Fig.1); since 1989, they have to put a tag from
the Administration on every wild boar carcass (Schley 2000).Our study utilises data from carcasses collected over the whole
country in 15 collection centres set up in the wake of the Classical Swine Fewer outbreak (Fig. 2 and 3).
Since January 2002, the Administration des Services Vétérinaires is recording data and analysing samples of every wild boar
killed in Luxembourg for Classical Swine Fewer survey.
Fig. 1: Number of wild boar shot in Luxembourg (n=85 234)
and number of yearly hunting permits emitted (n=148 134)
Fig. 2: Percentage of wild boar carcasses per weight class
n=1460
Numbers of wild boar shot in Luxembourg are increasing, whereas the
number of hunting permits emitted and hunting regulations have not
been subject to any drastic changes. Most animals are killed in battue
hunts (Fig.3) from October to January.
When individually hunted, most wild boar are shot from a lookout and
in the evening.
Hunters tend to target animals from 10 to 70 kg of both sexes. The
increase of wild boar shot are in line with other studies from Europe
(Boisaubert & Sand 1994; Feichtner 1998; Geisser & Bürgin 1998).
References
Boisaubert B & Sand E (1994) Le sanglier en France. Evolution des prélèvements Fig. 3: Cause of death and hunting mode (n=1759)
et des dégâts. Bulletin Mensuel de l'Office National de la Chasse 191: 11-19
Faber E (1909) Das Schwarzwild, seine Lebensweise und seine Jagd. Vereinsschrift der Gesellschaft Luxemburger Naturfreunde: 17-45
Feichtner B (1998) Ursachen der Streckenschwankungen beim Schwarzwild im Saarland. Der Saarjäger 3/98: 4-8
Geisser H & Bürgin T (1998) Das Wildschwein
Schley L (2000) The Badger Meles meles and the Wild Boar Sus scrofa: Distribution and Damage to Agricultural Crops in Luxembourg. University of
Sussex. D.Phil.
Schley L, Krier A, Wagner M, Roper T J (1998) Changes in the wild boar Sus scrofa population in Luxembourg during the period 1946 to 1996. Bulletin
de la Société des Naturalistes Luxembourgeois 99: 77-85
310
European bison populations in natural environment
of Central Russia
Evgeniya A. Chikurova and Leonid M. Baskin
Institute of Evolution and Ecology, Moscow, Leninsky prospect 33, 119071, Russia
Corresponding author: Evgeniya Chikurova. Tel. +7-9-16-45-28-537, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: European bison, taiga, reintroduction
Historically, European bison (Bison bonasus L.) was widely widespread in Europe. It inhabited mostly broad leaf forests
(Baskin&Danell, 2003). Now, the main problem of the restoration of European bison is to find out suitable areas where this
species can adjoin with humans. It was proposed to organize in Russia a large population (more 500 animals) and several
smaller populations (ca 50 bison).
Previously, the specialists considered the broad leaf forest zone of Central Russia as the most suitable. From our point of view
there is no enough territory even for one large population of bison in this area. Now this zone is strongly populated by humans,
forests are severe fragmented. There is enough territory only for a few small populations. More northern regions of Russia
(Vologda, Kostroma, Kirov, Komi) can be more available if a possibility of bison survival in more severe environmental
conditions will be approved.
Goals
The goals of the research were: 1) to check the perspectives of bison release in a broad leaf zone; 2) to study the South Taiga
zone as territory for establishing European bison populations; 3) to analyze the success of previous attempts to establish bison
populations in European Russia.
Methods
We analyzed maps, data on forestation of different regions. We inspected territory and bison population in the PriokskoTerrasny Nature Reserve, the State Nature Reserve “Brjansky les”, in National Park “Orlovskoiye Polesiye”, the State Nature
Reserve “Kaluzhskie Zaseki”, the Okskij State Nature, Kostroma region (proposed area for establishing a new bison
population), and the Ust'- Kubenskoe hunting farm. We used the archives and unpublished data of Pererva V.I., Pererva A.I.,
Sipko T.G., Mizin I.A. Gusarov I.V. for Vladimir and Jaroslavl regions. We interviewed hunters, the personnel of the PriokskoTerrasny Nature Reserve (Treboganova N.V., Zablotskaya M.M., Tsibizova E.L.), and local people. We observed the living
conditions of bison in the Prioksko-Terrasny bison farm, Okskij bison farm (bison from Korkeasaari - Helsinki Zoo, Natuurpark Lelystad, Bern Zoo and Shpringe Zoo), and Korkeasaari - Helsinki Zoo. We used data (collected by
N. Treboganova) from the S.-Petersburg Zoo and the Uppsala Zoo, Sweden, collected by Eric M. Larsson.
Results
By 2005, in the Orlovskoiye Polesiye National Park 53 animals lived, in “Kaluzhskie Zaseki” 18 animals were. There is no
more population in “Brjansky les”,
In the Okskij Nature Reserve there are 6-18 animals. Now the population Vladimir region 20 bison is extinct (Sipko, 2004). In
the Ust’- Kubenskoe hunting farm there are 12 animals (Gusarov, 2005). Thus, there are actually 104 -122 bison in natural environment in Central Russia.
Russian preserved areas have received ca 80 bison from Holland, Germany, Switzerland, Finland, Belgium (Pereladova, 2004)
within the frameworks of the WWF program in the 1996 - 2004. A part of the animals remained in breeding centers, another
part were released in different preserved areas together with animals from the B.C. New populations were organized in the territory of “Brjansky les” and “Orlovskoiye Polesiye”. The specialists planned to establish a new population in the Kaluzhskie
zaseki Nature Reserve, but a
bison herd came there itself from
the "Orlovskoiye Polesiye "
National Park. Some authors
have assumed that Brjansky les,
Orlovskoiye Polesiye, Kaluzhskie zaseki had a forest area suitable for a large bison population
(Table 1). The population should
be of about 1000 animals.
Different authors specified a
maximal bison density in forest
311
area from 1 bison in 36 ga (Zablotskij, 1957) to 1 bison in 100 ga (Kozlo, 2004). Because the “Orlovskoiye Polesiye” has
36,000 ga of forest, the number of bison should not exceed 300-360. “Brjansky les” can have 100 -120 animals and “Kaluzhskie
Zaseki” - 140 animals in two herds.
Therefore, in the broad leaf zone 540-620 bison can exist in small populations.
In 1996-2000, there were released ca 80 animals in “Brjansky les” and “Orlovskoiye Polesiye”. Only a small part of these
territories are suitable for bison existence. Here there are highly fragmented areas and strong human impact (agriculture,
settlements, motorways, railways). Despite of environmental problems the cottage construction is highly developed. Kaluga
and Orel provinces have high concentration of hunters and poachers. The bison population could exist in the territory only under
strong control and with special assistance measures.
We analyzed the data of accidental and natural bison mortality: two cases had occurred due to railway accidents, one animal
sunk, two has been choked by mosquitoes, one was eaten by wolves, four were killed by poachers in neighboring Ukraine, five
died from helminthes, six animals died from transport immobilization, two died due to different fatal illnesses.
The new territories are proposed by V. Pererva (2004) as suitable for new bison releases: Ugra National Park ( area 98 t.g),
Meshera Reserve (86,6), Meshersky National Park (103). But in these localities there are the same problems as listed above.
Actually, in the broad leaf forest zone there are no suitable places for large bison populations. Some of them could be suitable
with some restrictions and with special measures of assistance.
Up to now the Southern Taiga zone has not attracted enough attention in this context. Actually, only one population was
established in Vladimir region. We consider two northern regions - Vologda and Kostroma can be considered as suitable for the
new bison populations. These provinces belong to the Southern and Central Taiga zones (table 1). In the 1980s, there were
released 3 (Kostroma) and 5 (Vologda) animals. After that, they were left without any further releases, zootechnical measures,
even observations. These populations had no dynamic perspectives as the minimum quantity of animals in new population is
10 - 15 and then new animals should be released (females are preferred) (Strategy..., 2002).
One female, however, survived, in Kostroma region. 12 bison live in Vologda region at the present time. The population has
high level of mortality, high inbreeding level and an insufficient number of females. New releases are required. We suppose
that Finnish bison or bison from the Oksky State Biosphere Reserve could be more adapted for these conditions.
The territories of Vologda and Kostroma regions are poorly populated because humans migrated from villages to cities (10%
of small settlements survived here since the middle XX century). That is significant part o agriculture fields are abandoned. The
provinces are highly forestated (Table 1).
These territories have unfavorable epidemiological situation for humans (encephalitis), which is a frightening factor for poachers, tourists and cottage construction. We suppose that human population will decrease.
The territories has, except for obvious advantages, the three problems: 1) strong blood sucking insects harassment in summer
time; 2) cold climate; 3) coniferous forest which is not suitable for bison.
We analyzed the mortality of bison in Vologda region: two were perished from mosquitoes, three died from intoxication (they
eaten the poisoned crop), two died from fatal illnesses.
We assume that Northern part of Central Russia is suitable for further releases. A national park should be organized on the territory of the two provinces: Kostroma and Vologda.
We observed bison living conditions in Helsinki Zoo, Natuurpark Lelystad, Bern Zoo, and Shpringe, in the Prioksko-Terrasny
bison farm and the Oksky bison farm. We suppose that only bison from Helsinki Zoo should be used in further releases. Bison
from Natuurpark Lelystad can be realized only together with high-rank bison from the Oksky or Prioksko-Terrasny breeding
centers. Bison lider could be teach and promote adaptation other bison. Bison are able to adapt to the conditions of Northern
provinces. Bison in Korkeasaari Helsinki Zoo, S.-Petersburg Zoo, and Uppsala Zoo have good health, athletic constitution, they
are unpretentious for forage. Bison from these zoos and breeding centers as well as from the Oksky State Biosphere Reserve
are suitable for the northern populations.
Conclusions
1. The Southern Taiga zone is a perspective territory for new bison releases;
2. There is no way to organize a large bison population in the broad leaf forest zone;
3. Now, all artificial populations in Russia can exist in only under strong human control and with special preservation measures.
References
Kozlo P.G.(2004) National program for bison conservation, use and introduction in White Russia. In: Problems of preservation and restoration
of bison. Danki: P.80-85
Pereladova O.B. (2004) Project of WWF is conservation of bison in Central Russia. In: Problems of preservation and restoration of bison. Danki: P.23-26
Pererva V/I. (2004) Moden state, problems and perspectives of bison in Russia. In: Problems of preservation and restoration of bison. Danki: P.18-23
Strategy for conservation of the European bison in the Russian Federation (2002). WWF. Moscow.
Zablotskij, M.A. (1957) Some biology bison's features and changes at the condition of breeding center. In: Proceedings of the Prioksko-Terrasny State
Reserve. 1. Moscow: 5-65.
312
Behavior and territorial activities of two herds of European
bison (Bison bonasus L.) in the Orlovskoiye Polesiye
National Park
Evgeniya A. Chikurova1, Ivan A. Mizin2, Evgeniy S. Abramov2
1
Applied Ethology Working Group, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Rus. Acad. Sci., 33,
Leninskij Prospekt, Moscow, 1 19071, Russian Federation
2
Orlovskoiye Polesiye National Park p. Zhudro, Khotynetskij, Orel prov.
Corresponding author: Evgeniya Chikurova. Tel. +7-9-16-45-28-537, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: wisent, introduction, domestication, artificial population
There were 65 European bison introduced in the "Orlovskoiye Polesiye" National Park (Central Russia) in the 1996 - 2000
years. These animals were organised into three herds (Kazmin, Abramov, 2004). One of them left the Park territory and went
to the "Kaluzhskie zaseki" State Reserve themselves.
Actually, the two herds (named Avdeevskoje with 32 bison and Alekhinskoje with 21 bison) live in the Park.
The authors from the Bialowieza Forest have described two periods: a winter one and a summer one, - in an annual activity
cycle of bison. In winter period bison herds assemble together (50 and more bison in an association) on supplementary winterfeeding site. In this period the bison show the low level of territorial activity. In summer period association divides by smaller
groups (2-30 bison in group) and single bison. In this period bison show high territorial activity (Krasinska, Cabon-Raszynska,
Krasinski, 1987).
Obviously, the wintertime is difficult for bison. The human took biotechnical measures as such as foraging, dehelmintation for bison
surviving in winter. Beside, human-made supplementary winter-feeding sites held the bison associations on the territory.
The Ukrainian investigators (Kryzhanovskij, Samchuk, 2004) approve, however, that whether bison are held by foraging on the
territory, they lose the migration ability. The deletion of migration ability result that bison stay on the territory even when their
population increases highly. The absence of migration ability is a feature of domestication.
Artificial foraging stimulates the appearance of domestication features (Pererva, Kiseleva, 1991).
Though many years ago Zablotskij (1957) has showed change in bison biology in breeding center conditions, the Russian specialists (Sipko, 2004; Kazmin, Abramov, 2004 at all.) obstinately consider low movement and low level of territorial activity
for bison in winter as a natural form of behavior. The investigators presented as a proof natural decrease level of territorial activity an energy balance of bison in breeding centers (Kholodova, Belousova, 1989).
The bison in Caucasus had no special foraging for long time and were in danger (due to poachers and military conflicts), therefore this bison show a genuine natural behavior. These bison show high migration ability, high level of territorial activity, they
are afraid of humans and have the herds of 20-40 bison, not more (Nemtsev at all., 2003). After them we name this behavior
as "natural".
The absence of migration ability, low level of territorial activity (Kryzhanovskij, Samchuk, 2004), tolerance to humans and
ability to make large associations (more 50 bison, such as bison from Bialowieza Forest), (Baskin, 1990) are the features of
domestication.
However, the bison from the Bialowieza Forest show such behavior for more than two centuries (Kartsov, 1903), and we name
this behavior as "traditional", but not natural.
The bison population of the Orlovskoiye Polesiye National Park is only organising at present time. Actually, we can observe
differences between the two herds.
Goals
The goals of the research were to observe bison behavior, annual cycle and territorial activity of bison at present time, to compare them with the previous data, and with data of other authors.
Methods
We observed behavior and territorial activity of bison in the 2000 (February and June), 2002 (March), and 2004-2005 (whole
years). We used the archive and unpublished data of previous years (Kazmin, Sipko, V. Pererva, A. Pererva), interviewed
hunters, the Park personnel and local people.
Results
Avdeevskoe herd shows the same behavior, annual cycle and territorial activity as bison from the Bialowieza Forest. The herd
313
was introduced in the Park in the 1996 - 1999 year. Bison were transported from the Okskij breeding center (15 animals), the
Prioksko-Terrasny breeding center (4 animals), the Bialowieza Forest (2 animals) and the Korkeasaari Helsinki Zoo (1 bison).
Two years after release they formed two herds: bison from the Prioksko-Terrasny breeding center had a separate group. Six years
after release adult males separated from others for the summer period. Actually, the Avdeevskoe herd consists of several groups
(and it can be named as a small association). The herd consists of females with calves, which are the most stabile elements of herd,
males can come and leave; young males (3-4 years old) are the most mobile element of the herd.
There are three human made supplementary winter-feeding sites on the territory. In the first year, in winter, the herd has used
one site, but for last seven years it uses another site. During winters, the herd uses the area of ca 1.5 km about the supplementary winter-feeding site, except for a group of youngest males and single female with a calf, which can move on distance of 4
km - to the two other sites. In winter periods the herd has been neutral and aggressive to humans, excluding for a group of
youngest males, which was neutral to humans and afraid of humans.
During summer the herd move on distance of ca 10-12 km. We observed all groups together and some groups and single bison
separately. In summer period bison were neutral to humans and afraid of humans, except for mothers of calves, which were
aggressive. Bison in the herd use human pathways and roads for movements and layings.
Alekhinskoe herd was formed in the 1996 - 2000 from bison from Prioksko-Terrasnyj breeding center (4 animals), Zoos: SanktPeterburg (1 animal), Rostov-upon-Don (1 animal) and Natuurpark Lelystad, Nederland (5 animals). There were released 4
bison in the 1996. They show high territorial activity, use the area of ca 20-25 km in forest and fields close to villages. In the
1997 the herd used a fields close to villages and forests between them (distance ca 8 - 10 km). There were released another
party of bison in the 2000, it was added to the herd.
The Park personnel and local people have many problems with the herd. Bison from the herd eat yield (wheat, potatoes, beet),
damage fruit trees and fences. During 2 - 3 years the local people and the Park personnel tried to remove bison from the agricultural area and settlements, using cars, shouts, and shots. During last winters, the herd stayed near the cellar with cow's forage and used it instead of the supplementary winter-feeding site (and visited the supplementary winter feeding sites only very
seldom). The annual cycle of the herd consisted of 3 periods: summer one, winter period when bisons stayed near the cellar,
and an intermediate period when bison used forest, fields, villages and supplementary winter feeding sites.
Then bison stopped to visit villages, they used only one field (not in agricultural use), and in the 2005 they did not visit the cellar.
Thus, at the moment the annual cycle of the Alekhinskoe herd cannot be periodised. Actually, during winters, the herd use a
forest area and fields between villages (ca 10-15 km), sometimes live the Park territory and move to the neighborhood Province
(Brjansk), crossing the railway. During summers, the herd uses the area of ca 20 km in forest and is practically invisible for an
investigator. The herd uses its own pathways; it does not use human roads. Bison use natural borders, like rivers, to avoid the
investigator’s attention. Alekhinskoe herd consists of one close group and one single male. All bison in the herd are afraid of
human for a whole year.
We suppose that in future the Alekhinskoe herd will not require human help (artificial foraging).
The two bison herds in the Park show the two types of behavior: traditional and natural one.
We suppose some factors could affect on the formed behavior types when bison are releasing. Firstly, an individual behavior
of leaders. Secondly, herd contacts with humans, and humans` behavior at the time of contact. Thirdly, the quantity of bison in
herd. The smaller herds are more sliding. Smaller herds need other bison for a specific herd safety. That can explain why single bison sometimes can come into herds of cows.
We cannot indicate an optimal bison behavior at present time, in conditions of a strong human impact in bison habitats. The
traditional behavior type approaches to a successful coexistence with humans. However, only natural behavior type is characteristic for the wild species Bison bonasus.
Conclusions
1. The two herds of Orlovskoiye Polesiye National Park have demonstrated two different behavior types: "traditional" and "natural".
2. The Avdeevskoe herd shows a traditional type of behavior: tolerance to humans, large associations, periodised annual cycle,
and low level of territorial activity in winter period, such as bison from the Bialowieza Forest.
3. Biological features, like absence of migration ability, low level of territorial activity, tolerance to humans and large association are the symptoms of domestication.
4. Alekhinskoe herd shows a natural type of behavior: migration ability, high level of territorial activity for a whole year, fear
to human.
5. Both types of behavior could be used as models for European bison releases in the future times.
References
Baskin, L.M. (1990) Alteration in mammals behavior via domestication. // Bull. Moscow Sci. Nat., Ser. Biology, 95, 3: 20-31
Kartsov, G.P. (1903) Belovezhskaja Pusha. Sankt-Peterburg.
Kazmin, V.D., E.S. Abramov (2004) Problems of creation bison's population in Orlovskoiye Polesiye National Park // Problems of preservation and restoration of
bison. Danki: P. 61-64.
Kholodova M.V., I.P. Belousova (1989) In spring period bison is increase of forage consumption // Ecology, morphology, use and protection wild hoofed animals.
Moscow. P. 233-235
Krasinska M., K. Cabon-Raszynska, Z.A. Krasinski, (1987) Strategy of habitat use by European bison in Bialowieza Forest // Acta theriol., 32, 11:147-202
Kryzhanovskij V.I., N.G. Samchuk (2004) Perspective of protection and creation of natural population of bison in Ukraine // Problems of preservation and restoration
of bison. Danki. P. 5-11.
Nemtsev, A.S., G.S. Rautian, A.Yu. Puzachenko, T.P. Sipko, B.A. Kalabushkin, I.V. Mironenko (2003) Wisent in Caucasus. Moscow. Maikop.
Pererva, V.I., E.G. Kiseleva (1991) The dephormation reproduction cycle of bison in breeding center. // Game farms and breeding center. åoscow: P. 165-178
Sipko, T.P. (2004) Current problems of bison's restoring. // Problems of preservation and restoration of bison. Danki: P. 12-18.
Zablotskij, M.A. (1957) Some biology bison's features and changes at the condition of breeding center // Proceedings of the Prioksko-Terrasny State Reserve. 1.
Moscow: 5-65.
314
Factors impacting northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus)
breeding season survival in an agricultural landscape
of the southeastern United States
M. Patrick Cook1, John P. Carroll2
1
Virginia Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries, 1700 S. Main St., Farmville, Virginia, USA
2
Warnell School of Forest Resources, The University of Georgia
Corresponding author: M. Patrick Cook. Tel.: +1-7-06-54-25-815, fax: +1-7-06-54-28-356,
Key words: Bobwhite Quail Initiative, dispersal, Georgia, habitat, reproduction
Introduction
The decline of northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) (hereafter bobwhite) populations has been attributed mainly to degraded bobwhite habitat. Most researchers that have examined bobwhite-habitat relationships have inferred the value of habitats based on their use or associated bobwhite abundance. For example, Hamrick (2002) found that bobwhite abundance was
greater on crop fields enrolled in Georgia’s Bobwhite Quail Initiative (BQI) program (GA DNR 1999), a program that provides
linear herbaceous habitats on crop fields, than on fields with no linear habitats. However, to increase bobwhite populations on
a regional level, we must determine how specific habitat attributes affect demographic parameters, such as survival, and distinguish these effects from changes in local population distributions (Taylor et al. 1999). Data on how other factors such as sex,
age, and reproduction affect survival would also be useful.
Methods
We conducted this study in Laurens County, Georgia, USA. We created a computerized (vector) habitat map which included
habitats provided by BQI (BQI; 0.27% of the study area), row crop fields (CROP; 13.39%), closed-canopy pine stands (CCPN;
23.36%), hardwoods (HRWD; 32.97% ), areas dominated by bermudagrass (TURF; 12.37 %), fallow areas with very little to
no woody vegetation (FALL; 5.01%), areas of low woody cover dominated by shrubs and/or young trees including hedgerows
and fencerows (LWCO; 4.98%), and a category that included residential areas that were generally not of interest and therefore
excluded from all analyses (OTHR; 7.64%).
We captured bobwhites during January 2002-April 2002 and November 2002 – April 2003. Captured bobwhites were equipped
with a 6.4-6.9 g pendant-style (necklace) radiotransmitter. Bobwhites were located 4-7 times per week during the breeding season using homing techniques. Nests were monitored daily. Broods were located 2-4 times per day until the 14th day post-hatch.
All locations were entered into a GIS format using ArcView®.
We examined the effects of several covariates on breeding season (19 May-28 August) survival using an information-theoretic
approach. We developed an a priori set of 14 candidate models that included the effects of sex (coded F=0, M=1), age (J=0,
A=1), within home range habitat variables, brood-rearing (not with a brood <14 days old = 0, with a brood <14 days old = 1),
and nest incubation (not incubating = 0, incubating = 1),. The effects of brood-rearing and incubation were incorporated as
time-varying covariates. Survival was measured during 3-day intervals. Birds were considered to be brood-rearing during an
interval if they were with a brood that was <14 days old (pre-fledgling period) on >1 day of the interval. Birds were classified
as incubating in the same manner. If, during an interval, a bird was both incubating and brood-rearing, we assigned whichever reproductive status occupied the most days. We used program MARK with the logit link function to calculate AICc values
and parameter estimates for each model. We then calculated AICc (AIC corrected for small sample sizes) values, AICc weights,
model-averaged parameter estimates and unconditional standard errors for each effect and overall survival (Burnham and
Anderson 2002). Habitat variables included the proportions of each habitat within the home range and indices for the interspersion of LWCO and CCPN with open habitats (INLWCO and INCCPN, respectively). We calculated INLWCO and INCCPN by generating 1000 random points within the open habitats of each home range and calculating the average distance of
these points to the two habitat types; therefore, higher values indicated less interspersion.
Results
Predation caused 96% of all bobwhite deaths. The model-averaged estimate of survival for bobwhites pooled across years was
0.499 (SE=0.056). Our best approximating model (ω=0.13) included the effects of brood-rearing and INLWCO (Table 1).
However, all other models were still within 10 ∆AICc units of the best model indicating at least a reasonable level of support
(Burnham and Anderson 2002). Confidence intervals of all parameter estimates included zero suggesting possibly no effect,
except for brood-rearing which had a strong negative effect on survival (β = -1.59, SE = 0.43). However, highly asymmetrical
confidence intervals suggest positive impacts of BQI habitat and interspersion of low woody cover, and negative impacts of
closed canopy pines, hardwoods, and interspersion of closed canopy pines on survival (Table 2).
Discussion
Of the habitat variables examined, closed-canopy pine had the greatest effect on adult bobwhite survival during the breeding
315
Table 1. Candidate models used to evaluate breeding
season survival of 92 radio-marked bobwhites monitored in Laurens County, Georgia during 2002-2003.
All models include an intercept term and only the models with weights >0.10 are presented.
1
Number of parameters included in the model.
2
BQI – Linear habitats provided by the Bobwhite Quail Initiative. CCPN - Closed-canopy pine. CROP agricultural fields. FALL - Fallow area. HRWD – Hardwoods. LWCO – Scrub and scrub/fallow (areas
dominated by a mixture of shrubs, young trees, grasses and weeds). TURF - Areas dominated by bermudagrass. INCCPN and INLWCO are indices of the interspersion of CCPN and LWCO with open habitat.
Higher values for the two indices indicate less interspersion.
Table 2. Model-averaged estimates, unconditional standard errors, and confidence
intervals for effects on breeding season survival of 92 radio-marked bobwhites monitored in Laurens County, Georgia during
2002-2003.
season. Rollins and Carroll (2001) argued that habitat could
influence predator search efficiency, therefore the interaction of
quail and their predators. The presence of closed-canopy pine
probably increases the ability of predators to capture bobwhites
due to its lack of understory vegetation. Although avoided by
bobwhites (Cook 2004), closed-canopy pine is widely distributed and constitutes a relatively large proportion of the landscape. Therefore, bobwhites almost invariably must incorporate at least some of this habitat within their home ranges. A
high proportion of the southeastern landscape consists of
closed-canopy pine and this proportion will likely increase
(Burger 2002). Pine stands can be managed to benefit bobwhites through thinning and burning. The management of pine
stands must be a high priority if we are to increase bobwhite
populations on a regional level in the southeastern USA.
Interestingly, there was very weak evidence for a positive effect
of fallow patches on adult survival. These types of habitats
have traditionally been viewed as the most beneficial to bobwhite populations. For some reason, these habitats could have
been associated with high predator abundance. Perhaps there
was an abundance of other early successional prey species that
attracted predators. Although these habitats only weakly
appear to positively affect adult survival, they may be more
important in chick recruitment. Broods foraged in the insectabundant fallow areas extensively. These areas may allow
broods to meet their dietary requirements more quickly and
Lower 95% C.I. limit.
Upper 95% C.I. limit.
therefore spend less time exposed to predators. Their greatest
benefit may be increasing the survival of parenting adults who
were much more susceptible to predation in this study. A high rate of parent mortality during brood-rearing may have important consequences for recruitment rates especially in areas of low bobwhite density. Bobwhites are known to adopt the offspring of other birds (Stoddard 1931:65-66). However, we suspect that adoption of orphaned chicks is rare in areas of low density and that the death of the parent during the pre-fledgling period will likely result in loss of the entire brood. How certain
habitats affect brood-rearing mortality should be investigated further.
1
2
References
Burger L (2002) Quail management: issues, concerns, and solutions for public and private lands – a southeastern perspective. Proceedings of the
National Bobwhite Quail Symposium 5:20-34.
Burnham K, Anderson D (2002) Model selection and multimodel inference: a practical information-theoretic approach. Springer, New York, New
York, USA
Cook P (2004) Northern bobwhite breeding season dispersal, habitat use, and survival in a southeastern agricultural landscape. Thesis, Universty of
Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA.
Georgia Department of Natural Resources (1999) The Bobwhite Quail Initiative: restoring Georgia’s state game bird. Georgia Department of Natural
Resources, Wildlife Resources Division, Social Circle, Georgia, USA.
Hamrick R (2002) Evaluation of northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) population monitoring methods and population trends in agricultural systems
in the upper Coastal Plain of Georgia. Thesis, Universty of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA.
Rollins D, Carroll J (2001) Impacts of predation on northern bobwhite and scaled quail. Wildlife Society Bulletin 29:39-51.
Stoddard H (1931) The bobwhite quail, its habits, preservation, and increase.Charles Scribner’s Sons. New York, New York, USA.
Taylor J, Church K, Rusch D, Cary J (1999) Macrohabitat effects on summer survival, movements, and clutch success of northern bobwhite in Kansas.
Journal of Wildlife Management 63:675-685.
316
Ecological demands of red deer (Cervus elaphus)
in comparison to the present situation in the Bavarian Alps
Dr. Werner d’Oleire-Oltmanns1, Dipl.-Ing. (FH) Jochen Grab2
1
Akademie für Naturschutz und Landschaftspflege Seethalerstraße 6, D-83410 Laufen
2
Lindenstraße 61, D-83451 Piding
Corresponding author: Werner d’Oleire-Oltmanns. Tel.: +49-8-68-28-96-355, fax: +49-8-68-28-96-316, e-mail:
[email protected]
Key words: Red deer areas, Semi-open landscape, Interest groups, Geographic Information System (GIS), Management plan
Abstract
Within Germany red deer areas are defined by legislation. Red deer is accepted only in these areas. About the future of the
species within Germany a wide discussion is ongoing (Wotschikowsky 2002). This general discussion needs to be broken down
to local action. For a broad discussion on this subject it is necessary to visualise the ideas and models for a management including more ecological aspect. The methods for such an approach have been developed in the recent years (Bögel et al. 1995,
Eberhardt et al. 1997, d’Oleire-Oltmanns 1991, Schütz et al. 2000). In the red deer areas the question is which parts can be used
depending on human activities. Results for other species show the applicability of the method (Bögel 2001, Brendel et al. 2000).
Do the red deer areas reflect the needs of red deer? This question leads to the discrepancy between the ecological demands of
red deer and the actual situation today.
Where is red deer allowed to live? (Describing the actual situation)
Which habitat types would red deer prefer (if it would be able to choose)? (Describing an optimized situation)
Where would red deer migrate or spread out to (if we would give it the chance to do so)? (Describing a future vision)
The questions show that red deer lives in a difficult habitat. Due to the effects of hunting, agriculture, forestry, recreation activities and traffic red deer only uses parts of the potentially suitable habitats. The biggest mammal of Germany prefers semiopen parts of landscape while all kinds of human activities are forcing it into the forests.
Conflicts arise due to many different interests of groups such as foresters, hunters, nature conservationists or tour operators on
the one hand and red deer on the other hand. The resulting variety of different perspectives is not least rooted
in history.
Attempts to optimize the present situation from both the animal and the human point of view can lead to different solutions. Of
course, discussions with the groups mentioned above are a very important step to collect and understand the demands of land
users – i.e. the human perspective. But all the opinions are tinged with individual interests. In conclusion, methods with an
objective approach are required.
Using a Geographic Information
System (GIS) makes it possible to
visualize and draw a neutral view
concerning both: human demands
and the needs of red deer. Based
upon these results, new discussions with all groups can be initiated to improve the models as well
as the understanding for ecological processes.
GIS offers the possibility to assess
each part of a landscape depend-
Fig. 1: Model for the actual habitat
suitability of red deer in the district
of Miesbach(Germany)
317
ing on the suitability for red deer. The comparison between different scenarios shows the potential area which can be used. A
first step towards an objective management plan is the result. In the actual model and scenario the landscape was only divided
between not usable, good to use and very good to use by red deer. The probable population density of a usable area can be calculated using data of counting and the number of hunted animals.
What would happen, if human disturbances could be reduced? Scenarios have been created to give possible answers on the
habitat use of red deer. They present a new approach to get information about a possible use and to establish more ecologic
oriented management plans in future. The comparison of Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 is quiet astonishing: In both models around 10% cannot be used by red deer (i.e. lakes, rocky areas …). For the rest the result is inverse. While today (Fig. 1) 30% of the area is
composed by habitats of good and
60% of very good suitability. Due
to the high amount of forest in the
area only 30% of very good suitability occur in the scenario. (Fig.
2). The best solution will be somewhere between the two applications. More precise data on landscape and more information about
the present use of red deer in the
region can improve the model.
Of course, the results have to be
discussed together with all local
groups to reach a common acceptance and to accommodate the
management plan to regional
specifications.
The future of red deer mainly
depends on the attitude of the different interest groups and the political intention to enable red deer
to return to its preferred habitats.
Fig 2: Scenario showing the landscape used by red deer, if human disturbances could be
This study was funded by the
strongly reduced
Sparkasse Miesbach-Tegernsee.
References
Bögel R, d’Oleire-Oltmanns W, Franz H (1995) An Integrated System for Resource Inventory, Wildlife Monitoring and Management Using GIS, GPS
and ADF-Telemetry Techniques. In: Bissonette J A, Krausmann P R Integrating People and Wildlife for a Sustainable Future. Proceedings of the 1st
International Wildlife Management Congress, San Josè, September 1993. The Wildlife Society, Bethesda, USA pp. 551-555
Bögel R (2001) Lebensraumansprüche der Gemse in Wechselwirkung zu Waldentwicklung und Tourismus im Nationalpark Berchtesgaden untersucht
mit telemetrischen Methoden. Bundesamt für Naturschutz, Angewandte Landschaftsökologie, Heft 35 pp. 240 + CD-ROM
Brendel U, Eberhardt R, Wiesmann-Eberhardt K, d’Oleire-Oltmanns W (2000) Der Leitfaden zum Schutz des Steinadlers Aquila chrysaetos (L.) in den
Alpen. Nationalparkverwaltung Berchtesgaden, Forschungsbericht Nr.45 pp. 112
Eberhardt R, Bögel R, Frühwald B, Lotz A (1997) Modellbildung zur Raum- und Habitatnutzung terrestrischer Organismen am Beispiel von Steinadler
und Gemse. In: Dollinger F, Strobl J Angewandte Geographische Informationsverarbeitung IX, Tagungsbericht der AGIT97. Salzburger Geographische
Materialien 28 pp 47-58
d’Oleire-Oltmanns W (1991) The Interaction of patchiness, land cover type and animal distribution: an evolution in time and space. In: Proceedings
Resource Technology 1990, Second International Symposium on Advanced Technology in Natural Management, November 12-15, 1990, Washington
D.C., USA
Schütz M, Wildi O, Achermann G, Krüsi B O, Nievergelt B (2000) Predicting the development of subalpine grassland in the Swiss National Park: how
to build a succession meodel based on data from long-term permanent plots. In: Schütz M, Krüsi B O, Edwards P J (eds.) Sucession research in the
Swiss National Park. Natpark-Forsch Schweiz 89 pp. 207-235
Wotschikowsky U (2002) Ein Leitbild für das Rotwild-Management in Deutschland In: Holst S, Herzog S Der Rothirsch – Ein Fall für die Rote Liste?
Tagungsband zum Rotwildsymposium der Deutschen Wildtier Stiftung in Bonn 30.05.-01.06.2002 pp. 211-255
318
Investigation of phenotypic differences of brown hare
(Lepus europaeus) based on craniometrical measurements
in Greece
Dedousopoulou Eleni1, Bakaloudis Dimitrios E.2, Vlachos Christos G.3, Chatzinikos Evangelos1
1
4th Hunting Federation of Sterea Hellas, 8 Fokionos Str., 105 63 Athens, Greece.
2
Forest Service of Soufli, Dept of Forest Management&Protection
3
University of Thessaloniki, Dept of Forestry & Natural Environment, Lab of Wildlife & Freshwater Fisheries
Corresponding author: Eleni Dedousopoulou. Tel.: +30-2-10-32-31-212, fax: +30-2-10-32-57-593,
Key words: hare, phenotypic differences, craniometrical measurements, Discriminant Analysis, Greece
According to De Beaufort (1991), the mammalian fauna of Greece consists of 99 species, that is, 45% of the species existing
in Europe. The variety of vegetation types, of altitude and the marine influence has added to the biological diversity that Greece
supports. This variety supports the endemism in particular sub-species. Moreover, in southern and central Greece, a mosaic of
steppe and pockets of forest could have provided a shelter for brown hares during the Late Pleistocene. During the same
period, large parts of Europe either were covered with ice or were otherwise unsuitable for this species (Suchentrunk F et al
2000, 2003). According to Antoniou A (2003), the genetic structure, that is observed in hare populations from Greece, is different from the genetic structure observed in a larger geographical scale like that of central and northern Europe. In conclusion,
this is in accordance to the hypothesis of the European hare differentiation in isolated refugees of the Balkan Peninsula during
the last glacial period. Various studies have been carried out in order to identify genetic similarities and differences among
Greek hare populations and populations from other European countries. The results of these studies suggest that there is some
gene pool differentiation between Greek and Bulgarian hares and between populations from Greece and central Europe
(Suchentrunk F et al 2003). Unfortunately, studies of identification of the gene variability among Greek hares are few. In addition, the majority of these reports do not study the potential existence of the various sub-species of hare in Greece. According
to Suchentrunk F et al (2003), they did not deal with morphological analyses of the studied hares, mostly due to the respective
ranges of the suggested sub-species that were not well determined at previous studies.
As the hare is a game species, many reintroduction programs with the use of imported hares, mainly from Italy, Yugoslavia, and
Bulgaria, have taken place in order to increase its populations in Greece. (Mamuris Z et al, 2001). This may resulted in a possible pollution of the genetic structure of the endemic species. Now, in fear of that possibility, the Greek Ministry of Agriculture
has ended these reintroduction programs. Many studies are being carried out in order to restart the reintroduction programs. The
majority of them investigate the genetic structure of the Greek hare. However, a genetic analysis is a very expensive and timeconsuming procedure. Thus, the aims of this study are to: (1) investigate the morphological differences, derived from craniometrical measurement, between the hares in continental Greece and the islands of the country and (2) identify some type specimens, in order to make the identification of suitable individuals for reintroduction (according to the region where this will take
place) easier.
173 samples were collected from various regions of Greece, including the islands, during the hunting seasons of
2001-2002, 2002-2003 and 2004-2005 (Ministry of Agriculture, 2001, 2002 and 2004). The heads and the forefeet of the hares
were sent to the Hunting Federation of Sterea Hellas in plastic bags with all the necessary field data. The forefeet were used in
order to determine the age of the samples (Office National de la chasse 1985, Papageorgiou 1990).
Using digital micrometer (accuracy 0.01mm), 47 measurements were taken from each skull following Petrov I et al (1992) and
Lu X (2003). For each sample, the measurements taken are related to the length and height of the skull and mandible, the
breadth of the skull and some of them related to the teeth.
The statistical analysis that was used is the Principal Components Analysis (PCA). The aim of the PCA, according to McGarigal
et al (2000), is to condense the information contained in a large number of original variables into a smaller set of new composite dimensions, with a minimum loss of information. In particular, PCA creates new components from the original variables
that have maximum variation among the sample.
At the next step of the analysis, Discriminat Analysis (DA) was used, in order to find a model that could classify successfully
unknown samples into the above groups.
319
Two main groups were selected. The first group is consisted by hares from continental Greece and the second one by hares from
the islands of the country. Testing the two groups with a t-test, statistically significant variables were selected. These variables
were used for the PCA.
The method of PCA selected was the one with the covariance matrix. 12 variables were selected using five principal
components with loads greater than +0.30 or less than -0.30. PC1 (80.2% of the total variance) was represented by measurements of skull’s breadth. PC2 (13.9% of the total variance) was represented by measurements of skull’s length. PC3 (0.9% of
the total variance) was represented by measurements of skull’s length and height. PC4 (0.7% of the total variance) was
represented by measurements of nasal length, distance of the eye orbits and skull’s height. PC5 (0.6% of the total variance) was
represented by measurements of mandible’s length.
These 12 variables were used in the DA. The DA produced some linear discriminant equations that can be used in the classification of samples with unknown origin. According to the equations 71.7% of the original grouped cases were correctly classified. It is believed that the cases that were not correctly classified are due to the result of reintroductions or that this percentage is potentially due to the samples originated from Evoia. Evoia is not far from the continental country and its extension from
north to south presents a variety of bioclimatic conditions. However, because this is only a hypothesis, the classification of those
hares requires special examination.
Our project confirms our initial hypothesis that 2 types of hare coexist in Greek territory; the continental one and the islander
one. We believe that due to the variety of bioclimatic conditions on those geographic regions, special adaptations to the environment developed by hares through time. The produced equations from the study give us the statistically confirmed opportunity to perform correct hare reintroduction programs, using a cost-effective and practical method.
References
Antoniou A (2003) Population structure of the European hares of Greece, in The fourth (4th) Annual meeting on graduate research in Environmental
Biology: management of terrestrial and marine resources, book of abstracts, Department of Biology-Institute of Marine Biology of Crete-National
History Museum of Crete
De Beaufort F (1991) La faune des mammifères de Grèce: caractéristiques, endémisme, particularismes. Biologia Gallo-hellenica, 18(1), 99-106
Lu Xin (2003) Postnatal growth of skull linear measurements of Cape Hare Lepus capensis in northern China: an analysis in an adaptive context,
Biological Journal of The Linnean Society, 78, 343-353
Mamuris Z, Sfougaris A.I. & Stamatis C (2001) Genetic structure of Greek brown hare (Lepus europaeus) populations as revealed by mtDBNA RFLPPCR analysis: implications for conserving genetic diversity, Biological Conservation, 101, 187-196
McGarigal K, Cushman S & Stafford S, (2000) Multivariate Statistics for Wildlife and Ecology Research, Springer, New York, USA
Ministry of Agriculture (2001) Game Regulations for the Hunting Season 2001-2002, number of protocol: 99613/3880, from the files of Hunting
Federation of Sterea Hellas, Athens, Greece (in Greek)
Ministry of Agriculture (2004) Enrichment of Regions with Game Species, number of protocol: 96231/1931, from the files of Hunting Federation of
Sterea Hellas, Athens, Greece (in Greek)
Office National de la chasse (1985) Reconnaissance du sexe et determination de l’ age du petit gibier sedentaire de plaine: perdrix grise, perdrix rouge,
faisan commun, lievre, lapin de garenne. N0 Commission Paritaire: 1186ADEP, 2e edition
Papageorgiou N (1990) Biology of Wild Fauna, University Studio Press, Thessalonica, Greece (in Greek)
Petrov I, Nikolov H & Gerasinov S (1992) Craniometrical sex determination of wildcat Felis silvestris in Bulgaria, Acta Theriologica, 37(4), 381-396
Suchentrunk F, Mamuris Z, Sfougaris A.I. & Stamatis C (2003) Biochemical genetic variability in brown hares (Lepus europaeus) from Greece,
Biochemical Genetics, 41(5/6), 127-140
Suchentrunk F, Michailov C, Markov G & Haiden A (2000) Population genetics of Bulgarian brown hares Lepus europaeus: allozymic diversity
at zoogeographical crossroads, Acta Theriologica, 45(1), 1-12
320
A new methodology based on a prey species to detect suitable
habitats for an endangered raptor in Spain
Delibes-Mateos M, Rouco C, Ferreras P, Villafuerte R, Viñuela J,
Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos, CSIC-UCLM-JCCM
Ronda de Toledo s/n 13005 Ciudad Real
Corresponding author: Miguel Delibes-Mateos. Tel.: +34-9-26-29-54-50, fax: +34-9-26-29-54-51,
Key words: Imperial eagle, Wild rabbit, Pellet counts, Conservation
Introduction
The Spanish imperial eagle is the most endangered bird of prey in Europe and one of the rarest raptors in the world (Ferrer
2001); with a total population estimated at little more than 175 pairs (Gonzalez and Oria, 2003). Its distribution is limited to
the south-western corner of Spain and it has recently disappeared from Portugal and Morocco, where there has been no record
of a nest in the last few years (Ferrer 2001). The current distribution area is the result of a steep decline experienced in the first
half of the twentieth century. Persecution by man (Villafuerte et al. 1998), some indirect effect of human activity as electricity
pylons and power lines (Sergio et al. 2004) or disturbance during breeding (Bautista et al., 2004) and land use changes (Seoane
et al. 2003) have often been cited as the main causes of the decline of raptor population and their geographical distribution.
However, in the case of the imperial eagle other important factor has had a negative effect on its current geographical distribution. The decline of the wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) during the last decades has been shown to be one of the main threats
to the imperial eagle because this top predator is extremely well-adapted to preying on rabbits (Ferrer 2001).
Objectives
The main goal of this work was to describe a field methodology based on rabbit abundances to find suitable habitats for the
imperial eagle populations. The possibility of new population settlements in good habitats not colonized nowadays was discussed too. On the other hand, we estimated the influence that rabbit population decline has had on this predator.
Methods
Pellets / m2
In order to estimate rabbit densities we performed 125 surveys during the summers of 2002 and 2003 (Figure 1). Eighty of these
transects were also surveyed ten years before (Blanco and Villafuerte 1993). In each transect two observers walked 4 kilometres recording rabbit abundance indices. Pellet counts have been widely used as indices to estimate rabbit abundance (Fa et al.
1999). In this study, number of pellets was counted in a 0.5 m2 circular plot at the end of each 100 meter segment surveyed.
Counts on or near a latrine were avoided. With the number of pellets counted in the 40 plots along the transect we got a pellet
abundance index (pellets/m2; PAI). Furthermore, number of rabbits observed, latrines, scrapes and warren entrances were
recorded too. Using these four variables, we carried out a principal component analysis to generate another rabbit abundance
Figure 1. Map of the localities where rabbit abundances were surveyed.
Figure 2. Pellet Abundance Index (PAI) of the 125 surveyed localities.
The pointed line separates areas occupied by the imperial eagle from
those in which it does not appear.
321
index (RAI). Blanco and Villafuerte (1993) did not count pellet plots during the transects performed in 1993, so we used RAI
to obtain rabbit trends in the last decade.
Because the imperial eagle is an endangered species its distribution at a very fine scale is not published in order to preserve
nests quietness. Therefore, we had to interview people who monitor this species in order to know its presence or absence in
those areas in which rabbit abundances were surveyed. Hunting managers, researchers, Non Governmental Organisations
(NGO) and people belonging to the regional governments gave us valuable information about the distribution of the eagle.
Results
The imperial eagle is present in 25 % (n=31) of the localities where rabbit abundances were surveyed.
PAI ranges from 0 to 302 pellets/m2 (Figure. 2). Only in 28 % (n=31) of the studied populations PAI is over the total mean
(Total PAI mean= 35.45 pellets/m2). PAI mean of those localities in which the imperial eagle appears (PAI mean= 101.33 pellets/m2; Fig.2), is significantly higher (Mann-Whitney U Test; p< 0.0001) than PAI average of those places in which the eagle
does not remain (PAI mean= 13.96 pellets/m2). Only 7 localities from the 30 studied plots with highest values of PAI are not
occupied by the imperial eagle.
The new variable, RAI obtained through principal component analysis, explains 60 % of the whole variance. RAI is highly correlated with the four variables from which it comes. Average RAI has decreased from 1.068 in 1993 (range 0.03-5.79) to 0.709
in 2002 (range 0-3.26). Only in 30% (n=24) of the analysed populations the trend of rabbit populations is stable or positive.
Discussion
Following ours results the imperial eagle remains in areas with a high density of rabbits. Similar conclusions have been obtained
in previous studies (Ferrer 2001). Only in a few cases the eagle lives in places with a low rabbit density. Although there are at
least 15 pairs of imperial eagle at Doñana National Park (Ferrer 2001) the value of PAI there is very low (15.64 pellets/m2).
This is probably because there are many other preys there. Delibes (1978) detected in Doñana National Park significant variations in the role played by the rabbit in the eagles diet before and after a great rabbit population decrease due to the appearance
of the myxomatosis. After the outbreak of the disease the percentage of rabbit in the diet dropped to 39.9 % while before the
myxomatosis it was 76.9 %. On the other hand, the aquatic birds rose from 8 % to 47.2 %. Therefore, the imperial eagle appears
too in some hunting areas with low rabbit density in the north of Jaen province. The NGO WWW/ADENA has carried out corrective measures to increase rabbit populations in these estates. Rabbit restocking for predator conservation is a common activity in Spain (Moreno et al., 2004). Following our methodology, only one extensive suitable area, situated between Ciudad Real
and Albacete provinces, is not occupied nowadays. It could be due to the use of illegal methods to kill predators (Villafuerte et
al. 1998) or the absence of good nesting habitats (Ferrer 2001).
Rabbit pellet counts have been demonstrated to be a good index to detect suitable habitats for the imperial eagle. Following our
results, it seems to exit a threshold above which the imperial eagle can establish. So, this is a quick and cheap method for selecting areas to facilitate the settlement of new pairs of imperial eagle. It could be a good tool to improve the conservation of this
endangered species in Spain.
Most of rabbit populations have decreased in the last decade in central-southern Spain. This negative trend means a serious
problem for the conservation of rabbit-dependent predators. For example, in some areas of the Ciudad Real province where the
rabbit populations have decreased dramatically in the last decade, the imperial eagle disappeared few years ago (Gonzalez and
Oria 2003).
References
Bautista LM, García JT, Calmaestra RG, Palacín C, Martín CA, Morales MB, Bonal R, Viñuela J (2004) Effect of weekend road traffic on the use of
space by raptors. Conservation Biology 18(3):726-732
Blanco JC, Villafuerte R (1993) Factores ecológicos que influyen sobre las poblaciones de conejos. Incidencia de la enfermedad hemorrágica. Internal
report. ICONA, Madrid
Delibes M (1978) Ecología alimenticia del Águila Imperial Ibérica Aquila adalberti durante la crianza de los pollos en el Coto de Doñana. Doñana
Acta Vertebrata 5:35-60
Fa JE, Sharples CM, Bell DJ (1999) Habitat correlates of European rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) after de spread of RVHD in Cadiz province, Spain.
Journal of Zoology 249:83-96
Ferrer M (2001) The Spanish Imperial Eagle. Lynx Editions, Barcelona
Gonzalez LM, Oria J (2003) Águila Imperial Ibérica, Aquila adalberti. In: Martín R, Del Moral JC (eds.) Atlas de las aves reproductoras de España.
Dirección General de Conservación de la Naturaleza-Sociedad Española de Ornitología, Madrid: pp.186-187
Moreno S, Villafuerte R, Cabezas S, Lombarda L (2004) Wild rabbit restocking for predator conservation in Spain. Biological Conservation 118:183193
Seoane J, Viñuela J, Díaz-Delgado R, Bustamante J (2003) The effect o landuse and climate on red kite distribution in the Iberian peninsula. Biological
Conservation 111:401-414
Sergio F, Marchesi L, Pedrini P, Ferrer M, Penteriani V (2004) Electrocution alters the distribution and density of a top predator, the eagle Bubo bubo.
Journal of Applied Ecology 41:836-845
Villafuerte R, Viñuela J, Blanco JC (1998) Extensive predator persecution caused by population crash in a game species: the case of red kites and rabbits in Spain. Biological Conservation 84:181-188
322
On the extermination and recovery of red deer (Cervus
elaphus) populations in the present territory of Slovenia in the
19/20th century
Peter Dovč, Jana Frank
University of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Faculty, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Corresponding author: Miha Adamic̆. Biotechnical Faculty, Department of Forestry and Renewable Forest Resources.
Vec̆na, pot 83, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia. Tel.: +386-4-16-90-224, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: red deer, extermination, reintroductions, Slovenia
Introduction
Following the legislation on game management in the Austrian Empire in the 18th -19th Century, the red deer on the present territory of Slovenia was presumably exterminated by 1860 (Schollmayer 1899 Schollmayer-Lichtenberg 1923, Valentinc̆ic̆ 1958,
Adamic̆ 1974). At the end of the 19th century, the red deer was reintroduced to five locations in three distant areas of the present Slovenian territory (see the map). Red deer from different European populations (Table 1) were put in the enclosures in the
period between 1888 and 1900. A few North American wapities have been released in the Alpine area, too. Soon after the enclosures were opened the red deer started to spread their range.
Table 1. Data on the red deer reintroductions on the present territory of Slovenia (map no.1)
Methods and preliminary results
Taking this historical perspective into account, the genetic structure of the red deer population in Slovenia has
become an important issue, especially in the context of
management plans for the protection of biodiversity. We
performed sampling at four locations (Snez̆nik , Koc̆evska reka, Goric̆ko and Jelovica) and analyzed a total of 85 samples. The
molecular analysis was performed using five microsatellite loci (Haut, MM, CSSM, RME and CER). The allele numbers on all
four loci were similar to the literature data (Kuehn et al., 2003). At the loci Haut, MM, CSSM, RME and CER we found 14, 9,
8, 8, and 9 alleles, respectively (Table 2).
Comparison of allele numbers found at different locations did not Table 2. Number of alleles, found in different popureveal significant differences among populations. The only exception lations
was locus MM, where at location Kolevska reka only 3 and at location
Jelovica 6 alleles were found.
The genotype data were analyzed by a Genetix software package and
Snez̆nik Goric̆ko
Koc̆evska reka
Jelovica
differentiation among populations based on five microsatellite loci
was attempted. Our preliminary data show that all populations overlap
and no clear differentiation among populations can be derived from
this preliminary data. However, the population from Goric̆ko in
Northeastern Slovenia (blue) can be differentiated from the population
of Snez̆nik (yellow), whereas populations of Koc̆evska reka (white) and Jelovica (gray) represent the center of the cluster.
Results are presented in Fig. 1.
Map 1: The areas where red deer were reintroduced into the
present territory of Slovenia in the period 1888-1900
323
Fig. 1: PCA (Principal Component
Analysis) of five microsatellite loci in
four populations. Different populations are color coded (Goričko blue,
Jelovica - gray, Snez̆nik – yellow and
Kočevska reka – white).
The preliminary analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) did not reveal sequence differences at the 5'-end of the control region
among four populations. The haplotype found in our samples (2-3 individuals from each location) was identical with the predominant haplotype in the majority of European populations published in the literature (Polziehn and Strobeck, 2002). The only
exception was one haplotype from Goričko which differed from this common haplotype, but further analyses are necessary in
order to confirm this finding.
References
Adamic̆ M (1974) Gibanje s̆tevilc̆nosti populacij nekaterih vrst divjadi v Sloveniji v zadnjem stoletju, sodec̆ po gibanju
s̆tevilc̆nosti odstrela /Zahlenschwankungen der Populationen wichtiger Wildarten in Slowenien in der letzten Hundert Jahren
beurteilt nach den Schwankungen des Abschusses/. Zbornik Bioteh.fak. UL, Vet.11 (1-2): 15-53. Ljubljana.
Kuehn R, Schroeder W, Pirchner F and Rottmann O (2003) Genetic diversity, gene flow and drift in Bavarian red deer populations (Cervus elaphus). Conservation Genetics 4: 157-166.
Polziehn R O and Strobeck C (2002) A phylogenetic comparison of red deer and wapiti using mitochondrial DNA. Molecular
Phylogenetics and Evolution, doi: 10.1006/mpev.2001.1065
Schollmayer H (1899) Die Jagd am Krainer Karste. (Schwarz-, Roth- und Raubwild im Besondern). Von Oberförster
Schollmayer-Mas̆un. WaidmansHeil 9(9): 109-114
Schollmayer-Lichtenberg H (1923) Schneeberg und die Dynasten von Schönburg. Hallerstein 1923. (Slovenian translaction by
Joze Sterle, Postojna 1989). Postojna, 92 p.
Valentinc̆ic̆ S (1958) Iz zgodovine nas̆e jelenjadi /On the history of our red deer/. Lovec 40(1): 2-5
324
Efficiency of suplemental feeding and fencing to diminish wild
boar (Sus scrofa) damages to agricultural crop in the basin
of Geneva, Switzerland
Fattebert, J. 1, Fischer, C. 2, Hebeisen, C. 1, Baubet, E. 3
1
Université de Neuchâtel, Institut de Zoologie, Laboratoire d’éco-éthologie, Emile-Argand 11, Case postale 2, CH-2007 Neuchâtel.
2
Service des Forêts, de la Protection de la Nature et du Paysage, rue Henry-Fazy 2, CP 3918, 1211 Genève.
3
Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage, CNERA Cervidés-Sangliers, Avenue de Wagram 85 bis, 75017 Paris, France
Corresponding author: Claude Fischer, Maison de la Forêt, CP 206, 1254 Jussy, Switzerland, tel.: +41-2-23-20-93-39,
Key words: maize, vineyards, radio-tracking
Abstract
Since the middle of the nineties, damages to agricultural crop due to wild boars have increased dramatically in the basin of
Geneva. Maize, wheat and meadows are especially concerned and since 2000 damages to vineyards are particularly high, not
with respect to the damaged area, but to the effective costs.
The basin of Geneva is located at the far western tip of Switzerland. It is highly urbanised as over 500'000 inhabitants live
whithin 680 km2. The built up areas account for more than 40% of the area and the level of fragmentation is very high. Forests
account for 15% of the remaining area and are scattered in small patches across the landscape, which is dominated by intensive agriculture (Fischer et al. 2005). Despite the fragmentation, disturbances due to the high human population density, and
small forest patches, wild boar densities are high (10 to 15 individuals / ha; Fischer et al. submitted).
In Geneva, cultivated fields are rather small, usually between
2 and 5 ha, and they are distributed in a dense mosaic of different
crops. Several methods of prevention have been considered and we
finally selected suplemental feeding combined with fencing. With
respect to fencing, we especially focused on vineyards, as they are
easy to fence and the maintenance of the fences is easier. Moreover,
over half of the money compensated was linked to damages to
vineyards, despite the relatively small damaged areas. Supplemental
feeding was applied as far possible in the forests, but this was often
only between 100 and 300 m away from the cultivated areas as forest patches are usually small. Both methods are used only during the
period during which grapes are ripe, that is during 6 to 8 weeks from
mid-august onwards.
Responsible authorities are interested in measuring the effectiveness
of the prevention methods to evaluate if they are cost effective. Since
2001 a research project based on radio-tracking is being conducted
in the basin of Geneva (cf. Hebeisen et al.'s oral presentation). This
Fig. 1: Localisation of the canton of Geneva in gives us the opportunity to test the effectiveness of both the fencing
Switzerland (top left) and of the study area (frame)with- and suplemental feeding thanks to the radio-tracked individuals.
in the canton.
In our poster, we present our results covering two years of research.
Supplemental feeding appears to have a real attractiveness and to
retain wild boars in the forested areas. Forests are significantly more selected for during the period of suplemental feeding than
before. Furthermore, radio-tracked boars were localised more often close to the feeding lines during the feeding period than
before or after it (we compared the proportions of fixes whithin buffers of 50 m around feeding lines). It is however more difficult to show a direct effect of the fencing. Whatsoever, the amount of damages compensated is diminishing drastically every
year.
References
Fischer C., Gourdin H., and Obermann, M. (2005). Spatial behaviour of wild boars in the Geneva, Switzerland: testing the methods and first results.
Galemys 16 (no especial).
Fischer C., Baubet E., Thiébaud J., Roulet M., Prunier J., and Dändliker G. (in prep.). Spatial use of wild boars in the Basin of Geneva.
325
Acoustic individuality of free-ranging red deer (Cervus
elaphus, L.) stags
Favaretto Andrea 1, De Battisti Renzo 1, Pavan Gianni 2
1
Università degli Studi di Padova, Italy
2
CIBRA, Centro Interdisciplinare di Bioacustica e Ricerche Ambientali
Corresponding author: Andrea Favaretto. Via Belle Gambe 2/a 31100 Treviso (Tv), tel.: +39-3-48-74-60-834,
Key words: red deer, free-ranging population, acoustic individuality, “grunt roars”, cluster analysis
The present study is dealing with the problem-atic of the acoustic communication in the mammals, and focuses particularly on
the “long distance” communication. The object of this work has been red deer (Cervus elaphus) stag rutting calls in the
Cansiglio Forest (North-East Italy, Veneto region).
The bioacoustic studies, which deal with the acoustic signals animals emit in oder to com-municate, are obtaining important
results in the study of marine species, particularly of marine mammals: on terrestrial mammals on the other hand, bioacoustic
has obtained till now much more limited results. Although some researches concerning the acoustic behavior of fallow deer and
red deer have been done in captivity or in a semi-domesticated condition (Fitch and Reby: 2001; Long et al.: 1998; Pepin
et al.: 2001), much more rare are the studies on free-ranging populations (Reby & McKomb: 2003; McComb: 2001).
The goals of this work are the study of those individual acoustic features, that the roars re-veal to the attentive and expert
listener, and the identification of acoustic measures able to dis-tinguish, on an objective basis, the roaring of different individuals. The question to answer has then been whether it were possible to de-velop a procedure of analysis able to identify individual acoustic features and to separate those features that are related to the dimensions of the anatomical structures involved
in the sound emission (source-filter theory) from those probably related with the personality and motivational status of each
individual.
Vocalizations of red deer stags were recorded in the Cansiglio Forest (Alps, North Italy, alti-tude 1000m a.s.l.) during the 2001
and 2002 rutting seasons (September-October), by using a Beyerdynamic® mc-737 shotgun microphone connected to an Apple®
iBook G3 laptop. The acoustic signals were transmitted on the laptop by using a USB Roland® Ua-30 extern audio interface
and the Bias Peak 2.6 TDM® software, in monophonic mode with 44,1 kHz sampling rate and 16 bit resolution.
The recordings have been then browsed, se-lected, divided into categories and, whenever possible, classified according to
recognized individual emitters. Analyses were made with Praat (4.0.12, P. Boersma and D. Weenink, University of Amsterdam,
The Netherlands, www.praat.org), a software originally devel-oped for speech analysis. More than 1,400 sounds, belonging to
seven different stags, were analyzed. These sounds showed immedi-ately
an evident heterogeneity in many differ-ent features. This made us think
that the strug-gles for territory and hinds are indeed regulated by a complex language code: thus we decided to proceed to a systematic subdivision of the sounds according to different categories.
On the basis of the acoustic structure, the kinds of sound were three: the
common roar, which contains both harmonic and chaotic spectrographic
displays (Reby and McComb,2003), the exclusively vocalic roars and the
exclusively harsh roars. However, combining the spectrographic features
with the rutting phenomenology (time, duration, rhythm, number of
sounds emitted, repetition coefficient), it resulted necessary to give prominence to a substantial differentiation of all sounds in two principal
groups: the bouts composed only by roars, and the bouts which contain the
short “grunt roars”, already described by Reby and McComb (2003b). The
“grunt roars” are sounds shorter than the common roars (Fig.1), with an
harsh acoustic structure, and are emitted in series.
In the bouts which contain “grunt roars”, often do appear also some common roars especially in the final position but sometimes also in the initial
one
(Fig. 2). For each bout have been measured, with the PRAAT, tempoFig.1. Distribution of the sounds duration. Two
ral
variables
(every roars duration, total duration, number of roars, pause
classes are evident
326
Fig.2. Spectrograms of a typic roars bout (above) and a “grunt roars” bout.
Fig.3. Best combination result in the classification of the “grunt bouts”. The groups (individuals) are cor-rectly classified in 94,8% of cases.
between two consecutive sounds) and spectrographic variables (Fundamental frequency, F0, and Formants, F1, F2, F3...). F0
was measured by the function “Periodicity: To Pitch” (time step 0,02s, frequency range between 50 to 250 Hz). By using the
command “down to pitchtier” F0max and F0min of each roar were measured, whereas with the command “get mean(curve)”
we calculated also the value of F0med.
The first eight formants were measured by the command “spectrum:To spectrum” and then smoothed with “cepstral smoothing” (band-width: 100 Hz): at this point the resonant cen-tre frequencies could be measured by “To for-mants(peaks)” and could
finally be transferred to a excel worksheet. F0 was measured in all the sounds showing at least one vocalic seg-ment (common
roars and vocalic roars); in-stead, the formants were measured in those sounds showing at least a harsh “plateau” of stable and
no-modulated frequencies (common roars and harsh roars), corresponding to maxi-mum elongation of the vocal tract lenght
(Reby & McComb, lc).
Additional variables related any roar to the time distance from the astronomic dawn, to the recording date, to the position in the
bout. We have defined and measured other three ordinal more variables: the “type”, based on the 12 individuated categories of
the roar; the “phy-lum”, to distinguish the vocal, chaotic or het-erogeneous structure of any vocalization, and the “typology”,
to distinguish the sequences according to the number of roars. The data have been organized in an “Excel” worksheet and then
and then analyzed with the SPSS 11.01© software in order to verify our individual characterization hypotheses (Discriminant
analysis). The analysis worksheet showed in the first column the individuals as independent variables; by using the command
“Analyze-Classify-Discriminant” it was possible to try different combinations of dependent variables, and finally to find out
the best of them (Fig.3).
Results
The analysis of the roars depicted a clear dis-tinction between two fundamental types of vo-calization: the bouts containing only
roars and the those containing “grunt roars”. The “grunt” bouts are composed by a variable number of sounds shorter than the
roars, with a structure which is almost ever non harmonic, emitted in a fast serie, usually consisting of 3 to 9 coughs. The average duration of the grunt was 0,18 s (Sd. dev.=0,08; repetition rate= 1,96/s; average duration of bouts= 4,89s), whereas the duration of the roar was 0,89 s (Sd. dev.=0,3; repetition rate= 0,91/s; average duration of bouts= 4,36s).
Through the cluster analysis we analyzed seven different groups of recorded roars that we ha already identified as coming from
different emitters: for every vocalization category the best combination of variables for the classification has been determined.
We have obtained a correct classification value between 51,2% and 92,3% of cases.
327
The roars which have allowed a better dis-crimination have been the chaotic ones, that means the harsh sounds with no clear
harmonic structure (Fitch et al.: 2001; Wilden et al.: 1998). The best results have been actually obtained by analyzing only the
“grunt roars”: the groups (individuals) have been classified at a very significant level, equal to 94,8%. The best combination of
variable was: the number of “grunt roars” in the bout, the number of the roars in the bout, duration, pause, interval, third and
fourth formant, total duration of the bout.
Discussion
From the data gathered has emerged that we can not use simple identifying keys for the comprehension and distinction of the
stags’ language code. On the other hand the individu-ality has been found in a very evident way, first by the observer, who has
gathered the sounds, and secondly by the Cluster Analysis, which has compared all these groups and which has defined an effective highly significant statistic separation based on objective acoustic measures: this means that it is possible to distin-guish and
recognize individual males by using their vocalizations. This study may lead to im-portant applications in applied zoology, with
the aim of widening the knowledge about the considered species and with the perspective of •••a concrete use in the demo-ecology field, in the wildlife management and in the monitoring of wild animals.
References
Fitch W. T., Neubauer J. & Herzel, H., (2001) Calls out of chaos: the adaptive significance of nonlinear phenomena in mammalian vocal production.
Animal Behavior, 2002, 63, 407-418.
Fitch, W. T. & Reby, D. (2001). The descen-dent larynx is not uniquely human. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. 268, 1669-1675.
Long, A. M., Moore N. P. & Hayden T. J. (1998). Vocalization in red deer (Cervus elaphus), sika deer (Cervus nippon), and red x sika hybrids. J. Zool.,
Lond., 244,123-134.
McComb, K. (1991). Female choice for roaring rates in red deer, Cervus elaphus. Animal Behavior, 41, 79-88.
Pépin, D., Cargnelutti, B., Gonzales, G., Joachim, J., Reby, D. (2001). Diurnal and seasonal variations of roaring activity of farmed red deer stags.
Applied animal be-havior science, 74, 233-239.
Reby D. , McComb K. et al. (2005). Red deer stags use formants as assessment cues during intrasexual agonistic interactions. The Royal Society, published online.
Reby D. & McComb K. (2003). Vocal communication and reproduction in deer. Advances in the study of behavior, vol 33.
Reby D. & McComb K. (2003). Anatomical constraints generate honesty: acoustic cues to age and weight in the roars of red deer stags. Animal
Behavior, 65, 519-530.
Reby D. , Hewison M. , Izquierdo M. ,& Pépin D. (2001). Red deer (Cervus elaphus) hind discriminate the roars of their current harem-holder stag
and those of neighbouring stags. Ethology, 107, 951-959.
Reby, D., Joachim, J., Lauga, J., Lek, S., Aulagnier, S. (1998). Individuality in the groans of fallow deer (Dama dama) bucks. J. Zool. ,Lond, 245, 7984.
Wilden, I., Herzel, H., Peters, G., & Tembrock G., (1998). Subharmonics, biphonation, and deterministic chaos in mammal vocali-zation. Bioacoustics,
9, 171-196.
328
Effects of sarcoptic mange on the activity and spatial
behaviour of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in the canton
of Geneva, Switzerland
Fischer, Claude 1, Weber, Jean-Marc 2
1
Office for Field Ecology, F. Soguel 14, 2053 Cernier
2
KORA, Muri b.
Corresponding author: Claude Fischer, Office for Field Ecology, F. Soguel 14, 2053 Cernier, tel.: +41-2-23-20-93-39,
Key words: radio-tracking, urbanisation
Abstract
After an absence of over 20 years, an epidemic outbreak of sarcoptic mange has struck the canton of Geneva in the mid-nineties.
By 2005 the disease is still present and the epidemic wave is still noticeable in the north and east of the canton. In the western
half, the area which was first concerned, the disease now seems to have become endemic.
At the beginning of the outbreak, most parts of the canton were free of mange and sick foxes were only observed in the southwestern quarter of the canton. This gave us the oportunity to compare the spatial behaviour and activity pattern of foxes coming from mangy and healthy populations. This was still possible after the spread of the epidemic as some areas remain free of
mange. Actually, the agglomeration of Geneva and the lake and rivers act as barriers against the movements of the fauna. The
different faunistic compartments delimited by these barriers are however very comparable with respect to landscape structure,
climate, human activities and other environmental factors.
Aim of our project is to identify behaviour modifications due to sarcoptic mange, especially the spatial and social behaviour,
which are the main factors influencing the spread of the disease on a regional scale.
In our poster, we will present the results regarding changes in the spatial behaviour and activity of the mangy foxes.
Red foxes were captured with snares, foot-snares and traps, and were fitted with radio-collars. Mangy and young individuals
were fitted with expandable collars. All transmitters had an activity sensor. Foxes were then tracked regularly at night, with
localisations taken every 15 minutes. In addition, they were localised at day time at least once a day. The receiver was left turned
on for 2 to 3 minutes each time to see if the tracked individual was resting or in activity.
On a preliminary data set (3 adults and 9 subadults), mangy foxes appeard to be more often active at day time and to have less
resting periods at night, although not significant for subadults. We still have to analyse the whole data set (8 adults and 12
subadults).
In respect to the spatial behaviour, we also still have to analyse our data. From our field observations it seems that spatial behaviour is also modified by mange. The activity periods of foxes are often interrupted by periods of "immobility". Actually, they
are often localised at the same place, but in activity (probably scratching as observed several times). Furthermore, individuals
with severe infections appear to seek sunny places at day time, especially in the morning. They are often spotted by people and
show no fear towards them. We even made several observations of foxes with heavy infestation walking around a residential
area amidth the traffic and close to people
From our field experience, it is likely that mangy and healthy foxes differ in their behaviour, but that the magnitude of these
differences depend on the degree of infection. In our analysis we will consider 3 levels of infection based on the type and extent
of observed lesions (adapted from Pence et al. 1983).
References
Pence D B, Windberg L A, Pence B C, Sprowls R (1983) The epizootiology and pathology of sarcoptic mange in Coyotes from South Texas.
J. Parasitol., Vol. 69, No. 6, 1100-1115
329
Spatio-temporal movements among red deer males,
Cervus elaphus, introduced to Patagonia
Flueck, Werner T.
Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnologicas, C.C. 176 8400 Bariloche - Argentina
Corresponding author: Werner T. Flueck. Tel. : +54-2-94-44-67-345, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: behavior, rut, migration
Introduction
Spatio-temporal movements of adult red deer males (Cervus elaphus) in Patagonia are described. The study area comprises
heterogeneous mountain habitats due to a strong precipitation gradient. Hunting focuses on mature males with few females
killed, senescent males are shot regularly, harvest is likely <5% of the population, and predation is mainly from puma (Puma
concolor) (Flueck et al., 2005). Overall mortality has not prevented the population from reaching high densities and food
limitation (Flueck, 2001). The main areas observed during the rut for this study represent habitat highly attractive to females
groups which results in intense breeding activities. These areas have not received hunting for many years and during breeding,
deer remain in open areas continuously. There are no anthropogenic barriers, but a 530 km2 lake borders to the south and
represents the lowest elevation available at 765 m. A mountain massif raises to the north (2000 m) and the area changes from
nearly closed forests to the west to tree-less grasslands to the east, the tree line being at about 1500 m. The rut takes place
March-mid April and occurs at all elevations. Males were captured in rutting areas at 900 and at 1000 m elevation.
Variations in rutting areas and behavior
Likely the most attractive rutting areas for males consist of large, flat and open wet meadows, surrounded by hills covered by
a mixture of brush, forests and open patches of grassland. Meadows are preferred by females such that hundreds of deer may
be present. Many females eat and bed in such meadows during all day hours, whereas other groups come and go by as much
as 5 km, creating diverse opportunities for male behavior. Some males rut by remaining in preferred bedding areas of female
groups which daily go to wet meadows. Other males use a waiting strategy at the interface of hill brush/forest areas and lowland grasslands, as female groups typically spend some time feeding at such sites before moving on. Smaller wet meadows or
riparian crossings also delay female groups while feeding there, and some males establish themselves there. Female groups
spend most time in larger wet meadows, possibly due to better foraging, but also likely from encountering social well-being
from large groups in open areas, such as through security, social facilitation of breeding behavior especially as male activity is
most pronounced in such sites. Here, males in central areas typically keep a territory continuously for many days. If females
become inactive, such as during hot spells, or a disturbance causing females to move into surrounding edge habitat, these males
may be sleeping or dozing in their territory.
Patterns are strongest during the main rut, but the time before and after the peak cause the pattern to be disintegrated. Holding
of territory by males occurs longest in areas most used by females. Therefore, a given male might change his strategy during
the course of a breeding season, depending on his social and physical condition. The breeding strategy employed by a given
male likely depends on his social status. This in turn is strongly influenced by his age and body mass. As males move into a
breeding area from all directions, and from very distinct habitat conditions, it can be expected that the relationship between
body mass and age is rather variable, and maximum body mass also is highly variable.
Spatio-temporal movements of radio marked red deer males
Male 1 was caught during winter at mid elevations. During 5 yrs he stayed in the same area of 1300-1500 ha, rutting in forest
and brush areas with individual females or small groups, and at age of 10 yrs reaching 10 points. He never appeared in open
wet meadows and was never observed by hunters.
Male 2 was caught at mid elevations during late rut. He was observed from 10 to 13 yrs of age. He arrived right at the onset of
peak breeding and maintained a territory of prime area, but left the rutting area earlier with more age. He migrated nearly 16
linear km across a high mountain massif. He had 14 points and antler lengths were 106/111 cm.
Male 3 was caught at low elevations during late rut (Fig. 1). He was observed from 6 to 8 yrs of age (12 points). He migrated
21 linear km to high mountain areas, arrived very early and left very late during the rutting period. In addition, he spent a
minimum of 2 weeks at intermediate elevations before descending to the rutting area. Before the main rut ended, he remained
in the forest/brush zone surrounding the favored wet meadows, but with the leaving of the so far dominant males from the
meadow, he moved to an area with transit of female groups, claimed a territory and was very active. At the time of leaving the
area, he had lost a lot of body weight.
330
Male 4 was caught at low elevations during late rut. He was observed from 9 to 11 yrs of age, from 14 to 18 points. He migrated 12 km to lowest possible elevations. He arrived in early rut but remained over a week in forest and brush surrounding the
wet meadows. Thereafter he claimed a territory with transit of female groups in the meadow in the first 2 rut seasons, and a
central area of continued use by females during the third rut season, where he remained as dominant male for only 8-13 days.
Male 5 was caught at low elevations during late rut. He migrated 24 km to low elevations. He returned aged 12 yrs with 11
points and claimed a territory in a meadow with transit of female groups. Towards the end of the rut he would also follow female
groups as they entered or left the meadow area, and he left the rutting area late. His full body weight was 195 kg, antler length
was 102/98 cm, head weight was 6.2 kg. His final rutting behavior and migration from the area were as follows. For several
days he was from 6-21:00 in areas where females passed through, moving between bedding areas and wet meadows. Following
females for some 2 km, he would spend the night in a part of the wet meadow with transit of females (21-6:00). This pattern
occurred one additional day, but he moved to a central place of the wet meadow, because a dominant male had left there. He
also went the next night, but then from 24-6:00 he moved 3.5 km, and by 12:00 another 4.4 km. In the evening he moved
another 3 km and then remained the night in the same location. The next 33 hours he moved slowly another 7.5 km, then a
quick 2.7 km to end in his home range for the rest of the year. For the next several days he remained in an area < 200x200m.
Male 6 was caught at low elevations during late rut. He was about 14 or 15 yrs old as judged by antler length (120 cm), 10
points (over mature), very deep voice, and a neck circumference below the chin of 104 cm (could not place a radio). He had a
territory in a central part of a wet meadow, because more dominant males had already left. However, as females left the area,
he followed them rather than remain in his territory. The following year he also was seen the first time right after a dominant
male left the area, and he claimed his spot. After only 5 days he left again. Although a very large male with conspicuous ear
streamers, no other people have seen him in 2 yrs and there is no information about his migratory behavior.
Male 7 was caught at low elevations during late rut. Observed during 2 seasons he is now about 6-7 yrs old with 12 points. He
did not migrate from the area, remained in forest and brush edges of wet meadows, and followed groups of females as they
move to bedding areas.
Male 8 was caught at low elevations during late rut. He is about 6-7 yrs old with 16 points, and established a territory in a wet
meadow with transit of female groups. He was one of the last males still bedding during the day within his rutting territory. As
of now it is not know where he remains after the rutting season.
Discussion
Migratory behavior shows much individual variation which can be expected given highly heterogenous habitats resulting from
large differences in elevation and precipitation. The described migrations are not related to movements between summer and
winter ranges. Such seasonal movements occur in females and undoubtably among other males, for instance the ones which rut
at high altitude. Male 1 did not change his non-migratory pattern between 6-10 yrs of age and can be expected to continue in
the same way. Male 7 though might yet change to a migratory pattern as he now reached 6-7 yrs of age. Male 3 was migratory already at about 6 yrs old, and males 2, 4 and 5 where all migratory at 9-11 yrs old. Whereas males 2 and 3 migrated to high
elevation mountain as observed in the Swiss national park (Haller, 2002), males 4 and 5 migrated to areas even lower than the
rutting areas. Such completely different behavior may stem from the exposure to different migratory patterns of the mothers.
Thus, young males accompanying mothers migrating to high elevation summer ranges may be more prone to use high elevations later in life as home ranges outside the rutting period, and young males from resident mothers (non-migratory) may displace themselves laterally rather than altitudinally. Also, other males are rutting in these same areas which are non-rutting home
ranges of males considered in this study. The latter are seldom or never seen by hunters using those areas because these males
no longer participate in the rut. Nonetheless, it presents a challenge to managers as migratory males can potentially be subjected to hunting several times: early hunting season before the leave their non-rut home range, intermediate staging areas, the
actual rut, late hunting season when they have returned to their non-rut home range.
Breeding strategies can also be expected to vary greatly among individual males. Body mass appears to be the major determinant of reproductive success when males confront each other (Clutton-Brock et al., 1982). Besides the influence from the
mother (birth size, initial growth rate, social status of mother), the quality of the non-rut home range is most important for final
body growth and yearly antler growth. In heterogenous environments it can be expected that same-aged males using a given
rutting area vary greatly in body mass and antler growth. During the main rut, the largest males (eg males 2 and 4) are found
in central parts of wet meadow areas where they remain in their territory continuously. Before and after they occupy these sites,
other types of males occupy the same place. They are younger (male 8), over-mature (male 6) or of smaller body size (male 5).
Although non-prime males may also remain continuously in the site close to the main rut, in early and late rut they follow
groups of females as they enter or leave these site. During the main rut, less dominant males establish territories in parts of
meadows which mainly receive female groups in transit to central areas. Such males (male 5) often move to central areas once
dominant males (male 4) leave. More subordinate males (male 7) will move loosely in forested and brushy areas surrounding
wet meadows, following female groups as they move in and out of meadows.
During the rut, many female groups however do not use wet meadow areas, rather they remain in alpine habitat, in forested or
brushy areas. A female with GPS radio clearly used a major wet meadow (1400x950 m) continuously during the spring, but
remained in the forest/brush throughout the rut. Male 1 has been rutting in such environments where he was observed with single adult females, and undetected by ranch people and hunters in 5 yrs. Possibly his adopted strategy resulted from small body
and antler size (10 point with 10 yrs).
331
Whereas large males can easily monopolize large female groups in open meadows, smaller males can avoid much confrontation by focusing on closed habitats where female social groups are small and dispersed. In some years, climatic conditions result
in more females foraging below canopy, where shade had allowed better forage conditions. Thus, in heterogeneous habitats with
annually variable climatic conditions, large body size might not always present a special advantage as breeding success in
closed habitat might also be quite high for males successful at locating dispersed females.
References
Clutton-Brock TH, Guinness FE, Albon SD (1982) Red DeerBehavior and Ecology of two Sexes. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Flueck WT, Smith-Flueck JM, Bonino NA (2005) A preliminary analysis of cause-specific and capture-related mortality, and survival of adult red deer
in northwestern Patagonia. Ecol Austral, in press.
Flueck WT (2001) Body reserves and pregnancy rates of introduced red deer in Patagonia (Argentina) after a period of drought.
Ecol Austral 11:11-24.
Haller H (2002) Der Rothirsch im Schweizerischen Nationalpark und dessen Umgebung. Eine alpine Population von Cervus elaphus zeitlich und räumlich dokumentiert. Nat.park-Forsch. Schweiz 91:1-144.
332
The analysis of hunting influence on population dynamics of
animals: The approach of mathematical modelling
Efim Frisman
Institute for Complex Analysis of Regional Problems, Far-Eastern Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences
Sholom-Aleikhem St., 4, Birobidzhan, 679016, Russia
Corresponding author: Efim Frisman. Tel.: +42-6-22-20-405, fax: +42-6-22-61-362, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: population fluctuations, optimization of harvest withdrawal
A general mathematical model of population number dynamics of hunting species was developed. It reflects periodicity of the
reproduction process (model with discrete time) and is focused on the description and research of results of trade influence.
Model parameters are estimated on the basis of the harvest statistics of the hunting facilities in the average part of Amur river
basin. Modeling retrospective forecasts have allowed showing the adequacy of the model for the majority of harvest species.
Analytical and numerical studies of this model have led to the following conclusions.
Without hunting, the character of population dynamics is determined by reproductive potential and food stocks. If reproductive
potential is small then population dynamics actually reflect (with some delay) fluctuations of food stocks. We notice such
dynamics in wild boar, wapiti and some other species. If reproductive potential is big then fluctuations of population number
become more abruptly and are determined, basically, by density-dependent factors. Fluctuations of stocks of forage play a background role. Squirrel is as a typical example. Harvesting reduces the fluctuation intensity connected to the raised density, but
keeps the fluctuations connected to change in food stocks. Moreover, as harvesting intensity depends on population size, hunting can both "shake" the compelled fluctuations, and results in population size falling down to its full degeneration as well. The
obtained results give a qualitatively new picture of mechanisms and character of some harvesting species dynamics; they allow
estimating the harvesting role from a new position (Frisman et al, 2001).
We shall consider the opportunity of such an approach by example of modeling of population dynamics of the Manchurian
squirrel Sciurus vulgaris mantchuricus.
We shall assume that the next processes mainly determine changing the number of the local Manchurian squirrel population in
the course of a year: reproduction, survival and hunting.
Let us describe the change of the population number as a result of each process. We assume that the hunting occurs after survival, but before reproduction. Let us denote the population number of some (n) generation after hunting and before
reproduction as Xn, and the initial number of the next (n+1) generation (after reproduction of Xn but before the hunting) as Zn+1.
We shall consider that the transition from Xn to Zn+1 is mainly determined by reproduction and natural death rate, and from Zn+1
to Xn+1 by hunting.
In the course of reproduction, the population increases. Let us assume that as a result of reproduction B(Xn) newborn individuals have appeared. B(Xn) is a function describing dependence of number of newborn on number of the parents. After survival
these new individuals will increase the population size in (n+1) year on S1(B(Xn)). S1 is a function describing dependence of
the number of the survivor individuals on the number of newborn. From Xn of the parents some part will live over the next
year. We have designated this part as S2(Xn). Thus the change in the number of population in the period of reproduction and survival is described by the equation:
Zn+1 = S1(B(Xn))+ S2(Xn) = F(Xn).
We applied various variants to dependence of function F(X): Beverton and Holt’s model, Ricker's model, Hassell's model
(Hassell at al, 1976, May, 1986). The Ricker's model
Zn+1 = F(Xn) = aXnexp(bXn)
has turned out most applicable.
The equation describes the relation of population sizes in adjacent generations with stable food reserves. However, these
reserves vary significantly from year to year. Manchurian squirrels feed mainly on cedar nuts, and changes in the nut harvest
may seriously affect squirrel population. Let us regard coefficient b, corresponding in the model to the competitive ability of
individuals, as the linear function of the arguments Cn and Cn+1 for the cedar nut harvest in consecutive years:
bn = b0 - b1Cn - b2Cn
As a result we have received the following equation of reproduction of squirrel population:
Zn+1 = F(Xn) = aXnexp((b0 - b1Cn - b2Cn)Xn).
333
Now let us examine the change in population size during the hunting season. At this time it naturally declines, and the rate of
change is proportional to the size of the population:
dZ/dt = -m(Z)Z
Value m (number of individual deaths per time unit) is the function of population size. (Bazykin 1993). We may take coefficient m(Z) as representing only hunting deaths. The hunter finds it profitable to hunt squirrels when population density is high
and has little interest in hunting this species when population density is low. We may therefore assume that in each time unit
the number of hunters is proportional to the total number of squirrel population. But number of the kill (hunting death rate) is
in turn proportional to the number of hunters, it is clear that it is proportional to the total population number: m(Z) = kZ and
the equation is transformed so that:
dZ/dt = -kZ2.
Integrating this equation and taking into account that Z(0) = Zn+1 and Z(T) = Xn+1 (T is the hunting time), we obtain:
Xn+1 = Zn+1/(1+h Zn+1) = F(Xn)/(1+h F(Xn))
where h = kT.
Some of individuals are withdrawn from population during the hunt. Let us denote the size of withdrawal as Y. As we ignore
the natural death rate in the hunting season:
Yn+1 = Zn+1 - Xn+1 = h(Zn+1)2/(1+h Zn+1) = h(F(Xn))2/(1+h F(Xn))
It is interesting to note that
1) the size of withdrawal increases monotonously with the growth of Z; the share (part) of a population which perishes during
hunt grows tending to 1;
2) number of population which remains after the hunt increases also but tends to the constant number 1/h.
Let us substitute in the equations for number of a population (Xn+1) and size of withdrawal (Yn+1) meaning of function F(Xn) and
to receive finally
Xn+1 = (aXnexp((b0 - b1cn - b2Cn)Xn))/(1+ ahXnexp((b0 - b1Cn - b2Cn)Xn))
Yn+1 = h(aXnexp((b0 - b1Cn - b2Cn)Xn))2/(1+ ahXnexp((b0 - b1Cn - b2Cn)Xn))
Fig 1a presents the number of squirrel pelts (fur purchases), termed Y*, taken from the given population over 25 years of
exploitation. The cedar nut harvest (yield) is given on the fig 1b for the same period of time
Fig. 1
Fig. 2
On the basis of these data, five coefficients of model were selected, namely values a, b0, b1, b2, and h (Emlen, Freeman, 2003).
The method of Levenberg-Marquart was used.
This procedure gave the following coefficient values:
a = 8,89 b0 = 0,158 b1 = 0,023
b2 = 0,015 h = 0,049
Fig 2a shows the diagrams for the actual number of pelts and those calculated on the basis of the coefficients found by model.
We see that the simulation revealed almost all the pelt production peaks.
The analysis of adequacy to model was checked in the following manner. Coefficients of the model were selected as described
above for the first 20 seasons. The coefficient values were as follows:
a = 8, 94 b0 = 0,149 b1 = 0,019
b2 = 0,010 h = 0,051
Then the expected number of pelts was calculated on the basis of the model and including data on cedar nut harvest for the following 5 years. The diagrams on the fig 2b show the results of this calculation from which we see that the model is able to forecast a production peak much higher than the value of pelt production, on which the coefficients were selected.
The absence of any significant disagreement between coefficient values as selected for 20 and 25 years of squirrel hunting is
yet another argument in favor of the adequacy of the model.
334
The coincidence of simulated and actual results suggests that the model takes into account the most substantial mechanisms of
population dynamics. Let us note that rejection of any of the basic assumptions leads to complete loss of correspondence
between the simulated and actual data. Hence the above-cited set of the assumptions is essential and apparently necessary.
On the basis of the developed model the problem of optimization of the size of harvest withdrawal from a population is investigated. It is shown, that optimum harvest intensity should not exceed a level of natural ecological limitation of a population.
Quantitatively proved norms of withdrawal for each harvest population for the current season are given. Limits that provide the
greatest possible level of withdrawal are calculated. Development of the given approaches will lead to a new strategy of using
bioresources and the gradual transition from harvest ideology to economic wildlife management.
The work was partly supported by the RFBR (grants 03-01-00044, 04-04-97000) and by the Program of Presidium of RAS
“Bioresources” (grant FEB RAS 04-1-OBN-106)
References
Bazykin A D (1993) Theoretical and mathematical ecology: dangerous boundaries and criteria of approach them. Mathematics and Modeling. Nova.
Sci. Publishers, Inc., New York
Emlen J M, Freeman D C, Kirchhoff M D, Alados C L, Escos J, Duda J J (2003) Fitting population models from field data. Eco Mod 162:119-143
Frisman E Ya, Sycheva E V, Izrailskii Yu G (2001) Population dynamic instability of trade species connected with the catch influence //Doklady (Proc
of Russian Academy of science) 380 no3: 425-429
Hassell M P, Lawton J N, May R M (1976) Patterns of dynamical behavior in single-species population. J Anim Ecol 45 no 2:471-486
May R M (1986) When two and two make four: nonlinear phenomena in ecology. Proc R Soc London B 228 no 1252: 241-264
335
Experience and results of a sanitary control program in a wild
boar (Sus scrofa) population in Bergamo Province (Italy)
Gaffuri Alessandra 1, Tagliabue Silvia 2, Pacciarini Maria Lodovica 3, Zanoni MariaGrazia 4,Vismara Adriana 1,
Alborali G. Loris 4, Bonazza Vittorio 5, Consoli Costantino 6, Orusa Riccardo 7
1
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell’Emilia Romagna “Bruno Ubertini“ (I.Z.S.L.E.R.),
Via Rovelli 53, I-24100 Bergamo, Italy
2
I.Z.S.L.E.R., National Reference Centre of Leptospirosis in veterinary field
3
I.Z.S.L.E.R., National Reference Centre of bovine tuberculosis
4
I.Z.S.L.E.R
5
I.Z.S.L.E.R- OEVR
6
Veterinary Department, Azienda Sanitaria Locale, Provincia di Bergamo
7
I. Z. S. del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, National Reference Centre for wild animal diseases
Corresponding author: Alessandra Gaffuri. Tel.: +39-0-35-42-36-036, fax: +39-03-52-99-091,
Key words: wildlife- infectious diseases - zoonosis- epidemiological survey
Abstract
The role of wildlife in the epidemiology of some infectious diseases is worldwide under discussion. Health monitoring programs have been performed in many countries of the world and several infectious diseases have been described. Sometimes the
evidence of inter-specific transmission of infectious agents between domestic and wild animals has been demonstrated, while,
in some cases, eradication of diseases in domestic animals is unsuccessful due to persistent cycling of infection in sylvatic reservoirs (Bengis et al., 2002 ).
In our country, in the last twenty years, wild ungulates, either naturally or due to management reasons, increased and expanded their geographical range (Pedrotti et al, 2001). In particular wild boar population is growing as a consequence of translocation, changes in land use and different game management. For these reasons we have been performing a sanitary monitoring
program in wild boar (Sus scrofa) since 1997 in Bergamo Province in northern Italy. The aim of the control was to estimate the
presence of infectious and parasitic diseases in wild boar population by serosurvey, necroscopy, cultural, virological and parassitological examinations. We investigated diseases that may have impact on wildlife populations and that may be transmitted
between wildlife, livestock and humans.
The study area is located in Lombardia, a region in northern Italy, which covers 450 km2 between170 m and 1636 m of altitude (fig.1) (Magnetti et al., 2004). In this area there are about 500 wild boars and other free-ranging wild species such as red
deer (Cervus elaphus) and roe deer (Capreolus capreolus). Cattle, domestic goats, sheep and domestic pigs partially share the
pastures with wild animals and contact between wild boars and domestic animals may occasionally occur.
We collected samples during seven hunting seasons by hunter’s cooperation; hunters recorded on a questionnaire the data, the
sex, the age and the geographical origin of the animal. We collected sera for serological investigations, muscle for trichinoscopic examination and viscera (lynphnodes, lungs, kidneys and spleen) for macroscopic inspection and bacterial and viral isolations.
Considering the epidemiology of trichinellosis in Italy (Pozio, 1996) and the risk of contracting the parasitic disease by eating
wild game meat, we controlled almost all the hunted wild boars during 1997-2004 for this zoonosis. We performed 1317
trichinoscopic tests (pepsin-chloric digestion) and we did not find evidence for the presence of Trichinella spp..
We analysed sera for these selected infections: Brucellosis (complement fixation test and ELISA), Classical Swine fever
(ELISA), Swine vescicular disease (ELISA), Leptospirosis (MAT), Encefalomiocarditis (ELISA), Toxoplasmosis (Latex agglutination test), Aujeszky’s disease (ELISA), Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (ELISA).
Several sera could not be tested for all infections because of the low amount or poor quality due to haemolysis. The results of
the serosurvey are reported in table 1.
We found no evidence for the presence of Bucellosis, Classical Swine fever, Swine vescicular disease, Aujeszky’s disease,
Porcine Reproductive and RespiratorySsyndrome.
We detected antibodies against Leptospirosis, Encefalomiocarditis and Toxoplasmosis.
Concerning leptospirosis, we found remarkable positive reactions for L. interrogans serovar bratislava, as demonstrated in different parts of Italy (Ponti et al.,1991, Tagliabue et al.,1996); it is also noteworthy the seroprevalence for L. pomona and grip336
potyphosa serovars. In the last two years we also submitted to culture 32 kidneys
from seropositive animals or with nephritis but we did not isolate Leptospira spp.
Nevertheless it is possible that seropositive wild boars can transmit
L. bratislava by venereal way and with urine, as already proved in swine (Ellis et
al.,1985).
For tuberculosis control we performed macroscopic inspection on 390 mesenteric
lynphnodes and 314 parotidean or submadibular lynphnodes. We found tuberculosis-like lesions in 48 lynphonodes from the head region, but, in contrast with
other studies (Serraino et al, 1999, Gortazar et al.,2005), we could not isolate
Mycobacterium. bovis.
However 11 out of the 44 lymph node samples were positive by PCR amplification of IS6110, a target sequence present in the genome of Mycobacterium
Tuberculosis Complex mycobacteria.
Further studies performed on 4 out of the 11 positive samples by PCR-RFLP of
gyr B sequence (Kasai et al., 2000) showed a RFLP pattern compatible with identification of M. microti.
In order to analyse the temporal and spatial correlations of the results we have
been collecting data on location and disease status of wild boars since 2003. The
localization of areas and wild boar hunting sites were obtained via tracing and
pointing on paper map (scale 1:25.000) by hunters and digitisation using ArcGIS®
ESRITM software (fig.2).
Fig 1. Study area in northern Italy. The
study area is delimited by a sketch line.
Fig. 2. Distribution of serological results for Leptospirosis in 2003.
337
Table 1. Seroprevalence for selected diseases in wild boars.
The results of our study show that in
Bergamo province wild boars do not constitute a reservoir for most of infection
diseases analysed, but further investigations are necessary to assess the role of
wild boar in the epidemiology of tuberculosis and leptospirosis.
We believe that this sanitary control program is an significant example of coordinated surveillance between veterinary
service and hunting associations; the
research activities in wildlife diseases control is important in order to improve strategies in wildlife management and to prevent
the risk of zoonosis by manipulation of
hunted animals or game-meat eating.
Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to dr. P.Cordioli,
dr. E. Brocchi, dr. S. Grazioli, dr. D.
Gelmetti, dr. D. Pennelli, the hunting district “Ambito Territoriale di Caccia
Prealpinio”for their collaboration and to S.
Manenti and D. Loda for their technical
assistance.
This study was supported by Ministry of
Health, Italy, grant 2002 PRC “Monitoring
of Tuberculosis and Leptospirosis in wild
boar and of Tuberculosis in red deer”.
References
Bengis R G, Kock R A, Fischer J (2002) Infectious animal diseases: the wildlife/livestock interface. Rev sci tech Off Int Epiz 21 (1): 53-65
Ellis W A, McParland P J, Bryson D G, Mc Nulty M s (1985) Leptospirosis in pig urogenital tracts and fetuses. Vet Rec 117:66-67
Gortazar C, Vicente J, Samper J, Garrido J M, Fernadez-De-Mera I G, Gavin P, Juste R A, Martin C, Acevedo P, De La Puente M, Höfle U (2005)
Molecular characterization of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex isolates from wild ungulates in south-central Spain. Vet. Res. 36, 43-52
Kasai H, Ezaki T, Harayama S (2000) Differenziation of phylogenetically related slowly growing mycobacteria by their gyrB sequence. J. Clin.
Microbiol. 38: 301-308.
Magnetti P, Mantecca P, Bacchetta R, Cesaris C,Cavenago C, Geremia R (2004) Carta delle vocazioni faunistiche. Studio per la sostenibilità della popolazione di cinghiale sul territorio bergamasco. Assessorato Agricoltura Caccia e Pesca, Provincia di Bergamo, Bergamo.
Pedrotti L, Duprè E, Preatoni D, Toso S (2001) Banca Dati Ungulati- Status, distribuzione, consistenza, gestione, prelievo venatorio e potenzialità delle
popolazioni di Ungulati in Italia. Bologna, Istituto Nazionale per la Fauna Selvatica. “Biologia e conservazione della fauna”, Vol. 109:128
Ponti N, Addis G, Mele P, Maniga A, Scarano C (1991) Diffusione della leptospirosi in Sardegna: indagine sierologica su cinghiali cacciati negli 87/89.
Atti XLIV Convegno S.I.S.Vet. 963-967.
Pozio E (1996) Epidemiologia della trichinellosi in Italia ed in Europa. Atti del Convegno nazionale: ecopatologia della fauna selvatica, Bologna1517 dicembre 1994- supplemento alle Ricerche di Biologia della Selvaggina, vol. XXIV, pp289-296
Serraino A, Marchetti G, Sanguinetti V, Rossi M C, Zanoni R, Catozzi L, Bandiera A, Dini W, Mignone W, Franzetti F, Gori A(1999) Monitoring of
transmission of Tuberculosis between Wild Boars and cattle: genotypical analysis of strains by molecolar epidemiology techniques. J. Clin. Micr. 37
(9): 2766-2771.
Tagliabue S, Raffo A, Foni E, Candotti P, Barigazzi G (1996) Anticorpi per Leptospira interrogans in sieri di cinghiale (Sus scrofa) dell’Appennino
parmense. Suppl. Ric. Biol. Selvaggina XXIV. 631-635.
338
Molecular method of sexing red-legged partridges
(Alectoris rufa)
García, C.B.1, Ruscio, D.2, Savva, D. 2, Arruga, M.V.1
Laboratory of Cytogenetics & Molecular Genetics, Veterinary Faculty, University of Zaragoza, C/ Miguel Servet 177,
50013-Zaragoza. Spain.
1
2
School of Animal and Microbial Sciences, The University of Reading, Whiteknights
Corresponding author: M.V- Arruga: Tel./fax: +34-7-67-61-662, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: molecular method, sex identification, red-legged partridge, CHD gene
Introduction
The red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) is an avian species that belongs to the order Galliformes, family Phaisanidae. It is
found mostly in Mediterranean areas (Spain, France, Portugal), but also in parts of northern Italy and southern England. The
partridge is popular as small game and many hunters consider it to be one of the most prized species in Spain. Besides hunting, it also has an important ecological value as it represents the characteristic avifauna of southern Europe. The number of wild
red-legged partridges has decreased for a number of reasons, including excessive hunting, high predation, inadequate re-introductions with captive partridges from farms (some crossed with other species of partridge), destruction of its natural habitat or
persistent drought.
Male and female red-legged partridges have some morphological differences. The presence of small metatarsal spurs on the
legs of male individuals has been the characteristic most widely used to distinguish between the sexes, but this way of sexing
partridges is not totally reliable and sexing has to be confirmed with biometrics studies (Sáenz de Buruaga et al., 1991). The
aim of this study was to find a molecular method of analysis for sexing red-legged partridges and to achieve this we have used
DNA amplification by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and analyses of CHD (chromodomain-helicase-DNA-binding
protein) genes that have proven to be useful in many avian species previously (Ellegren, 1996; Griffiths et al., 1998). This gene
is Z chromosome linked in the chicken (Griffiths and Korn, 1997) and results of chromosome painting using chicken probes
on chromosomes of red-legged partridge have demonstrated a high homology between these species (Kasai et al., 2003). In
this study we compared two different methods for sexing red-legged partridges: digestion of PCR products with restriction
enzymes (RFLP or restriction fragment length polymorphism) and real-time PCR.
DNA was extracted from blood samples of red-legged partridges kept on FTA® cards. Using this technique only 2 or 3 drops
of blood are required, minimising the contact and disturbance to the animals.
PCR amplification was performed using primer P2 (5’-TCTGCATCGCTAAATCCTTT-3’) and primer P8
(5’-CTCCCAAGGATGAGRAAYTG-3’) described by Griffiths et al, (1998) and the final reaction (25 µl) conditions were as
follows: 100 - 500 ng of genomic DNA, 250 ng of each primer, 200 µM of each deoxynucleotide triphosphate (dNTP), 1.5 mM
MgCl2, 16.6 mM (NH4)2SO4, 67 mM Tris-HCl (pH=8), 0.01 % Tween-20 and 0.15 units of Taq polymerase. An initial denaturing step al 94ºC for 90s was followed by 30 cycles of amplification (50ºC for 45s, 72ºC for 45s and 94ºC for 30s) and finally 50ºC for 1 min and 72ºC for 5 min.
PCR products were separated by electrophoresis in 3% agarose gels stained with ethidium bromide. PCR products were extracted from the gels and purified for DNA sequencing using a DNA Gel Extraction Kit (MILLIPORE Corporation). BioEdit (Hall,
1999) software was used to align the resulting sequences with ClustalW multiple alignment and to search for differences
between birds of different sex. Prior to the alignment, a consensus DNA sequence was determined for each animal from the
sequences of the two strands of the. These sequences were also compared with the original sequences from CHD gene of
chicken.
Using the information derived from these comparisons, two methods were used to analyse single nucleotide polymorphisms
(SNPs) between the sexes. In the first, one SNP was studied by RFLP or digestion of the PCR products with a restriction
enzyme (DraIII) at 37ºC for 5 hours. In the second method, a different SNP was studied by real-time PCR using different fluorescent probes for each allele; after an initial denaturation step at 95ºC for 10 minutes the PCR was performed for 40 cycles
at 92ºC for 15s and 60ºC for 1 minute. The reading of the fluorescence for each cycle was taken during the annealing step and
the results were visualized on the computer connected to the real-time thermocycler that shows the graph with the increase of
the fluorescence of one allele or the other.
339
The PCR amplification of the CHD gene in the red-legged partridge following the recommendations of Griffiths et al. (1998)
resulted in only one band for both sexes when analyzing results in a 3% agarose gel (Figure 1).
1
2
3
4
5
Figure 1. PCR amplification of the CHD gene in red-legged partridge using P2 and P8 primers
(Griffiths et al. 1998). Lane 1 shows molecular weight markers, lanes 2 and 4 correspond to
male birds and lanes 3 and 5 to female birds.
The CHD gene of the red-legged partridge was amplified from males and from females and then they were sequenced.
Comparison of the sequences from males and females showed some nucleotide differences and these enabled us to design different molecular methods to sex the red-legged partridge. Real-time PCR overcomes many problems associated with RFLP
analysis such as the manipulation of the PCR products, manual allelic identification or false allelic identification because of an
incomplete enzymatic digestion.
The results of this study can help breeders to sex early those individual birds that are difficult to sex using other early sexing
methods. These results may also be useful for conservation genetics or ecology studies
References
Ellegren H (1996) First gene on the avian W chromosome (CHD) provides a tag for universal sexing of non-ratite birds. Proc R Soc Lond B Biol Sci.
263(1377): 1635-1641.
Griffiths R, Korn R (1997) A CHD1 gene is Z chromosome linked in the chicken Gallus domesticus. Gene 197: 225-229.
Griffiths R, Double MC, Orr K, Dawson RJG (1998) A DNA test to sex most birds. Mol Ecol. 7: 1071-1075.
Hall TA (1999) BioEdit: a user-friendly biological sequence alignment editor and analysis program for Windows 95/98/NT. Nucleic Acids Symp Series.
41: 95-98.
Kasai F, Garcia CB, Arruga MV, Ferguson-Smith M (2003) Chromosome homology between chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) and the red-legged
partridge (Alectoris rufa); evidence of the occurrence of a neocentromere during evolution. Cytogenet Genome Res. 102: 326-330.
Sáenz de Buruaga M, Lucio AJ, Purroy FJ (1991) Reconocimiento de sexo y edad en especies cinegéticas. Vitoria-Gasteiz: Gobierno Vasco y
Diputaciones Provinciales. Book.
340
Modeling the dynamics of raccoon (Procyon lotor) rabies
and estimating contact rates: An example of collaboration
leading to new insights
Gehrt, Stanley D. 1, Prange, Suzie 2, Laura L. 3
1
Ohio State University, 210 Kottman Hall, 2021 Coffey Road, Columbus, OH 43210 USA
2
Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation, Hungerford
3
University of Maryland
Corresponding author: Stanley Gehrt. Tel.: +1-6-14-29-21-930, fax: +1-6-14-29-27-432,
Key words: disease, social behavior, urbanization
Extended Abstract
Ecologic modeling as a product of cross-disciplinary collaborations often leads to new insight of current systems and investigations into areas previously untouched. Since 1999, a major collaborative endeavor has been blending techniques from epidemiology, population biology, veterinary public health, landscape ecology, dynamic modeling and geospatial simulation to
develop a basic conceptual and decision model for the spatial and temporal spread of raccoon rabies. Our long-term goal has
been to identify the crucial relationships between wildlife population ecology and disease dynamics through multidisciplinary
synergy in order to enhance management of animal and public health. Although this has been a major undertaking in itself, it
has also identified gaps in our knowledge and led us into new areas for research. Herein, we will summarize aspects of our
modeling effort and demonstrate how this collaboration has led us into new areas of research.
Raccoon-strain rabies is an emerging infectious disease that has spread across the Atlantic Coast and is threatening to expand
westward across North America (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 1997, Ohio Department of Health 2001). This
epizootic has had tremendous public health and economic costs (Uhaa et al. 1992), but we have a poor understanding of the
underlying ecology of host, virus, and environment that represent dynamic processes that typically affect the emergence of
infectious disease (Williams and Barker 2001). Thus, the overall goals of this project include generating information on fundamental population and landscape determinants underlying an emerging disease and linking new and existing information in
a spatially-dynamic model.
We expanded a simple, modified SEIR epidemic model (STELLA®, HPS, Inc.: http://www.hps-inc.com) into a raccoon rabies
model: Susceptible, Infected, Rabid, and Immune. We further partitioned Immunes into Immune/Post-expo-sure and
Immune/Vaccinated to facilitate simulation and assessment of control programs. We further divided the epidemiologic classes
into age/sex specific groupings.
To define relationships between compartments of the model, we used estimates based on extensive field data with mark-recapture and radiotelemetry. During an 8 year period, we livetrapped and marked 1,541 raccoons, and recorded >20,000 locations
from a subset of radiocollared individuals (Prange et al. 2003, 2004. We combined these estimates with published data on rabies
ecology to parameterize transition equations between model compartments.
Spatial Modeling Environment software (SME: http://iee.umces.edu/SME3) was used to transparently link the epidemic model
with GIS data, allowing the epidemic model to be replicated and run individually in multiple spatially related cells, with animals moving between adjacent cells. Immigration and emigration rates, connecting raccoon compartments in adjacent geographic cells, were determined from our radiotelemetry data as was movement parameters for healthy and rabid raccoons.
Through SME, the raccoon rabies model was run concurrently in 2009 2.6 km2 cells covering Cook County, Illinios, USA.
Outputs from simulation runs were in the form of maps and time series data. Introduction of 3 rabid raccoons into the southeastern corner of the map produced an epidemic wave that spread across the county. Rabies diffusion tended to follow river
corridors and to spread more quickly in areas where raccoon densities were highest. Major highways and rivers slowed expansion, and once the first wave of rabies passed through, there were fewer cases until raccoon populations rebounded. Season
influenced the pattern, with higher numbers of rabid raccoons if rabies first reached a cell after juveniles were born.
Although this modeling effort yielded some promising results, it was limited by the lack of information on contact rates for raccoons. Contact rate is a fundamental aspect of infectious disease epidemiology (Loveridge and Macdonald 2001, Ramsey et
al. 2002). However, this parameter is extremely difficult to estimate for free-ranging wildlife populations. Due largely to the
limits of existing technology, accurate contact information has been confined to highly observable species, which occupy relatively open habitats, and are large-bodied species (van der Jeugd and Prins 2000) or diurnal species that habituate quickly to
observers (Rood 1983). For secretive or nocturnal species, such as raccoons, complete and accurate information regarding rates
341
of intraspecific contact is lacking. Consequently, this lack of measurement prevents accurate prediction of the spread of any
infectious disease, including rabies.
To determine contact rates for raccoons we used recently developed radiocollars capable of detecting one another when within a given range. These “contact collars” contain a UHF transceiver that broadcasts a unique ID code, while simultaneously
“listening” for others. When two or more units are within range, their ID codes are detected and an onboard real-time clock
begins counting. When units move out of contact range for a specified time (also user defined), contact information is recorded. Recorded information consists of the identity of the contacted collar, time contact was initiated, and length of contact.
Contact rates of raccoons
To determine contact rate for a free-ranging raccoon population, we chose an area (approximately 18.5 ha) in Cook County,
Illinois, USA as our core trapping area in 2004. Our goal was to capture and radiocollar all adult raccoons occupying the core
area. During our initial trapping period we captured 59 raccoons a total of 147 times. Of these, 42 (20 males, 22 females) were
adults and were fitted with contact collars. Thirty-two adults were captured within the core area. In July and again in
November we reinitiated live trapping in the core and peripheral areas to recapture raccoons and download contact data.
We downloaded 31 collars (13 M, 18 F) and obtained a total of 34,001 records; 24 downloads were from “core” animals.
Duration of single contacts ranged from 1 sec to 7.7 hrs for females and from 1 sec to 18.2 hrs for males. Because downloads
for individual animals were conducted at different times and therefore represent different spans of time, we present summary
data from a 2-wk period during summer. Males contacted other individuals from 154 to 567 times and spent a total of 4-51 hrs
with conspecifics. The total number and duration of contacts for females were more variable than males, and exceeded that of
males at the upper ends of the ranges. Females contacted other individuals from 8 to 756 times and remained in contact with
other raccoons from 0.02 to 68 hrs.
Males contacted from 8 to 21 individuals, and the majority of contacts were with other males. Males recorded contacts with
females an average of 46 times for a mean duration of 0.9 hrs, whereas they recorded an average of 324 contacts with other
males with a mean duration of 17 hrs. For each individual, 46 to 97% of contacts and 50 to 100% of total contact time were
with other males. A common pattern among males was to have relatively high contact rates with 1-3 specific males, although
contact duration was typically greatest with a single male.
Females contacted a similar number of individuals within the 2-wk period as males (range: 4–20), however females contacted
males and females nearly equally. For each individual, 11-96% of contacts were with other females and 2-100% of total contact time was spent with other females. Strong patterns of variation suggest a social system that has not been described before.
This illustrates how collaborative modeling can lead to new and exciting avenues for research.
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (1997) Update: Raccoon rabies epizootic – United States. Morbid Mort Wkly Rep 45:1117-1120
Loveridge A, Macdonald D (2001) Seasonality in spatial organization and dispersal of sympatric jackals (Canis mesomelas and C. adustus): implications for rabies management. J Zool 253:101-111
Ohio Department of Health. 2001. Oral rabies vaccination history in Ohio. Accessible at: http://www.odh.state.oh.us/odhprograms/zoodis/rabies/pubs/
rabpubs1.htm. 7pp
Prange S, Gehrt S, Wiggers E (2003) Demographic factors contributing to high raccoon densities in urban landscapes. J Wildl Mgmt 67:324-333
Prange S, Gehrt S, Wiggers E (2004) Influences of anthropogenic resources on raccoon (Procyon lotor) movements and spatial distribution. J Mamm
85:483-490
Ramsey D, Spencer N, Caley P, Efford M, Hansen K, Lam M, Cooper D (2002) The effects of reducing population density on contact rates between
brushtail possums: implications for transmission of bovine tuberculosis. J App Ecol 39:806-818
Rood J (1983) The social system of the dwarf mongoose. In: Eisenberg J, Kleiman D (eds.) Recent advances in the study of mammalian behavior.
American Society of Mammalogists, Shippensburg, Pennsylvania:pp. 454-458
Uhaa I, Dato V, Sorhage F, Beckley J, Roscoe D, Gorsky R, Fishbein D (1992) Benefits and costs of using an orally absorbed vaccine to control rabies
in raccoons. J Am Vet Med Assoc 201:1873-1882
Van der Jeugd H, Prins H (2000) Movements and group structure of giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) in Lake Manyara National Park, Tanzania. J Zool
251:15-21
Williams E, Barker I (2001) Infectious diseases of wild mammals. Iowa State University Press, Des Moines, Iowa.
342
Hunters’ willingness to pay farmers for wildlife habitat
improvement actions (WHIA): a survey in three different
geographic areas in Italy
Genghini Marco 1, Ferrini Silvia 2, Romano Donato 2, Marangon Francesco 3, Romano Severino4 , Visintin Francesca 3
1
Istituto Nazionale per la Fauna Selvatica (I.N.F.S.), National Institute for Wildlife Management,
via Cà Fornacetta 9, 40064 Ozzano Emilia, Bologna,
2
Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Florence
3
Department of Economics, University of Udine
4
Department of Countryside Management, University of Basilicata, Potenza
Corresponding author: Marco Genghini. Tel.: +39-(0)-5-16-51-22-26, fax: +39-(0)-5-17-96-628,
Key words: Hunting activities, Game species, Socio-economic studies, Contingent Valuation Method (CVM), WTP
Introduction
The link hunter-territory is one of the key aspects in wildlife management and the programming of hunting activities in Italy
(Spagnesi & Toso 1991). Hunters that play their activities on a specific territory are more responsible for the management and
the quality of the wildlife habitat. This is important to develop wildlife habitat improvement actions (WHIA) and finds economic resources to involve farmers in the wildlife management process (Genghini 1994), especially where wildlife resources
are a common property (res communitatis) and landowners do not own the game. In this case, the legislation, the institutional
framework and the programming process become very important in wildlife management (Genghini 2004). Beside environmental and agri-environmental policies also hunting can contribute to nature conservation, wildlife habitat improvement and rural
development (Council of Europe 1995). The question is, are hunters willing to pay for WHIA? Are they willing to pay farmers
or landowners for that task? How much are they willing to pay?
Table 1: Average WTP for the three species in the three study
areas
Objectives and study areas
The aim of the study was to survey hunters’ willingness to
pay (WTP) farmers to realise WHIA. We focus the survey
only to three game species: Pheasants (Phasianus colchicus),
Brown Hares (Lepus europaeus) and Grey/Red Partridges
(Perdix perdix/Alectoris rufa). Because these species are
potentially more affected by habitat improvement actions in
farmland areas, because they are all present in the three study
areas and because they are game. We postulate a 50%
increase in the average density of the species after 5 years of
the WHIA programme implementation in the three study
areas selected. Another purpose of the study was to survey
hunters’ socio-economic characteristics, behaviour and attitudes towards hunting management and farmers.
The three geographic areas selected were hunting territories
(ATC): 1) on upland (Florence, ATC FI4: 201.166 ha), 2) on
lowland (Ravenna, ATC RA1 e RA2: 102.590 ha) and 3)
beside wetlands (Udine, 12 hunting reserves: 59.590 ha).
Metodology
To evaluate hunters’ willingness to pay (WTP) we adopted
the Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) that consists in
direct (face to face) interviews (by trained interviewers) with
the help of a pre-defined questionnaire. CVM is based on the
idea that there is a latent demand that may be estimated
through WTP declaration for goods and services (Mitchell &
Carson 1989).
The questionnaire was composed in four sections: the first
343
LOWLAND: Pheasant (––), Hare (---) and Partrige (…)
UPLAND: Pheasant (––), Hare (---)
WETLAND: Pheasant (––), Wildfowl (---)
Figure 1: Responses probability values (Pr) for each level of WTP (Euro), in the three ATC (lowland, upland and wetland) for
hares, pheasants, partridges and wildfowl.
Figure 2: Response probability values (Pr) for each level of WTP (Euro) for the
Pheasant, in each ATC: Lowland (––), Upland (…) and Wetland (---).
about hunters’ socio-economic characteristics (age, sex, education, professions, etc.), the second about hunting behaviours
(preferences in term of: hunting areas, days dedicated, hunted species, bags, etc. Expenses for: dogs, travels, rifles, clothes, cars,
books, etc.), the third about hunters’ attitudes and thoughts towards the management of the ATC, the farmers, the best hunting
moments, etc.) and the fourth about the WTP to maintain the status quo (present situation) and to finance WHIA to increase
wildlife density. In the last section we asked respondents to answer yes or no to a money offer for WHIA (Hanemann and
Kanninen 1998). The question format was a single bounded for the status quo scenario and a double bounded for the habitat
improvement scenario. We specified a logit model and estimates were obtained through LIMDEP© software. Based on the estimated parameters, we calculated the WTP distribution.
Results
737 hunters were interviewed (367 on upland, 190 on wetland and 180 on lowland) in a three years period (2000-03 hunting
seasons). In the whole sample, the socio-economic characteristics of hunters were not significantly different than previous survey (I.S.P.E.S. 1987, Eurispes 1997). However, some important differences were found among the three geographic areas.
Hunters from lowland are not very old (52 years), with a high level of education (55%, 13 years of school), mostly with an
independent profession (43%). They prevalently hunt small game with the dog and they are satisfied with the management and
the environmental quality of the ATC. Hunters from upland otherwise hunt mostly terrestrial migratory birds and ungulates
(especially wild boar). The majority are not gratified of the ATC management. In wetland hunters are the oldest (67 years) and
mostly retired (57%). They hunt prevalently small game (Galliformes) and wildfowl with a reduced bag and they are not satisfied of the ATC environmental quality. All hunters interviewed showed a positive attitude towards farmers supporting the realisation of WHIA.
Table 1 present the average WTP resulted from each logit models. Most of the models are significant (P<0,05 and 0,01) and
perform like was expected with a decreasing demand curve (figure 1 and 2). Figure 1 shows the response probability values for
each level of WTP in the three areas for hares, pheasants, partridges and wildfowl. Figure 2 shows instead the response probability values for each level of WTP for pheasants in the three types of areas.
Discussion and conclusions
The survey gave some interesting and clear responses but also some unclear results. In general there is a positive attitude of
hunters to support farmers for WHIA, but the WTP are not very high and its level depends on several factors. One of the most
important is the trust in the management of the ATC. When hunters are satisfied of the wildlife management they are willing
to pay more, especially for some habitat improvement programmes that will increase game density. This reason probably
344
explains the main differences in the WTP from lowland areas versus upland and wetland territories. The unsatisfactory situation in the present game and hunting management (status quo) resulted from the survey it is probably linked also to the negative national situation of small game (low density, small bags, rarity of wild animals, increasing costs, etc.) and hunting activities. In the last ten years hunters decreased from 1,5 millions to 800.000 (Eurispes 1997). The reduced interest to hunt small
game compared to other species (migratory, ungulates and especially wild boar) it is probably the major cause of the reduced
WTP of hunters in upland areas. The WTP increase significantly in all the territories when we proposed a programme of WHIA:
more in lowland then upland, but not so much in wetland (the reason is not yet clear). Differences in the WTP curve among
species are probably due to the diverse hunting traditions and the game quality. On lowland hunters prefer hares and partridges
than pheasants, where on upland the differences are not so evident. On wetland wildfowl and Galliformes, especially partridges,
are preferred to hares.
The methodology applied (CVM) demonstrated the possibility to quantify parts of the economic value of this game species.
The majority of the defined models were statistically significant. However, additional researches are necessaries to better define
hunters’ willingness to pay farmers for WHIA, comparing more homogeneous ATC in term of game management, environmental and hunting traditions.
References
Council of Europe (1995) How hunting and fishing can contribute to nature conservation and rural development. Proceeding. Council of Europe.
Strasbourg. 1-119.
Eurispes (1997) Dai fatti alle parole: per una nuova dialettica del fenomeno venatorio. Rapporto Eurispes. Roma.
Genghini M (1994) I miglioramenti ambientali a fini faunistici. Istituto Nazionale per la Fauna Selvatica, Documenti Tecnici, 16:1-95.
Genghini M (2004) Interventi di gestione degli habitat agro-forestali a fini faunistici. Risultati delle ricerche realizzate in Emilia-Romagna e sul territorio nazionale. MIPAF, RER, INFS, Coop. St.e.r.n.a. Ed. Litotre, Brisighella (BO).
Hanemann WM (1984) Welfare evaluations in contingent valuation experiments with discrete responses data - Reply. American Journal of Agricultural
Economics 66(3): 332-341.
Hanemann WM, Kannienen, B (1998) The statistical analysis of discrete response CV data. Working Paper 798, Department of Agricultural and
Resource Economics, University of California, Berkeley.
I.S.P.E.S. (1987) I cacciatori: chi pratica e perché si pratica la caccia. Merlo & c. Ed. Roma.
Mitchell RC, Carson RT (1989) Using Surveys to Value Public Goods: the Contingent Valuation Method. Washington: Resources for the Future.
Spagnesi M, Toso S (1991) Evoluzione recente della situazione faunistico-gestionale in Italia. In . In: Spagnesi M., S. Toso, (eds.), II Convegno
Nazionale dei Biologi della Selvaggina, Suppl. Ric. Biol. Selvaggina, XIX: 143-163.
345
Determining the onset of spring migration using ring recoveries
in teal (Anas crecca)
Guillemain Matthieu 1, Arzel Céline 1,2,3, Mondain-Monval Jean-Yves 1, Schricke Vincent 4, Johnson Alan 5
& Simon Géraldine 5 Marc Lutz 5
1
Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage, CNERA Avifaune Migratrice, La Tour du Valat, Le Sambuc, 13200 Arles, France
2
Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Kristianstad university
3
Laboratoire d’Ecologie des Hydrosystèmes, Université Paul Sabatier
4
Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage, CNERA Avifaune Migratrice
5
Station Biologique de la Tour du Valat, Le Sambuc
Corresponding author: Guillemain Matthieu. Tel.: +33 4 90 97 27 87, fax: +33 4 90 97 27 88,
Key words: Teal, Prenuptial migration, ring recoveries, Camargue
Spring is a crucial part of the year for migrating birds, which have to travel a long journey at the same time they need to prepare for reproduction. In income-breeding species, like most duck species are, individuals have to migrate at exactly the right
dates, in order to ensure sufficient foraging opportunities at stopover sites and at the breeding grounds, and at the same time
avoiding to arrive too late in the breeding area (assuming a general negative relationship between arrival date and breeding success, Dzus & Clark 1998, Elmberg et al. 2005).
The ecology of ducks in spring has, however, received little attention until very recently (Arzel & Elmberg 2004). This is very
unfortunate in a context of harsh discussion around policy-making concerning migration dates of hunted species. In effect, the
European Directive 79/409/CEE states that member states should not allow hunting of migratory species “during their period
of reproduction or during their return to their rearing grounds”. It is therefore important to be able to define precisely the onset
of spring migration of game species, but this has often lead to strong debates, due to the use of sometimes disputable and/or
imprecise methods. In particular, duck migration periods in Europe so far have mainly been estimated after changes in bird
counts (e.g. MNHN & ONC 1989 for France), but one could almost always argue that these changes in numbers reflect either
a dispersion of the birds, or a modification in the carrying capacity of sites used, rather than a true migration event. In this context, the fact that individual birds cannot be recognized is a strong limitation. Ringing data, on the other hand, permit us to
analyse individual movements, thus providing a basis for a firm determination of migration dates.
In this paper, we use the date and place of recovery of close to 9,000 rings of dead Teal (Anas crecca) initially fitted in winter
in the Camargue, Southern France, to determine the date at which birds left the area in spring. We also use these data to test is
the different age and sex classes have similar migration dates. This contribution is derived from the following publication:
Guillemain, M., Arzel, C., Mondain-Monval, J.Y., Schricke, V., Johnson, A.R. & Simon, G. Spring migration dates of teal
ringed in the Camargue, Southern France. Wildlife Biology, in press.
Teal were caught at the Domaine de la Tour du Valat in the Camargue, Southern France between January 1952 and February
1978 using standard dabbling duck funnel traps. A total of 59 187 teal were captured and ringed, of which 9 279 were subsequently recovered (i.e. deliberately killed, or found dead) all over Europe.
346
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Figure 1. Proportion of direct Teal ring recoveries to the
North-East of the Camargue across time
Figure 2. Average proportion of indirect Teal ring
recovering to the North-East (White) and to the SouthWest (Black) of the Camargue across time
The onset of spring migration was derived from two methods, with both direct and indirect ring recoveries, i.e. rings recovered
the same winter the bird was ringed or in subsequent winters, respectively. In the two cases, a bird was considered to be migrating to or from its breeding ground, or to be at its breeding ground, when recovered anywhere North-East from the ringing place,
since the Camargue is in the South-western part of the species range.
The first method to determine the onset of spring migration was to determine when the proportion of recoveries in the NE started to increase across time. After examining the overall shape of the curve describing the variation in the proportion of NE recoveries over weeks, we isolated this period of spring increase and analysed, through General Linear Models, whether the migration events differed temporally between years, ages and sexes. We also determined the intercept of this line with the time axis
to determine the precise onset of spring migration. This was done separately for direct and indirect recoveries.
The analysis of direct recoveries did not detect any effect of age and sex, but the proportion of NE recoveries increased very
clearly with weeks (Figure 1). The analysis of the intercept revealed that spring migration started during the second ten-day
period of January. Results from indirect recoveries were exactly similar (i.e. no effect of age or sex, strong effect of time), but
this time the analysis of the intercept suggested that migration started during the first ten-day period of January. Note that hunting occurred in France until the end of March at these dates, hence the fact that 40-50% of ring recoveries were not necessarily in the North-East during these years.
A second method was used to consider the fact that birds may partly move to the NE of the Camargue simply through winter
dispersion, i.e. not in the process of a true migration event. Because we considered that this dispersion could take place in any
direction, we then determined the onset of spring migration as the date at which the proportion of recoveries in the North-East
direction exceeded the proportion in the South-west. This again was done separately for direct and indirect recoveries. Both
direct and indirect recoveries indicated the onset of spring migration to be during week 30th January-6th February, i.e. the first
ten-day period of February (e.g. Figure 2 for indirect recoveries).
Migration dates inferred from ring recovery analyses were consistent with earlier results published from duck counts, but in
addition show that adults and first-year Teal migrate at the same dates in spring. There are few species for which as many ring
recoveries are available as for Teal. In this context, this study suggests that duck counts may be a reliable method to assess
spring migration dates when no other is available. The aim of this study was not to determine the dates at which hunting of teal
should be prohibited in France, but instead to provide scientifically based information needed by policymakers to make their decision. It should nonetheless be kept in mind that the present results hold for data collected during the
1950’s to the mid 1970’s. However, we hope that this analysis will motivate similar studies in the future, and a large-scale program on teal has been launched to collect the same type of data for the present period.
References
Arzel, C., & Elmberg, J. (2004) Time use, foraging behaviour and microhabitat use in a temporary guild of spring-staging dabbling ducks
(Anas spp.). Ornis Fennica 81: 157-168.
Dzus, E.H. & Clark, R.G. (1998): Brood survival and recruitment of mallards in relation to wetland density and hatching date. - The Auk 115:
311-318.
Elmberg, J., Nummi, P., Pöysä, H., Gunnarsson, G. & Sjöberg, K. (2005) Early breeding teal Anas crecca use the best lakes and have the highest reproductive success. Ann. Zool. Fennici 42: 37-43.
Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle & Office National de la Chasse (1989): Répartition et chronologie de la migration prénuptiale et de la
reproduction en France des oiseaux d’eau gibier. - MNHN and ONC Report, Paris, 87 pp. (In French).
347
Epidemiology of european brown hare syndrome (EBHS) in
French wild hare (Lepus europaeus) populations
Guitton Jean-Sébastien 1, Faure Eva 2, Bray Yves 1, Gouache Christophe 3, Peroux Régis 4, Marc Artois 2,
François Reitz 4
1
Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage, Montfort, F-01330 Birieux, France.
2
Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Lyon, Unité de Pathologie infectieuse et épidémiologie
3
Fédération Régionale des Chasseurs de Champagne-Ardenne, Route de Suippes, Complexe Agricole Mont Bernard
4
Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage
Corresponding author: Jean-Sèbastien Guitton. Tel.: +33-4-74-98-31-83, fax: +33-4-74-98-14-11,
Key words: epidemiology, wildlife disease, calicivirus.
The European Brown Hare Syndrome (EBHS) is caused by a calicivirus described as highly infectious, with a mortality rate of
around 60% on captive hares (Zanni et al., 1993). Young juveniles (younger than 50 days) were reported to be refractory to
symptoms but to become immune (Zanni et al., 1993). There is relatively little documentation of the epidemiology and the true
demographic impact of the disease in wild hare (Lepus europaeus) populations. In three of them, EBHS may have induced a
27 to 40% reduction of winter night counts from 1986 to 1988 (Poli et al., 1991) and Duff et al. (1994) estimated that around
60% of wild hares died of the disease in a 800 hectare estate in 1982. In fact, both low mortality and high mortality incidents
have been reported (Duff et al., 1997). It has been suggested that high impact could be due to the population turnover and, therefore, to the growing proportion of susceptible hares (Duff et al, 1994). That may be especially true at low density, where the
infection can easily fade-out and where most young hares are infected after their refractory period (Lavazza et al., 1997).
Conversely, high density populations could benefit of an endemic circulation of the virus which would entertain hares immunity (Lavazza et al., 1997). Yet, only few studies described the circulation of the virus among wild hare populations, especially among highly susceptible ones.
In this poster, we present the results of a three-years (2001 to 2003) serological survey of nine wild hare populations in northern France ranging from 5,000 to 30,000 ha (Fig.1). The presence of antibodies against EBHS virus (EBHSV) was detected by
the mean of competition enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test (Capucci et al., 1991) on blood sample collected
on filter papers (Faure et al., in prep.) from hunted hares (in early autumn). Our sampling period was thus different from that
of most previous studies, mainly in Italy, where sera were often collected in December or January: that should be taken into
account when comparing results. Hares were aged and classified as “adults” or “young of the year” by the eye-lens mass technique (Broekhuizen and Maaskamp, 1979). Night counts using a projector permitted to estimate densities in March and
December.
Young hares,which were almost all older than 50 days, had lower seroprevalences than adults. Serological results
(Fig. 2 and 3) lead to classify the nine populations into three contrasted categories. Geographical proximity seems to be a more
pertinent distinguishing factor than density.
Firstly, four populations (A, B, H and I) appeared to have null
or very low seroprevalences. Even if EBHS is proved to be
endemic in France by the French sanitary surveillance network for wildlife (SAGIR), some of our studied hare populations thus remained free of EBHSV during the study period.
Density was around 5-10 hares / km2 in H and around
15-20 hares / km2 in A, B and I.
In three others (C, D and E), 10 to 46% of adults had antibodies (or 20 to 80%, depending on the positivity threshold) during the three-years study period. The EBHSV was thus clearly present in those populations but with low-medium
Figure 1: Geographical location of the nine studied populations in northern France.
348
% seropositive hares
% seropositive hares
Figure 2 : Percentage of seropositive young hares (with 95 %
confidence intervals and sample sizes) in nine populations
(A to I) of northern France during the three-years (2001 to
2003 : 1 to 3) study period. For H and I populations, data
from 2000 to 2002 have been grouped (“gd”) due to low sample size. Antibodies titres lower and higher than 1/10 are distinguished because this value is often considered as the positivity threshold.
Figure 3 : Percentage of seropositive adult hares (with 95 %
confidence intervals and sample sizes) in nine populations
(A to I) of northern France during the three-years (2001 to
2003 : 1 to 3) study period. For H and I populations, data
from 2000 to 2002 have been grouped (“gd”) due to low sample size. Antibodies titres lower and higher than 1/10 are distinguished because this value is often considered as the positivity threshold.
seroprevalences (particularly low when considering 1/10 titre as the positivity threshold) and low antibodies titres. Census data
did not reveal any particulary high mortality on hares during the study-period and no obvious outbreak (carcasses findings) was
reported. Estimated density was >15 hares / km2 in two populations (C and D) and between 10 and 15 hares / km2 in the remaining one (E). These results are not very different from those obtained by Lavazza et al. (2004) in some of their controlled areas
where they suggested that it was reach an endemic stability. However, the seroprevalences in our three populations seem too
low, especially on young hares, to consider that such an endemic stability occured.
Lastly, the two remaining populations (F and more particularly G) presented low seroprevalences during the first two years but
the third year was characterized by higher values (30% and 75% for adults in F and G respectively, or 56% and 94%, depending on the positivity threshold). Mean density of population F was higher than 15 hares / km2 and that of population G was
lower than 10 hares / km2. The absence of hare carcasses findings and of severe population decrease after this sudden increase
of seroprevalence in susceptible populations was unexpected.
Scicluna et al. (1994) suggested that the circulation of an apathogenic EBHSV strain could explain the presence of (mostly low)
positive titres on captive hares in farms whose sanitary history excluded past episodes of the disease. That also seems to be a
conceivable hypothesis to explain some of our results. Moreover, we note that the three identified serological categories can be
seen as three stages of a cyclical phenomenon.
At the contrary, the high number of EBHS-positive hare carcasses found in France during the autumn 2004 let managers worry
about a significative impact of the disease on hare populations. This poster additionaly includes some preliminary results of an
a posteriori study of the spatial and demographic extent of this epidemic.
This study was conducted in collaboration with the four Departmental Hunters Associations of Ardennes, Aube, Haute-Marne
and Marne.
References
Broekhuizen S and Maaskamp F (1979) Age determination in the European hare in the Netherlands. Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde 44:162-175.
Capucci L, Scicluna MT and Lavazza A (1991) Diagnosis of viral haemorragic disease of rabbits and the European brown hare syndrome. Rev. sci.
tech. Off. int. Epiz. 10(2):347-370.
Duff JP, Chasey D, Munro R and Wooldridge M (1994) European brown hare syndrome in England. Veterinary Record 134:669-673.
Duff JP, Whitwell K and Chasey D (1997) The emergence and epidemiology of European brown hare syndrome in the UK. In : Proceedings 1st
International. Symposium on Caliciviruses, ESVV : pp176-181.
Lavazza A, Guberti V, Ferri M, Zanni ML, Paglayen G and Capucci L (1997) Epidemiology of European Brown Hare Syndrome (EBHS) in Modena
province (North Italy). In : Proceedings 4th International Congress of Veterinary Virology, ESVV, Edimburgh (Scotland), 24-27th August 1997:
pp. 34-37.
Lavazza A, Mazzoni R, Mari M, Scicluna MT, Frati P, Guberti V and Capucci L (2004) Application of an European brown hare syndrome (EBHS) surveillance program. The experience of Siean province. In : Abstracts 2nd World Lagomorph Conference, Vairao, Portugal, 26-31 July 2004 : pp.193.
Poli A, Nigro M, Gallazi D, Sironi G, Lavazza A and Gelmetti D (1991) Acute hepatosis in the European brown hare (Lepus europaeus) in Italy. Journal
of Wildlife Diseases. 27(4):621-629.
Scicluna MT, Lavazza A and Capucci L (1994) European brown hare syndrome in northern Italy: results of a virological and serological survey. Rev.
sci. tech. Off. int. Epiz. 13(3):893-904.
Zanni ML, Benassi MC, Scicluna MT, Lavazza A and Capucci L (1993) Clinical evolution and diagnosis of an outbreak of European brown hare syndrome in hares reared in captivity. Rev. sci. tech. Off. int. Epiz. 12(3):931-940.
349
Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in Nantes city (France):
are they “urban” or “rural” foxes ?
Guitton Jean-Sébastien 1, Richomme Céline 1, Le Lay Gwenaëlle 2, Clergeau Philippe 3, L’Hostis Monique 1
1
Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Nantes, Centre vétérinaire de la faune sauvage, BP 40706, F-44307 Nantes cedex 3, France.
2
Université de Lausanne, Département d’écologie et évolution, Laboratoire de Biologie de la Conservation,
3
INRA-SCRIBE, Campus de Beaulieu
Corresponding author: present address : Jean-Sébastien Guitton. Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage,
Montfort, F-01330 Birieux, France, tel: +33-4-74-98-31-83, fax: +33-4-74-98-14-11, email: [email protected]
Key words: urban ecology, diet, home range, habitat suitability.
Abstract
Red foxes live in a broad range of habitats across the world, including urban areas. The study of “urban” foxes was first conducted in British cities (Bristol, London, Oxford or Edinburg) and then elsewhere, especially in Zürich (Switzerland), Toronto
(Canada), Sapporo (Japan) and Melbourne (Australia). Some particular ecological patterns of urban foxes were described, leading to an increasing understanding of red foxes plasticity when facing with changes of ecological conditions. As a result of these
various studies, the ecological traits of “urban” foxes are generally described as: diet including scavenged food (Doncaster et
al., 1990 ; Saunders et al., 1993), small home ranges (Doncaster and Macdonald, 1991 ; Saunders et al., 1993 ; Adkins ans Stott,
1998), large social groups (Macdonald, 1979 ; Baker et al., 1998) and habitat dominated by quiet neighbourhoods, back gardens, woodlands and rough ground (Harris and Rayner, 1986 ; Saunders et al., 1997).
In France, foxes are rather rare in towns. In Nantes (a town close to the Atlantic coast), several observations mentioned them
for many years, leading the stakeholders asking for specific studies. The final goal was to improve their management, but we
took this opportunity for assessing the possible specificities of the Red fox ecology in this city. Our goal was to compare these
local patterns to those observed in the other cities.
We used 86 faeces, sampled in two parts of the town, to assess the diet of red foxes in Nantes. The results highlighted a generalist and diversified diet, composed of small mammals (37%), fruits (25%), birds (17%), and insects (14%). Garbage and carrion constituted only 7% of the total items, which was strongly inferior to the parts obtained in Bristol or Oxford for example.
We radiotracked two foxes (one male and one female). Their home ranges appeared to be contiguous and were respectively 62
ha and 51 ha. These sizes are much smaller than
those reported in rural areas but consistent with
those estimated in cities.
We additionally made a survey in order to collect
information about fox sightings by townspeople.
We collected more than one hundred records,
referring mainly to observations from 1990 to
2001. These points of occurrence firstly helped us
in evaluating the potential distribution of this
species.
In order to go further in understanding the species
and town relationships, we used these observations for modelling the foxes’ecological niche
and proposing a habitat suitability map for the
town (Fig.1). The niche appears to be strongly
determined both by the vegetation structure and
the human activities. Indeed, foxes mostly select
Figure 1: Habitat suitability map for the Red fox
in Nantes city (France)
350
wooded sites, generally close to waterways, and far from buildings. They are mainly found in the parts of the town that have
the lowest human densities. Finally, this model highlights that only some parts of the town may be favourable for the red fox.
In order to be colonized by foxes, the suitable areas also have to be connected to the other sites or to the countryside. In order
to support foxes’populations, they have to be larger enough to provide resources for several individuals. These results are
consistent with field observations and analyses of telemetry data. Indeed, we observed that the two radiotracked foxes often
avoided areas with high human activities and prefered woody places. They also rarely used private gardens. However, several
day-time lying-up sites were located very close to buildings.
The ecological traits of the red foxes living in Nantes allow us to qualify them as “suburban” foxes instead of “urban” ones.
Indeed, although some patterns are close to those of foxes present in Bristol or Oxford, which were often considered as the
“typical” urban patterns, some others are closer to those of rural foxes. This finally suggests that urban systems have to be considered as various systems, offering gradual types of ecological conditions for wildlife.
References
Adkins CA and Stott P (1998) Home ranges, movements and habitat associations of red foxes Vulpes vulpes in suburban Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Journal of Zoology, London, 244 : 335-346.
Baker PJ, Robertson CP, Funk SM and Harris S (1998) Potential fitness benefits of group living in the red fox, Vulpes vulpes. Animal Behaviour, 56:
1411-1424.
Doncaster CP, Dickman CR and Macdonald DW (1990) Feeding ecology of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in the city of Oxford, England. Journal of
Mammalogy, 71(2) : 188-194.
Doncaster CP and Macdonald DW (1991) Drifting territoriality in the red fox Vulpes vulpes. Journal of Animal Ecology, 60 : 423-439.
Harris S and Rayner JMV (1986) Urban fox (Vulpes vulpes) population estimates and habitat requirements in several British cities, Journal of Animal
Ecology, 55 : 575-591.
Macdonald DW (1979) « Helpers » in fox society, Nature, 282 : 69-71.
Saunders G, White PCL and Harris S (1997) Habitat utilisation by urban foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and the implications for rabies control. Mammalia, 61(4)
: 497-510.
Saunders G, White PCL, Harris S and Rayner JMV (1993) Urban foxes (Vulpes vulpes): food acquisition, time and energy budgeting of a generalized
predator. Symposium of the Zoological Society of London, 65 : 215-234.
351
Social organization and group stability of wild boar
(Sus scrofa) in the basin of Geneva
Hebeisen Christian 1, Fischer Claude 2, Baubet Eric 3
1
Université de Neuchâtel, Institut de Zoologie, Laboratoire d’éco-éthologie, Emile-Argand 11, Case postale 2, CH-2007 Neuchâtel
2
Service des Forêts, de la Protection de la Nature et du Paysage
3
Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage, CNERA Cervidés-Sangliers
Corresponding author: Claude Fischer. Tel. : +41-2-23-20-93-39 or +41-7-94-00-45-43, e-mail : [email protected]
Key words: social behaviour, radio-tracking, high urbanisation level, international project
Following a marked increase of the damages caused by wild boars especially on vineyards, maize and wheat, a research
project was initiated in the basin of Geneva, in 2002. The problem is observed across the entire basin which encompasses
4 different administrative areas in two countries (France and Switzerland). The authorities of these 4 administrative areas got
together in a joint project trying to solve the problem in common and also to have a better insight of the spatial use within and
between the different sectors (Fischer et al. 2005). Our study is part of this project.
Wild boars live in groups called sounders comprising 2-3 adult females and their offspring. The oldest and most experienced
sow, the so called leading sow, leads the sounder. Adult males are solitary and join the groups only during breeding period.
Subadult males leave the sounders at the age of 18 months and can form distinct groups. Some subadult and adult females can
leave a sounder and form their own one (Bärtschi 1980, Mosler-Berger 1999, Etienne 2003). Only few studies are focused on
wild boar social organization and are based on visual observations (Dardaillon 1988) or on radio-telemetry (Keuling
pers.comm, Keuling & Stier 2004). All of these studies confirmed current knowledge about sounders, but also showed that
social organization was a dynamic system influenced by farrowing and breeding season, food availability and hunting activity.
However, several direct observations we made in the basin of Geneva as well as first results gained using radio-tracking are not
concordant with this general view, or at least, they give an indication that the social behaviour of wild boars is not as stable as
generally thought.
Our topic will be to describe social organization and sounders stability of wild boar in the basin of Geneva using mainly telemetric data.
The Basin of Geneva is located around the western tip of the lake of Geneva and is surrounded by several mountains ranging
from 1000 to 1700 meters with steep wooded slopes. The lower part of the basin covers an area of 680 km2 and is inhabited by
more than 500'000 people. Outside the main agglomerations, several roads with heavy traffic criss-cross a landscape dominated
by extensive agriculture. Forests and other wooded areas account for less than 15% of the area (Fischer et al. 2005).
Wild boars were captured in maize-baited life-traps. Individuals over 20 kg were fitted with ear-transmitters, individuals of
more than 45 kg with expandable collars, a model built by the ONCFS, (the French National office for hunting and wildlife
management), and grown-up individuals with usual radio-collars. At least two individuals, mostly females, where fitted with
transmitters as long as capture and individual size was sufficient. Group mates and small individuals were marked with cattle
ear-tags (Fischer et al. 2005).
Radio-tagged individuals were tracked using three different methods. First, we made series of localisations of all individuals
located within a given area at 3 hours intervals, from dusk to dawn. This method enables us to observe if different individuals
are active together and how frequently.
Second, we focused on one single individual and localised it every 15 minutes again from dusk till dawn. At the same time we
checked if group mates were present at the same spot
Third, at least every second day, we made fixes of all individuals at day time.
In addition, we try to observe the tracked boars with night-vision goggles whenever possible.
Up to now we observed interactions between boars that were captured and marked together, as well as between animals captured at different dates, but in the same trap, and between individuals captured at different but closeby trapping sites. This gives
us the opportunity to focus our analysis on these groups of animals. Using radio-telemetry locations, we should be able to determine: i the overlap between home ranges ii use of daytime resting sites iii sites and behaviour shared by different individuals
iv factors influencing the sharing of these sites and behaviour. These observations, including capture data (size, sex) and direct
observations (group composition), allow us to describe the patterns of social organization of wild boar in the Geneva Basin.
Although most of the time, boars that are captured together stay together during day and night, using the same home ranges and
resting sites and showing similar activity patterns, we also observed spatiotemporal separation between individuals of a same
352
capture. The different individuals stay in their usual home range but use different spots separately. These separations last for a
few days until they are relocated altogether again. Some sounders split after a certain time with individuals using distinct home
ranges, which is especially true when considering subadult males, but was also observed in subadult females.
We also located animals together, that were captured separately, as they were feeding or at resting sites, or in both activities.
Most of the time, boars captured at different times in the same area show a great home range overlap but spend less time together as boars of a same capture. It is likely that different groups meet at places where resources are plentiful and tolerate eachother.
We observed this on food resources, at feeding places, and at favourable resting sites, which are sometimes rare in our highly
urbanised study area.
As presented at the 5th International Wild Boar Symposium in Krakow, Poland, we observed 3 different spatial behaviours in
the Geneva Basin (Fischer et al. in prep.). It seems that the social organization of wild boar isn’t determined by the same factors than spatial organization, as far as the same kinds of observations were made on all three areas, except for the sharing of
common resting sites. All these results will be presented and discussed at IUGB 2005.
References:
Bärtschi R (1980) Das Familienleben der Wildschweine, Wildbiologie (8). Schweizerische Dokumentationsstelle für Wildforschung und
Forschungsstelle für Naturschutz und angewandte Oekologie.
Dardaillon M (1988) Wild boar social grouping and their seasonal changes in the Camargue, southern France. Zeits. für Säugetierkunde 53: 22-30.
Etienne P (2003) Le Sanglier, Les sentiers du naturaliste. Delachaux et Niestlé.
Fischer C, Gourdin H and Obermann M (2005) Spatial behaviour of wild boar in the basin of Geneva, Switzerland. Testing the methods and first results.
Galemys
Fischer C, Baubet E Thiébaud J, Roulet M, Prunier J and Dändliker G (in prep.) Spatial behaviour of wild boars in the Basin of Geneva.
Keuling O, Stier N (2004) Wilde Sauen an der unsichtbaren Leine. Die Pirsch 12: 4-9.
353
Effect of large ungulates on the forest vegetation in Finland
Heikkilä, Risto, Nousiainen, Hannu, Ollikainen, Iina
Finnish Forest Research Institute, Vantaa Research Centre, Box 18, 01301 Vantaa, Finland
Corresponding author: Risto Heikkilä. Tel.: +35-8-10-21-12-472, fax: +35-8-10-21-12-204, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: moose, deer, browsing, grazing, forest succession
Abstract
Introduction
Large ungulates, moose (Alces alces), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) and reindeer
(Rangifer tarandus) are living in relatively dense populations in different zones of boreal forests in Finland. Populations of these
species commonly overlap in large areas. All the species feed on young forest trees as well as on lower vegetation. Selective
feeding affects the vegetation, and questions have been presented of the impact of large ungulates on forest landscape and
ecosystem. The changes caused by browsing and grazing are supposed to alter the between-species relationships in plant communities. The aim of our study is to obtain information of the effects of large ungulate species on the vegetation during the early
succession of boreal forests.
Methods
The experimental areas were situated in different parts of boreal forests. We studied the impact of feeding comparing the
development inside exclosures of 100-2500 m2 and outside on adjacent open areas. The study sites were in both natural and
managed forests, and the monitoring was done in a period of ca. 10 year's time. The nature conservation area was dry forest
site with Scot pine dominance in the previous forest before forest fire. In the managed forests the regeneration was going on
after planting conifers. The northernmost area the domestic reindeer habitat was on the hill slope with mainly low growing birch
vegetation. We measured the heights of young trees and the coverage of ground vegetation.
Results
Browsing affected significantly the height of young broadleaved trees keeping them from growing up. It turned out that the
species selected by moose, rowan (Sorbus aucuparia) and aspen (Populus tremula) occurred patchily and had been affected or
all consumed during the early succession in both natural (Table 1), and managed forest (Table 2). In moose winter range experiment both birch species were seriously affected and declined. However, the high-density birch vegetations appeared to
generally avoid total browsing. Anyway, especially silver birch (Betula pendula) remained significantly smaller due to browsing. In the managed forest experiment the mean heights of birches in the adjacent open area were 40-60 % of that in the exclosure. The more selected tree species were declined under browsing pressure and could not reach one meter's height.
In the nature conservation area the relatively dry site was typical for Scots pine. However, the naturally born young pines were
found to be browsed already as small seedlings. Young pines appeared to hardly exceed half meter’s height. Moose was the
main consumer of all the tree species. However, also white-tailed deer was present, but its obvious effect on young broadleaves
and pines was not possible to distinguish separately. On the contrary, birches occurred at high densities, and a great proportion
had reached about the similar heights outside and inside exclosures. Tree species selected by browsers had been seriously
affected and declined.
Norway spruce is regenerating naturally or after planting, and it could keep on growing without browsing by moose. However,
spruce was declined after roe deer feeding on small seedlings. Roe deer had utilized blueberry vegetation, which was turning
lower and more patchy outside exclosures. The animal consumption released the lower vegetation from shadowing of tree
canopy. For instance fireweed (Epilobium montanum), commonly selected by browsers, was found to be abundant in open area,
Table 1. Tree heights in exclosures and adjacent open areas
exposed to browsing. Forest conservation area, Liesjärvi
National Park, South Finland
354
Table 2. Tree heights in exclosures and adjacent open areas
exposed to browsing. Managed forest area, Lakomäki, Central
Finland.
whereas it was almost absent in the exclosure. Also some Calamagrostis- and Festuca-species were abundant and more
flowering in open areas.
In the northernmost area reindeer feeding had effectively destroyed the young leafy birch sprouts in summer. The sprouts could
not grow up from the lower parts of living but slowly declining trunks of older birches. The heights of affected sprouts were
less than one half that of unaffected ones in the exclosures. The influence of reindeer on the height of lichens (Cladonia rangiferina) varied between the experimental plots from the maximum of twofold to insignificant.
Discussion and conclusions
According to our results the effect of large ungulates on vegetation can cause considerable vegetation changes during the early
successional stage. The natural development in forest conservation area appeared to be greatly affected, because the presence
of Scots pine was doubtful. Even long-term changes caused by moose have bee reported from conserved forests
(Risenhoover&Maass 1987). Our study suggests that browser effects support the dominance of spruce and birch vegetation in
natural succession. However, Bergquist (1997) reports that mainly conifers benefit from the effects of moose and roe deer. Thus
the influence of moose and deer obviously depends on the site characteristics of forests. The overall effects of large ungulates
in high-density populations have been referred as disturbance factor (review by Persson et. al. 2000).
Our results suggest the importance of indirect effects of large ungulates. Opening the tree canopy evidently had a positive effect
on lower vegetation. From the grasses the abundance of fireweed in the open area was a clear contrast to its declining under
dense tree canopy in exclosure. It has been presented that ungulate feeding can affect the flowering of fireweed (Bergman
2001).
The effect of reindeer grazing did not clearly affect the coverage of lichens (cf. Mattila 2004), which obviously varied due to
other reasons. Reindeer grazing can significantly retard the succession rate of lichens (Helle & Aspi 1983). Our results suggests
that reindeer can continuously affect birch regeneration, which likely threatens the future presence of birch forest in severe
northern climate. It is to be noticed that for instance a coinciding outbreak of leaf-eating butterfly (Epirrita autumnata), may
fasten the declining process in large areas.
In managed forest experiment area the heavy browsing pressure by moose strongly affected all broadleaf species and also pine
was declined (cf. Heikkilä & Härkönen 1993). At landscape level this results to suppression of the selected tree species (Edenius
et. al 2002). In such circumstances changes in management are possible. For instance using tree species not selected by animals may, however include long-term ecological and economic risks.
The indirect effects of continuous browsing and grazing are obviously not very well known. After stress factors the recovery
needs time and a retarded succession can lead to other ecological problems due to increased vulnerability. For instance in the
relatively small conserved forests the continuous consumption may cause unnaturally high suppression of slowly regenerating
vegetation. Although the population densities of large ungulate species are under yearly human control, more should be known
of their impact and habitat consequences.
References
Bergman, M. (2001). Ungulate effects on their food plants: responses depending on scale. Silvestria 222. Acta Universitatis Agriculturae Suecicae.
Thesis.
Bergquist, J. (1997). Influence by ungulates on early plant succession and forest regeneration in South Swedish spruce forests. Ph.D. thesis of Animal
ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå.
Edenius, L., Bergman, M., Ericsson, G. & Danell, K. (2002) The role of moose as a disturbance factor in managed forests. Silva Fennica 36(1):11 p.
Heikkilä, R. & Härkönen, S. (1993) Moose (Alces alces L.) browsing in young Scots pine stands in relation to the characteristics of their winter habitats. Tiivistelmä: Hirven ravinnonkäyttö mäntytaimikoissa ja sen riippuvuus ympäristötekijöistä. Silva Fennica 27(2):127-143.
Helle, T. & Aspi, J. (1983) Effects of winter grazing by reindeer on vegetation. Oikos 40:337-343.
Mattila, E. (2004) Porojen eräiden ravintokasvien esiintyminen poronhoitoalueella Kainuun merkkipiirissä ja poronhoitoalueen ulkopuolisella alueella Kainuussa 2002-2003 – vertaileva tutkimus aluetasolla.Metsäntutk. lait.tied. 930. 42 p. (In Finnish)
Persson, I.-L., Danell, K. and Bergström, R. (2000) Disturbance by large herbivores in boreal forests with special reference to moose. Ann. Zool. Fenn.
37:251-263.
Risenhoover, K.L. & Maass, S.A. (1987) The influence of moose on the composition and structure of Isle Royale forests. Canadian Journal of Forest
Research 17: 357-364
355
Avian trichomonosis in endangered birds of prey in Spain
Höfle, Ursula 1,2,3, Blanco, Juan Manuel 2,3, Valboa, Raquel 2,3
1
Centro de Investigaciones Agropecuarias “ El Dehesón del Encinar”, JCCM, 45560 Oropesa, Spain
2
Centro de Estudios de Rapaces Ibéricas, JCCM
3
Aquila Foundation
Correspoding author: Ursula Höfle. Tel.: +34-9-25-45-04-43, fax: +34-9-25-45-04-47, e-mail: [email protected],
Key words: T. gallinae, Iberian Imperial Eagle (Aquila adalberti), Bonelli’s eagle (Hieraaetus fasciatus), prey species
Abstract
Avian trichomonosis is a well known disease of the upper digestive tract of pigeons and other avian species caused by the protozoan parasite Trichomonas gallinae. The disease has recently been recognised in some accipiter species as a factor in nestling
mortality due to changes in the diet of these species. Here we resume information on the more recent appearance of trichomonosis in the endangered Spanish imperial eagle (Aquila adalberti) and in marsh (Circus aeruginosus) and Montagu’s harriers
(Circus pygargus). Trichomonosis in nestlings and fledglings of the mentioned species was observed as typical oropharyngeal
lesions, but also with sinusitis and hypema. The isolation of T. gallinae from healthy nestlings suggests that either pathogenic
strains or stress factors or both are involved in the appearance of the disease that constitutes an emerging problem for the endangered Spanish Imperial eagle.
Introduction
The flagellated protozoan Trichomonas gallinae (T. gallinae) is the causative agent of avian trichomonosis, a disease affecting
the upper digestive tract primarily in columbiforme birds (Stabler 1954). Birds of prey, especially species that feed on avian
prey are also known to be susceptible to the disease (Cooper and Petty 1988, Boal et al. 1998). In the rock pigeon (Columba
livia) parasitism is generally subclinical and development of lesions is supposed to depend on immune status of the host and
pathogenicity of the infecting strain (Stabler 1954, Cooper and Petty 1988, Krone and Cooper 2002). In clinical disease
fibronecrotic lesions typically develop in the upper digestive tract although occasionally involving the respiratory tract,
sinuses or ear (Stabler 1954, Samour 2000).
Several authors have been concerned about the effect of the transmission of the parasite from reservoir to naïve hosts, such as
other endangered columbiformes after introduction of domestic pigeons from Europe into America (Stabler 1954) or birds of
prey (Boal et al. 1998, Höfle et al. 2000, Real et al. 2000). In birds of prey a direct relation was established between the consumption of urban pigeons and the appearance of trichomonosis in the nestlings of Cooper’s hawks (Boal et al. 1998), but
relatively little is known about the epidemiology of trichmoniasis in susceptible avian species. The present study adds information about the appearance of trichomonosis in species in which the disease has not been previously reported, such as the Spanish
Imperial eagle (Aquila adalberti) or the Marsh (Circus aeruginosus) and Montagu’s harrier (Circus pygargus), including cases
with rare presentations, and speculates on possible influencing factors and prophylaxis.
Material and Methods
During spring and summer of the years 1997-2004, 36 live and 27 dead Spanish Imperial eagle nestlings and juveniles were
examined in the field at radiotagging, or upon admission to a rehabilitation centre for different reasons. Clinical examination
included inspection for the presence of trichomonosis compatible lesions in the oral mucosa, sinuses or crop. Moreover,
between January 1997 and December 2002, 121 Montagu’s harriers and 60 marsh harriers were admitted to the rehabilitation
centre, mainly due to nest destruction during crop harvest. In 2002-2004 samples of the oropharynx, oesophagus and crop of
the examined Imperial eagle nestlings (n = 20) were taken with sterile cotton swabs for direct wet mount examination and culture of T. gallinae. Each swab was placed in 5 ml CPLM broth (Biolife, Italy), supplemented with 10% foetal calf serum
(Sigma-Aldrich Co. Ltd., Irvine, UK), Penicillin, Streptomycin and Amphotericin B in sterile 10 ml screw-top tubes. The
samples were incubated at 36.5 ºC and examined daily for one week for the presence of flagellated protozoa. Identification of
T. gallinae was based on morphology and species-specific PCR (Felleisen, 1997).
Results
No lesions suggestive of trichomonosis were observed neither in any of the Imperial eagle nestlings examined between 1997 and
2000 nor in any of the harriers (n = 78). In one Imperial eagle nestling examined in spring 1997, inflammation of the salivary
glands was due to an infestation with Capillaria sp. and direct microscopy for T. gallinae was negative. However, no information
exists on prevalence of T. gallinae in the birds examined prior to the year 2001, as cultures were not performed.
In spring 2001, a severely stunted female marsh harrier suffering from unilateral sinusitis was admitted. Infestation with T. gallinae was suspected from cytology of a milky fluid extracted by punctation and confirmed by culture. In 2002, T. gallinae was
356
isolated from a bilateral sinusitis in a Montagu’s harrier, and two marsh harrier siblings, one of which presented with a yellowcoloured mass in the oral cavitiy, while the other suffered from unilateral sinusitis. None of the additional 52 Montagu’s and
only one of 34 Marsh harriers admitted between January 2001 and December 2003 had lesions suggestive of trichomonosis.
T. gallinae was cultured from three out of ten Imperial Eagle nestlings sampled in 2002 and 2003. Only one of the three chicks
had small lesions in the oropharynx compatible with trichomonosis. One of two sibling Imperial eagle chicks that were admitted to the rehabilitation centre in spring 2002 had severe bilateral sinusitis and cultured positive for T. gallinae, while cultures from the sibling were negative. Two chicks recovered dead due to sibling aggressive behaviour were negative for culture
of T. gallinae and lesions. In 2003, one out of seven nestlings admitted to the rehabilitation centre developed an oral lesion compatible with trichomonosis, and cultured positive two days after admission with a broken wing.
All clinical cases were treated with oral Carnidazol at a dose of 15 mg/kg and flushing of the sinuses with diluted chlorhexidine and dimetridazole solutions in the cases of sinusitis, as well as supportive treatment. All birds responded well to treatment
except for one Imperial eagle nestling that succumbed to a secondary infection by a dimorphic fungus despite antifungal treatment.
Discussion
Our findings regarding the prevalence of T. gallinae in the three species described suggest that trichomonosis could be acting
as an emerging disease. However, this assumption needs further investigations as only part of the information is based on culture while the rest is based on visual inspection for lesions which will most certainly have missed subclinical infestations.
Recent declines in the natural prey species for the imperial eagle (Ferrer, 1999) and the actual increment in columbid populations may have favoured consumption of this prey and thus increased exposure to the protozoan in the nestlings, as previously
reported in the Bonelli’s eagle (Höfle et al., 2000; Real et al. 2000). This may also be true for the harriers that rely on waterfowl and/or red legged partridges (Alectoris rufa) which are also declining in numbers. Boal et al. (1998) found a higher prevalence of T. gallinae and higher mortality from trichomonosis among Cooper’s hawk nestlings from urban areas with higher
numbers of columbids as compared to hawks from extraurban areas. We were not able to test free-living adult imperial eagles,
therefore transmission from the parents cannot be excluded. However Boal et al. (1998) could only isolate T. gallinae from one
of the adult cooper’s hawks they tested.
Recent descriptions of outbreaks of trichomonosis among free-living woodpigeons (Columba palumbus) in Southern Spain
(Höfle et al., 2004) suggest the existence of more virulent strains in potential reservoirs. Diseased pigeons may be an easier
prey compared to healthy ones. Moreover, imperial eagles and marsh harriers are also known to occasionally feed on carrion.
We found subclinical infestations and varying types of lesions that suggests the implication of strains of differing virulence and
pathogenicity, as well as external factors such as nutritional stress or sibling agressive behaviour (Cainism). Most authors consider T. gallinae a secondary pathogen in pigeons and predatory birds, supposing that the development of lesions is triggered
by primary infections or external factors (Cole, 1999).
Due to the endangered status, especially of the imperial eagle, the future role of the disease is of concern, as a new factor in
nestling mortality, especially when external stress factors such as nutritional stress or sibling agressive behaviour frequently
exist. Some of the forms of the disease may not be readily recognised by field workers or even veterinarians. This illustrates
the great need for additional investigation about this disease in the Imperial eagle and other endangered avian species.
References
Boal CW, Mannan RW, Hudelson KS (1998) Trichomonosis in Cooper's hawks from Arizona. J Wildl Dis 34:590-593.
Cole RA, 1999: Trichomonosis. In: Friend M & Franson JC (eds.) Field Manual of Wildlife Diseases. U.S. Department of Interior. National Geological
Survey, pp. 201-206.
Cooper JE, Petty SJ (1988) Trichomonosis in free-living goshawks (Accipiter gentilis gentilis) from Great Britain. J Wildl Dis 24:80-87.
FELLEISEN RS (1997) Comparative sequence analysis of 5.8S rRNA genes and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions of trichomonadid protozoa.
Parasitology 115:111-1119.
Höfle U, Blanco JM, Palma L, Melo P (2000) Trichomonosis in Bonelli's eagle (Hieraaetus fasciatus) nestlings in South-west Portugal. In: Lumeij JT,
Remple JD, Redig PT, Lierz M, Cooper, JE (eds.) Raptor Biomedicine III. Zoological Education Network, Inc. Lake Worth, Florida, pp. 45-52.
Höfle U, Gortázar C, Ortíz JA, Knispel B (2004) Outbreak of Trichomonosis in a woodpigeon wintering roost. E J Wildl Res 50:73-77
Krone O, Cooper JE (2002). Parasitic diseases. In: Cooper JE (ed.) Birds of prey. Health and Disease. Blackwell Science, Oxford, pp.105-120.
Mesa CP, Stabler RM, Berthrong M (1961) Histopathological changes in the domestic pigeon infected with Trichomonas gallinae (Jones’ Barn Strain).
Avian Dis 5:48-60.
Real J, Mañosa S, Muñoz E (2000) Trichomonosis in a Bonelli’s eagle population in Spain. J Wildl Dis 36:64-70.
Samour JH (2000) Supraorbital trichomonosis infection in two saker falcons (Falco cherrug) Vet Rec 146:139-140.
Stabler RM (1954) Trichomonas gallinae: a review. Exp Par 3:368-402.
357
What kind of gardens are highly attractive to foxes
(Vulpes vulpes)?
Janko C 1, Thoma D 2, Romig T 2, König A1, Mackenstedt U 2, Schröder W 1
1
Department of Wildlife Biology and Management Unit, Am Hochanger 13, 85354 Freising- Weihenstephan
2
Department of Parasitology, University of Hohenheim
Corresponding author: Christof Janko. TUM Außenstelle Linderhof, Linderhof 2, 82488 Ettal, tel.: +49-8-82-29-21-213,
fax: +49-8-82-29-21-212, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: habitat use, compost heap, food preferences
Introduction
The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) populations has increased in Europe over the past decades. Foxes have moved into settlements to a
much highly degree. Several investigations have tried to show the conditions for this habitat expansion (Deplazes et al., 2004;
Harris & Rayner, 1986). The ecology of the fox is well understood for open country and even in larger cities, but less so for villages and small towns. Knowledge about fox behaviour in small towns is important to understand the interaction of fox and fox
tapeworm (Echinococcus multilocularis) dynamics. Foxes harbouring E. multilocularis represent a source of human infection with
this parasite. There is reason to believe that fox tapeworm interaction is difficult from either open country or larger cities.
This study concentrates on habitat use of foxes at small towns in rural structured landscapes - to answer two main questions:
How attractive are small towns to foxes? And at a finer grain: What do the foxes prefer within these towns?
Methods
Three small towns of different size were selected in South Germany – the Bavarian town Oberammergau with 5300 inhabitants
and the villages Wiesensteig (2300 inhabitants) and Böhringen (1600 inhabitants) at the Swabian Jura.
Four foxes were radio tracked from July 2001 through April 2002. Data were analysed to see habitat preferences within small
towns. To further understanding which kinds of gardens were preferred we have selected a reprehensive sample of 157 gardens
using a grid layout over the towns. This sample was compared with those gardens which were highly preferred by foxes (93
gardens). Differences between the two spot checks were analysed by a statistical program (SPSS 11.0) and evaluated with
Mann-Whitney-U- and Chi-Square-test.
To characterise food supply we typified nine food categories: compost heap [with cooking leftovers], compost heap [without
cooking leftovers], windfall, berries, pet food [dog, cat], open garbage can, rodents, vegetable and earthworms. To better understand the influence of cover we looked at the percentage of bushes and trees, and within trees we looked at density of stands.
Results
Foxes visited small towns mainly at night, but most of the time they spent in open country. All individuals showed a prefer utilisation of settlement area and spent 19%, 20%, 23% and 54% of their active time inside the town. The other time was spent
Fig.1. Estimated home range (100% MCP) and density of
activity (red-yellow) of a female fox in Wiesensteig
358
Fig.2. Always a point of attraction – compost heap
outside, were they usually rested. Foxes had showed a
strong preference for certain gardens which they visited
frequently (Fig.1).
Gardens were especially attractive, when they contained
compost heaps (Fig.2). All foxes strongly preferred composts, especially those that contained cooking leftovers
(p≤0,001). 70% of the gardens include compost heaps; the
number of them was between one and four.
Next to compost, berries (raspberries, strawberries and
blackberries) were more attractive than windfall (apples,
plums and pears), rodents, earthworms and vegetable. In
some rare cases dishes with pet food and feeding by inhabitants were important.
Another reason for utilization by foxes was the abundance
of available food. Gardens which offer three and more different food resources are most attractive (Fig.3).
Additionally the presence of cover increased the usage of
gardens - gardens with bushes and trees were more attractive than those without.
Discussion
The sample of four foxes is limited but in spite of that there
are clearout results: All foxes demonstrated very similar
behaviour independent of sex and age. Foxes have adapted
to small towns and focus on food resources. Food seems to
be more important than cover, cooking leftovers on compost heaps heaving the biggest attraction. Maybe inside
Fig.3. Number of food categories in gardens used by foxes (red) rural settings composts are a major factor for utilization by
compared with an independent sample of gardens (green)
foxes. One condition that makes composts especially
attractive is that they get new food leftovers around year.
Other resources, like berries and fruit are available only seasonally. The high frequency of composts inside settlements makes
them a reliable food resource for foxes.
In addition to food, cover (bushes and trees) increased the use of gardens (Saunders et al., 1997). Certainly it’s not necessary
that the whole garden is high structured. Often trees and shrubs of several gardens built a tongue of vegetation. Such relatively dense cover was used for travelling around in town. These structures are not essential, but preferably used if they are existence.
A comparison with foxes in larger towns shows that the foxes are less habituated and thus more shy and night active (Hegglin,
2003; Adkins & Stott, 1995). To evaluate general habitat requirements of red foxes in rural settings further investigations has
to be supported.
References
Adkins C A, Stott P (1995) Home ranges, movements and habitat association of red foxes Vulpes vulpes in suburban Toronto, Ontario, Canada. J Zool
244:335-346. J.Zool. 1998 244, 335-354
Deplazes P, Hegglin D, Gloor S, Romig T (2004) Wilderness in the city: the urbanization of Echinococcus multilocularis. Trends in Parasitology 20:7784
Harris S, Rayner J M V (1986) Urban fox (Vulpes vulpes) population estimates and habitat requirements in several British cities. J. of Animal Ecology
55:575-591
Hegglin D (2003) The Fox Tapeworm (Echinococcus multilocularis) and the Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) in Urban Habitat: Ecological and
Epidemiological Aspects and an Evaluation of an Intervention Strategy. Dissertation University Zürich
Saunders G, White P C L, Harris S (1997) Habitat utilization by urban foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and the implications for rabies control. Mammalia 61:497573
359
Link between habitat use and survival in grey partridge
(Perdix perdix) pairs in Bavaria, Germany
Kaiser, W. 1, Storch, I.2, Carroll, J.P. 3
1
Bund Naturschutz Cham, Germany
2
Department of Wildlife Ecology and Management, University of Freiburg
3
Warnell School of Forest Resources, University of Georgia
Corresponding author: J.P. Caroll. Tel.: +1-7-06-54-25-815, fax: +1-7-06-54-28-356, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: mortality, predation, recruitment, population
Long-term decreases in numbers of grey partridges, Perdix perdix, in the hunting districts around Feuchtwangen, North
Bavaria, Germany motivated the “Hunting Society of Feuchwangen” to carry out a habitat management program for grey partridge since 1985. Grey partridge habitat studies have been undertaken in a number of countries, but have generally focused
on winter and brood rearing. In addition there have been few studies linking habitat and individual survival. For example,
Panek (1990) found in Poland during winter that coveys with home ranges closer to forests had higher mortality rates. As part
of a larger study to assess the effects of different types of habitat management on partridge populations and ecology we monitored survival of grey partridge pairs relative to habitat during the breeding season. A pair was considered “surviving” when
both birds successfully entered the nesting season at the beginning of May.
Our study area was located near Feuchtwangen (District Ansbach) in north-west Bavaria, 70 km south-west of Nuremberg,
Germany. It was situated between 427 m and 514 m above sea level. Of the total area in the district of Ansbach, 29% was covered by small woodlands, and 60% was private farmland. Main agricultural crops were winter cereals (40%), maize, rape, and
root crops (21%). About 39% of farmland consisted of permanent grassland (Rieder, 1984). Average field size was 1.5 ha and
the length of permanent cover along ways, hedges and ditches was 18 km/km2. Spring densities of partridge were 4–8 pairs per
km2 during 1992-1994.
From 1992 to 1994, partridges were captured in spring using Japanese nets (5 m x 18 m, mesh-width 3 x 3 cm). The birds were
equipped with 7 g necklace radio tags (TW-3, Biotrack Co., UK) with a life expectancy of 7-8 months and a range of 800 m to
1000 m. From capture to pairing partridge were tracked using a Televilt RX-81 receiver and a two-element Yagi aerial.
Partridges were located daily. To avoid bias due to time of day, radiolocations were sampled throughout the day. We used
“homing in” techniques to verify individual locations. This allowed us to accurately place each location in one of the following habitat types: set-aside (SA) (self-regenerated), cereal stubble (CS) (also maize stubble), edge (ED) (hedges, ways, ditches, field boundaries), maize (MA), oilseed-rape (RA), ploughed field (PF), permanent grassland (PG), and winter cereal (WC).
We used compositional analysis (Aebischer and Robertson 1992) to assess habitat with survival and year as covariates. We
defined the breeding or spring season to encompass those dates during break up of winter coveys to nesting.
We monitored 38 grey partridge pairs during 1992-1994 by radiotracking at least one of the paired birds, preferably the female.
In some cases, only the male or both birds were tagged. Comparing study area habitat to habitats within pair home ranges we
found overall habitat use was non-random (Λ = 0.4234, n = 38, P <0.001). We found no year effect (Λ = 0.629, P = 0.14), but
a significant effect of survival status (Λ = 0.5855, P = 0.005). Habitat proportions within home ranges compared to individual
locations were different (Λ = 0.3820, P = 0.008). We found year effect to be close to significant (P = 0.05) and a survival effect
(P = 0.01). Comparing study area to home ranges, both surviving and non-surviving partridges used habitat differently from
availability (Λ = 0.4388, n = 26, P = 0.005, and Λ = 0.0769, n = 12, P = 0.001, respectively). At this level, ploughed fields,
winter cereals, and edge habitats ranked high for both survival categories, whereas those pairs where the radio-tagged bird died
were more associated with meadow habitat. For both survival groups stubble, set aside, and rape ranked low. Comparing home
ranges to individual radio locations, only surviving partridge used habitat differently from availability (Λ = 0.2004, n = 26, P
< 0.001, and Λ = 0.2632, n = 12, P = 0.69, respectively). At this level of analysis habitat within home ranges to individual
radio locations we find meadows ranking high for both groups, but more edge and set aside for those pairs that survived and
more stubble and winter cereals for those that died.
Habitat associations relative to survival of grey partridge have been demonstrated during winter (Panek 1998, Carroll et al.
1995) and during brood rearing (Potts 1986). Survival analysis of breeding pairs is less common. Our results suggest that there
were significant differences between habitats of breeding individuals which died versus those that survived during breeding season. As most birds killed from February to May could be linked to predators (85%), the differences are likely a function of landscape and local effects of predator distribution. At the landscape level our finding of home ranges of partridge that died being
more associated with meadow habitat suggests that this permanent habitat likely provides some cover and is used commonly
360
by partridge, but may also be core habitat for both mammalian and avian predators. At the local level we see edge and set aside
possibly providing more cover diversity, again suggesting predation avoidance options for those that survived.
Breeding habitat is often ignored in research on partridge ecology with more focus on winter and brood habitat. Our data suggests that this critical period which may impact numbers of adults going into the breeding season and ultimately recruitment is
also crucial.
References
Aebischer N J, Robertson P A, Kenward R E (1993) Compositional analysis of habitat use from animal radio-tracking data. Ecology 74:1313-1325
Carroll J P, Crawford R D, Schulz J W (1995) Gray partridge winter home range and use of habitat in North Dakota. Journal Wildlife Management
59:98-103
Kaiser W (1998) Autumn-winter habitat use by radio-tagged grey partridges (Perdix perdix) in North Bavaria. Gibier Faune Sauvage 15:471-479
Panek M (1998) Agricultural landscape structure and density of grey partridge (Perdix perdix) populations in Poland. In: Birkan M, Smith L M,
Aebischer N J, Purroy F J, Robertson P A (Eds) Proceedings of the Perdix VII Symposium on Partridges. Quails and Pheasants, 9-13 Oct. 1995,
Dourdan, France. Gibier Faune Sauvage, Game Wildl, 15 (4): 309-320
Potts G R (1986) The partridge: Pesticides, predation, and conservation. Collins, London, U.K.
Rieder K (1984) Die Landwirtschaft in der Region 8 (Westmittelfranken). Akademie für Naturschutz und Landschaftspflege, Laufen (Hrsg.): Die
Region 8 – Westmittelfranken. Laufener Seminarbeiträge. 3/83:81-92
361
The morphology of intestines and their lymphoid formations
in hazel-grouse (Bonasa bonasia)
Kalynovska I.G. 1, Zheleznov N.K. 2
1
Department of Histology, Cytology & Embryology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, National Agricultural University,
Potekhina str., 16, Kyiv 03041 Ukraine,
2
Department of Nature of North-East Russia, Pacific Institute of Geography, Far East branch of the Russia Academy of Sciences
Corresponding author: Iryna G. Kalynovska. Tel.: +38-4-42-67-80-16, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Galliformes, Bonasa bonasia, intestine, lymphoid tissue
The aim of our research was to study the topography and character of lymphoid tissue, associated with intestine mucosa in
hazel-grouse (Bonasa bonasia). The material was taken from 5 hazel-grouse, shot on the peninsula Sakhalin during the hunting
season and examined macro-and microscopically.
Macroscopic examination shows that hazel-grouse intestine, like in other birds, is divided into a small and large intestine. The small
intestine, which comprises the duodenum, jejunum and ileum, begins at the ventriculus and ends at the ileocecal juncture. The large
intestine includes two caeca and the rectum which
terminates in the cloaca. The length of the intestine
Table. The length of the intestine and its parts
and its parts are measured (Table). There are no significant differences between the length of the left
and right caeca.
The wall of the small intestine in examined hazelgrouse is relatively thin in comparison to that of
domestic Galliformes. Mucosa forms long slender
villi and doesn’t form folds. It has 2 to 5 thickened
areas containing lymphoid tissue (Peyer’s patches
(PP)). They are consistently found in the jejunum
and caudal part of the ileum. Such areas are not demarcated and differ from neighboring areas by thickened villi. Similar thickening in mucosa is also located just before the ileocaecal juncture like a belt up to 2,0 cm long.
The mucosa of the large intestine as in the small one, forms villi. In caeca it also forms folds oriented longitudinally. All
Galliformes have paired caeca, but in Tetraonidae they are especially developed and long. The total length of both left and right
caeca in hazel-grouse constitute 41,07±0,7% of total intestine length. Three parts can be distinguished macroscopically in each
caeca: narrow base (proximal part, beginning at the ileocaecal juncture), body and apex (McLelland J, 1993). The mucosa relief
in these parts is different. At the base it possesses long well-expressed villi and doesn’t form folds. In the body and apex mucosa
is gathered into 6-8 folds oriented longitudinally and forms short villi. The height of the folds and villi decreases as well as the
thickness of the caecal wall which becomes gradually thinner towards the apex.
Mucosa in the caecal base contains solitary lymphoid nodules (LNs) and aggregated LNs. The latter show irregular appearance
and development. Some of them are located near the ileocaecal juncture and resemble caecal tonsils described in chicken (Glick
B et al, 1981, Kitagawa H et al, 1998 ), others are found in the transitional region between base and body.
The caecal apex terminates with a finger- or cone-like projection, so-called apical caecal diverticulum (ACD). The latter is considered to be a lymphoid organ that represents an important site for immunological surveillance in chicken caecum (Kitagawa
H et al, 1996). The ACD length in hazel-grouse ranges from 3,8 to 6,9 mm, which constitutes 1,07 - 2,25% of the caecal length.
Their diameters range from 1,8 to 2,2 mm.
Microscopic examination shows that tunica mucosa of all parts of the intestine comprises an epithelial layer, lamina propria
mucosae, lamina muscularis mucosae and submucosa. Besides the aforementioned villi and folds (in caeca) mucosa forms
crypts and microvilli. Crypts are intestinal glands secreting mucus and enzymes. Epithelium, lining villi and forming crypts are
simple columnar with a striated border. Goblet cells are present in it. Epithelium contains mitotic figures in crypts and intraepithelial lymphoid cells and eosinophils on the surface of the villi . Lamina propria mucosae is formed by loose connective tissue, containing collagen and reticular fibers. At sites where PPs are detected macroscopically it also contains diffuse lymphoid
tissue, prenodules and primary and secondary LNs. LNs are located between villi and at their base. Eosinophils are also found
in lamina propria mucosae.
The mucosa of the large intestine is organized in the same pattern as in the small intestine. In the caecal base mucosa except
solitary LNs contains PPs, composed of diffuse lymphoid tissue and 2 to 5 LNs. PPs are located in lamina propria mucosae and
may deepen into submucosa and in some cases penetrate into tunica muscularis. LNs contained in PPs have germinal centers.
362
The base of PPs is formed by a reticular fiber framework, dense in diffuse lymphoid tissue and sparse in the central part of LNs.
Solitary LNs are found both in the lamina propria mucosae and submucosa. Similar organization is observed in ACD. It contains an accumulation of diffuse lymphoid tissue and secondary LNs, displacing the muscularis mucosae and deepening into
submucosa and tunica muscularis.
The distribution of lymphoid tissue in the rectum mucosa is similar to that in the caecum, but LNs are distributed solitarily.
Prenodules, primary and secondary LNs are located in lamina propria mucosae. Secondary LNs may also be in submucosa.
The tunica muscularis in all parts of the intestine is formed by two layers of smooth muscle tissue: the inner circular layer is 23 times thicker than the outer longitudinal layer. These are divided by loose connective tissue rich in blood vessels and nerve
plexus.
Tunica serosa is formed of loose connective tissue and covered by mesothelium.
Thus, the most developed part of hazel-grouse intestine are the caeca. Their total length constitutes 41% of the total intestinal
length. The mucosa of intestines contains well-developed lymphoid tissue, represented by intraepithelial lymphoid cells, diffuse lymphoid tissue, lymphoid nodules and their aggregates. The nodular lymphoid tissue is distributed predominantly in the
lamina propria mucosae, but in large intestines also in the submucosa.
References
Glick B, Holbrook KA, Olah I (1981) An electron and light microscope study of the caecal tonsil: the basic unit of the caecal tonsil. In: Developmental
and comparative immunology. USA, pergamon Press LTD. Vol.5: pp. 95-104.
Kitagawa H, Hiratsuka Y, Imagawa T, Uehara M (1998) Distribution of lymphoid tissue in the caecal mucosa of chickens. J Anat192: 293-298.
Kitagawa H, Imagawa T, Uehara M (1996) The apical caecal diverticulum of the chicken identified as a lymphoid organ. J Anat 189: 667-772.
McLelland J (1993) Apparatus digestorius [systema alimentatium]. In: Raymond A. Paynter, Jr (ed.) Handbook of avian anatomy: Nomina anatomica
avium. Cambridge, Massachusetts: pp. 301-327.
363
The sex ratio, age structure and body weight of red foxes
Vulpes vulpes in farmland of western Poland
Kamieniarz Robert
Polish Hunting Association, Research Station, Sokolnicza 12, 64-020 Czempiń, Poland
Corresponding author: Robert Kamieniarz. E-mail: [email protected]
Key words: density, rabies, spatial difference.
Introduction
In the 1990s the number of red foxes in Poland was increasing, especially in its western part (Bresiński and Panek 2000). At
the same time, more and more often the species occurred in the open fields and even urban areas. In western Poland, in the end
of 1990s, red foxes were penetrating fields irrespectively of the distance from the forest (Panek and Bresiński 2002).
One of the reasons of the increase was the immunization of the species against rabies (Bresiński and Panek 2000). Scattering
of oral baits with vaccines started in Poland in 1993. At the beginning, the immunization caused a decrease of rabies frequency (Mizak 1997). However, at the beginning of the 2000s, the number of rabid foxes increased rapidly. The danger of the
disease in western Poland turned out to be greater in the regions where the areas of farmland prevailed (Kamieniarz et. al. in
press). Looking for the reasons of such a state, a comparison of sex ratio, age structure, and body weight of the red foxes
living in the fields, the forests and their surroundings was made.
Study area, material and methods
The study was carried out in two areas in the western Poland: the area “Czempiń” (94 km2), situated in the centre of western
Poland (52°08’N, 16°45’E) and the area “Krośniewice” (131 km2), situated on the borderline of western and central Poland
(52°15’N, 19°10’E). In both areas farmland prevailed and small forest constituted from 9% in “Czempiń” to 10% in
“Krośniewice” of the total surface. The density of foxes penetrating fields observed during the spring spotlight counts in 2004
was 6 ind./10 km2.
The data about shot foxes were collected between October 1st and March 31st in 1997-1999 (Czempiń) and in 2004-2005
(Czempiń and Krośniewice). During the years the following parameters were estimated: the time and shooting sites, sex, body
weight and age judged on the base on the width of the teeth’s canals in canines (Goszczyński 1995). The data used in the
research were taken from the hunting during daytime resting of foxes (hunting with dogs expelling the predators from their dens
and other hiding-places, battue hunting in forests and patches of trees or brushes among fields). The data from the individual
morning and evening hunting for active foxes was not considered. Thus, to classify shot foxes according to habitats the criterion of the day resting sites was introduced. The foxes resting over 1.5 km from the forest were indicated as “field foxes” and
the ones shot in the forest and its adjoining area (until 0.5 km) were marked as “forest foxes”. The transitional zone (0.5 km1.5 km from the forest) including the areas where both “forest” and “field” foxes could occur, was estimated on the base of the
data on the pattern of penetrating farmland by foxes (Goszczyński 1985).
For the assessment of sex and age ratio the data was obtained using one method, i.e. hunting with dogs (n=148 foxes). Battue
hunting correlate with shooting more males especially young ones (Kamieniarz and Bresiński 2000). The age structure was
analysed in two categories: juvenile (from birth till 31st March of the next year) and adult. The body weight was estimated on the
base of the data from the area of Czempiń (n=188 foxes) in order to eliminate the differences in food resources in various areas.
Tab. 1. Mean body weights of red foxes according to sex-age
classes and habitats near (Czempiń), western Poland, 1997-99
and 2004-05 (±SD and sample sizes in parentheses are given).
364
Tab. 2. The results of the variance analysis of the red foxes
body weight in relation to sex, age and habitat (open fields,
forest), near Czempiń, western Poland, 1997-99 and 2004-05.
Results
The sex ratio of the examined foxes showed a little domination of male individuals (54%). The proportion of males was higher among “field” foxes (64%) than among “forest” foxes (49%), but the difference remained statistically non-significant
(χ21=2.24, p=0.1).
Among the examined foxes, adult individuals dominated (59%). As for young foxes, there were more of them (χ21=5.07,
p=0.02) in open fields (50%) than in the forests and their adjoining areas (28%).Male individuals, especially the ones living in
farmland turned out to have a higher body weight (Tab.1, Tab. 2). The analysis of variance, taking into consideration the factors of sex and age, proved a significant influence of the habitat on the body weight (Tab. 2). The adjusted mean body weight
of foxes was 5.9 in forests, 6.3 in transitional zone and 6.0 in open fields.
Discussion
Already in the 1960s and 1970s open fields were intensively penetrated by red foxes, but in the central regions of the country
no breeding sites of the species were found out of forests (Goszczyński 1985). Although in western Poland foxes bred in the
fields, it took place more rarely than in the forest (Pielowski 1976). In the end of the 1990s the number of family dens in open
rural areas was higher than in the previous decades (Panek and Bresiński 2002).The proportion of males and females did not
differ significantly in compared habitats. The observed domination of male individuals is often seen in research on red foxes.
It refers mainly, to the analysis based on the data of describing the shot individuals (Kozlowski et al. 2000).
It has been proved that open field areas are more often inhabited by young foxes. Their settlement in such places is probably
the result of the increasing population density and thus more intensive spatial competition between foxes. Forests are still habitats preferred by foxes as breeding sites (Panek and Bresiński 2002, Kamieniarz in prep.), therefore this habitat is probably
occupied first of all by territorial adult males. On the other hand, field habitats offer rich feeding resources such as small rodents
and other animals, including farm livestock and its carrion. Farm livestock has recently become a significant ingredient of the
fox's diet in western Poland (Panek and Bresiński 2002). Farmland provides foxes with a number of suitable hiding places available also after plant vegetation seasons (land melioration system, straw stacks, reed). As a result, foxes that are able to decrease
the distance from human settlements and areas visited by people find favourable habitat conditions in open fields. This hypothesis is confirmed by the fact of the higher body weight of the foxes settled in agricultural areas. The higher danger of rabies
infection on the areas not covered by forests may result from the fact that farmland is less regularly covered with oral baits with
vaccines than the forest areas. While the baits are scattered from the planes, towns and villages, that most often are settled
among agricultural lands are omitted (Kamieniarz et al. in press). Another question may arise from the above mentioned fact
that mainly young foxes settle in fields. In the first year of their lives foxes have a chance of getting the vaccine only during
autumn vaccination action.
The next stage of the study will be the analysis of the data concerning taking the vaccine by the foxes of defined age and place
of occurrence.
Acknowledgements:
Financial support for this research was provided by the State Committee for Scientific Research in the years 2004-2005 within the project No 2 P06L 048 26.
References
Bresiński W, Panek M (2000) The condition of fox population in Poland at the end of nineties (monitoring results). In: Kubiak S (ed.) Zwierzyna drob·
na jako elementy bioróonorodności
środowiska przyrodniczego. Wloclawskie Towarzystwo Naukowe, Wloclawek: pp. 163-171
Goszczyński J (1985) The effect of structural differentiation of ecological landscape on the predator-prey interaction. Wydawnictwo SGGW-AR,
Warszawa: pp. 1-80.
Goszczyński J (1995) Lis. Monografia przyrodniczo-lowiecka. OIKOS, Warszawa: pp. 1-137. Kamieniarz R, Bresiński W (2000) Red fox number con·
trol-an experiment in the area of Czempiń, western Poland. In: Kubiak S. (ed.) Zwierzyna drobna jako elementy bioróznorodności
środowiska przyrodniczego. Wloclawskie Towarzystwo Naukowe, Wloclawek: pp. 172-181.
Kamieniarz R, Kryński A, Panek M (in press) The occurence of rabies of red foxes Vulpes vulpes in western Poland in correspondence to the density
of the species and the composition of the landscape. In: Proc. of XIIth International Congress on Animal Hygiene, 4-8, September 2005, Warsaw, Poland.
Kozlowski K, Labudzki L, Kamieniarz R (2000) Chosen parameters of red fox population in western Poland. In: Kubiak S. (ed.) Zwierzyna drobna
·
jako elementy bioróznorodności
środowiska przyrodniczego. Wloclawskie Towarzystwo Naukowe, Wloclawek: pp. 182-191.
· acych.
Mizak Z (1997) Szczepienia doustne przeciw wściekliźnie lisów wolno zyj
Low. Pol 7: p.24.
,
Panek M, BresińskiW (2002) Red fox Vulpes vulpes density and habitat use in a rural area of western Poland in the end of 1990s, compared with the
turn of 1970s. Acta Theriol 4: pp. 433-442.
Pielowski Z (1976) The role of foxes in reduction of the European hare population. In: Pielowski Z, Pucek Z (eds.) ”Ecology and management of
European hare populations”, PWRiL, Warszawa: pp. 135-148.
365
Estimating of the red (Cervus elaphus) and roe deer
(Capreolus capreolus) diet quality by near-infrared
reflectance spectroscopy
Kamler Jiří, Homolka Miloslav
Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, 603 65 Brno, Czech Republic
Corresponding author: Jir̆í Kamler, Tel.: +42-5-43-42-25-49, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: ungulate diet, faecal indicators, NIRS
Recent studies indicate that near infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS) can be a valuable method to estimate variety of
chemical components in different materials like soil, plant or animal tissues (Foley et al. 1998, Ludwig et al. 2002). NIRS has
been successfully applied in agriculture to determine the chemical composition of the pastures and other food (Offer et al. 1998,
Kays et al. 2000). Some studies also used NIRS to estimate diet quality of ruminants from faecal samples. Diet crude protein,
diet digestibility and also energetic values of the diet have been successfully estimated from faeces by using this method (Lyons
& Stuth 1992, Leite & Stuth 1995, Purnomoadi et al. 1996). NIRS can be used also for estimating other characteristics of diet
such as mineral content (Windham et al. 1991), energy content of the diet of non-ruminants (van Barneveld et al. 1999) and
also botanical composition of the diet (Petersen et al. 1987, Volesky & Coleman 1996, Walker et al. 2002).
NIRS predicted nitrogen (%)
The potential for using NIRS in this way has been tested mostly on domestic animals so far; wider verification of this method
for use in studies of diet quality in free-living ruminants has not previously been undertaken. In this study we compare FN content obtained by traditional Kjeldahl method and by NIRS to test the applicability of NIRS for this analysis in free-living ruminants. We used dung pellets sampled from roe and red deer in growing and winter seasons. We collected 168 fresh faecal
pellet groups in two seasons (vegetation period = May – September and winter = November – February. Samples were airdried at 60° C for 48 hours, ground in a mill to pass a 1 mm screen, and divided into two subsamples. The first group of subsamples (reference values) was analyzed for nitrogen using standard Kjeldahl procedures (AOAC 1980) and the second group
of subsamples was analyzed by NIRS analysis using a FOSS NIRSystem 6500, a near infrared reflectance spectrophotometer
in the 1100-2500 nm wavelengths range. We used standard normal variate correction (SNV) which corrects each ith spectrum
(row) in the data matrix separately by subtraction of the row mean and normalizing in the row direction (Barnes, Dhanoa &
Lister 1989). Data were analyzed by linear regression using software NIR Calibration 1.0 (EFFICHEM, CZ). Partial least
square (PLS) was chosen as the regression because it is generally considered to be the method of choice in multivariate calibration (Martens & Næs 1991). To examine the relationship between the results of the two tested methods we used the correlation coefficient and standard error of cross validation (SECV). Before comparing the values obtained by the two methods, we
tested the differences of reference FN values in subsamples (species, season). Both season and species affected FN values
(ANOVA, F3,164 = 32.76; P < 0.001); therefore, we tested the differences between both used methods separately for seasons and
species (t- test). To test if NIRS performed well for both feeding specialists, we calculated the equation of the regression curve
separately for red and roe deer. Differences in the x-y regression slope were examined according to Armitage et al. (2001).
Finally we tested the significance of differences in reference FN values between species and seasons (two species
y = 0.9964
in one season and one species in two seasons) by a t-test.
R2 = 0.968
SEC = 0.15
In all samples, faecal nitrogen ranged from 1.10 to 4.58%
of dry matter. We did not find any significant differences
between the two methods when applied to paired samples
Figure 1. Reference (Kjeldahl) nitrogen and NIRS predicted nitrogen in faeces of red (CE) and roe (CC) deer in
growing season (g = spring-summer) and winter (w) in
Jeseníky Mts. The thin line is the ideal equation Y = X.
366
whatever the species or season (P > 0.1 in all cases). Values of the nitrogen content obtained by the two methods were closely
correlated in pooled data sets (r = 0.985; n = 168; P < 0.001; SECV = 0.15; see Fig. 1).
The calibration values determined separately for each of the species were also significantly correlated (red deer:
r = 0.985; P < 0.001; SECV = 0.147; roe deer: r = 0.986; P < 0.001; SECV = 0.12), equations of the both regression curves
were nearly identical (roe deer: y = 0.9509x + 0.1405; red deer: y = 0.9642x + 0.0811) and their slopes did not differ
significantly (t = 0.500; P = 0.597).
In accordance with our hypothesis, the reference FN values were higher in roe deer than in red deer in summer
(t = 2.737; P = 0.007) but they did not differ in winter (t = 0.994; P = 0.330). Values of faecal nitrogen were significantly higher in the growing season than in winter in both red and roe deer (t = 13.557; P < 0.001 and t = 9.445; P < 0.001 in red and roe
deer respectively).
Our study verified the applicability of NIRS for the estimation of the faecal nitrogen in free-living ruminants. We did not find
any differences in reliability of NIRS between deer species and seasons and we confirmed NIRS advantages. Our results corresponded with the expected differences in diet quality between seasons and deer species.
We would also emphasise the advantages of NIRS such as speed and low costs of the analysis. The number of samples that can
be processed is not limited and validity of the estimated parameters is not influenced by sample freshness (Pearce et al. 1993).
Our findings agree with the results of similar studies proving NIRS perspectives in estimation of diet quality of ruminants (Leite
& Stuth 1995, Cozzolino et al. 2002). We find the application of NIRS highly promising for faecal analyses of different characteristics of the diet of free-living ruminants. NIRS perspectives are in its use for the direct estimation of diet quality
(digestible energy and protein) from faeces and also in the possibility to determine the botanical composition of the diet in wild
ruminants from faecal material. Nevertheless, differences in botanical composition of the diet can influence the accuracy of
NIRS estimation and so it is necessary to perform further studies of NIRS especially in different feeding specialists.
Acknowledgements
This study was supported by the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic, Grant No. 206/03/P134.
References
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Association of official analytical chemists (1980) Official methods of analysis. Assoc. Off. Anal. Chem. Washington
Barnes RJ, Dhanoa MS, Lister SJ (1989) Standard normal variate transformation and de-trending of near-infrared diffuse reflectance spectra. Applied
Spectroscopy 43:772-777
Cozzolino D, La Manna A, Martins DV (2002) Use of near infrared reflectance spectroscopy to analyse bovine faecal samples. J near infrared
spectroscopy 10:309-314
Foley WJ, McIlwee A, Lawler I, Aragones L, Woolnough AP, Berding N (1998) Ecological applications of near infrared reflectance spectroscopy a tool
for rapid, cost-effective prediction of the composition of plant and animal tissues and aspects of animal performance. Oecologia 116:293-305
Kays SE, Barton FE, Windham WR (2000) Predicting protein content by near infrared reflectance spectroscopy in diverse cereal food products.
J Near Infrared Spectroscopy 8:35-43
Leite ER, Stuth JW (1995) Fecal NIRS equations to assess diet quality of free-ranging goats. Small Ruminant Research 15:223-230
Ludwig K, Khanna PK, Bauhus J, Hopmans P (2002) Near infrared spectroscopy of forest soils to determine chemical and biological properties related to soil sustainability. For Ecol Manage 171:121-132
Lyons RK, Stuth JW (1992) Fecal NIRS equations for predicting diet quality of free-ranging cattle. J Range Manage 45:238-244
Offer NW, Percival DS, Dewhurst RJ, Thomas C (1998) Prediction of the voluntary intake potential of grass silage by sheep and dairy cows from laboratory silage measurements. Anim Sci 66:357-367
Pearce RA, Lyons RK, Stuth JW (1993) Influence of handling methods on fecal NIRS evaluations. J Range Manage 46:274-276
Petersen JC, Barton FE, Windham WR, Hoveland CS (1987) Botanical composition definition of tall fescue-white clover mixtures by near infrared
reflectance spectroscopy. Crop Sci 27:1077-1080
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van Barneveld RJ, Nuttall JD, Flinn PC, Osborne BG (1999) Near infrared reflectance measurement of the digestible energy content of cereals for
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Volesky JD, Coleman SW (1996) Estimation of botanical composition of esophageal extrusa samples using near infrared reflectance spectroscopy.
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Walker JW, McCoy SD, Launchbaugh KL, Fraker MJ, Powel J (2002) Calibrating fecal NIRS equations for predicting botanical composition of diets.
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Crop Sci 31:1345-1349
367
Age determination in red deer: tooth wear vs. number of
cementum rings and estimating live animals in field
Kareta Alina 1, Mikos Janusz 2, Siuta Alicja 3, Wasilewski Roman 4, Zajac Renata 5
1
Department of Ecology, Wildlife Research and Ecoturism, Podbrzezie 3, 31-054 Krakow, Poland
2
Wejherowo Forest District
3
Departament of Animal Nutrition, Agricultural University
4
Regional Directory of State Forest in Gdansk
nternational Institute of Ecology, Zolnierska 31, 30-735 Kraków, Poland
5I
Corresponding author: Renata Zajac. Tel.: +48-1-26-62-66-87, fax: +48-1-26-62-66-82,
Key words: northern Poland, selections harvest, molars, lower jaw
Abstract
Red deer stags harvest in Poland is planned on three age classes. Class I includes individuals which are 2-5 years old, class II
the ones from 6 to 10, and class III animals older that 10. Only experienced hunters who passed an additional hunting exam
can hunt for these stags. Hunters are obliged to estimate animal's age in a field condition with 1-2 year accuracy as well as shape
and weight of antlers. Making a mistake by a hunter often means that he cannot haunt for stags during next hunting season.
When a hunting season is over, 2 or 3 persons, called a Trophy Commission, estimate age, shape and weight of antlers of each
hunted stag.
Age is estimated on the basis of tooth wear pattern of lower jaw. During this estimation process, it is assumed that older individuals' tooth are more worn off that these of young ones.
In 2003 in Regional Directorate of State Forest in Gdansk (RDLP-Gdansk), (northern Poland) more reasonable and objective
criteria of red deer stags cull were introduced. It was decided that a hunter should be capable of estimating animal's age with
an age class accuracy and counting a number of antler points, which an indication of antlers mass (Bobek et al 2004). For
instance, in II class age, animals with 10 points antlers and less were evaluated as a correct cull. RDLP Gdansk consists of 15
Forest Districts of total area of 273 800 ha.
After the end of hunting season 2003/2004 Commissions from 15 Forest Districts checked a cull of 274 red deer stags by estimating animal's age and antlers shape. The age of this animals were best verified by the authors of this work, through counting
number of annual rings in cementum of molars of lower jaw (Mitchell 1963). Out of 274 animals which were checked, age of
107 individuals was estimated correctly , which make 39% of all red deer stags. The age of remained individuals (n=167) was
overestimated (41,3%)
Table 1. Results of age estimation in red deer stags: verification tooth wear method by number of or
underestimated
cementum rings in molar of lower jaw. For more explanation see text.
(58,7%). Most errors
occured among red deer
which were 4-6 years old
(Tabl.1). However, 5
Commissions (out of 15)
had a considerable number of red deer's jaws
from hunting season
2002/2003, of which age
was estimated on the
basis of number of annual
ring in molars. Estimations of jaws in relation to
age class was more precise, as 87.2% of analyzed material was correctly classified.
Animals with 8-10 point
antlers belonged to I age
class, but they were rec-
368
Table. 2. Characteristic of
red deer antlers harvested
during 2003/2004 hunting
season in Regional Directorate of State Forest in
Gdańsk.N-irregular type, R
– regular type
ognized by hunters in field conditions as those belonging to II class. In the same way, 12 point antler individuals were estimated
by hunters as more than 10 year old animals, while they belonged to II age class. To sum up, 25% of hunters estimated wrong
the age class before cull (Tabl.2).
On the basis of this work we came to the following conclusions:
1. The extend to which red deer's teeth wear off, varies a lot depending on an individual. Therefore, it is recommended that
commissions should estimate red deer's age class accuracy. The same criteria should be introduced for hunters in the whole
country, since demanding a higher accuracy of age and antlers mass is gratuitous.
2. Hunters performed poorly in terms of estimating red deer's age class. It means, that present training methods applied by
Polish Hunting Association are not correct. Hunters should be trained by State Forest Service and take exam prepared by a commission that would be appointed by state administration.
3. It is highly probable that many scientific reports based on materials which age was estimated by trophy commissions bear
the same mistake. This kind of analysis should be based on animals' age estimated by counting annual rings in red deer's teeth.
In 2003-2004, in a few regions of Poland took the initiative of simplifying criteria of selective stag cull (Bobek et al 2004).
Unfortunately, Polish Hunting Association (PZ_) didn't approve of such movements and introduced for the whole country criteria according to which, a hunter has to estimate in field conditions stags' antlers mass and age with 1-2 year accuracy
(Anonymous 2005). This of policy definitely will not improve quality of red deer stags in Poland. It may cause the increase of
incorrect stags' cull instead. It can also discourage hunters from registering animals shot in this way, as well as make hunters
deliver other animals for Trophy Commission.
References:
Anonymous (2005) Zasady selekcji. Lowiec Polski 3: 8-10.
Bobek B, Ciepluch Z, Merta D, Mikos J, Pyplacz P, Wasilewski R, Wisniowska L (2004) Planowanie pozyskania jeleni: odstrzal strukturalny i selekcyjny. Brac Lowiecka 1: 20-23.
Mitchell B (1963) Determination of age in Scottish red deer from growth layers in dental cement. Nature 198: 350-351.
369
Use of alpine ranges by brown hare (Lepus europaeus) and
livestock in central Greece. Competition or facilitation?
Karmiris Ilias 1, Koukoura Zoi 1, and Christodoulou George 2
1
Faculty of Forestry and Natural Environment, Range Science Laboratory. 54124, Thessaloniki, Greece
2
Hunting Federation of Thessaly and Sporades isles
Corresponding author: Ilias Karmiris. Tel.: +31-2-31-03-26-490, fax: +31-23-10-99-88-86, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: multiple range management, alpine grasslands, overgrazing, animal behavior, treeline.
Extended abstract
Brown hare prefers to live in open country including grassland, scrubland, pastures, agriculture (intensive or not), clearings in
scrub or forest and it generally avoids closed forests and ranges above treeline, except few occasions (Tapper 1987, Knip 1991).
In central and northern Europe, the alpine ranges are occupied by mountain hare (Lepus timidus), while brown hare (from now
on hare) is usually restricted to lowland Europe (Thulin 2003).
Hare habitat research concerns mainly farmland areas. It is a species which prefers to live in areas where a variety of crops
exists (Tapper and Barnes 1986, Lewandowski and Novakowski 1993, Panek and Kameniarz 1999). Livestock grazing affects
on hare behaviour have been merely investigated and there are few reports about the possible competition or the facilitation
between them (Frylestam 1976, Barnes et al. 1983, Tapper and Barnes 1986, McLaren et al. 1997).
This research showed that alpine ranges in central Greece were used by brown hare and livestock intensively, which indicates
that proper livestock management in favor of hare populations can be feasible.
The study area was located in alpine grassland on mountain Pindos in central Greece at an altitude between 1600-2100 m, covering approximately 700 Ha. Treeline in this area is formed by Macedonian fir (Abies borissi regis) and it does not exceed 1500
m. The whole study area is dominated by alpine perennial plants. In this study, the term ‘alpine’ follow Körner (2003). This
area has been heavily grazed by livestock (cattle, sheep and goats) in a traditional and continuous grazing system for a long
time. Hunting is permitted in the area from middle September until soil is covered with snow, i.e. early winter. For more information on the study area, livestock stocking rates and vegetation characteristics, see Koukoura and Karmiris (2004).
It was very easy to be ascertained if hares used this alpine zone at the period when soil is covered with snow, i.e. late December
2003 to early April 2004, and middle December 2004 to January 2005. This was achieved during four surveys which were conducted in January, March and early April 2004 and in January 2005. Alpine ranges seem to be unsuitable for hares when snow
in form of ice cover the soil surface, since at that time of the year hares were totally absent from alpine grasslands in Pindos
mountains. In fact, there was not any single sign (pellets or tracks on snow) of hares at all, during our surveys at the beginning
(January to April 2004) and in the end of this experiment (January 2005), thus the use of alpine grassland by hares was considered worthless.
mean pellet number per m2
In late April 2004, 85 permanent fecal-pellet count plots (1 X 1 m) were established randomly on the study area. Since then,
hare pellets were counted at about every 50 days until early December 2005. Marks were used to make easier the location of
the plots. Special attention was given at plot establishment so as to avoid edge effects near the treeline. Distance between plots
was not less than 30 m in every case. Faecal pellets were counted and subsequently removed from each plot. Plots were settled
in order to cover the whole study area. From personal observations in this area, which is characterized by harsh climatic con-
370
Figure 1. Mean number
of hare pellets per m2 (±
SE) deposited on alpine
grassland in central
Greece in different periods of a year. Different
letters between columns
indicate significance.
ditions especially during winter, hare pellets could be preserved and identified for 6 to 9 months at the most, thus decomposition rate of pellets was not required to be estimated for the purposes of this experiment.
Pellet count data were subjected to one way analysis of variance, using S.P.S.S. statistical package. Periods were treated as fixed
factor. Tukey’s test was used to evaluate differences between means. Differences were considered significant at P ≤ 0.05.
Significantly more hare pellets (Tukey’s critical value = 0.607) were counted during July (P = 0.000) and August (P = 0.000)
than October, while in May and December the mean pellet numbers were significantly less (P = 0.001; P = 0.000 respectively)
than October (Figure 1).
Alpine zones in central Greece seem to be a preferable biotope for hare when soil is not covered with snow, i.e. approximately 7-8 months per year according to climatic conditions prevailing in Mediterranean alpine zone. The total avoidance of alpine
grasslands by hares during the cold period of the year should be attributed to the snow-covered surface of the ground, which
makes these areas unsuitable for hares because of habitat inability to provide food and cover. The pellet deposition rate in the
study area indicates that a sufficient hare population inhabits the area, making this area a favorable hunting place for many hare
hunters during autumn. Besides, hunting seem to be another crucial factor which may account for the lowering of the mean pellet number deposited on our study area during autumn in relation with summer, either direct (lowering population density) or
indirect (disturbing hares).
Nowadays, it is definitely recognizable that grazing is a powerful ‘tool’ which man can use in order to direct the natural succession of flora (Williams et al. 1974, Sharrrow et al. 1989), and also to conserve and improve the quantity and quality of
forages according to his needs and wishes (Adams 1975, Malechek et al. 1978, Gordon 1988, Davidson 1993). Overgrazing
retards plant succession and usually promotes the development of annual grasses and forbs in favour of some lagomorph species
which feed upon these plant species (Holechek et al. 1989). Survival and reproduction capability of lagomorphs and generally
of all small herbivorous wildlife populations are influenced by habitat characteristics and vegetation structure. Hence, every
factor such as grazing, capable to change plant community structure in a biotope, may influence population dynamics of these
species as well (Gibb 1993, Kolb 1994, Katzner and Parker 1997). This is perhaps what happens in alpine grasslands in central
Greece with hare and livestock. Hare may be favored by livestock grazing, since an increased use of hares was observed after
the introduction of grazing flocks (early summer); or at least hares were not disturbed so much to flee the area. The coexistence
of hares and livestock in these areas in Greece indicates that competition between them is rather weak; or even more livestock
grazing may create favorable range conditions for hares due to the removal of plant material and the limitation of herb layer.
Thus, the common management for livestock grazing and hunting of alpine regions in Greece may be compatible and beneficial to each other.
References
Adams S N (1975) Sheep and cattle grazing in forests: A review. J Appl Ecol 12:143-152
Barnes R F W, Tapper S C, Williams J (1983) Use of pastures by brown hares. J Appl Ecol 20:179-185
Davidson D W (1993) The effects of herbivory and granivory on terrestrial plant succession. Oikos 68:23-35
Gibb J A (1993) Sociality, time and space in a sparse population of rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus). J Zool 229:581-607
Gordon I J (1988) Facilitation of red deer grazing by cattle and its impact on red deer performance. J Appl Ecol 25:1-9
Holechek J L, Pieper R D, Herbler C H (1989) Range management principles and practices. Prentice Hall Inc, USA
Katzner T E, Parker K L (1997) Vegetative characteristics and size of home ranges used by pygmy rabbits (Brachylagus idahoensis) during winter. J
Mamm 78:1063-1072
Knip C M (1990) The Handbook of New Zealand Mammals. Oxford Univ. Press.
Kolb H (1994) The use of cover and burrows by a population of rabbits (Mammalia: Oryctolagus cuniculus) in eastern Scotland. J Zool 233:9-17
Korner C (2003) Alpine plant life: functional plant ecology of high mountain ecosystems. 2nd Ed Springer, Berlin Heidelberg
Koukoura Z, Karmiris I (2004) Effects of livestock grazing on plant diversity in alpine grasslands. In: Luscher A, Jeangros B, Kessler W, Huguenin O,
Lobsiger M, Millar N, Suter D (eds) Land use systems in grassland dominated regions Proc. of the 20th EGF meeting 21-24 June 2004 Lucern: Vol 9
pp. 308-311
Lewandowski K, Nowakowski J J (1993) Spatial distribution of brown hare Lepus europaeus populations in habitats of various types of agriculture.
Acta Theriol 38:435-442
Malechek J C, Kotter K J, Jensen C H (1978) Nutrition and production of domestic sheep managed as manipulators of big game habitat. J Range
Manage 31:92-96
Panek M, and Kamieniarz R (1999) Relationships between density of brown hare Lepus europaeus and landscape structure in Poland in the years 19811995. Acta Theriol 44:67-75
Sharrow S H, Leininger W C, Rhodes B (1989) Sheep grazing as a silvicultural tool to suppress brush. J Range Manage 42:2-4
Tapper (1987) The brown hare. Shire Natural History No. 20, Shire publications Ltd, United Kingdom
Tapper S C, Barnes R F W (1986) Influence of farming practice on the ecology of the brown hare (Lepus europaeus). J Appl Ecol 23:39-52
Thulin C G (2003) The distribution of mountain hares Lepus timidus in Europe: a challenge from brown hares L. europaeus ?
Mammal Rev 33:29-42
Williams O B, Wells T C E, Wells D A (1974) Grazing management of Woodwalton Fen: Seasonal changes in the diet of cattle and rabbits.
J Appl Ecol 11:499-516
371
First report of infectious keratoconjunctivitis (IKC) in the
Cyprus mouflon (Ovis orentalis gmelinii)
Kassinis N. I.
The Game Fund, Ministry of Interior, Nicosia, 1453, Cypru
Corresponding author: N.I. Kassinis. Tel.: +357-2-28-67-786, fax: +357-2-28-67-780, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Pafos, outbreak, demographic, parameters
Introduction
Diseases affecting wildlife populations are difficult to investigate and the way they might influence population demography
(Scott, 1988, Hobbs and Miller 1992). Infectious Keratoconjunctivitis (IKC), an ocular disease, was recorded for the first time
in Cyprus mouflon (Ovis orientalis gmelinii) in 2001. IKC affects the eyes and can lead to blindness and/or death (Loison et
al. 1996).
The Cyprus mouflon or agrino, an endemic wild sheep species inhabits the Pafos forest, a mountainous area of 620,000 ha,
located in the northwestern part of Troodos range. Along with the mouflon of Sardinia and Corsica (Ovis orientalis) are the
only forest dwellers among other Caprinae. The current mouflon population is estimated to be aproximately 3000 animals
(Kassinis and Papageorgiou 2000). The species is strictly protected under Cypriot legislation. The higher mouflon densities
occur in the forest periphery where the vegetation is more open and varied and the pastures are more extensive. In some parts
of the forest periphery, goat and sheep herding is intensive, especially to the north and southwest of the forest where domestic
animals and mouflon share the same pastures. Since 1974, the northern part of Cyprus is occupied by the Turkish army and
some part of the Pafos forest’s northern edge lies within this occupied and heavily militarized zone. This Turkish-occupied area
where mouflon occur is heavily grazed by domestic herds.
Study area
The study was conducted in the Pafos forest (35° 1' 0"N, 32° 40' 0"E). The forest is a state- owned area managed by the
Forestry Department. The climate is typical Mediterranean characterized by long, dry summers and wet, cool winters.
Keratoconjunctivitis
Infectious keratoconjunctivitis (IKC) usually caused by Mycoplasma conjunctivae is described in domestic sheep and goats and
for 5 mountain ungulates (Loison et al. 1996, Giacometti et al. 2002). The infection is identified by an inflammation of the
conjunctiva and cornea and in the most advanced stage the cornea becomes opaque and perforated (Giacometti et al. 2002).
Methods
• Retrieval of affected animals
From 2001 to 2003 dead or sick mouflon affected by IKC were retrieved by game-wardens and forestry department personnel.
All animals were taken to the Department of Veterinary services for examination and treatment was provided if the animal situation was reversible. Since February of 2003, no dead or sick mouflon with IKC have been seen during Game Fund personnel regular searches and counts.
• Laboratory diagnosis
State veterinarians took conjunctival swabs from 5 fresh mouflon corpses and samples were stored at -20°C. Then a courier
took them to the Laboratory of Clinical Bacteriology, Parasitology, Zoonoses and Geographical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine,
University of Crete. No examination of domestic livestock was carried out to examine the possibility of having affected
sheep/goat herds mainly because the majority of the cases were in areas close to the Turkish-occupied north where access was
restricted.
• Population monitoring
Annual counts were conducted in September and following January of each year in 20 standardized routes totaling 253 Km and
covering an area of 79.2 Km2. For the purposes of this report, counts taken in the IKC-affected areas were used. These were
4 distinct road transects totaling in 41 km. Also, lambing ground surveys were conducted in selected major cliffs and fixed
routes in April-May of each year.
372
Results
• Microbiology and Histopathology
ow
n
un
kn
yr
810
yr
68
yr
46
yr
24
yr
1.
5
<
1
yr
D
ec
-0
2
Se
p02
Ju
n02
M
ar
-0
2
D
ec
-0
1
Se
p01
No of animals
Retrieved animals
DNA was extracted by using the QIAamp Tissue Kit (QIAGEN, Hilden, Germany). All DNA extracts were tested by
Polymerasde chain reaction (PCR) using primers specific for Rickettsiae, Chlamydia, Mycoplasma. All samples were negative
for Rickettsiae and Chlamydia. In 3 samples Mycoplasma conjunctivae was detected (Psaroulaki and Tselentis, pers. com.)
Fig.1. Temporal distribution of IKC-affected mouflon,
2001-2003
Fig. 2. Age group distribution of affected rams, 2001-2003.
• IKC Geographical and temporal distribution
In the 17 months of the 3-year outbreak (September 2001 - February 2003), 2, 15, and 21 affected animals were recovered,
respectively. Total number of affected animals represented the 34% (38/113) of all animals found (dead, injured, wild - trapped)
in this 3-year period. The majority of affected animals retrieved, were located in areas close to the UN-controlled Buffer zone
(74%). Peak period of the outbreak was November 2002 – February 2003 where 31/38 (81%) animals were recovered (Fig. 1).
In the Turkish-occupied area to the north of the Pafos forest, there have been frequent reports by the UN that the Turkish army
has found regularly blind or dying mouflon with white eyes.
• Gender/age/other characteristics of affected animals
Almost all animals were in a below average or poor physical condition. Affected rams almost equaled ewes (20 vs 18). Most
of the ewes were found in January – February 2003 (17/18 or 94%) whereas most rams were found in the period November –
December 2002 (10/20 or 50%). All rams and ewes found were adults (ewes > 2 years old, rams > 4 years old). Age-groups
of affected rams are shown in Fig. 2.
Sixty-six percent of animals retrieved were either dead (mainly due to starvation and/or injuries) or died shortly after handling,
7 (18%) were retrieved alive and blind to one or both eyes, were treated and 4 of them recovered (2 rams and 2 ewes), radio
tagged and released. Cyprus mouflon lack natural predators and blind, injured animals were usually killed by feral dogs that
live in parts of the forest (16 %).
• Demographic characteristics
1. Population Monitoring
In 2004 251 animals were counted (99 rams, 85 ewes, 30 1.5-yr old ewes, 1 1.5-yr old rams, 29 female lambs and 5 male lambs).
During 2003 230 mouflon (275 in 2002 and 288 in 2001) were counted (September 2003) along these routes (93 rams, 77 ewes,
22 1.5-yr old ewes, 30 female lambs and 8 male lambs). In 2002, 74 rams, 120 ewes, 22 1.5-yr old ewes, 5 1.5-yr old rams,
37 female lambs, 13 male lambs and 4 unknown were counted.
2. Reproductive Success (lamb-ewe ratio)
Mouflon breeding success is given by the percentage of lambs/100 ewes seen during lambing ground surveys.
Table 1. Mouflon numbers during September counts, 20012004.
Table 2. Mouflon reproductive success during May
counts, 2000-2005
373
Discussion
The standardized fall counts show a maximum decrease of 20% in population numbers in 2003, following the end of the outbreak. This decline was comparable to chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra) mortality due to IKC outbreaks that rarely exceeds 25
% (Catusse 1982, Gauthier 1991). Reproductive performance declined after the outbreak of the disease in 2001 and from 2002
onwards there was a decrease in breeding success. This decrease, as large as 35% in 2003, started reversing in 2004. This
decline may be attributed to low neonatal survival or decreased breeding rate. Recovery will probably be faster than the 5-6
year period given in other studies (Loison et al. 1996).
The higher proportion (50%) of affected rams found during the November-December 2002 (rut season for mouflon) is justified
by the mingling of males and females that are otherwise living in separate groups. Also the fact that Cyprus mouflon are not
hunted allows for a high male percentage n the population compared to hunted Caprinae like the Chamois (Giacometti et al.
2002). The high female percentage is comparable to other studies even though affected juveniles or yearlings have not been
found in our study.
Even though disease transmission routes are seldom identified (Loison et al. 1996), spillover of the pathogenic agent from
domestic ungulates sharing summer pastures with wild Caprinae may be the possible source of infection (Loison et al. 1996,
Whithear 2001, Giacometti et al. 2002). Regular checks on domestic herds inhabiting the forest edge where mouflon occur
must be carried out along with an effort to prevent livestock from using the same mouflon pastures. Finally, the continuous
health checks on mouflon will continue to monitor their health status.
References
Catusse, M. (1982) Evolution de la kerato-conjonctivite en Ariege. Bull. Mens. Of. Nat. Chasse 64, 26-34.
Gauthier, D. (1991) La kerato-conjonctivite infectieuse du chamois/Etude epidemiologique dans le Departement de la Savoie 1983-1990. Veterinariae
Medicinae Thesis, University Claude Bernard of Lyon, Lyon, France, 107 pp.
Giacometti, M., Janovsky M., Belloy L., and Frey J. (2002) Infectious Keratoconjunctivitis of Ibex, Chamois and other Caprinae. Rev. sci. tech. Off.
Int. Epiz., 2002.
Hobbs, N. T., and Miller M.W. (1992) Interactions between pathogens and hosts: simulation of pasteurellosis epizootics n bighorn populations. Pages
997-1007 in D.R. McCullough and R. Barrett, eds. Wildlife 2001: populations. Elsevier, London, U.K.
Kassinis, N.I. and Papageorgiou K. (2000) The endemic Cyprus mouflon; population status and conservation. Game Fund report, 8pp. Cyprus
Ministry of Interior.
Loison, A., Gaillard J.M. and Jullien J.M. (1996) Demographic patterns after an epizootic of Keratokonjuctivitis in a chamois population. J. Wildl.
Manage. 60:517-527.
Scott, M. E. (1988) The impact of infection and disease on animal population: implication for conservation biology. Conserv. Biol. 2:40-56.
Whithear, K. (2001) Diseases due to mycoplasmas. Pages 413-422 in Williams, E. S. and I.K. Barker, eds. Infectious diseases of wild animals. Third
edition. Iowa State University Press.
374
Effect of the nutritional status on the power loading for aerial
and terrestrial locomotion in female mallards
(Anas plathyrynchos)
M Kauffmann, M Boos, A Lacroix, JP Robin
CEPE, UPR 9010, CNRS, 23 rue Becquerel, 67087 Strasbourg Cedex 2, France
Corresponding author: JP ROBIN, CEPE, CNRS, 23 rue Becquerel, 67087 Strasbourg Cedex 2, France.
Tel.: +33-3-88-10-69-24, fax : +33-3-88-10-69-06, e-mail : [email protected]
Key words: Fasting and refeeding, wing loading, pectoral and pelvic muscles
In numerous animal species periods of partial or total food restriction are not a rare phenomenon. These periods can be strictly predicable and occur regularly at specific stages of the annual cycle, for example, when feeding competes with reproduction
or in migrating birds when they have to cross geographic barriers such as deserts or seas (Mrosovsky and Sherry, 1980; Battley
et al, 2001). Food shortage can also be rather unpredictable when caused by extreme environmental conditions such as winter
cold waves or storm (Wingfield 1988, Owen and Black, 1990). Whatever fasting was or was not predictable, body reserves are
used to compensate for the negative energy balance. During prolonged fasting lipids are the main fuel resource as they contribute for about 90% of the energy expenditure, the remaining part being originated from proteins (Cherel and Groscolas 1998;
Groscolas and Robin, 2001). Such a metabolic situation is maintained until about 80% of the initial lipids stores are depleted
(end of phase II of fasting; Robin et al, 1988; Cherel et al., 1992). If fasting is further prolonged the contribution of body fuels
to the energy expenditure is deeply modified (i.e. animals enter in the phase III of fasting) and the contribution of proteins is
progressively increased up to 50-60% (Robin et al, 1988). Phase III of fasting may occur in natural conditions (reviews in
Cherel et al., 1987 and in Robin et al., 2001; Battley et al, 2001) but remains reversible, animals being able to restore energy
reserves when they can feed again (Robin et al., 1991; Belkhou et al, 1991) even under field conditions (Robin et al, 1988;
2001). According to the survival-predation trade-off hypothesis (Biebach, 1996) storage of body reserves should be optimized
in order to enable birds to face periods of high energy needs (e.g. during food shortage) but without impairing locomotor capability (aerial and/or terrestrial). Consequently, when body reserves are used to cover energy needs, it can be questioned whether
the locomotor capabilities are maintained, particularly during prolonged fasting when protein wasting occurs and during the
following first days of recovery.
To answer this question, 7 groups of 7 female mallards were subjected to nutritional manipulations. 3 groups were fasted and
sacrificed after they lost 11% (beginning of phase II), 28% (end of phase II) and 38% (end of phase III) of their fed body mass.
3 other groups were fasted up to phase III of fasting and allowed to refed ad libitum for one or 3 days (i.e. 28 and 65% of the
lost body mass was recovered, respectively) or until complete recovery of the initial body mass. One group of fed birds was
used as controls. Body mass was recorded daily. At sacrifice of the birds the lengths of culmen, tarsus, ulna, femur, tibia, keel
(±0.5mm) and wing (±1mm) from the radiale to the longest primary remige were measured. Wing area was determined by using
a Sigma Scan software (Jandel Scientific). The pectoralis muscles (major and minor) as well as the muscles of the legs were
dissected and weighted to the nearest 0.1g. Wing- and power loading were respectively calculated as the body mass to wing
area ratio and the body mass to muscle mass ratio. (see in Pennycuick, 1975 and Boos et al., 2002). Moreover, in this study, we
Table: Modifications of the
body mass, of the locomotor
muscle masses, of the wingand power loading during
fasting and refeeding.
Values are means ± SE. 7
birds per group. P<0.05 was
considered as significant.
375
determined the power loading for flight and for walking by considering either pectoral or leg muscles in the calculations. Means
were indicated with standard error. ANOVA (parametric or non-parametric) were performed for multigroup comparisons by
using a SigmaStat software (version 3.0).
At the beginning of the experiments, mean body mass was not significantly different among the 7 groups (P=1.00) and ranged
between 905±41 and 923±42g (Table). Similarly no significant differences in any body measurements were found (P>0.43). In
the 3 groups of refed birds the mean duration of fasting (12-13 days) and the lost body mass (354-357 g) was not significantly
different from the phase III fasted group (P>0.82; Table). Up to the end of phase II the decrease of 16% of the pectoralis muscles mass was not significant (P>0.05) conversely to the 28% loss of the leg muscle mass (P<0.05; Table). However, the power
loading for both aerial and terrestrial locomotion was not significantly modified up to the end of this phase of fasting (P>0.13,
table). Because of the continuous body mass loss there was a progressive significant decrease of the wing loading (P<0.05;
Table). In phase III fasting birds the wing loading decrease was going on (P<0.05) however muscle wasting occurred: pectoralis
and legs muscle masses were significantly 34 and 24% decreased from the end of phase II (P<0.02; Table). As a result terrestrial and aerial power loadings were significantly 16 and 29% increased, respectively, above end of phase II values (P<0.02;
Table). In such depleted birds the values became similar (aerial) or even significantly higher (terrestrial) than in control fed
birds (P<0.01; Table). Allowing birds to refed ad libitum for 3 days did not modify obviously this detrimental situation,
although nearly 2/3 of the lost body mass was recovered. Wing loading increased significantly from the first day of refeeding
(P<0.05; Table). Terrestrial and aerial power loadings remained as elevated as in phase III, the aerial one becoming also significantly higher than in control fed birds on the third day of refeeding (P<0.02; Table). Moreover the increase in pectoralis muscle masse was not significant (P>0.2). Only the leg muscle masses increased significantly from phase III values on the 3 day
on the third (+36%; P<0.02; Table). When the initial body mass was restored the muscular masses, the wing- and power loading were no more significantly different than in control fed birds (P>0.05; Table).
These results suggest that as long as prolonged fasting animals are in the metabolic situation of phase II their locomotor capabilities are not significantly affected, muscle mass and body mass decreasing at a similar rate. In extreme living conditions, such
fasting situations are often encountered in the field by animals during food shortage either predictable or not (Cherel et al.,
1987; Groscolas and Robin, 2001; Robin et al., 2001; Battley et al, 2001). If fasting is prolonged up to phase III it has been
shown that animals remain able to restore lost energy reserves even under field conditions (Robin et al, 1988; 2001). However,
from our results, predation risk may then increase as locomotor capabilities are altered, even if wing loading is at its minimal
value. Importantly in the first days of refeeding there' no significant improvement of the locomotor capabilities, in that case
predation risk would remain elevated in a situation where the restoration of the body reserves is a priority for immediate survival. Such results have implications for animal population management. For example, if body condition is deeply affected (animal in phase III) by environmental events such as cold waves or storms, human disturbance should also remain at a low level
well after the ambient conditions become milder as it takes several days for restoring locomotor capabilities. However, since
our experiment was conducted under controlled conditions with an commercial food, ecological costs during body fuel restoration after a prolonged fast should now be measured under field conditions assuming that natural food items may contain a higher rate of metabolisable energy and proteins.
References
Battley PF, Dietz MW, Piersma T, Dekinga A, Tang S, Hulsman K (2001) Is long-distance bird equivalent to a high-energy fast? Body composition
changes in freely migrating and captive fasting great knots. Physiol Biochem Zool 74: 435-449
Belkhou R, Cherel Y, Heitz A, Robin JP, Le Maho Y (1991) Energy contribution of proteins and lipids during prolonged fasting in the rat.
Nutr Res 11: 365-374
Biebach H (1996). Energetics of winter and migratory fattening. In Carey C (ed) Avian energetics and nutritional ecology. Chapman & Hall, New York:
pp.280-323
Boos M, Zorn T, Le Maho Y, Groscolas R, JP Robin (2002) Sex differences in body composition of wintering mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos):
possible implications for survival and reproductive performance. Bird Study 49: 212-218
Cherel Y, Stahl JC, Le Maho Y (1987) Ecology and physiology of fasting in king penguin chicks. Auk 104/254-262
Cherel Y, Robin JP, Heitz A, Calgari C, Le Maho Y (1992) Relationships between lipid availability and protein utilization during prolonged fasting. J
Comp Physiol 162B: 314-326
Cherel Y, Groscolas R (1999) Relationships between nutrient storage and nutrient utilisation in fasting birds. In Proceedings of the 22nd International
Congress of Ornithology, Durban, South Africa. Ostrich 69: 17-34
Mrosovsky N, Sherry DF (1980) Animal anorexias. Science 207 : 837-842
Owen M, Black JM (1990) Waterfowl Ecology. Tertiary level biology, Blackie, Glasgow & London
Pennycuick CJ (1975) Mechanics of flight. In Farner DS, King JR, Parkes KC (eds) Avian Biology, Vol.5. Academic Press, New-York : pp 1-75
Robin JP, Frain M, Sardet M, Groscolas R, Le Maho Y (1988) Protein and lipid utilization during longterm fasting in emperor penguins. Am J Physiol
254: R61-R68
Robin JP, Zorn T, Le Maho Y (1991) Résistance au jeûne hivernal et réalimentation chez le canard colvert : évolution des réserves énergétiques et de
la prise alimentaire. C R Acad Sc Paris, série III, 313: 529-535
Robin JP, Fayolle C, Decrock F, Thil MA, Côté SD, Bernard S, Groscolas R. (2001) Restoration of body mass in king penguins after egg abandonment
at a critical energy depletion stage: early VS late breeders. J Avian Biol 32:303-310
Wingfield JC (1988) Changes in reproductive function of free-living birds in direct response to environmental perturbations. In. Stetson, MH (ed.)
Processing of Environmental Information in Vertebrates., Springer-Verlag, Berlin: pp. 121-148
376
The formation of red deer Cervus elaphus and fallow Deer
Cervus dama populations in Lithuania
·
Kestutis
Petelis,
Gediminas Brazaitis
,
Lithuanian University of Agriculture, Forest Faculty
Studentu 11, Akademija, LT-53361, Kaunas, Lithuania
·
Corresponding author: Kestutis
Petelis.
Tel.: +370-6-87-57-657; fax: +370-3-77-52-379, e-mail: [email protected]
,
Key words: Introduction, Re-acclimatization, Lithuania
Area converedpopulation, ha
The Red Deer border range in the East Baltic’s during the late Holocene started to move southward. Until the middle of the second millennium they were still abundant in Lithuania. Red Deer became extinct in XIX century. First re-introduction and reacclimatization of Red Deer started in northern Lithuania at the beginning of the XX century, but currently they remain scarce
in that region. In the middle of the XX century Red Deer were introduced from Voronez reserve (Russia). They re-acclimatized
successfully, but weakly spread to neighbouring areas. With the aim to force Red Deer colonisation, during 1969-1987 1 030
animals were captured and released in 29 administrative districts. The population of Red Deer is currently at 13 000. Red Deer
inhabit almost all districts; the restoration of Red Deer populations has re-commenced, because some populations were
destroyed or over hunted (Baleis̆is et al. 1998).
As supposedly, Fallow Deer were introduced to Lithuania in the XVII century. In the XVIII-XIX centuries Fallow Deer were
kept in small numbers in parks or menageries. At the beginning of the XX century Fallow Deer were documented only in
Northern Lithuania, but later disappeared too. The introduction of Fallow deer started in 1976-1988 in twelve administrative
districts. Later this process ceased and only in recent years has the restoration process been renewed with Fallow Deer populations becoming actual again (Baleis̆is et al. 1998).
We analyzed population formation features of Red and Fallow deer in Southwest Lithuania. Red deer counts were surveyed by
combined line transect – observation on feeding sites method (Graupement et al. 1976; Briedermann 1982). In total 83 counts
and 3 052 km were inventoried. 294 Red Deer herds and 2 601 animal were recorded. The census under animal tracks
(Briedermann, 1982) were conducted on 9 sites, total length was 307.8 km and 971 Red deer tracks were recorded The census
under winter pellets (McCain 1948) provided 2 648 counts (10_4 m) and 9 079 pellets were recorded and subdivided into male,
female and juveniles. By various methods the determined abundance didn‘t statistically differ (p=0.15 - 0.86).
The main census method of Fallow deer was line transect – observation on feeding sites (Graupement et al. 1976; Briedermann
1982). In total 63 counts and 3840 km were inventoried with 214 Fallow Deer herds and 1905 animals recorded. Census under
animal tracks (Briedermann 1982) were conducted on 2 sites, total length was 75.5 km and 166 tracks Fallow Deer tracks were
recorded.
The increases of populated areas were determined by maps of population covered area between two certain dates. The speeds
of increase by any direction were determined by the distance and time between the new and old borders. The highest distance
shows the highest population spread direction and this divided by the time between the two surveys gives the highest speed of
population increase by kilometres during a certain period (Caughley 1977).
Annual and real annual growth rates of Red and Fallow Deer populations were determined. Annual growth of population is the
proportion (%) of juveniles in the total population at the end of winter. Real annual growth is the proportion (%) in which the
population is increasing without counting the loss during the year.
Red deer after the first stage of re-acclimatization (introduction), second stage (adaptation) lasts two years, and the last stage
(naturalization) – seven years. The animals started to spread to neighbouring forests when the population density reached 15.6
animals per 1 000 ha. During the re-acclimatization process the density enlargement of the population could be characterized
as: y = -0.03x2 + 1.87x + 6.55 (y- density in 1 000 ha; x – years after introduction (x=1:–9). The enlargements of populated areas
Figure 1. The dynamics of Red deer populated area increase.
377
Area coverd ba population, ha
Figure 2. The dynamics of Fallow deer
populated area increase.
Density per 1 000 ha
were almost equally progressive and could be characterized as: y =66.43x2 -66.43x+1627.1 (y- the populated area, ha; x – years
after introduction (x=1:–7) (Fig. 1). The average radial speed of population was 1.8 km/year.
Six stages of Red Deer population abundance dynamics were defined. (1) Intensive Growth stage lasts for seven years and clashes with the naturalization period. Average annual growth was high (30.2 ± 7.7%) and the population enlarged by 4.89 times. At
the end of this stage the density of Red Deer was 20.6 per 1 000 ha. During the re-acclimatization process Red Deer population
growth could be described as: y = 1.33x2 - 3.63x + 15.76 (y – abundance of population, No of animals; x – years after reintroduction (x=1:–9). After the Intensive Growth stage the Red Deer population is still on the rise and the population transfers to the next
stage. (2) Depressed Growth stage that lasts for three years. During this stage the average annual growth (proportion of calf’s)
decreased to 15.4 ± 1.8%. This was determinate by the comparatively low amount of females in population (1 : 1.2 ). At the
Figure 3. The dynamics of Fallow deer density
end of this stage the density of Red Deer was 28.8 per 1 000 ha. (3) The Late Abundance Increase stage lasts for two years. During
this period the average annual population growth increased up to 20.9 ± 1.5%, and the mean annual real growth (increase of population) was 20.0 ± 2.5%. At the end of this stage the density of Red Deer was 39.5 animals per 1 000 ha. On the (4) Abundance
and Growth Culmination stage, that lasts for two years, the density of Red Deer population was 42.3 per 1 000 ha. (5) Depression
stage lasts for eight years. The annual average growth was comparatively high 28.5 ± 2.5% this was determined by high a proportion of cows (1 : 1.6 ), however the population declined due to intensive hunting (annual use of population 39.8%). At the end
of this stage the abundance of Red Deer was 76 ± 7.5 animals and the density was 17.6 per 1 000 ha. In 1996 started (6) the
Stabilization stage.
Fallow Deer after the first stage of re-acclimatization (introduction), second stage (adaptation) lasts three years, and the last
stage (naturalization) – four years. During the acclimatization the annual growth was very high (32.8 ± 2.1%) due to sex ratio
(1 : 1.1 ). The real annual growth varied from 12.8% to 26.9% and the annual average of this period was 19.3 ± 4.8%. The
increases of populated area were almost equal and could be characterized as: y = 275x2 -285x+725 (y- the populated area, ha;
x – years after introduction (x≥1) (Fig. 2). The average radial speed of the population was 1.0 km/year.
Three stages of Fallow Deer population abundance dynamics were defined. (1) Intensive Growth stage lasts for ten years and
the population increased by 4.6 times. At the end of this stage the abundance of Fallow Deer was 107 ± 4.8 animals as well as
a density of 26.8 animals per 1 000 ha with the sex ratio (1 : 1.07 ± 0.22 ). The annual average growth was high 30.4 ± 3.6%,
the real annual growth was 15.0 ± 6.8%. During this period the annual natural death rate was 2.2 animals (4.4%) and the use
(hunt and capture) very low - 1 animal per year (1.8%). (2) Depressed Growth stage lasts for six years. At the beginning the
population abundance reached 111 ± 4.8 animals. The density of animals increased up to 27.8 animals per 1 000 ha and was
comparatively stable (±3.6). The mean annual density was 26.8 ± 1.2 animals per 1 000 ha while the sex ratio (1 : 1.5±0.4 ).
Although the annual average growth was high (26.7 ± 7.2%) and use (hunt and capture) low (2.1% annually), the mean real
growth of population was only 1.2 ± 5.3%. This shows that Fallow Deer reached the maximum limit of population density. The
density dynamics could be expressed as: y = -0.30 x2 +4.80 x+8.63 (y-density per 1000 ha; x – years after the end of acclimatization (x≥1) (Fig. 3). The defined model shows that the highest density limit of Fallow deer population is 27 animals per 1
000 ha.
References:
Baleis̆is R., Bluzma P. and Bal_iauskas L. (1988) Ungulate animals of Lithuania. Vilnius. 220p. (In Lithuania).
Briedermann L. (1982) Der Wildbestand - die grose Unbekannte. Berlin, 212p.
Caughley G. (1977) Analysis of vertebrate populations. John Wiley and Sons, London-New York-Sydney-Toronto, 362p.
Graupement technique Forestier (1976) Methoden der Rotwild - Bestansaufnahme (franz.). Mitteilungen des Ministerium für Landvirtschaft, 34 : 37.
McCain R. A. (1948) method for measuring deer range use. Tras.N. Am. Widlife Conf., 13: 431 –440.
378
Does hunting affect the spatial utilisation
of wild boar Sus scrofa L.?
Keuling, Oliver; Stier, Norman, Roth, Mechthild
Institute of Forest Botany and Forest Zoology, Dresden University of Technology, Pienner Str. 7, D-01737 Tharandt, Germany
Corresponding author: Oliver Keuling, Eichenallee 1, D-19260 Schildfeld, tel.: +49-3-88-43-82-576,
Key words: drive hunts, home range, management, radiotelemetry
In many parts of Germany increasing wild boar Sus scrofa L. population densities cause severe economic problems due to crop
damages or epidemics like e.g. classical swine fever. To develop effective biologically based management strategies for wild boar
a sound knowledge of space use patterns of this game species is necessary.
A research study, which is carried out in the southwest of Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania (north-eastern Germany), is focusing
on this issue. The results should help to understand the reasons for population growth and dispersion of wild boar and finally to
improve the efficiency of hunting-management. In this investigation we wanted to know the impact of hunting on movements and
other behavioural patterns of wild boar groups.
From November 2002 to March 2005 122 specimens out of 21 groups were marked. Among them 52 females and 7 males were
additionally fitted with ear tag transmitters. Wild boar locations were made by radio-telemetric triangulation once a day and one
to four times during night. Moreover all groups, involved in drive hunts, were located continuously before, during and after the
hunting event. In autumn 2003 three wild boar groups had been observed during one drive hunt. In autumn of 2004 two, six and
one group(s) were involved in three different drive hunts. Two of the groups had been surveyed in both years. Three of them had
been involved in 2004 within two weeks in two hunts in adjacent areas.
The annual home range sizes (minimum-convex-polygon) of the wild boar groups ranged between 100 and 1400 ha, considering
single “excursions” they increased up to 2100 ha.
Figure 1: Exemplarily home ranges of three wild boar groups two months before and after a drive hunt on November 13th 2004.
Group 10: decreased home range after hunt, group 1B: increased home range after hunt, group 1A nearly the same home range
size.
379
After one member of a wild boar group had been shot on a single hunt the remaining group rested in larger distances (average
1.26 km, span 0.3-2.6 km) from hunting site than on the day before (average 0.52 km, span 0.1-1.4 km).
Wild boar groups, resting at the edge of the drive hunt area showed only small-scaled movements during the hunt. Some other
groups were disturbed when the hunters arrived at the hunting site. When the beaters and dogs appeared, most of the observed
groups skilfully left the area of the drive hunt. Merely three marked animals were shot during these hunts.
The wild boar groups did not change their home ranges. Some groups extended, others decreased their home ranges after the hunts
a little, other had nearly the same size (2 month before: average 213 ha, span 46-414 ha; 2 month after: average 283 ha, span 57811 ha) (Fig. 1). But the alterations were within the annual range of home range variations and could also be caused by other (seasonal) factors. Evasive movements did occur only twice. One group left the hunted area and home range, however after two days
they turned back and stayed within another part of the annual home range. This group had been affected in a second hunt two
weeks later and went back to that part of the home range, where they stayed before the first hunt. Another group left the hunted
area and home range only for two days and then went back.
Some authors describe smaller home ranges in summer and bigger ones in winter (hunting season) as an effect of the hunting pressure, although with stable core areas. (Maillard and Fournier 1995, Baubet et al. 1998, Calenge et al. 2002). These authors do not
presume an impact of hunting pressure on dispersion of wild boar. Hunting may have an influence on the home range size, but
there may be also other internal and extrinsic control factors triggering the seasonality of space utilisation patterns such as weather, availability of food and water resources, vegetation cover, sibling of piglets and population density (Boitani et al. 1994). It
would be very difficult to prove hunting as the only factor of changing seasonal home range sizes.
According to literature data drive hunts partly caused temporary emigration from the home ranges (Maillard and Fournier 1995;
Sodeikat and Pohlmeyer 2002, 2003). In our study we could not document an impact of hunting on epidemical incidents. A
higher risk of infection rate seems not to exist, as movements after single or drive hunts lay within the annual home ranges.
Drive hunts are an import tool for wild boar management to reduce population densities (Happ 2002). These effective hunts are
held only a few times during a hunting season, thus they cause less disturbance for all game species.
References
Baubet E, Brandt S, Touzeau C (1998) Effet de la chasse sur les stratégies d'occupation de l'espace des sangliers (Sus scrofa). Analyses préliminaires.
Gibier Faune Sauvage 15:655-658.
Boitani L, Mattei L, Nonis D, Corsi F (1994) Spatial and activity patterns of wild boar in Tuscany, Italy. J. Mammal. 75:600-612.
Calenge C, Maillard D, Vassant J, Brandt S (2002) Summer and hunting season home ranges of wild boar (Sus scrofa) in two habitats in France. Game
and Wildlife Sciene 19:281-301.
Happ N (2002) Hege und Bejagung des Schwarzwildes, Praxiswissen Jagd. Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart.
Maillard D, Fournier P (1995) Effect of shooting with hounds on home range size of Wild Boar (Sus scrofa L.) groups in mediterranean habitat. IBEX
3:102-107.
Sodeikat G, Pohlmeyer K (2002) Temporary home range modifikations of wild boar family groups (Sus scrofa L.) caused drive hunts in Lower Saxony
(Germany). Z. Jagdwiss. 48 (Suppl.):161-166.
Sodeikat G, Pohlmeyer K (2003) Escape movements of family groups of wild boar Sus scrofa influenced by drive hunts in Lower Saxony, Germany. Wildl.
Biol. 9 (Suppl. 1):43-49.
380
Comparative analysis of pathological changes in fluorotic
dental enamel of wild boar and domestic pigs
Horst Kierdorf 1, Uwe Kierdorf 2
1
Department of Biology, University of Hildesheim, Marienburger Platz 22, 31141 Hildesheim, Germany
2
Department of Animal Ecology, University of Giessen
Corresponding author: Horst Kierdorf. Tel.: +49-5-12-18-83-913, fax: +49-5-12-18-83-911,
Key words: Environmental pollution, dental fluorosis, porcine enamel, histopathology
Intake of excessive amounts of fluoride during dental development causes characteristic pathological changes of the teeth, known
as dental fluorosis (Fejerskov et al. 1988; Aoba and Fejerskov 2002). During recent years, dental fluorosis has been used as a biomarker of elevated fluoride exposure of wild artiodactyls (Kierdorf and Kierdorf 1999; Kierdorf et al. 1999). Initially, these
studies were focused on deer; however, more recently also wild boar were studied. An advantage of studying porcine dental fluorosis is the possibility to compare observations on free-ranging wild boar with those of controlled experiments in domestic pigs.
The present contribution summarises our findings on pathological alterations of enamel structure and mineralization in teeth of
free-ranging, male and female wild boar from fluoride polluted areas in Central Europe (Kierdorf et al. 2000, 2005), and in teeth
of domestic pigs (female Hanford miniature pigs) experimentally exposed to elevated levels of dietary fluoride (daily oral dose of
2mg NaF/kg body weight, added to the foodstuff) (Kierdorf et al. 2004).
Macroscopically, fluorotic porcine enamel lacked the semi-transparent and lustrous appearance of normal mature enamel (Fig. 1a),
but instead was of a dull and chalky appearance (Fig. 1b-d). This condition was already present upon eruption of the teeth, which
is evidence that it resulted from a disturbance of normal development. Fluorotic teeth of wild boar and domestic pigs were also
characterised by a brown to black staining of their enamel (Fig. 1c). This staining developed, however, only after the teeth had
erupted into the oral cavity, thereby indicating that this was a secondary phenomenon resulting from exposure of the porous fluorotic enamel to the oral environment. Further macroscopic alterations present in the fluorotic teeth were a pathologically
increased wear, an accentuation of the perikymatic pattern and the occurrence of hypoplastic and post-eruptive enamel defects
(Fig. 1b-d).
Light and scanning electron microscopy revealed an accentuation of the striae of Retzius (longer-period incremental markings)
(Fig. 2a) and the occurrence of broad, hypomineralised and structurally altered incremental bands underneath the hypoplastic
defects (Fig. 2b-e). Zones of aprismatic enamel were associated with these bands (Figs. 2b,c, 3d), and in some severely fluorotic
wild boar teeth, canal- like structures, which extended over some distance towards the enamel surface, originated at these bands
(Figs. 2d,e; 3d). As these canal-like structures did not normally reach up to the enamel surface, they were termed “internal
hypoplastic defects”. Larger portions of surface enamel tended to flake off along the broad, hypomineralised incremental bands
that constitute zones of markedly reduced mechanical stability. In this way, extended post-eruptive defects formed in the enamel
(Fig. 3c). In places, zones of dense aprismatic enamel were observed that exhibited globular structures (Fig. 3f). These zones were
Fig.1. Mandibular third molars
from miniature pigs (a,b) and wild
boar (c,d), buccal view. Semi- translucent and lustrous enamel in the
control molar (a), and pathological
alterations including dull and chalky enamel, brown to black enamel
staining, enhancement of the perikymatic pattern, and hypoplastic
and post-eruptive enamel defects in
the fluorotic teeths (b-d).
381
related to the formation of sub-ameloblastic cysts during the secretory stage of amelogenesis.
Microradiographic analysis demonstrated a subsurface hypomineralisation of the fluorotic enamel of different extent and intensity (Fig. 3a). Studies by Richards et al. (1986)
in domestic pigs have shown that this hypomineralisation can be produced in enamel
when fluoride affects post-secretory enamel only. An additional pathologic alteration,
so far only recorded in fluorotic wild boar teeth, was the deposition of cellular coronal
cementum onto severely hypoplastic enamel (Fig. 3b,d).
Fig. 2. Light (a,d) and scanning
electron (b,c,e,f) micrographs of
longitudinal sections through fluorotic enamel of wild boar (a, d-f)
and miniature pigs (b,c). a.
Accentuated striae of Retzius in the
enamel; I1. b. Grossly enhanced
incremental line (arrows) underneath a hypoplastic defect; M3. c.
Aprismatic (A) and prismatic (P)
enamel underneath a hypoplastic
defect. Enhanced incremental line
(arrowheads) in the aprismatic
enamel; M3.. d. Hypoplastic defect
partly filled with cementum (C). An
enhanced incremental line (arrows)
is located internal to this defect.
Arrowheads: internal hypoplastic
defects that also originate at this
line, D: dentin, E: enamel; M2. e.
Enhanced incremental line (arrows)
in the enamel cervical to an extended hypoplastic defect (asterisk).
Several internal hypoplastic defects
(arrowheads) originate at this line;
M2. f. Densely structured aprismatic
enamel (asterisk) between an inner
zone of prismatic enamel (P) and an
outer zone of more coarsely structured aprimatic enamel (A). Note
presence of globular structures
(arrows) in the dense aprismatic
zone.
Arrowhead:
internal
hypoplastic defect; I1.
The structural changes observed in the fluorotic porcine enamel are indicative of major disturbances of ameloblast function during both the secretory stage and the maturation stage of amelogenesis. As enamel micro-morphology is directly related to the
shape of the Tomes’ processes of the secretory ameloblasts, and because enamel does not remodel, the observed alterations of
enamel structure allow the reconstruction of fluoride effects on the secretory activity and the related morphology of the
ameloblasts. Our data indicate that these effects range from a temporary constriction of the distal, prism-forming portion of the
Tomes` process to a transient or permanent loss of this structure. The latter results in the formation of aprismatic enamel at the
now flattened cell pole. The internal hypoplastic defects are thought to reflect a delay in the resumption of secretory activity by
groups of ameloblasts that, however, remained connected to neighbouring, secretory active cells and along with them moved in a
centrifugal direction.
The hypomineralisation of fluorotic enamel occurs as a consequence of a fluoride-induced impairment of enamel maturation.
Opaque appearance and discoloration as well as increased wear of the affected teeth are secondary effects of the increased porosity of the hypomineralised fluorotic enamel. Deposition of coronal cementum onto hypoplastic enamel denotes a premature breakdown of the enamel epithelium prior to the completion of amelogenesis. It is assumed that under these conditions, ectomesenchymal cells of the dental follicle come into contact with the surface of the immature enamel and in consequence differentiate into
cementoblasts.
The pathological changes of fluorotic enamel in wild boar tended to be more severe than in the domestic pigs. This occurred
although bone fluoride concentration in the domestic pigs (mean: 2241 mg/kg dry weight of bone) after the end of the exposure
period of 12 months (from age 9 to 21 months) was markedly higher than in the studied wild boar (mean: 623 mg/kg) with a mean
age of about 16 months. This observation can be hypothetically related to various factors. Firstly, it may be assumed that in the
wild boar the entire secretory stage of amelogenesis was affected by elevated fluoride levels, whereas in the domestic pigs the first
weeks of enamel formation of the analysed teeth (mandibular third molars) took place prior to the onset of fluoride administration. Secondly, in the experimental situation, fluoride intake was constant over time, whereas in the wild boar a varying intensity
of exposure to fluoride, with shorter periods of especially elevated fluoride intake, can be expected. Thirdly, in the wild boar other
382
Fig. 3. Fluorotic enamel of miniature pigs (a) and wild boar (b-d). a.
Microradiographs showing subsurface hypomineralization beneath a
thin outermost rim of higher
mineral content (arrows). Arrowheads indicate accentuated
incremental line associated with a
hypoplastic defect; M3. b. Coronal
cementum (C) covering hypoplastic
enamel (E). Arrow: partly detached
cementum tongue. Asterisk: dental
calculus, D: dentin; I1. c. Defect
caused by post-eruptive loss of a
large area of surface enamel along a
cleft-like incremental line (arrows).
D: dentin, E: enamel; M2. d.
Hypoplastic defect filled with cellular cementum (C) that contains
cementocyte lacunae (arrowheads)
and larger cavities (white arrow)
presumably representing vascular
spaces. Asterisk: post-eruptively
acquired mineralized deposits,
black arrows: internal hypoplastic
defects, CS: cementum surface,
D: dentin, E: enamel, ES: enamel
surface; I1.
stressors, including undernutrition and parasite infection, may have led to an exacerbation of the fluoride-induced disturbances of
enamel formation.
References
Aoba T, Fejerskov O (2002) Dental fluorosis: chemistry and biology. Crit Rev Oral Biol Med 13:155-170
Fejerskov O, Manji F, Baelum V, Møller IJ (1988) Dental fluorosis – a handbook for health workers. Munksgaard, Copenhagen
Kierdorf H, Kierdorf U, Sedlacek F (1999) Monitoring regional fluoride pollution in the Saxonian ore mountains (Germany) using the biomarker dental
fluorosis in roe deer (Capreolus capreolus L.). Sci Total Environ 232:159-168
Kierdorf H, Kierdorf U, Richards A, Sedlacek F (2000) Disturbed enamel formation in wild boars (Sus scrofa L.) from fluoride polluted areas in Central
Europe. Anat Rec 259:12-24
Kierdorf H, Kierdorf U, Richards A, Josephsen K (2004) Fluoride-induced alterations of enamel structure: an experimental study in the miniature pig.
Anat Embryol 207:463-474
Kierdorf H, Kierdorf U, Witzel C (2005) Deposition of cellular cementum onto hypoplastic enamel of fluorotic teeth in wild boars (Sus scrofa L.). Anat
Embryol 209:281-286
Kierdorf U, Kierdorf H (1999) Dental fluorosis: its use as a biomarker of increased fluoride exposure. Environ Monit Assess 57:265-275
Richards A, Kragstrup J, Kosephsen K, Fejerskov O (1986) Dental fluorosis developed in post-secretory enamel. J Dent Res 65:1406-1409
383
Comparative anatomy of the salivary glands in three Asian
ruminant species
Junpei Kimura 1, Worawut Rerkamnuaychoke 2, Katsuhiro Fukuta 3
1
College of Bioresource Sciences, Nihon University, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, Japan,
2
College of Veterinary Medicine, Kasetsart University
3
Graduate School of Bioagricultural Sciences,Nagoya University
Corresponding author: Junpei Kimura. Tel./fax: +81-4-66-84-36-29, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: mouse deer, muntjac, sika deer
Introuduction
Major salivary glands exhibit outstanding diversity at gross, light microscopic and electron microscopic levels (Shackleford and
Wilborn, 1968). The size and location of parotid, submandibular and sublingual glands also vary among the different species in
terrestrial mammals (Shackleford and Wilborn, 1968). Evolutionary, dietary, and environmental factors may interact to account
for salivary gland diversity (Junqueira, 1967). This study compares the structure and localization of the salivary glands of the
three ruminant species captured in Asia.
Lesser mouse deer (Tragulus javanicus), which is thought to be the most primitive ruminant, were obtained from a breeding farm
in East Malaysia. Reeves’s Muntjac (Muntiacus reevesi) which had been introduced from Taiwan were hunted in Chiba prefecture, Japan. Sika deer (Cerevus nippon) were hunted in Kanagawa prefecture, Japan. Their salivary glands were dissected out and
their histological structure was observed.
Parotid, sumbandibular and ventral buccal glands were identified in the three species. Additionally, the intermediate and dorsal
buccal glands in sika deer and dorsal buccal glands in muntjac were localized. In the lesser mouse deer, the palatine glands were
identified. The similarity of the localization and histological features of the salivary glands between muntjac and sika deer was
recognized. The weight of parotid glands relative to the body weight was calculated. Among the three species, the lesser mouse
deer showed the heaviest parotid glands (2.5g/kg). Muntjac showed 2.0g/kg and sika deer showed 0.8g/kg. There is a significant
difference in the ratio of the weight of the parotid glands to the body weight in the mouse deer compared to the sika deer, and the
munujac compared also to the sika deer. The amount of data collected on the lesser mouse deer is the bigger than the amount of
data obtained from other ruminants investigated by Kay (1987). Tragulidae occupies a basal position with respect to all other ruminant families (Hassanin, 2003). Although the mouse deer (Tragulidae) belongs to the Ruminantia suborders, the considerable phylogenetical differences between Tragulidae and the other, more recently evolved ruminants have been established by means of
DNA sequence analysis (Breukelman et al., 2001, Wallis and Wallis, 2001) and the structure of the placenta (Kimura et al., 2004).
The function of the salivary glands in the lesser mouse deer must be most significant as it is a concentrated selector in the ruminant animals. It was speculated that the significance of the salivary function became less important through adaptation and evolution to the selection of food intake.
References
Breukelman HJ, Jekel PA, Dubois JF, Mulder PP, Warmels HW, Beintema JJ(2001) Secretory ribonucleases in the primitive ruminant chevrotain (Tragulus
javanicus). Eur J Biochem 268: 3890-3897
Hassanin A, Douzery E (2003) Molecular and Morphological Phylogenies of Ruminantia and the Alternative Position of the Moschidae. Systematic
Biology 52: 206-228
Junqueira LCU (1967) Control of cell secretion. In: Schneyer, L.H. and Schneyer, C. A. (eds.) Secretory mechanisms of salivary flands. Academic Press,
New York: pp. 286-302
Kay RNB (1987) Weights of salivary glands in some ruminant animals. J Zool 211: 431-436
Kimura J, Sasaki M, Endo H, Fukuta K (2004) Anatomical and Histological Characterization of the Female Reproductive Organs of Mouse Deer
(Tragulidae) . Placenta 25:705-711
Shackleford JM, Wilborn WH (1968) Structural and histochemical diversity in mammalian salivary glands. Ala J Med Sci 5: 180-203
Wallis OC, Wallis M (2001) Molecular evolution of growth hormone (GH) in cetartiodactyla: Cloning and characterization of the gene encoding GH from
a primitive ruminant, the chevrotain (Tragulus javanicus). General and Comparative Endocrinology 123: 62-72
384
Do small game populations suffer from red fox
Vulpes vulpes predation?
Knauer Felix 1, Helmut Küchenhoff 2, Katharina Lensing 2
Department of Wildlife Ecology and Management, Faculty of Forest and Environmental Sciences, University of Freiburg,
Tennenbacher Str. 4, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany
1
2
Department of Statistics, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Corresponding author: Felix Knauer. Tel.: +49-7-61-20-33-798, fax: +49-7-61-20-33-667,
email: [email protected]
Key words: grey partridge, brown hare, rabbit, time series analysis
Predator-prey relationships are of general interest in game biology and their quantification on the population level can have important consequences for an effective recovery of prey populations. Like in most European countries, small game populations in
Germany declined over the last decades. One of the potential reasons discussed is predation by fox, especially due to the increased
fox population after rabies vaccination in the eighties (Schluter and Muller 1995).
However, the quantification of predator-prey relationships is often difficult. Much insight has been derived from laboratory experiments (e.g. Murdoch 1969) and theoretical approaches (e.g. Jost and Arditi 2000, Sih et al. 1998, Englund et al. 2001). Field
studies have followed two main approaches: (1) comparisons of different discrete conditions (areas or time periods (Spittler
1972)), e.g. predator removal experiments (Tapper et al. 1996, Goetmark et al. 1990, Palomares et al. 1995) and other manipulations (Lindström et al. 1987, Storaas 1988) or (2) analysis of continuous time series (Jost and Arditi 2000, Turchin and Ellner
2000). Removal experiments have the advantage of controlled conditions, but usually they are conducted over short times and
often compare extreme situations. Time series analyses have the great advantage of examining the study object under realistic conditions, but have to deal with the long sampling time required and often uncontrolled conditions during the sampling period (e.g.
change in sampling methods). Because of these methodological difficulties, many predator-prey relationships remain unstudied,
even when both predator and prey species are common and their relationship is of high public and economic interest.
We studied the predation by red fox (Vulpes vulpes) on brown hare (Lepus europaeus), grey partridge (Perdix perdix), and rabbit
(Oryctolagus cuniculus) by using hunting bag records of eight provinces in Western Germany from 1958 to 1998. Hunting bag
records are suitable as annual population indicators, if they can be assumed to constitute a constant proportion of the real population over time. This can be violated due to several potential sources of biases, e.g. changes in man power, hunter’s interest and
legislation. Therefore we tested the bag record data of these three species on correlations between provinces and species and found
no deviations from suitable population estimates. Nevertheless, a rigorous scrutinization was not possible due to lacking large
scale population estimates.
The general problem of time series modeling is the lack of independence in the successive data of the dependent variable.
Therefore, we used techniques taking this into account: (1) mixed models, modelling the autocorrelated structure in the covariance matrix (Diggle et al. 2002) and (2) models with the dependent variable of t-1 on the right hand side of the model. We constructed overall regression models for all eight provinces for each species. The association between prey and predator populations has been quantified within the multiple context of other variables like weather and long term trends. We conducted a backwards selection to exclude insignificant variables.
The goodness of fit after adjusting for the province effect for all three models was remarkably high with 0.858 (0.891), 0.936
(0.943), and 0.103 (0.678) for hare, partridge and rabbit, respectively for the mixed model (time-lagged model). The fox population had a significant negative association to the hare, rabbit and partridge populations. The weather also explained a significant
part of the annual variation. In particular, an increase of the fox population on the double population size would cause a decline
of hares by about 45%, of partridge by almost 20% and of rabbits by more than 20%. However, there is an additional strong longterm trend in the hare and partridge data. This could be due to a major change in the agricultural landscapes over the last decades.
It is important to notice that the trend is much stronger than the association to the fox population.
To recover small game populations in the future we have to focus on habitat improvement and fox control, since we can not change
past events and weather conditions. Our study gives an indication that habitat improvement could be much more promising than
fox control due to the minor association between the fox and the prey populations. Habitat improvement on a large scale in agricultural areas means a change in agricultural policy, which will be a long way.
385
References
Diggle P, Heagerty P, Liang K, Zeger S (2002) Analysis of longitudinal data. Oxford University Press
Englund G, Cooper S D, Sarnelle O (2001) Application of a model of scale dependence to quantify scale domains in open predation experiments. Oikos
92(3): 501-514
Goetmark F, Neergaard R, Ahlund M (1990) Predation of artificial and real arctic loon nests in Sweden. Journal Wildlife Management 54(3): 429-432
Jost C, Arditi R (2000) Identifying predator-prey processes from time-series. Theoretical Population Biology 57: 325-337
Lindström E, Angelstam P, Widen P, Andrén H (1987) Do predators synchronise vole and grouse fluctuations? - An experiment. Oikos 48: 121-124
Murdoch WW (1969) Switching in general predators; experiments on predator specificity and stability of prey populations. Ecological Monographs 39:
335-354
Palomares F, Gaona P, Ferreras P, Delibes M (1995) Positive effects on game species of top predators by controlling smaller predator populations: an
example with lynx, mongooses, and rabbits. Conservation Biology 9(2): 295-305
Schluter H, Muller T (1995) Rabies control in Germany – results and conclusions of 10 years of vaccination. Tieraerztliche Umschau: 50 (11): 748-761
Sih A, Englund G, Wooster D (1998) Emergent impacts of multiple predators on prey. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 13(9): 350-355
Spittler H (1972) Über die Auswirkung der durch die Tollwut hervorgerufenen Reduzierung der Fuchspopulation auf den Niederwildbesatz in NordrheinWestfalen. Zeitschrift für Jagdwissenschaft 18: 76-95
Storaas T (1988) A comparison of losses in artificial and naturally occuring capercaillie nests. Journal of Wildlife Management 52(1): 123-126
Tapper SC, Potts GR, Brockless MH (1996) The effect of an experimental reduction in predation pressure on the breeding success and population density of grey partridges Perdix perdix. Journal of Applied Ecology 33(5): 965-978
Turchin P, Ellner SP (2000) Living on the edge of chaos: population dynamics of Fennoscandian voles. Ecology 81(11): 3099-3116
386
The development of chamois populations in the Hohe Tauern
National Park
Dr. Andreas König
Andreas König, Technische Universität München, Life Science Center Weihenstephan, Wildlife Biology and Wildlife
Management Unit, Am Hochanger 13, D-85354 Freising
Corresponding author: Andreas König. Tel.: +49-8-16-17-14-605, fax: +1-8-16-17-14-615,
Key words: Rupicapra rupicapra, age structure, ratio of sexes, kid mortality, mange
Abstract
Introduction
In the “Heiligenblut” agreement of 1971, the Austrian federal states of Carinthia, Salzburg and Tirol set up a cross-regional
National Park, “Hohe Tauern”. A legal agreement between the states concerned and the Austrian national government followed in
1994, and established strategies for the protection and management of this national park. The Hohe Tauern National Park stretches along the main ridge of the Alps, beginning on the Großvenediger mountain (3674m) in the west, taking in the “Großglockner”
(3798m), and extending as far as the “Ankogel” (3246m) in the east, covering an area of 1800 km2. In comparison with other
national parks it is unique in terms of its ownership: just 16 % of the area belongs to the state, 62 % is privately owned, and 21
% of the area belongs to the Alpine Association (“Alpenverein”). It is also not a homogeneous area with clear boundaries: there
are infrastructural features and inhabited areas/villages throughout the protected areas of the National Park. Outer and central
zones of the National Park are interspersed with forests, which have special importance as protection forests for villages, roads
and railways. Measures to protect game populations in the central area cannot therefore be permitted to lead to a deterioration in
the protection functions, due to increased migration of hoofed game out of the protection areas, for example. What is crucial for
the protection functions of the mountain forests is the density of the game population there (Suda 1990).
The administration of the National Park aims to have the National Park officially recognised under IUCN category II. This means
that in at least 75% of the central zone, all exploitation is stopped (WWF 2000). Up to now, eight refuge areas for game have been
established in the National Park in order to achieve this. The hunting territories “Anlauf” valley and Kötschach” valley in the
Gasteiner valley area, among others, have also been leased by the Hohe Tauern Salzburg National Park Administration since 1998.
This has allowed the administration of the National Park to organise hunting in accordance with their own goals. At the same time,
the “Wildbiologische Gesellschaft”, in conjunction with the Department of Wildlife Biology and Wildlife Management at the
Technischen Universität München, were given the task of monitoring the chamois population.
Central questions
The following questions are to be answered in the long term:
• How do chamois populations develop in the Valley of Anlauf when they are (almost) no longer hunted?
• Is the incidence of diseases among the chamois higher?
• Do chamois migrate to other areas?
Methods
For recording the numbers in game populations, either indirect or direct methods may be considered, as for example described by
Tottewitz in 2002 (see also Overton and Davis). Whereas pellet counts can be used successfully in the foothills of the Alps
(Zannantonio 2004), direct observation of the game is used particularly in the Gasteiner valley because of the steep terrain and
good view into the corries. As a first step, the professional hunters estimate the total chamois population in each corrie annually.
Table 1: Results of census
counts in the “Anlauf”
valley and sum of counts
in the Seebach valley
387
This is to give an idea of the approximate level (number) of the total population. In a second step, in July and again in September,
the chamois population is recorded in specific corries according to sex and age (male, female, kids, yearlings) (spatial census,
Overton and Davis 1980). This detailed data provides information on changes in the population. To round off the picture, data is
collected on dead animals found, mange, and individual shootings outside the central zones of the National Park.
Results
The results of census counts in the “Anlauf” valley show that the population has not grown since 1998 (Table 1). Although the
data shows an increase in the population between 1998 and 1999, the chamois population in the neighbouring “Seebach” valley
area decreased at the same time (Table 1).
The annual kid rate (kids per doe) varies between 0.31 and 0.71 in the “Anlauf” valley. In comparison with other studies (Nerl et
al 1995, Knaus and Schröder 1983), the reproduction rates of the chamois in the “Anlauft” valley are relatively low. Nerl et al
(1995) and Knaus and Schröder (1983) regularly found kid rates of between 0.6 and 0.7 in their studies. Depending on the weather conditions, between 63% and 31% of the kids survive their first year.
Diagram 1 shows the number of cases of mange in the “Anlauf” valley. In the years leading up to 1998, significantly more chamois were found with mange than after 1998. The “non-hunting” of the population does not seem thus far to have had any negative
effect with regard to the health of the chamois.
To conclude, it can be established that once hunting is discontinued, the chamois population does not increase dramatically and
nor is there more illness. The chamois population seems to be regulated by natural factors such as the severity of the winter (compare Knaus and Schröder 1983).
References
Kärntner Nationalparkfonds (ed.) (2002) Nationalpark Hohe Tauern in Kärnten – Der Weg zur Internationalen Anerkennung. Kärtner
Nationalparkschriften Bd. 11.
Knaus W. and Schröder W. (1983) Das Gamswild. Verlag Paul Parey. Hamburg, Berlin
Overton W. S. and Davis D. E. (1980) Estimating the numbers of animals in wildlife populations. In: Schemnitz S.D. (ed.) Wildlife Management
Techniques Manual. The Wildlife Society, Washington, D. C. 403-455.
Suda M. (1990) Die Entwicklung der Schalenwildbestände im bayerischen Alpenraum seit Anfang des 19. Jahrhunderts. In: Bayerischwe Akademie der
Wissenschaften (ed.): Zustand und Gefährdung des Bergwaldes. Ergebnisse eines Rundgespräches veranstaltet und herausgegeben von der Kommission
für Ökologie der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. 30-39
Tottewitz F. (2002) Untersuchungen zur Bestandsentwicklung und Wildverteilung von Rotwild als Hinweis für die Abschussplanung. In: Holst S. and
Herzog S. (eds.) Der Rothirsch- Ein Fall für die Rote Liste? Deutsche Wildtierstiftung, Hamburg. 39-53.
WWF (2000) Jagd im Nationalpark. Wildtiermanagement Abschlussbericht 2000. Wien
Zannantonio D (2004) Möglichkeiten zur Erfassung von Wildbeständen in einem Gebiet der Ammergauer Alpen. Diplomarbeit an der Fakultät für
Biologie, LMU-München.
388
Population density and winter habitat selection by large
mammals in a forest of northeastern Poland
Kolecki Mateusz 1, Handall Natalii 2, Kuklinski Jakob 2, Maniak Agnieszka 2, Podlecki Marian 3, Sokol Katarzyna 2
Pedagogical University of Cracow; Department of Ecology, Wildlife Research and Ecotourism; Podbrzezie 3, 31-054
Krakow; Poland
1
2
International Institute of Ecology
3
Rajgrod Forest District; Tama
Corresponding author: Mateusz Kolecki. Tel.: +48-6-92-64-07-33, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: deer, wild boar, wolf, line transect, snow tracking.
Abstract
The study area (13.9 thousand ha of forest) is situated in northeastern part of Poland and is dominated by fresh coniferous and
fresh mixed deciduous forest types. Scotch pine (Pinus silvestris) is a dominant tree species in Rajgrod Forest District. The climate of the study area is continental with snow cover during 75-100 days per year (Lencewicz and Kondracki 1964, Kondracki,
1998).
In February 2004 line transects (n=10) of a total length of 63 km along forest roads in Rajgrod Forest District were precisely
drawn on the forest map. Fresh snow tracks left by animals during the previous 24 hours were recorded by trackers in off-road
vehicles during 5 consecutive days. Using a car odometer and forest maps, the location of all animals’ tracks were recorded
together with forest types in which they occurred. Then using forest maps the length of forest types along line transects were
measured and these proportions were defined as the availability of forest habitats. Habitat selection by the 5 large mammal
species was tested according to Cherry (1996) using Bailey’s 95% simultaneous confidence intervals (Bailey 1980).
Population density and numbers of moose, red deer, roe deer, wild boar and wolf was estimated using the Carpathian Method
(Bobek et al. 2001; Bobek at al. 2004). This method is based on the relationship between absolute population density (N/1000
ha) as an independent variable, and snow track density index (tracks/km per day) as a dependent variable. The calculation of
population density used adequate regression equations described by Merta et al. 2002, Bobek et al. 2004, and Bobek et al.
unpublished data. According to above calculations the whole study area was inhabited by 116 moose, 234 red deer, 742 roe
deer, 100 wild boars and 5 wolves.
During a 5 days period of tracking 2083 tracks were recorded, out of which 1004 (48.2%) were roe deer tracks (Table 1). Table
2 shows distribution of the snow tracks of 5 large mammals species in relation to forest types. Most of the tracks were located
in fresh coniferous forest and fresh mixed coniferous forest. Fresh coniferous forest type was significantly preferred by moose
and red deer. Both roe deer and wild boar avoided this forest type. Wet coniferous forest was used by the all 5 species randomly. Roe deer preferred fresh mixed coniferous forest and wet mixed deciduous forest. Wolves selected only bag mixed deciduTable 1. Forest types and number
of snow tracks of large mammals
in Rajgrod Forest District collected during 5 days period in
February 2004.
389
Table 2. Proportion of snow tracks
of 5 large mammal species in
relation to proportion of forest
types which were calculated from
km line transects. Data refers to
Rajgrod Forest District (February
2004).
Moose
Red deer
Roe deer
Wild boar
Wolf
Forest type
HS
HI
HS
HI
HS
HI
HS
HI
HS
HI
Fresh
coniferous
1,383
21,430
+
1,570
24,335
+
0,837
12,978
-
0,764
11,837
-
0,747
11,578
o
Wet coniferous
0,000
0,000
o
0,000
0,000
o
3,765
0,001
o
0,000
0,000
o
0,000
0,000
o
Fresh mixed
coniferous
Wet mixed
coniferous
Fresh
deciduous
Fresh mixed
deciduous
Wet mixed
deciduous
Bog mixed
deciduous
0,718
10,767
-
0,493
7,394
-
1,420
21,294
+
1,246
18,688
+
1,367
20,504
o
1,115
0,162
+
1,869
0,271
o
0,732
0,106
o
2,386
0,346
+
0,000
0,000
o
0,000
0,000
-
0,000
0,000
-
0,690
0,017
o
0,000
0,000
o
0,000
0,000
o
0,055
0,027
+
0,000
0,000
-
0,185
0,090
-
1,101
0,537
o
0,000
0,000
o
1,824
0,007
o
2,864
0,012
o
1,412
0,006
+
0,000
0,000
o
9,265
0,037
o
21,892
0,006
o
33,409
0,008
+
0,627
0,000
o
0,000
0,000
o
74,118
0,019
+
Alder forest
1,622
0,033
o
2,333
0,048
+
0,418
0,009
-
2,937
0,060
+
0,000
0,000
o
Forest
meadows
0,865
0,441
o
0,212
0,108
-
0,655
0,334
-
0,098
0,050
-
0,000
0,000
o
Table 3. Estimation of habitat
selection index (HS = B / A) and
habitat importance index (HI = A *
B * 100) for 5 large mammal
species in Rajgrod Forest District
during February 2004. A - is proportion of forest types in line transects; B - is proportion of snow
tracks in forest types; “+” or “-“
indicate statistically significance
of habitat selection calculated by
Bailey’s 95% simultaneous confidence intervals (Bailey 1980). “o”
indicate that given forest types was
used randomly.
ous forest and the other 9 forest types were used by this predator randomly (Table 3.). Detailed calculation showed that fresh
coniferous forest is the most important habitat for moose and red deer. The most important forest type for roe deer, wild boar
and wolf was the fresh mixed coniferous forest.
Influence of forage and cover availability in the habitat selection and habitat importance for each of the 5 mammal species will
be discussed during poster presentation.
References
Bailey B.J.R. (1980) Large sample simultaneous confidence intervals for the multinomial probabilities based on transformations of the cell frequencies. Technometrics 22: 583 – 589.
Bobek B., Bajda M., Budzyński W., Luks B., Lański P., Lukacijewski G., Marecki M., Merta D., Paszkiewicz R., Pawlak A., Podyma M., Polityński
J., Szkutnik M., Widera E., Wierzbowska I., Wiercizyński A., Zaj a, c T. (2001) Liczebność zwierzyny grubej oceniona nowa, metoda, w Bieszczadach i
w Beskidzie Niskim. Lowiec Polski 1: 17 – 21.
Bobek B., Merta D., and Sulkowski P. (2004) Moose recovery plan in Poland: main objectives and tasks. Alces 39: 281 – 288.
Cherry S. (1996) A comparison of confidence interval methods for habitat use-availability studies. J. Wildl. Manage 60: 653 – 658.
Lencewicz S. and Kondracki J. (1964) Geografia fizyczna Polski. PWN Warszawa.
Kondracki J. (1998) Geografia regionalna Polski. PWN Warszawa.
Merta D., Bobek B., Fra, ckowiak W. and Sulkowski P. (2002) Population size, demography and harvest strategy of red deer (Cervus elaphus) in Polish
Eastern Carpathians. Pirineos 151: 47 – 56.
390
Bird monitoring at the southern shore of the Lake Balaton
Gyula Kovács
University of West Hungary- Faculty of Forestry, Institute of Wildlife Management, 9400 Sopron, Bajcsy-Zs u. 4. Hungary
Nature Conservation Group at South-Balaton, (Local Group No. 35 of the Birdlife Hungary), 8638 Balatonlelle, Irmapuszta, Hungary
Corresponding author: Gyula Kovács. Tel.: +36-2-09-96-39-28, fax: +36-9-95-18-350, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: waterbirds, point count, bird communities
The Nature Conservation Group at South-Balaton (the local group No. 35 of the Birdlife Hungary) has launched a systematic
and continuous monitoring program at the southern shore of the Lake Balaton in 2003 with the help of its volunteers. The counts
take place between the towns called Balatonberény and Balatonaliga at 18 observation points (we started with 15 locations),
twice a month during migration period and once a month otherwise. The survey methodology is a modified version of the
Finnish recommendations for waterbird counts (Koskimies & Pöysä, 1991) and it provides additional information for the
Hungarian Migrating Waterfowl Monitoring Program (Faragó, 1998) about this very important region.
The census gives us an overview about the bird fauna of the southern shore in terms of species and densities. The counts cover
every bird species seen during the observations, but in the analysis of the data we take into account only those species that have
real connection with wetland habitats. Although we cannot yet draw further conclusions, it is obvious even from this 2-years
data set that the study area is of primary importance during fall migration and in wintertime. Species like Goldeneye (Bucephala
clangula) are so abundant at this time of the year, that it had verified the lake to be listed under the Ramsar Convention. The
dominant species of the southern shore are the Mallard (Anas platyrynchos), the Black-headed Gull (Larus ridibundus), the
Caspian Gull (Larus cachinnans) and the Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula). Non-dominant, but constant species are the
Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), the Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) and the Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus).
Our first experiences draw attention on further concerns. The southern lakeside is mostly artificially built to serve primarily
touristical aims, so it comprises very small patches of semi-natural habitats. For the birds, the shore is a feeding and resting
habitat first of all and it gives very few opportunities for nesting. It would be useful to incorporate also the fishponds near to
the southern shore and the reservoirs of the Kis-Balaton into the regular censuses. This extension of the study area would allow
us to collect information not only about the migrating populations, but about the breeding populations as well. We suggest managing these areas with a comprehensive conservationist manner along with the Lake Balaton. The implementation of the Natura
2000 network can practically fill this function (Kovács, 2005)
References:
Faragó S (1998) A Magyar Vízivad Információs Rendszer (The Hungarian Waterfowl Information System). Magyar Vízivad Közlemények – Hungarian
Waterfowl Publications 4: 3-17 [in Hungarian]
Koskimies P, Pöysä H (1991) Waterfowl point count. In: Koskimies P-Väisänen RA (ed.) Monitoring Bird Populations. Zoological Museum-Finnish
Museum of History-University of Helsinki, Helsinki: pp. 41-44
Kovács Gy (2005) Dél-Balatoni Madár Monitoring (South Balaton Bird Monitoring). Ornis Hungarica Suppl. (in press) [in Hungarian]
391
Daily patterns of body temperature and activity
in Eurasian Otters (Lutra lutra)
Krüger Hans-Heinrich
Aktion Fischotterschutz e. V., OTTER-ZENTRUM, Sudendorfallee 1, 29386 Hankensbüttel, Germany
Corresponding author: Hans-Heinrich Krüger. Tel.: +49-5-83-29-80-824, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: energy dynamics, immersion trial, radiotelemetrie,
Temperature in °C
The aquatic environment poses unique, and often severe, thermal problems to endothermic mammals. The Eurasian otter finds
almost all its food in the water and spends several hours each day swimming and diving. In Central Europe, otters may experience body-core tem-perature and ambient temperature gradients that exeed 65°C during the cold season and otters swim in
water in subzero temperatures. The adaption of animals to these temperature ex-tremes involves the interaction of both physiological and behavioural adaptations. Most ma-rine mammals have a thick blubber layer. However, the otter has no insulating
fat layer but uses air trapped in its dense furinstead. In addition to fur these animals maintain an internally high metabolic rate.
On average otters consume 1 kg food per day, which is approximately 10 – 15 percent of their body weight. Body core temperature is an important variable in the en-ergy dynamics of any stressed endotherm. By reducing body core temperature otter
could lower temperature gradients that drive heat flux. Body core temperature dynamics were stud-ied to examine how otters
modulate energy loss in response to activity and environmental variables. Therefore two female otters were fitted with intraperitoneal thermodependant transmitters. Calibrated temperature sensitive radio transmitters that measured 48 mm long and 17 mm
in diameter (model TW3, Biotrack, UK) were inserted through an incision into the abdominal cavity. The radio transmitters
weighed 21 g, representing approximately 0,3% of body weight. Transmitter pulse rate varied with temperature and was determined by counting the number of pulses in 1 minute. Data were recorded using a standard telemetry receiver (YAESU, FT
290RII). Activity and body temperature were monitored by locating the animals and maintaining continous surveillance for 24
h in 5 min intervals in order to detect subtle, short-term changes. Great precautions have to be taken to ensure the otters are
familiar with the circumstances and undisturbed while measuring their body temperature. Even little distur-bances can lead to
a rise in body temperature. The otters were kept in large semi-natural en-closures. During the activity phase the females showed
two to six periods of activity, lasting approximately half an hour to three hours. One of the most striking observation in this
study was the close correspondence between activity and body temperature. The mean body tem-perature during inactivity averaged close to 38°C, during activity close to 40°C. Approxi-mately half an hour before the females left the sleeping box and
became active, the temperature rose sharply, reached a plateau and then declined some time before or with entering the sleeping box. In spite of the cooling power of the aquatic environment a female was able to maintain the normal body temperature
during a controlled immersion trial while active in water for 2,5 hours. Therefore, we suggest that the rise and fall of body temperature is not mainly caused by water temperature, but endogenously controlled.
Fig. 1. Daily activity and body temperature patterns of a female otter
in November
References:
Iverson J A (1972) Basal energy metabolism of mustelids. J Comp Physiol. 81:341-344
Kruuk H, (1997) Body temperature and foraging behaviour of the Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra), in relation to water temperature. J Zool London 241:689697
Morrison P et al (1974) Metabolism and thermoregulation in the sea otter. Physiol Zool 47:218-229
Williams T M (1986) Thermoregulation of the North American mink during rest and activity in the aquatic environment. Physiol Zool 59:293-305
392
Measuring the impact of human disturbance on free ranging
red deer (Cervus elaphus L.) by telemetry
Alain Licoppe 1, Céline Prevot 2, Hélène Verheyden 3
1
CRNFB - LFSC Centre de Recherche de la Nature, des Forêts et du Bois –
Laboratoire de la Faune sauvage et de Cynégétique. Avenue Maréchal Juin 23, B-5030 Gembloux. Belgique.
2
Université catholique de Louvain Convention MRW – UCL « Gestion des grands Ongulés sauvages »
3
INRA - CEFS Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique - Comportement et Ecologie de la Faune Sauvage
Corresponding author: Alain Licoppe. Tel. : +32-8-16-26-437, fax : +32-8-16-26-436, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Disturbance, hunt, tourism, telemetry, red deer
Abstract
Human disturbance is considered to be one of the most important components driving the behavioural responses of deer to their
environment [COLLOQUE, 2004]. Because this phenomenon is difficult to quantify, we measured its consequences through
the analysis of the movements of animals fitted with VHF or GPS collars [SIBBALD et al., 2001]. The observations of marked
animals were collected from 3 experimental sites : Hertogenwald occidental, St Michel – Freyr (Belgium) and the Parc
National des Cévennes (France). The goal of these observations was to measure the impact of the two main sources of disturbance : tourism and hunting. The experiments used disturbance simulations or analysed the reaction of animals in situ. The
results showed that deer were more sensitive to tourists walking off the tracks than those keeping to the tracks.
The collective (drive) or individual (stalking) hunts were shown to induce long distance movements and long-lasting switches
in home ranges, but no significant difference appeared between classical drives and silent drives. The effect of the season (vegetation vs no vegetation) and habitat (proportion of coniferous stands) on fleeing distances was not clear. Most of the animals
used refuge areas, sometimes located at several kilometers from their usual activity centre. Throughout the year, a higher frequency of the animal movements was detected during the week-end, when human activities are highest in the
forest, than during the rest of the week.
References:
COLLOQUE.[2004]. Projet de Gestion intégrée du Massif forestier de St Hubert. Document cadre de développement stratégique. Fondation rurale de
Wallonie, 34p.
SIBBALD A., HOOPER R.J., GORDON I.J., CUMMING S. [2001]. Using GPS to study the effect of human disturbance on the behaviour of red deer
stags on a highland estate in Scotland. In: Tracking Animals with GPS, Macaulay Land Use Research Institute, Aberdeen, UK, pp.39-43
393
Effects of extensive waterfowl hunting on the gadwall
(Anas strepera) at the nature reserve Rohrsee
Linderoth, Peter
Wildforschungsstelle Baden-Württemberg, Lehmgrubenweg 5, D-88326 Aulendorf
Corresponding author: Peter Linderoth. Tel.: +49-7-52-59-42-342, fax: +49-7-52-59-42-370,
Key words: hunting disturbance, duration of expulsion, flight distance
Introduction
The Rohrsee, one of the oldest nature reserves (since 1938) of Baden-Württemberg, is situated near Bad Wurzach 35 km northeast of Lake Constance. The shallow lake (mean depth about 1,5 m), which covers an area of about 60 ha, belongs to the most
important resting sites of the Gadwall (Anas strepera) in South Germany in the 1990’s (maximum >1000). The for duck hunting most important species, the Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), is comparatively rare (proportion Mallard to Gadwall about
1:10).
Conservationists are demanding the prohibition of the traditional extensive duck hunting (1-2 hunts/year) at the Rohrsee
(HEINE ET AL. 2001) with the following arguments:
• the hunters would shoot protected Gadwalls,
• the traditional hunting would be a major disturbance for the resting Gadwalls causing a lasting expulsion, severe shyness
and increased flight distances,
• without hunting the numbers of resting Gadwalls would be significantly higher.
Methods
The field study lasted from March 2000 - January 2003. The reaction of the resting waterfowl to dif-ferent hunting pressure
was tested with the following modell: 1. year (traditional hunting with 2 hunt-ing days per season, hunters circle the whole
lake), 2. year (1 hunting day, hunting restricted to one side of the lake), 3. year (no hunting). The results are based on 181 waterfowl counts at the Rohrsee. Each duck hunting at the Rohrsee was observed by at least 3 watchers. To estimate escape movements of the ducks caused by shooting disturbance we made synchronized counts at 4 nearby ponds (max. distance 5 km) at
the hunting days. The flight distance of the waterbirds was measured with an infra-red distance meter in standardized disturbance experiments (one person approaching the shore) at three different sites at the Rohrsee. For statistics we used the non parametric Mann-Whitney U-test (SACHS 1974).
Fig. 1: Numbers of Gadwalls (Anas strepera) at the Rohrsee
and the nearby refuge Holzmühleweiher before and after the
duck hunting (daily counts; dark histogram = 3 counts at the
Rohrsee at the hunt-ingday: 1.count before the hunt, 2.count
after the hunt, 3. count on the evening of the
huntingday).The development at the 2. hunt was overlapped
by factors other than hunting disturbance (*half waterlevel
at the Holzmühleweiher).
394
Fig. 2: Maximum number of Gadwalls (Anas strepera) at the
Rohrsee in the years 2000-2002. The decline in Nov./Dec. 2001
was influenced by an early winteroutbreak with frost and ice.
Fig. 3: Daily mean flight distance (birds swim
away, in meter) of the Gadwall before and after the
hunts at the Rohrsee (basing on the measurements
of 82 disturbance experiments at 3 sites of the lake;
dark histogram = huntingday).
There were 2 hunting days (9.9.00, 6.10.00) in the first year and 1 hunting day (4.10.01) in the second year. The numbers of
hunters varied from 9-29. The shooting efficiency at the Rohrsee was poorer than in other german regions (BAMBERG 1989,
LINDEROTH 1993). At the three hunts a total bag of 13 waterbirds was attained with 101 shots (average 7,8 shots per bird).
Beside Coot (F. atra), Mallard (A. platyrhynchos) and Tufted Duck (A. Fuligula) two protected Gadwalls (A. strepera) were
shot as well.
In all cases the duck hunting caused a short-term expulsion of Gadwalls from the Rohrsee to nearby ponds. During the hunts
the Gadwalls mainly sought refuge at the Holzmühleweiher (distance ca. 4 km). In two of three cases they came back to the
Rohrsee by the evening of the hunting day or the next morning. The development of the Gadwall numbers at the
2. hunt 2000 (6.10.00) was overlapped by factors other than shooting disturbance, which need to be explained. On this morning the Holzmühle-weiher was half drained (routine draining within the lake management) and 85 Gadwalls were already feeding there, before the hunt at the Rohrsee had started. A flock of 45 Gadwalls, which took refuge at the Holzmühleweiher during the hunt, stayed there. This was probably not only a response to the hunting disturbance, but also affected by the quickly
falling water level of the Holzmühleweiher and the resulting short-term better food availability, which was used by other species
as well (i.e. max. 29 Herons). With the falling water level more Gadwalls shifted daily from the Rohrsee to the
Holzmühleweiher. Within 5 days after the hunt more Gadwalls were staying at the Holzmühleweiher (239) than at the Rohrsee
(188). When the Holzmühleweiher was totally dry, all Gadwalls had disap-peared, but didn't return to the Rohrsee (Fig. 1).
The decline in numbers of Gadwalls at the Rohrsee after the 2. hunt 2000 is significant (p<0,005, U-test). At the two other hunts
there was no significant difference between the numbers of Gadwalls in the 5 days before the hunt in comparison to the 5 days
after the hunt. Contrary to the results of other studies (GEIERSBERGER & ZACH 1997) there is no significant difference (Fig.
2) in the numbers of Gadwalls (monthly maximum, March-Dec., z=0, 48; Juli-Dec., z=0,74, U-test) in the years with hunt-ing
(2000, 2001) compared to the year without hunting (2002).
The mean flight distances of the Gadwall at the Rohrsee (Fig. 3) varied in the days before and after the duck hunting from 48m
- 125m (n=82, mean 80,1m). Unexpectedly the flight distances didn’t increase after the hunts. Comparing the decades before
and after the hunts, there is neither a significant differ-ence in the flight distance, nor a significant difference in the proportions
of disturbed Gadwall, which actually flew away during the experiments. Maybe the observed hunting intensity with only three
hunting activities within two years was not sufficient to affect the behaviour of the Gadwall. The flight distance of the Gadwall
at the hunting free Ermatinger Becken (Lake Constance) was due to repeated disturbance by boats more than three times higher (100m-1km, mean 299m) (GÄDTGENS & FRENZEL 1997).Therefore it is likely, that the human disturbance at the Rohrsee
even with hunting was on a lower level than in this non-shooting area.
The results show the situation at the Rohrsee and are not transferable to other sites. Vice versa the re-sults of other studies confirming for example a significant increase of the number of Gadwall (+600%) after postphoning the hunting (GEIERSBERGER & ZACH 1995) are not representative for „the waterfowl hunting“ in general.The question, if the hunting disturbance
affects the behaviour, the number or the distribution of waterbirds depends on different factors, which vary from case to case
(LINDEROTH 2001). The most important factors to consider hereby are the involved species, the habitat, the food resources,
the intensity of hunting and the level of other human disturbances (KALCHREUTER & GUTHÖRL 1997).
References
Bamberg, FB (1989) Zur Ausübung der Jagd im Nationalpark Schleswig-Holsteinisches Wattenmeer. (ed.) Min Ernähr, Landw, Forst u Fisch, Kiel
Gädtgens A, Frenzel P (1997) Störungsinduzierte Nachtaktivität von Schnatterenten (Anas strepera) im Ermatinger Becken/Bodensee. Orn Jh BadWürtt 13: 191-205
Geiersberger I, Zach P (1997) Jagd in Naturschutzgebieten: Auswirkungen der Wasservogeljagd auf Rastbestände von Gründelenten. Z Ökologie u
Naturschutz 6: 219-224
Heine G, Bommer K, Hölzinger J, Lang G, Ortlieb R (2001) Die Vogelwelt des Rohrsees: Natur-schutzgebiet „Vogelfreistätte Rohrsee“ Landkreis
Ravensburg. Orn Jh Bad-Württ, Bd 17
Kalchreuter H, Guthörl V (1997) Wildtiere und menschliche Störungen: Problematik und Management. Verlag Dieter Hoffmann, Mainz
Linderoth P (1993) Wasservogelmanagement am Oberrhein. Wildforsch in Bad.-Württ., Bd 3, (ed.) Wildforschungsstelle, Aulendorf
Linderoth P (2001) Beitrag zur aktuellen Diskussion um die Wasservogeljagd in Deutschland. Beitr z Jagd- u Wildforsch 26: 473-493
Sachs, L (1974) Angewandte Statistik. 4. Aufl., Springer Verlag Berlin, Heidelberg, New York
395
GIS based strategies for habitat suitability index models
in ungulates
Lopes Estefânia 1, Neto Vitor 2, Fonseca, Carlos 1
1
Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago 3810 - 193 Aveiro. Portugal
2
UNAVE – GIS Laboratory, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago
Corresponding authors: Estefânia Lopes. Tel.: +351-2-34-37-03-50, fax: +351-23-44-26-408, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Capreolus capreolus, Cervus elaphus, Sus scrofa, HSI, Portugal
Abstract
The requirements for harvesting and wildlife protection have given rise to several models for resource and wildlife
management. Geographic information systems (GIS) have a precious role in those procedures, with the attempting toincorporate and relate natural resources and species ecological parameters in order to develop, for instance, habitat suitability
models. These models allow the bond between wildlife ecological parameters with other kind of natural resource information,
and forecasts the response of a species to a certain environment type. (Kliskey et al., 1999)
In this work, HSI models were developed in Central-North portuguese mountains range, using GIS tools to predict the impact
of three habitat factors (food, shelter and disturbance) on three ungulate species: roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), red deer
(Cervus elaphus) and wild boar (Sus scrofa). Roe deer was introduced in the area in 1996, wild boar is present at a very good
scale and red deer is not present. The main goal of the work was to determine the fitness of the area in order to regulate harvesting and land management for these ungulate populations.
The models were structure in two major parts. The first was to determine habitat structure, based on a GIS land cover map,
orthophotomap interpretation and field confirmation. The second part was to design the population models (HSI) based on the
species demands for food and shelter, determining the composition, size, and structure of herbaceous, shrubs and arboreal
cover; Disturbance was also evaluated by establishing the human population vicinity and aggregates, road proximity and density of roads and shepherd activity.
The study was developed in an area (Figure 1) with 24 000 ha located North S. Pedro do Sul (well-known for thermal baths),
included in a mountain range which comprises Arada, Gralheira and S. Macário Mountains.
The highest elevation is about 1119 m a.s.l and geologically, granitic rocks formations and schist-grauwacke complex prevails.
The annual average temperature is about 13º C and annual precipitation is around 1000 and 1200 mm.
The land cover (Table 1) was organized in six different habitat types.
The dominant species are conifers (40.9%) mainly maritime pine (Pinus pinaster). Shrubs (34.2%) are arbutus-tree (Arbutus
unedo), genista (Cytisus spp.), heather (Erica spp.), furz (Ulex spp.), dwarf furz (Genista triacanthos) and shrub (Pterospartium
Figure 1. Location of the study area
396
Table 1. Percentage of land use for the six habitats
tridentatum), among others less representative. Cropland has essentially cereals such as maize (Zea mays) and rye (Secale),
potato (Solanum tuberosum), bean (Phaseolus spp.), olive-trees (Olea europaea), several fruit trees like orange-tree (Citrus
sinensis) and several vegetables; Vineyard occupies a considerable part of farmland as well. Deciduous forest (3.5%) has
riparian trees such as willows (Salix spp.), alders (Alnus glutinosa), dogwood (Frangula alnus), corks and oaks (Quercus spp.)
and European chestnut (Castanea sativa). Eucalyptus sp., and urban area represent 5.9% and 1.5% respectively, but drift to
enlarge.
The relative importance of models variables in combine biological and ecological requisites for roe deer, red deer and wild boar,
were integrated into 3 equations. Geometric or arithmetic means used in these equations depend on whether the relationships
of the considered are compensatory or additive. Habitat suitability produces index values from 0.0 –unsuitable- to 1.0 -most
suitable (United States Fish and Wildlife Services, 1981).
For roe and red deer the main HSI interval [0.4-0.6[, means that the habitat is reasonable suitable for those species. The correspondent main land cover is essentially pinewood with high land occupation and diversity of shrub and herbaceous cover and
deciduous forest. Only 5% is most suitable for red deer and corresponds to deciduous forest. High disturbance factors such as
significant sheep number, considerable road density and small human aggregates in important habitats, associated with the lack
of deciduous forest could be the main reasons for the lower suitability of the area for roe and red deer.
On the other hand the HSI model indicates that almost 50% of total area is well suitable (0.6-0.8) for wild boar it is present in
almost every type of land cover, excepting Eucaliptus, urban and agriculture land very close to human facilities. About 1% of
the study area is unsuitable for wild boar.
The confirmation and validation of the HSI models was preformed with appropriate census techniques. In this effort was concluded that the entire habitat is best suitable for will boar, than for the cervids, which are more demanding in habitat conditions,
especially with tranquillity and shelter factors.
The development and application of GIS-based habitat suitability models provided flexible and dynamic models for wildlife
management for roe deer, red deer and wild boar in S. Pedro do Sul. By knowing the potentiality of the area, wildlife managers
can yield suitable courses for the welfare of the species and then can predict the population dynamics.
Enlarging the habitat potential with ecological management measures increases the potential of this region and enforces future
ungulate reintroduction processes in the areas with higher suitability, which will hopefully create, in medium long term, an ecological corridor along the mountain range, allowing the displacement of roe deer and red deer within different cores.
References
Kliskey A, Lofroth E, Thompson W, Brown S, Schreier H (1999) Simulating and evaluating alternative resource-use strategies using GIS-based habitat suitability indices. Landscape and Urban Planning 45:163-175
United States Fish and Wildlife Service (1981) Standards for the Development of Habitat Suitability Index Models. Ecological Service Manual 103,
Division of Ecology Services Washington, DC
397
Demography of two barbary partridge (Alectoris barbara)
populations in Sardinia Island
Luchetti Sara 1, Contu Silvia* 1 Sacchi Oreste 2, Meriggi Alberto 3, Apollonio Marco 1
1
Dipartimento di Zoologia e Antropologia Biologica, Università di Sassari, Via Muroni 25, 07100 Sassari, Italy
2
Platypus S.r.l.
3
Dipartimento di Biologia Animale, Università di Pavia
Corresponding author: Meriggi Alberto. Tel.:+39-3-82-98-63-07, fax: +39-3-82-98-62-90,
Key words: demographic parameters, brood production rate, mapping censuses
Introduction
The Barbary partridge is a politipic spieces; 4 subspecies are known (Cramp & Simmons, 1980): barbara (Bonnaterre, 1790),
living in Sardinia, Gibraltar (introduced), north-east Morocco, northern Algeria, northern Tunisia; barbata (Reichenow, 1896),
living from northern Cyrenaica to north-west Egypt; spatzii (Reichenow, 1895) present in Morocco, west Sahara, Algeria,
Tunisia, northern Tripolitania and south Libia to the Tassili-n-Ajjer; koenigi (Reichenow, 1899), living in north-west Marocco
and Canary Islands (probably introduced).
Original of North- Africa, Maghreb region, was probably introduced in Sardinia during the carthaginian colonization (Spanò et al.,
1998), and in Italy it is present only there (Arrigoni degli Oddi, 1929; Mocci Demartis & Massoli-Novelli, 1978; Brichetti, 1985).
The Barbary partridge is recognized by European Community as SPEC 2: because of its limited distribution (restricted range)
in Europe. It is also considered an endangered species by IUCN 1998 (Tucker & Heath, 1994). Nevertheless in Sardinia the
species is widespread and hunted: here over hunting, poaching and progressive habitat degradation (removal of Mediterranean
bush agriculture and livestock had lead to population decline (Sacchi et al., 1999). On the other hand the species ecology is
poorly known; this study was aimed to improve scientific knowledge about the species demography.
Study area
The study was conduced in two study areas: Surigheddu in the North-west of Sardinia and the South coast of of Asinara island.
The study area of Surigheddu is charaterized by Mediterranean climate with rather mild and wet winter, hot and dry summer.
Most of the study area is
covered by meadows of
Table 1: Surigheddu and Asinara population parameters
grasses, thistle (Cirsium
arvensem, Carlina corymbosa), asphodel (Asfodelus microcarpus),
and by Mediterranean
bush dominated by cistus
(Cistus sp.) and lentisk
(Pistacia lentiscus). Cereal crops and olive
groves (Olea europea
var. sylvestris) are also
present. A stream bounds
the side east of the area,
and an artificial lake is
present.
Predators are foxes
(Vulpes vulpes), hooded
crows (Corvus corone
cornix), martens (Martes
martes), herring gulls
(Larus cachinnans). The
presence of wild boars
(Sus scrofa), can cause
the destruction of several
clutches.
398
The southern coast of Asinara is charaterized by a degraded Mediterranean bush with a garigue alternate to dry meadows and
rocks. In this area are also present some artificial lake and some pools. The .dominant species of the bush are lentisk and euphorbia (Euphorbia dendroides), whereas in the meadows the most common species are ferula (Ferula communis) and asphodel.
Predators are wild boars, herring gulls, hooded crows and buzzards (Buteo buteo); remarcable is the absence of fox (Cossu et
al., 1994).
Methods
Populations were monitored by mapping censuses, trough observations by car on transect nets covering the whole study areas;
each transect was repeated each month for fiftheen days, at dawn and at sunset for two years, 2003 and 2004: this allowed us
to estimate population size and, in particular, pairs and brood densities.
For each observation of partridges we noted the date, the number of birds observed, the kind of aggregation (pair, single bird,
brood, and covey), their behaviour, age of juveniles, habitat and meteo conditions; moreover the observations were mapped on
a map at 1:10000 scale. The collected data were used to calculate the population parameters (Meriggi e Mazzoni della Stella,
2004).
All data were inserted in an electronic database and every observation was visualized on digital maps using ArcView 3.2.
To compare the mean brood size between years we used the Student t-test. To compare the brood production rate and mortality values we used the chi-square test. Multifactorial analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to test for significant interactions between study areas and years.
We considered the significance level of p = 0.05 and for the t-test this value was corrected by the Bonferroni method, considering the comparisons number. All statistical analyses were processed with SPSS version 12.01 for Windows (SPSS Inc. 2000).
Results
We estimated demographic parameters of the two population of Barbary partridge (Table 1).
Comparing the brood production rate (BPR) in the two study areas in 2003 we did not find any significant difference (X2= 2.86,
dfl=1, p=0.091) that were found, on the contrary, considering the same comparison in 2004 that showed a BPR for Surigheddu
area higher than the value found for theAsinara one (X2= 6.46, df=1, p=0.011).
Pooling the data of the two years, the average brood size was higher for Asinara than for Surigheddu (t= 3.48, df= 182,
p=0.001). The same was considering only 2003 (t=2.69, gl=81, p=0.009). The difference between the average brood size of the
two areas was also confirmed from the MANOVA (F=12.06, df.=1, P=0.001). The interaction between study area and year was
not significant (F=0.220, df=1, p=0.640). Pooling the data of the two study areas we did not found any significative difference
between average brood dimension in 2003 and 2004 (t=0.125, df=182, p=0.901). It was possible to compare adult mortality
values only for 2004 and values found for Asinara were significantly higher (X2 = 19.67, df=1, p<0.0001).
Discussion
The comparison between the demographic parameters of the two study areas shows a lower BPR for the Asinara population
than that found for Surigheddu one but this was contrasted by a higher brood size and consequently by a higher chick survival.
To explain our findings two hypothesis can be formulated. First, less observations were made, for logistic reasons, in Asinara
area than in Surigheddu. The estimated BPR might be influenced by low number of observed broods and adults. Second, the
two areas are different as regards existent predators since in Asinara the number of wild boars is higher than in Surigheddu. On
the other hand, foxes are present only in Surigheddu area.
Wild boar predation possibly reduces the number of clutches but it doesn’t influence the chick survival. On the contrary, fox
predation reduces chick number but it does not affect the number of successfully clutches. This can explain the higher number
of brood observed in Surigheddu and their lower size compared to Asinara ones.
References
Arrigoni degli Oddi E. & Damiani G., (1911-12). Note sopra una raccolta di Uccelli dell’Arcipelago Toscano. Riv. It. Orn. (I Serie), 1: 7-62.
Brichetti P., (1985). Guida degli uccelli nidificanti in Italia. F.lli Scalvi, Brescia. 144 pp.
Cossu A., Monbailliu X., Torre A., (1994) L’Isola dell’Asinara, Guida ed itinerari ambientali della Sardegna. Carlo Delfino Editore.
Cramp S. & Simmons K.E.L. (eds.), (1980). The birds of the Western Palearctic. 2. Hawks to Bustards. Oxford University Press, Oxford. 695
Meriggi A. e Mazzoni della Stella R., (2004) Dynamics of a rentroduced population of red-legged partridges Alectoris rufa in central Italy. Wildlife
Biology 9:3.
Mocci Demartis A. & Massoli-Novelli R., (1978). Distribuzione caratteristiche e possibilità di ripopolamento della Pernice sarda Alectoris barbara
(Bonnatterre). Boll. Soc. Sarda Sci. nat., 17: 71-107.
Sacchi O., Meriggi A. & Strappo A., (1999) Tecniche e miglioramenti ambientali per la reintroduzione degli uccelli e dei piccoli mammiferi di interesse venatorio. – Atti II° Conv.Reg. “Studio, gestione e conservazione della fauna selvatica in Sardegna”, Oristano (in press).
Spanò S., Meriggi A. e Simonetta A.M., (1998) Pernice rossa, Coturnice, Pernice sarda, Colino della Virginia, Quaglia e Francolino, in Simonetta e
Dessì-Fulgheri – Principi e tecniche di gestione faunistica-venatoria. Ed. Greentime, Bologna, 427 pp.
Tucker G. M. & Heath M. F., (1994) Birds in Europe: their conservation status. Birdlife Conservation Series n.3.
399
Habitat requirements of Mediterranean hare (Lepus capensis
mediterraneus) in protected areas of Sardinia
Luchetti Sara 1, Sacchi Oreste 2, Meriggi Alberto 3, Apollonio Marco 1
1
Dipartimento di Zoologia e Antropologia Biologica, Università di Sassari,via Muroni 25, 07100 Sassari Italy
2
Platypus S.r.l., via Pedroni 13, 20161 Milano, Italy
3
Dipartimento di Biologia Animale, Università di Pavia, piazza Botta, 9, 27100 Pavia, Italy
Corresponding author: Alberto Meriggi. Tel.: +39-3-82-98-63-07, fax: +39-3-82-98-62-90, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: density, censuses, habitat selection
Introduction
Mediterranean hare is a species of high conservation value because of its European range is limited to the Sardinia Island where
it is a game species. The ecology of the species is poorly known but in Sardinia the population seems to be in dramatic decline,
probably because of over hunting and habitat losses (Com.Pr.C. Oristano, 1995; Sacchi et al., 1999). This study was aimed to
increase the knowledge of the species ecology with special references to habitat requirements.
Study areas and methods
The study was carried out in 2003 and 2004 in 8 protected areas (mean size 18 km2; SE= 7,24) in Sardinia. The main land
use classes were crops and cultivations (49,78 %), natural vegetation (30,77 %), sands and dunes (6,82 %), and woods (5,95
%). In each study area we carried out spotlight censuses (Barnes & Tapper, 1985; Langbein et al. 1999) in the dry (marchaugust) and wet (september-february) seasons on transects covered by a car (mean length 5,5 km; SE= 0,67). Population
densities were expressed as the number of individuals per km2 of lit surface. We mapped all hare sightings and digitized the
observations using the software Arcview 3.2. Around each observation points we draw a buffer of 100 m, where we measured the percentage of land use classes (Corine land cover 4th level) that were then compared with those measured in a
similar number of randomly selected control points. We performed Mann-Whitney U tests and Discriminant Function
Analysis (DFA, Whilk’s Lambda method, stepwise procedure, tolerance level 0.001) to detect significant differences of the
habitat characteristics between observation and control points. Moreover the distribution of hare sightings in the different
types of land use was compared with a random distribution by the χ2 goodness-of-fit test and Bonferroni confidence interval
analyses, to test the null hypothesis that the hares use the different type of habitat in proportion to their availability.
Results
The average hare density was 26,4 per km2 (SE=7,17); the highest densities were recorded in two study areas close to the sea
in the North (Asinara Island National Park) and on the western central coast (62.7 and 51.5 hares per km2 respectively).
Significant differences between observation (n=181) and control (n=202) points resulted for the garigue (P=0.05),
Mediterranean bush ((P=0.047), broad-lived woods (P=0.001) and for dry crops (P=0.006). The percentage of garigue was
higher in control points (observations: mean=1.7; SD=9.21; controls: mean=5.1; SD=17.28) and the same was for broad-lived
woods (observations: mean=0.1; SD=1.67; controls: mean=3.7; SD=16.13), whereas Mediterranean bush and dry crops showed
higher percentages in observation points (observations: mean=8.12; SD=18.56; controls: mean=7.2; SD=20.88 and observations: mean=8.4; SD=23.29; controls: mean=2.1; SD=12.10, respectively). DFA significantly discriminated the observation
points from control ones by four land use variables: dry crops, broad-lived woods, garigue and marshes; the model correctly
classified 56,1% of the original cases (87,8% of the observations and 27.7% of the controls) (Table 1).
From χ2 analyses, a non-random habitat use resulted both for the dry and wet seasons and for the year. Considering the two seasons pooled, pastures were used more than availability, whereas urban areas and crops less. In the dry season we recorded the
Table 1. Results of the Discriminant Function Analysis between
observation points of hares (n=181)
and control ones (n=202).
X2
400
Table 2. Results of Bonferroni confidence interval analyses on observed (OUP) and expected (EUP)
usage proportions by hares of the
different land use classes.
same pattern of habitat selection except for an avoidance for the secondary scrublands. In the wet season pastures and garigue
were positively selected and crops and urban areas avoided. (Table 2).
Discussion
Mediterranean hare can reach in some protected areas high densities, usually related to the presence of Mediterranean bush and
pastures as in the two study areas with the highest recorded densities. However in other intensively cultivated areas population
levels are low or the species is absent. Mediterranean bush is important because it can offer good shelter towards predators and
hunting pressure, which is very high outside protected areas. By the comparisons between observation and control points, it
seem that, in the night, hares choose open sites near bush; this is because during the feeding activity the hares can escape predator attacks sheltering in dense cover (Meriggi et al., 1998). Further information about habitat requirements of hares resulted
by the analyses on the observation distribution; as a matter of fact, comparing the use with the availability of the different land
use classes, the importance of some vegetation types as pastures and garigue in the wet season appeared. Pastures, if not overgrazed, can offer fresh and good food in the Mediterranean habitats, where the growth season is very limited. The same is for
the garigue during winter and spring, when grasses can grow in the open spaces scattered among the shrubs.
References
Barnes R.F.W. & Tapper S.C. (1985) A method for counting hares by spotlight. J. Zool. 206: 273-276
Com. provinciale Caccia di Oristano, IVRAM e Università di Pavia (1995) Ecologia della lepre sarda (Lepus capensis mediterraneus) nella provincia
di Oristano (not published).
Meriggi A., Murru M., Picciau F., Brangi A. (1998) Progetto per la valutazione dell’impatto della predazione sulla produttività delle popolazioni naturali di pernice sarda e lepre sarda: pp. 97
Langbein J., Hutchings M.R., Harris S., Stoate C., Tapper S.C. and Wray S. (1999) Techniques for assessing the abundance of Brown Hares Lepus
europaeus. Mammal Rev. Vol. 29,2:93-116
Sacchi O., Meriggi A. & Strappo A. (1999) Tecniche e miglioramenti ambientali per la reintroduzione degli uccelli e dei piccoli mammiferi di interesse venatorio. Atti II° Conv.Reg. “Studio, gestione e conservazione della fauna selvatica in Sardegna”, Oristano (in press).
401
Preliminary data on distribution and comparative ecology
of Italian hare (Lepus corsicanus De Winton, 1898) and
european brown hare (Lepus europaeus Pallas, 1898)
in the Grosseto Province (Tuscany, Italy)
Macchia Marina, Francesco Riga, Valter Trocchi
Istituto Nazionale per la Fauna Selvatica Selvatica – Via Cà Fornacetta n. 9 I-40064 Ozzano Emilia, Bologna – Italy
Corresponding author: Marina Machia. Tel. +39-5-16-51-22-77, fax: +39-5-17-96-628, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Lagomorph, Spot light census, competitive interactions, hare conservation
The Italian hare (Lepus corsicanus De Winton, 1898) is an endemic species inhabiting continental Italy, Sicily and Corsica
(where it was introduced before XVI Century) and it has been recently rediscovered by means of morphological and molecular evidences (cfr. Trocchi and Riga eds., 2001). Since very poor information are available on the ecology and the distribution
of this species, the national Action Plan for the Italian hare (Trocchi and Riga eds., 2001) indicates the updating of its actual
distribution range and ecology as one of main conservation actions.
This work is aimed to investigate the ecological distribution and habitat preferences of the Italian hare in Grosseto Province
(Southern Tuscany) and to plan a network of protected areas in order to reduce the limiting factors (habitat loss and fragmentation). Moreover, we also attempted to estimate habitat suitability for the Italian hare. Finally, to evaluating the effects of competition with other Lagomorph species, a further objective was to compare the ecological distribution of
L. corsicanus and L. europaeus.
Distribution of the Italian hare within the study area was assessed by two methods. Mainly we used spot-light censuses by car
in protected and hunting areas, recording the species and habitat type. Every observation was located, using the global positioning system (GPS) and a laser telemeter, and recorded on standardized field survey forms. Additional data were collected
through identification of animals captured during the annual translocations of European brown hares from the some protected
units (Restocking and Capture Zones) to hunting areas. Moreover, we performed molecular analyses on 64 samples (blood, tissues) of hare killed during two hunting season.
The local distribution of Lepus corsicanus was correlated with the climatic types and it was classified on regional scale by
means of Thornthwaite’s Global Moisture Index Map (Venanzoni e Pedrotti 1994, Bigi e Rustici, 1994). We performed this correlation only considering observations in areas where no translocations of European hare nor hunting occurred in the last five
years.
Habitat use of hares was determined with CORINE Land Cover (III level) database. For woody areas a greater detail was
obtained through the Regional Forest Inventory Map and the Forest Vegetation Map (Regione Toscana – Dipartimento Sviluppo
Economico; Arrigoni and Menicagli, 1998; Hoffmann et al., 1998).
From June 2002 to November 2003 we observed 408 Lagomorph (33 Lepus corsicanus, 359 Lepus europaeus,
4 Oryctolagus cuniculus, 2 Sylvilagus floridanus and 10 unidentified individuals) in 107 transects for a total of 878 Km and of
26,340 Ha of spot-lighted area, within 74 areas ( 61% of the management units of Grosseto Province and other routes in public hunting areas). Italian hare and European hare sightings are represented on Carta Tecnica Regionale grid 1:5000 (Fig. 1).
The Italian hare was observed in the southern portion of the Grosseto Province, the northern boundary of species global distri-
Fig.1. Distribution maps of Lepus corsicanus and Lepus
europaeus in the Grosseto Province on Carta Tecnica
Regionale grid (1:5000)
402
Fig. 2. CORINE
Land cover classes
(III level) for Lepus
corsicanus, for Lepus europaeus in
same areas (A)
and in all sampled
areas (B)
Fig. 3. Distribution areas of Lepus
corsicanus (black dots) (INFS, 2004)
and Quercus frainetto (grey boxes)
bution area, in 7 areas between 30 and 350 m a.s.l. All the observations occurred in management units where neither hunting
nor translocations of European hare occurred since 5 years. Lepus corsicanus was observed in 4 CORINE types: broad-leaved
forests, not-irrigated arable lands, pastures, and moors and heath-lands (Fig. 2). All Italian hare observations are placed within
150 meters from the broad-leaved forests, on marginal or internal patches mostly cultivated (i.e. permanent or temporary forage crops, cereals and arboreal plantations with undergrowth herbaceous vegetation). However, some differences exist between
the composition of broad-leaved forests: in particular Italian hare distribution overlap with the Quercus cerris-Quercus frainetto woods (cod. CORINE biotopes 41.751 – Commission of the European Communities, 1990) ones (Fig. 3). Finally, some
observations are localized in areas with transitional natural vegetation. As regard to the weather characteristic, we found that
the Italian hare inhabits areas corresponding to a Thornthwaite’s Global Moisture Index ranging between -33.3 and 0, corresponding to subdry climatic type, with annual average rainfall between 600 and 800 mm. Climatic type preferred by Lepus corsicanus is typical of Mediterranean areas and similar values of TGM index are common in large areas of insular and coastal
Tuscany.
The European hare is wide-ranging in the provincial territory and it was observed in 11 management units in which occasional translocations and hunting took place, at altitude comprised between 30 and 1440 m a.s.l. L. europaeus was observed in notirrigated arable lands, on pastures and in broad-leaved forests (Fig. 2). Respect the habitat preferences, we found only 28% of
the Lepus europaeus’s sightings occurred within 150 m from broad-leaved forests, while they mainly occurred at a grater distance, as far as 6 km from small woods and 11 km from greater woods. Moreover European brown hare appears to be more
adaptable to climatic conditions (eurytherm) compared to Italian hare, occupying 4 Thornthwaite’s climatice types (subdry, subhumid, humid, very humid).
L. corsicanus and L. europaeus were observed in the same habitat in 2 management units. However the two species preferred
different habitat in other 5 units.
The main results of our study were the importance of the association between some classes of broad-leaves woods and the
subdry climatic type for the occurrence of the Italian hare. Secondly, our survey highlights a grater habitat suitability compared
with the actual distribution of this species in Grosseto Province.
403
References
Arrigoni P. V., Menicagli E. (1998) - Carta della vegetazione forestale. In: Regione Toscana, Dipartimento dello Sviluppo Economico Boschi e macchie di Toscana. Ed. Regione Toscana, Firenze.
Bigi L., Rustici L. (1994) - Regime idrico dei suoli e tipi climatici in Toscana. Giunta Regionale Toscana. Firenze.
Commission of the European Communities (1990) - CORINE biotopes.
Hoffmann A., Goretti D., Merendi A., Tabacchi G., Vignoli M., Bernetti G. (1998) - L’inventario forestale. In: Regione Toscana, Dipartimento dello
Sviluppo Economico Boschi e macchie di Toscana. Ed. Regione Toscana, Firenze.
Mondino G.P., Bernetti G. (eds) (1998) I Tipi forestali. In: Regione Toscana, Dipartimento dello Sviluppo Economico. Boschi e macchie di Toscana.
Ed. Regione Toscana, Firenze.
Palacios F. (1996) - Systematics of indigenous hares of Italy traditionally identified as Lepus europaeus Pallas, 1778 (Mammalia: Leporidae). Bonn.
Zool. Beitr. 46 (1-4): 59-91.
Trocchi V., Riga F. (eds) (2001) Piano d’Azione nazionale per la Lepre italica (Lepus corsicanus). Quad. Cons. Nat., 9, Min. Ambiente – Ist. Naz. Fauna
Selvatica.
Venanzoni R., Pedrotti F. (1994) - Il clima. In: Pignatti S (ed.) Ecologia vegetale. UTET, Torino: pp. 7-24
Vigne J. D. (1988) - Les Mammifères post-glaciaresde Corse: étude archeozoologique. Gallia Préhistoire, 26. CNRS ed.
404
Priciples and methods of biomonitoring in the
Pasvik Nature Reserve
Makarova Olga 1, Khokhlov Anatoliy 1, Khlebosolov Eugene 2
1
“Pasvik” Nature Reserve, Rayakoski, Murmansk region, 184404, Russia
2
Department of Zoology, Ryazan State Educational University
Corresponding author: Olga Makarova. E-mail: [email protected]
Key words: ecosystem monitoring, ecological niche, foraging behaviour
The traditional approach to control of environmental conditions is based on observa-tions on various incoherent elements of
natural ecosystems, i.e. changes of climate, natural or human-related damages of environment, fluctuation of animal and plant
abundance, etc. At the same time there are no methods of monitoring of ecosystems as a whole. This is related to the prevalence of population approaches to ecological re-search. Recently the ecologists pay more attention to the study of community
organi-sation and species interaction within communities. These studies have shown that species relations within communities
are hierarchically organised (Hespenheide, 1975; Eckhardt, 1979; Holmes et al., 1979). The following subordination of factors
has been revealed for animals: foraging behaviour - microhabitats (structure of foraging substrates) - habitats (biotopes) - geographical range (James et al., 1984; Schoener, 1979; Khlebosolov, 1999). That allows conducting the biological monitoring not
only by fixation the annual changes of species populations but also by the analysis of changes of hierarchically organised chain
of species ecosystem interrelations. For example, it is possible on the basis of species foraging behaviour pattern, to predict all
other ecological factors determining the existence of this species in a given community. And vice versa, by knowing only one
of the factors it is possible to predict any other ecological factors effecting species ecological niche structure. Hence, the analysis of clue ecosystem interrelations among species enables to use them as an important indicator of ecosystem state and judging by the changes of these interrelations to evaluate the changes of ecosystem organisation as a whole (Khlebosolov et al.,
2000).
In the Pasvik Nature Reserve ecosystem monitoring has been conduced in the areas of well preserved forests and also in the
territories damaged by forest fire. Eco-systems of first type are used as a standard of long time natural changes of environ-ment.
The ecosystems of second type represent a good opportunity to trace the changes of ecosystem relations and the structure of
community in the process of forest stage successions. The environmental damages are the natural experiments with well-known
conditions. The analysis of responding changes in the ecosystem relations may be helpful for investigation not only of damaged ecosystems themselves but also in the natural, well preserved ecosystems.
Several model species have been selected in order to determine their ecosystem relations and to conduct their annual control.
The most suitable model species for organisation of thorough biological monitoring are dominant species, economically valuable species, rare and endangered species. Dominant species play an important role in ecosystem functioning. Therefore, they
should be considered as the principal species for the organisation of ecosystem monitoring. The significance of economically
valuable species for ecosystem monitoring consists of the possibility to analyse comparatively their population changes on protected territories and on territories where the species are widely used by people. That may help to understand better the effect
of natural and human-related factors on the changes of ecosystem relations. The important role of rare species in the ecosystem monitoring is related to the fact that the existence of rare species in communities is supported by limited resources. Even
insignificant changes of ecosystem relations and community structure may have a crucial effect on their populations.
References
Eckhardt RC (1979) The adaptive syndromes of two guilds of insectivorous birds in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Ecol. Monogr. 49: 129-149.
Hespenheide HA (1975) Prey characteristics and predator niche width. In: Cody ML, Diamond JM (eds) Ecology and evolution of communities.
Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University Press. pp. 150-180.
Holmes RT, Bonney REJr, Pacala SW (1979) Guild structure of the Hubbard Brook bird community: a multivariate approach. Ecology. 60: 512-520.
James FC, Johnston RF, Wamer NO, Niemi GJ, Boecklen WJ (1984) The Grinnellian niche of the Wood Thrush. Amer. Nat. 124: 17-47.
Khlebosolov EI (1999) Ecological factors of speciation in birds. Moscow, Horizon.
Khlebosolov EI, Khlebosolova OA, Kushel YuA, Makarova OA (2000) Methods of systemic ecological monitoring. Ryazan, Ryazan Regional Institute
of Devel-opment of Education.
Schoener TW (1989) The ecological niche. In: Cherret JM (ed) Ecological concepts. Oxford, Blackwell Sci. Publ. pp. 79-113.
405
Polymorphism of the MHC Class II DQA gene in Greek brown
hare (Lepus europaeus)
Zissis Mamuris 1, Costas Stamatis 1, Franz Suchentrunk 2
1
Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, 26 Ploutonos Street, 41221, Larissa
2
Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, Vienna Veterinary University
Corresponding author: Zissis Mamuris. Tel.: +30-2-41-05-65-282, Fax: +30-2-41-05-65-292, email: [email protected]
Key words: PCR-SSCP, Exon 2, sequence analysis
Class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC) products are highly polymorphic cell-surface molecules involved in the initiation of the immune response to foreign antigens. These molecules are heterodimers consisting of a and b chains encoded by closely linked A and B genes. Class II molecules bind antigenic peptides originating from proteolytic cell activities and
present them to CD4+ helper T lymphocytes. The polymorphic sites of the class II genes are mainly located in exon 2, which codes
for the first extracellular domain including the antigen-binding site (ABS) (Brown et al., 1988). Most of the class II genes are highly polymorphic both among and within species, and loci number is also variable (Wagner et al., 1998; Bontrop et al., 1999; Chardon
et al., 1999; Ellis and Ballingall, 1999). Among mammals various MHC class II genes (DRA, DRB, DQA and DQB) have been
characterized. Characteristically, these genes show a high allelic diversity with long allelic persistence times and high heterozygosity (Klein et al., 1993). Balancing selection, generally acknowledged to be responsible for the maintenance of diversity at these loci,
is manifest at the molecular level by an increased ratio of non-synonymous over synonymous substitutions (dN/dS) at the functionally important peptide-binding regions (PBR) (Hughes and Nei 1988, 1989). Such evolutionary traits, together with their immunological importance, make these genes widely studied in humans, and to a lesser extent in other vertebrate species.
The study of MHC genes in natural populations is important in shaping our understanding of the generation and maintenance
of MHC diversity and, in particular, in assessing the contributions of environmental and demographic factors to MHC variation of populations. Within Leporidae the initial molecular typing of rabbit MHC alleles, utilizing restriction fragment length
polymorphisms (RFLP) (Marche et al., 1989), indicated an unusually high degree of polymorphism in the class II DQA gene,
suggesting that this may serve as a marker for class II haplotypes. The present report describes a preliminary study on the use
of single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis (SSCP; Orita et al., 1989) in combination with direct nucleotide sequence
analysis for the detection of DQA alleles in brown hare (Lepus europaeus) from Greece.
Liver samples of 221 brown hares from eight different populations (Fig. 2) were collected during regular hunts in several
regions of Greece. Genomic DNA was extracted from frozen liver using standard phenol/chloroform extraction. Amplification
of DQA exon 2 was achieved by using two primers DQAFw: 5’-TCATCAGCTGACCACGTTGG-3’ and DQArv: 5’CTATTGACAGCAGTAGAG-3’. (Fain et al., 2001). Amplification conditions were: one preliminary denaturation at 95°C for
5 min, followed by 35 cycles of strand denaturation at 95°C for 40 seconds, annealing at 58°C for 1 min, primer extension at
72°C for 40 seconds and a final extension at 72°C for 5 min.
Allelic variants were determined using SSCP analysis. Using a formamide loading buffer, PCR products were run on a 12%
acrylamide (37.5:1) gel at 1 W/gel in 0.5X TBE (4.5 M TRIS, 4.5 M boric acid, 1 mM EDTA) for 18 h at 4°C. SSCP bands
were visualized by silver staining. Variants identified on SSCP were sequenced in both directions using the ABI capillary
sequencer. Alleles were determined, where possible, by sequencing homozygous samples. Heterozygous sequences, in a first
place, were deduced from heterozygous sequences after identification of one allele by SSCP. In any case, purified PCR products from genomic DNA templates will be cloned into the T-vector (Promega) and then will be transformed in JM109
(Promega) Escherichia coli competent cells. From each heterozygous individual five positive clones will be picked and
sequenced, in order to verify more accurately each allele.
Figure 1. The five SSCP profiles detected in the Greek
brown hare populations.
406
Figure 2. Allele frequency
distribution in the eight Greek
populations.
Figure 3. SSCP profile frequency
distribution in the eight Greek populations.
A total of five SSCP profiles were detected (Fig. 1) resulting from four different alleles (profile 5 is heterozygous composed
from alleles 1 and 2 exhibiting profiles 1 and 2, respectively). Alleles 1 to 3 were present in all sampled areas with variable frequencies (Fig. 2). In all areas allele 1 was present with a relatively high frequency except of South Greece where it had the lowest frequency of all alleles. Allele 2 was dominant in the region of Epirus (Arta and Ioannina), located in Western Greece, followed by allele 1 in much lower frequencies. Surprisingly, allele 4 was absent from Ioannina, North and North-East Greece
(Fig. 2). Overall, samples from South Greece were characterized by the highest frequencies of alleles
3 and 4 and the lowest of allele 1. The presence of profile 5 within a population was considered an index of heterozygosity.
Profile 5 was present the highest frequencies in Epirus populations, while it was totally absent from North-East Greece (Fig. 3).
DQA polymorphism in Greek brown hare populations was at similar levels to those reported for other mammalian species
(Seddon et al., 2002). These results are viewed in relation with results on mitochondrial DNA and allozyme analyses already
conducted in the same samples (Mamuris et al., 2001, Suchentrunk et al., 2003) and the phylogenetic issues are discussed.
References
Bontrop R E, Otting N, de Groot N, Doxiadis GG (1999) Major histocompatibility complex class II polymorphism in primates. Immunol. Rev. 167:
339–350
Brown JH, Jardetzky T, Saper MA, Samraoui B, Bjorkman PJ, Wiley DC (1988) A hypothetical model of the foreign antigen binding site of class II
histocompatibility molecules. Nature 332:845–850
Chardon P, Renard C, Vaiman M (1999) The major histocompatibility complex in swine. Immunol. Rev. 167: 179–192
Ellis S A, Ballingall K T (1999) Cattle MHC: evolution in action? Immunol. Rev: 167, 159–168
Fain M A, Zhao T, Kindt T J (2001) Improved typing procedure for the polymorphic single-copy RLA-DQA gene of the rabbit reveals a new allele.
Tissue Antigens 57: 332–338
Hughes AL, Nei M (1988) Pattern of nucleotide substitution at major histocompatibility complex class I loci reveals overdominant selection. Nature
335:167–170
Hughes AL, Nei M (1989) Nucleotide substitution at major histocompatibility complex class II loci: evidence for overdominant selection. Proc Natl
Acad Sci U S A 86:958–962
Klein J, Satta Y, O'hUigin (1993) The molecular descent of the major histocompatibility complex. Annu Rev Immunol 11:269–295
Mamuris Z, Sfougaris A I, Stamatis C (2001) Genetic structure of Greek brown hare (Lepus europaeus) populations as revealed by mtDNA–PCR
analysis: Implications for conserving genetic diversity. Biol Conserv 101:187–196
Marche PN, Reviere MC, Laverriere A, English SW, LeGuern C, Kindt TJ (1989) Definition of rabbit class I and class II MHC gene haplotypes using
molecular typing procedures. Immunogenetics 29: 273–6
Orita M, Iwahana H, Kanazawa H, Hayashi K, Sekiya T (1989) Detection of polymorphisms 20 of human DNA by gel electrophoresis as single-strand
conformation polymorphisms. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 86: 2766–70
Seddon JM, Ellegren H (2002) MHC class II genes in European wolves: a comparison with dogs. Immunogenetics 54:490–500.
Suchentrunk F, Mamuris Z, Sfougaris A I, Stamatis C (2003) Biochemical genetic variability in brown hares (Lepus europaeus) from Greece. Biochem
Genet 41: 127–140.
Wagner JL, Works JD, Storb R (1998) DLA-DRB1 and DLADQB1 histocompatibility typing by PCR-SSCP and sequencing. Tissue Antigens
52:397–401
407
Diet composition and feeding strategy of badger (Meles meles)
in Middle Urals
Markov N. I., Zagainova O. S., Zinovjev E. V.
Institute of Plant and Animal Ecology, Urals Branch of RAS, 620144 8 Marta Str., 202, Ekaterinburg, Russia
Corresponding author: N. I. Markov. Tel.: +7-3-43-26-08-255, fax: +7-3-43-26-05-50, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: omnivory, scat analysis, factor analysis
Analysis of the feeding strategy is an important part of examination of resource-consumer relationships. A number of models
has been developed for describing of how animals choose the food, but most of them concern herbivores or other specialist
groups (Perry and Pianka 1997). This is despite the most organisms are
Table 1. Factor structure of the variation in sam- known to be polyphagous, thus able to consume quantitavely different
ples composition (principal axis method, Varimax types of food (Beagon et al 1989). It this study we address discuss the
normalized rotated). Factor load treated as signifi- feeding strategy of an omnivourous species – Eurasian badger (Meles
meles spp.).
cant are in bold characters.
The diet of Eurasian badger has been studied by a number of researchers.
Particularly, they discuss whether Eurasian badger is a true generalist or
an opportunist (Rodrigues, Delibes 1992, Roper 1994). The idea of our
work is to estimate the patterns of feeding whithin the season when all
prey items are generally available for the species and the diet composition is not affected by seasonal shifts in the presence of food in the environment.
Study area
The study area (about 8 km2) is situated on the border between southern
taiga and forest steppe zone in Middle Urals region at appr. 56° 20’ n. l.
and 61° 25’ e. l. The average altitude of study area is 200 m a. s. l. About
25-30% of it is covered with forests, while another 20% are lakes with
adjacent marshes. Open habitats are both agriculture fields and meadows.
Initially there were 3 main setts and about 3 temporal dens of badger
within the study area, however, one of the main setts was abandoned and
the other has been destroyed by the poachers after beginning of the study.
Methods
*% from min. number of individuals (insects) in a sample
**% from min. number of individuals (mammals) in a sample
*** presence-absence
408
The diet of badger has been described by analysis of scats content. The
scats (n=73) were collected in 1999-2000 and in 2003 in the last decade
of June and first decade of July. The paths and latrines around the known
setts have been checked regularly and the total scat or a random part of it
was collected for further analysis. The small part of sample was stored at
20° C and further examined under microscope for presence of earthworms’ chaetae following recommendations in Kruuk and Parish (1981)
but without staining probe with picric acid. The rest of the sample was
dryed, soaked in water and then washed through the column of sieves (10
– 0.5 mm). Invertebrates were indentified using the keys by Bei-Bienko
(1965) and Mamajev (1972). Species identification of small mammal
remains has been based on molar morphology according to Gromov et al.
(1963) and Gromov, Poljakov (1977). Amphibians and reptiles were
indentified by comparing prey remains (mainly bones) with standard
skeletons. Birds were identified by remains of feathers and eggshell. For
insects, mammals and amphibians minimum number of indiviuals in sample has been determined. Data on habitat preferences of insects and mammals were obtained from the sources used for their species’ indentification.
The intensity of consumption of the certain food type was estimated as the frequency of its occurence in the sample of scats for
the given year and then averaged for the whole period of study. We avoided using the volumetric analysis since it required determination of digestion coefficients specific for each prey item in the given study area (Rosalino et al. 2003).
Factor analysis (principal axis) was used to study the correlations between the intensity of consumption of different food types.
Results
In all years of observation insects, mammals and amphibians were the most frequently consumed food types. The lowest frequency of occurence has been observed for birds and molluscs. Plant material and reptiles took an intermediate position. We
failed to find the chaetae of earthworms in the scats. The results of PCA analysis (Table 1) indicated that the relationships
between variables explain only about 38 % of the total variability of the sacts’ content. Mammals and big beetles (Geotrupes,
Carabus, etc.) were consumed independently from other food items. The consumption of vertebrates other than mammals has
been correlated with the number of food items in the sample. Frequency of occurence of wild berries and oats also strongly correlated with the number of food items in the sample.
Discussion
The composition of badger diet in northern forest-steppe zone only partly support the hypothesis suggested by Goszczynski et
al. (2000) concerning the decrease of insects (or other invertebrates) and increase of vertebrates in the diet of badger at high
latitudes. Our results indicated that invertebrates and vertebrates were almost equlally important prey types for badger in
forest-steppe zone of Urals. The absence of earthworms in analyzed samples supposedly resulted from low availbility of this
food type due to summer precipitation deficit. The prevalence of the open habitat, mainly meadows, within the study area could
also be the factor of low frequency of earthworms’ consumption by badgers (Goszczynski et al. 2000).
Several European researchers (e. g. Shepherdson et. al. 1990, Hoffmann, 1999) reported decrease in consumption of earthworm
in mid-summer season, while the highest frequecy of their occurence in badger scats has been observed in autumn and winter
months. However, in the most part of Russia badgers hybernate aprroximately from late October to late April (Heptner and
Naumov 1967). Possibly, earthworms could be an important prey type immediatly after leaving the setts in spring (as shown
by Roper and Lüps 1994) or before winter hybernation in autumn (Gorshkov 1974). Our data for the mid-summer period mean
the low importance of the earthworms as the food item, rather than their total exclusion from badgers’ diet in the given study
area and in the given season. On the other hand, badgers consumed big amounts of insects larvae, which are highly availble
and nitrogen rich and thus can substitute earthworms in the species diet. Generally, our results fit good to those obtained by
Ciampalini and Lovari (1985) and Pigozzi (1991).
Basing of the results of factor analysis we argue that two possible hunting strategies could be described for badger in our study
area.
First – consumption of numerous prey items. This strategy determines presence and number of the remains of amphibians, reptiles, plants, birds and molluscs. The second - consumption of mainly such food as common voles or big beetles (mainly genus
Geotrupes). The bulk of small mammals eaten by badger were the voles of genus Microtus - Microtus arvalis s. l. and Microtus
greagalis. These species are known as living in colonies, mainly in the open habitat (Gromov, Polyakov 1977). The high percentage of remains of juvenile animals in scats suggests that badgers hunt them by digging the colonies, rather than chasing
adults out of dens. Dung-bettles of genus Geotrupes are abundant close to animals’ fresh excrements (Bei-Bienko, 1965).
Preliminary analysis indicated that proportion of dung-beetles in the diet of badger is several times higher than in natural
biotopes (Markov, Zagainova, Zinovjev, unpublished data). We suppose that badgers eat them in the proximity of the latrines.
Thus, both voles and dung-bettles form clumps within specific biotopes. That is why we suppose that the main reson for special use of these groups could be the predictability of their spatial distribution.
Conclusion
The diet composition of badger in Middle Urals is generally similar to that in other parts of distribution area. The main difference is low importance of earthworms which supposedly resulted from mid-summer precipitation deficit and high proportion
of open habitat within the study area. Multifactor analysis of scats’ content does not allow to treat badger as true generalist or
specialist. The predictability of spatial distribution of the resources could be one of the main factors affecting badgers feeding
strategy.
References:
Beagon M, Harper J, Townsend C (1989) Ecology. Individuals, Populations and Communities. Mir, Moscow
Bei-Bienko G (editor) (1965) Opredelitel’ nasekomikh Evropeiskoi chasti SSSR (Key for insects of the European part of the USSR). Vol. II. Nauka,
Moscow
Gorshkov P (1974) Ekologia barsuka v Tatarskoi respublike (The ecology of badger in Republic of Tataria). Diss. kand. Biol. Nauk. Saratov.
Goszczynski J, Jedrzejewska B, Jedrzejewski W (2000) Diet composition of badgers (Meles meles) in a pristine forest and rural habitats of Poland compared to other European populations. J Zool Lond 250: 495-505
Gromov I, Gureev A, Novikov G, Sokolov I, Strelkov P, Chapsky K (1963) Mlekopitayushie fauni SSSR (Mammals of the USSR). Part.1. Izd-vo AN
SSSR, Moskva - Leningrad
Gromov I, Pojakov I (1977) Fauna SSSR. Mlekopitayushie. Polyovki (Fauna of the USSR. Mammals. Voles). Vol. 3. Part. 8 Nauka, Leningrad
409
Heptner V, Naumov N (eds) (1967) Mlekopitayushie SSSR (Mammals of the USSR). Vol.2. Part1. Vishaya shkola, Moscow
Hoffmann T (1999) Untersuchungen zur Ökologie des Europäischen Dachses (Meles meles L., 1758) im Hakelwald (nordöstliches Harzvorland).
Dissertation zur Erlangung des akademisches Grades Dr. rer. nat. Halle (Saale).
Kruuk H, Parish T (1981) Feeding specialization of the European badger Meles meles in Scotland. Journal of Animal Ecology 50: 773-788
Mamajev B (1972) Opredelitel nasekomikh po lichinkam (Key for insects’ larvae). Prosveschenije, Moskva.
Perry G, Pianka E (1997) Animal foraging: past present and future. Trends in Ecology and evolution, 12: 362-364
Pigozzi G (1991) The diet of the European badger in a Mediterranean coastal area. Acta Theriologica 36: 293-306
Rodriguez S, Delibes M (1992) Food habits of badger in an arid habitat. J Zool Lond 227: 347-350
Roper T (1994) The European badger, Meles meles: food specialist or generalist? J Zool Lond 234: 437-457
Roper T, Lüps P (1995) Diet of badgers (Meles meles) in central Switzerland: an analysis of stomach contents. Z Säugetierkunde 60: 9-19
Rosalino L, Loureiro F, Macdonald D, Santos-Reis M (2003) Food digestibility of an Eurasian badger Meles meles with special reference to the
Mediterranean region. Acta Theriologica 48: 283-288
Shepherdson D, Roper T, Lüps P (1990) Diet, food availability and foraging behavior of badgers (Meles meles L.) in southern England. Zeitschrift für
Säugetierkunde 55: 81-93.
410
Tick-borne borrelioses in game animals
Martakova O.A. 1, Domsky I, I. A. 1, Sazonkin V.N. 2
1
Prof. B.M. Zhitkov Russian Research Institute of Game Management and Fur Farming, 79, Engels Street, Kirov, 610000, Russia
2
Russian State Center on Quality and Standardization of Medicines for Animals and Feeds
Corresponding author: O.A. Martakova. Tel.: +7-8-33-26-25-924, fax: +7-8-33-26-27-226, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: natural focus, serodiagnostics, Alpine hare, moose
Abstract
At present a tick-borne borreliosis occupies one of the leading places as to the level of its spreading among natural-focal
zoonoses. Studying of the foci of that disease is of great interest. Examination of 122 blood sera from different species of game
animals and birds was carried out with an indirect immunofluorescence test. A positive reaction was observed in hare in a
spring-summer period (30.7 %) and in an autumn-winter period (12.5 %) and also in moose (7.1%). Thus, it was revealed that
those species of animals directly maintain natural focus of that disease. The percentage of ticks infected with borrelia made up
14.2 %. Hare, a widespread game species, may be recommended, as a suitable test-object, for further studying of an epizootic
situation in natural foci of borreliosis.
Introduction
Tick-borne borrelioses (TBB) belong to the group of transmissible spirochete infectious diseases with natural focality the
causative agents of which are carried by ticks.
Causative agents of that disease are those of the genus Borrelia, family Spirochaetea that are pathogenic for man and animals.
A natural-focal character of that disease is due to regular circulation of causative agents between ticks, vertebrates and man.
Ticks are not only carriers of borrelia, but have the function of a natural reservoir.
At present tick-borne borrelioses in Russia are registered in over 50 regions located within the area from the Baltic Sea to the
Pacific Ocean. As to the level of spreading tick-borne borreliosis leaves behind tick-borne encephalitis and takes one of the first
places in the country among natural-focal zoonoses (Korenberg, 2002). Cases of infecting man and domestic animals (dogs)
with tick-borne borreliosis are registered annually. There are no data on infecting other wild animals, except Muridae (Obert et
al, 2001; Gorelova et al., 2002).
The aim of our examinations is to study the role of certain species of game animals and birds in maintaining a natural focus of
tick-borne borrelioses.
In Kirov Region within 2003-2005 the blood of wild game animals harvested during hunting was taken to study the percentage of infected animals. Then blood serum was prepared and examined with indirect immunofluorescence test with the use of
Table 1. Species and numbers of
game animals examined for tickborne borrelioses
411
corpuscular antigen Borrelia afzelii (strain Ip-21) and luminescent labeled immune serum against globulins of different species
of animals (rabbit, dog, bull and hen). The test was carried out according to generally used methods. It was considered positive
at the titer of 1:40 and higher (Kozlov et al., 1988; Stronin et al., 1998). That method of serodiagnostics was widely used for
studying tick-borne borreliosis (Kryuchechnikov, Korenberg, 1998).
The collection of biomaterial from animals was carried out during a hunting season. Certain species were harvested during a
spring-summer period (taking into account a high seasonal activity of ticks-carriers in a natural focus) according to special permission to shoot animals for scientific purposes. A specific structure and the number of animals studied are given in Table 1.
Besides, the work on isolation of causative agents of borreliosis from internal organs of above-mentioned animals and from
ticks collected in the habitats of those animals was conducted. Bacteriological inoculations of BSK-II medium were carried out
and cultivated at a temperature of 33º C during 2 months with an every-day visual control. For those goals the tissues of internal organs of 34 animals (14 hares, 2 polecats, 13 hazel grouse, 4 capercailzie, 2 black grouse, 1 jay) and 77 mature hungry
ticks of the genus Ixodes were used.
Results
Due to examinations of blood serum of the above-mentioned species of animals it was found out that a positive reaction (titer
1:40 and higher) was observed in 2 species of animals – Alpine hare (Lepus timidus) and moose (Alces alces). In a spring-summer period sera of hare with a positive reaction made up 30.7 %; in autumn-winter one – 12.5 %; sera of moose – 7.1 %. Blood
serum of all other species showed a negative reaction. A causative agent was not isolated from internal organs of animals with
bacteriological examinations. In adult ticks causative agents of borreliosis were found in 14.2 % of examinations. The isolates
were typed.
Conclusion
In the course of examinations it was proved that large game animals took part in the circulation of a causative agent of tickborne borreliosis in natural foci of that disease. Animals the serum of which gave a positive reaction (hare, moose) were among
reservoir hosts of borreliosis’ causative agents and were feeders of ticks, and thus, carriers of that infection. Earlier according
to the data of available literature Muridae were considered reservoir hosts (Obert et al., 2001; Gorelova et al., 2002).
The fact that much greater number of blood sera of hare had a positive reaction in a spring-summer period as compared with
an autumn-winter one was explained by a pronounced seasonal character of that disease due to high activity of ticks within that
period.
As to the percentage of infected ticks with borrelia (14.2 %) Kirov Region may be considered a zone of a medium risk of infecting (Obert et al., 2001).
Hare may be recommended as a suitable test-object for in-depth studying of an epizootic situation in natural foci of borreliosis, as it is a widespread game species densely inhabiting vast territories of Russia.
References
1. Gorelova, N.B., Korenberg, E.I, Kovalevsky, Yu.V. (2002) Main results of studying natural focality of ticks-borne borreliosis in Russia //
Tick-borne borrelioses: Proceedings of scientific and practical conference “Tick-borne borrelioses” / edited by E.I. Korenberg and N.A. Zabrodin.
Izhevsk, 2002. – P. 105-108 (Rus.).
2. Korenberg, E.I. (2002) Tick-borne borrelioses: main results of studying and prophylaxis in Russia. Izhevsk, 2002. – P. 165-172 (Rus.).
3. Kozlov S.S., Uslov, A.N., Krumgolts, V.F. (1998) Laima disease / tick-borne borrelioses / edited by Yu.V. Lobzin and A.F. Nikitin. St.-Petersburg,
1998. – 18 pp. (Rus.).
4. Kryuchechnikov, V.N., Korenberg, E.I. (1998) Serological diagnostics of tick-borne borrelioses: state of problem // Natural-focal infections
in Russia: Proceedings of scientific and practical conference. – Omsk, 1998. – P. 73-74.
5. Obert, A.S., Drozdov, V.N., Rudakov, S.A. (2001) Tick-borne borrelioses. – Novosibirsk: Nauka, 2001. – 112 pp.
6. Storonin, O.V., Podoplyekina, L.Ye., Osipova, Ye.G. et al. (1998) Experience of tick-borne borreliosis diagnostics with indirect immunofluorescence
test // Natural-focus infections: Proceedings of All-Russian Scientific and Practical Conference. – Omsk, 1998. – P. 87-88.
412
A comparative analysis of the mitochondrial DNA control
region in wild mouflon (Ovis aries musimon) from the islands
of Sardinia and Corsica
Mereu Paolo 1, Palici di Suni Marcella 1, Pirastru Monica 1, Franceschi Paul 2,
Masala Bruno 1, Manca Laura 1
1
Dipartimento di Scienze Fisiologiche, Biochimiche e Cellulari, Università di Sassari, Italia
2
CEVAREN, Université de Corse, France
Corresponding author: Bruno Masala. Tel.: +39-7-92-28-650, fax: +39-7-92-28-659, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: D-loop sequence; Caprinae; phylogenetic relationships
The wild sheep is distributed nowadays in restricted areas in Central Asia (Ovis ammon), Asia and Middle East (Ovis orientalis), and on the islands of Cyprus, Sardinia and Corsica (European mouflon) where it represents an undisputed symbol. Many
authors agree to consider mouflon, together with the Eurasian wild sheep Urial (O. vignei) and Argali (O. ammon), as one of
the presumed wild progenitors of domestic sheep (O. aries) (Hiendleder et al., 2002). Recently, the International Committee of
Zoological Nomenclature (2003) has decided that the wild European mouflon shall keep the domestic name Ovis aries. In fact,
mouflon hybridizes in captivity and natural habits where ranges overlap with other wild and domestic sheep, giving rise to fertile offspring. For this reason, several biochemical and genetic studies were conducted to investigate the nature of
phylogenetic relationships among these species. Based on morphological data and chromosome number, several wild sheep
classifications were proposed in the past years (Hiendleder et al., 2002). Other classifications are based on biochemical and
genetic marker proteins (Naitana et al., 1990; Masala et al., 1991; Rando et al., 1996).
However, thanks to peculiar features such as the unilinear maternal transmission, the absence of recombination and the high
mutational rate, the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is considered a more sensitive tool than nuclear genes in the study of
phylogenetic relationships.
In order to investigate wild sheep taxonomy, the purpose of this research was to characterize the structure of the mtDNA
control region (D-loop) in mouflon breeds living in Sardinia and Corsica and to compare these to the homologue sequence of
mouflon described by Hiendleder et al. (1998).
Total DNA was extracted from whole blood samples (Sambrook et al., 1989). The entire mitochondrial control region (D-loop)
was amplified by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using two primers with a complementary sequence to the Pro and Phe
tRNA genes that flank the region (Wood and Phua, 1996). Direct sequencing was carried out by means of the cycle sequencing procedure with the dideoxy terminator method (Sanger et al., 1997) and automated fluorescent DNA sequencing. Five
primers were used to bridge the region between the flanking tRNA genes (Wood and Phua, 1996). The multiple alignment of
the sequences was performed using the CLUSTAL X program (Jeanmougin et al., 1998). Sequence analyses were obtained
using the MEGA program v. 3.0 (Kumar et al., 2004).
A sequence of 1180 bp, encompassing the entire D-loop region of two Corsican and five Sardinian mouflons was determined.
Four tandem repeats of a 75 bp segment were found in the Pro half of the region. All functional motif sequences already
observed in sheep and mouflon (Hiendleder et al., 1998; Zardoya et al., 1996) were located. With respect to the O. musimon
described by Hiendleder et al., (1998), Corsican and Sardinian mouflons showed a shortened D-loop sequence (1180, 1179
respectively vs. 1254 nucleotides). Apart from minor insertions/deletions, this length variation is mainly due to a different copy
number of a 75 bp tandemly repeated motif. Since two out of five Sardinian mouflons shared the identical D-loop haplotype,
the eight individuals showed seven different haplotypes as defined by polymorphisms at 27 variable sites (2.3%) without any
gap among the 1179 positions..
Fig. 1: Pairwise distances between taxa. Ref. = O.
musimon (Hiendleder et al., 1998).
413
The pairwise nucleotide sequence divergence between mouflon haplotypes
indicated that the divergence between Corsican and Sardinian mouflons
averages 0.93 % (Fig. 1).
Likewise, Corsican and Sardinian mouflon compare well with the Europeantype haplotype at the variable sites distinguishing the two major domestic
sheep mt-DNA lineages (Wood and Phua, 1996).
Our result indicates that none of the subjects showed the same D-loop haplotype of the specific reference sequence (Hiendleder et al., 1998). The tandem repeats contained a higher proportion of variable sites than the rest of
the D-loop region: 22 of 27 variable sites were in the tandem repeat segment,
outside of the position that is homologous to the functional sites, although it
occupies only a quarter of the total D-loop region. The observed lack of variability within the D-loop of Corsican and Sardinian mouflon might be
explained by the recent history of these wild sheep: almost exterminated
during the 1940-1950 period, attempts at reintroduction and protection
allowed it to recently reach a number of more than 2500 individuals (“bottle neck”). The two haplotypes of the Corsican mouflon are very similar to
those of Sardinian samples and the observed difference is not related to the
geographical origin, suggesting a single lineage in Sardinian-Corsican mouflon mtDNA evolution.
Previous observations (Wood and Phua, 1996; Hiendleder et al., 1998) identified two major mtDNA types among domestic sheep, termed “European
and Asian types”. The D-loop sequences of both Sardinian and Corsican
mouflon appear to be related to the European haplotype.
The star-like expansion of domestic sheep D-loop region (Fig. 2) indicates
that only a very limited amount of genetic variation was introduced from the
ancestral matrilines in each of the domestication events. These do not allow
further differentiation of the domestic sheep based on mtDNA data using the
current approach and thus lead to the unresolved branching pattern and short
branches within the two clusters of domestic sheep. The origin of domestic
Fig. 2: Phylogenetic relationship among Ovis sheep and the phylogeny of mouflon may be realized better by analyzing
genus. Sequences marked with an asterisk were many samples per species from throughout the geographic range. Moreover,
obtained by us while remaining sequences were the extension of the RFLP analysis of the mtDNA coding region might allow
obtained from Gene Bank (Hiendleder et al., a better understanding of the evolutionary significance of D-loop variable
2002).
sites. This approach will contribute to the basic knowledge of insular biodiversity, which is clearly at the basis of any effective program on conservation and management of animal resources. Moreover, a proper evaluation of the degree of differentiation among populations is
basic for any decision concerning their taxonomic status.
Acknowledgement: This work was funded by U.E. (P.I.C. INTERREG III A)
References
Hiendleder S, Mainz K, Plante Y, Lewalski H (1998) The complete mitochondrial DNA sequence of the domestic sheep (Ovis aries) and comparison
with the other major ovine haplotype. J Hered 89:113-120
Hiendleder S, Kaupe B, Wassmuth R, Janke A (2002) Molecular analysis of wild and domestic sheep questions current nomenclature and provides evidence for domestication from two different subspecies. Proc Royal Soc London 269:893-904
Jeanmougin F, Thompson JD, Gouy M, Higgins DG, Gibson TJ (1998) Multiple alignment with Clustal X. Trends Biochem Sci 23:403-405
Kumar S, Tamura K, Nei M (2004) MEGA3: Integrated software for Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis and sequence alignment. Brief
Bioinformat 5:2 (In press)
Masala B, Manca L, Cocco E, Ledda S, Naitana S (1991) Kinetics of the ontogenic and reversibile hemoglobin switching in mouflon (Ovis musimon)
and in sheep x mouflon hybrids. Comp Biochem Physiol 100A:675-680
Naitana S, Ledda S, Cocco E, Manca L, Masala B (1990) Hemoglobin phenotype of the European mouflon sheep living on the Island of Sardinian.
Anim Gen 21:67-75
Opinion 2027 (Case 3010) (2003) Usage of 17 specific names based on wild species which are pre-dated by or contemporary with those based on
domestic animals: conserved. Bull. Zool. Nomenclature 60: 81-84
Rando A, Di Gregorio P, Capuano M, Senese C, Manca L, Naitana S, Masala B (1996) A comparison between the b-globin gene clusters of sheep (Ovis
aries) and Sardinian mouflon (Ovis gmelini musimon). Genet Select Evol 28:217-222
Sambrook J, Fritsch EF, Maniatis T (1989) Molecular Cloning: A Laboratory Manual. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, USA
Sanger F, Nicklen S, Coulson AR (1977) DNA sequencing with chain-terminating inhibitors. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 74:5463-5467
Wood NJ, Phua SH (1996) Variation in the control region sequence of the sheep mitochondrial genome. Anim Genet 27: 25-33
Zardoya R, Villalta M, Lopez-Perez MJ, Garrido-Pertierra A, Montoja AJ, Bautista M (1995) Nucleotide sequence of the sheep mitochondrial DNA Dloop and its flanking tRNA genes. Curr Genet 28:94-96
414
Browsing pressure of deer population upon young fir
(Abies alba Mill.) forest plantations in the Bieszczady
Mountains, Poland
Merta Dorota
Corresponding author: Dorota Merta. Tel.: +48-1-26-62-66-87, fax: +48-1-26-62-66-82
e -mail: [email protected]
Key words: chemical and mechanical protection, fir, red deer, roe deer, Poland, seasons
In recent decades, the steep increases in numbers of red deer (Cervus elaphus) and roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) noted in
Poland (Jamrozy, 1994; Bobek et al., 2001; Merta et al., 2003) have resulted in intensified damage by these species in forest
stands in lower age classes. The issue of damage is particularly serious in mountain forests (Jamrozy, 1987; Szukiel, 1982,
1992, 2001; Miścicki and Z̆urek, 1995) where decline in the abundance of fir (Abies alba Mill.) is now observed, and natural
regeneration of this species is hampered by deer feeding (Szukiel, 1982, G˛adek, 1995; Dobrowolska, 1998, 1999; Merta, 2001).
The actions undertaken by the Forest Service to protect forest plantations are mainly chemical and mechanical protection and
expensive fencing. The methods of forest protection applied to date face major limitations because of costs incurred, while –
on the other hand – a dramatic reduction in deer populations is a measure that is not supported by the general public (Bobek
and Merta, 1992; Paschalis, 1996).
The research was carried out between 1998 and 2000 in the Bieszczady Mountains, south-eastern Poland in 5 Forest District
(Baligrod, Cisna, Komancza, Lesko, Wetlina) covering 73.5 thousand hectares of forest. The dominant type of habitat is the
mountain forest, classified as one of the Fagetum Carpaticum associations. The main forest tree species are beech (Fagus sylvatica) - 44.9% of the area and fir (16.7%) followed by spruce (Picea abies) - 15.9%, alder (Alnus sp.) - 9.8% and pine (Pinus
silvestris) - 6.7%, with other tree species covering 6.0% of forest area (Zarzycki and Glowaciński, 1986). The climate is of a
mountain type. The fauna of the Bieszczady Mountains includes a unique abundance of large mammals. Ungulates are represented mainly by red deer, roe deer and wild boar. The population density of the red deer in the study area is variable and ranges
from 10.1 to 36.9 individuals/1000 hectare of forest (Bobek et al., 1997; Merta et al., 2003). There are also large carnivores
roaming in Bieszczady: brown bears (Ursus arctos), wolves (Canis lupus) and lynx (Lynx lynx) (Gula and Fr˛ackowiak, 1996;
Bobek et al., 1997; Nowicki, 2001).
The study area includes 2-10-year-old fir (Abies alba Mill.) plantations. In autumn 1998, 135 plantations were selected for
analysis by the systematic grid method. On each experimental plot two perpendicular 60-cm wide and as long as possible strip
transects, were set. The number of seedlings on individual plantations depended on the area and shape of the forest
re-growth as well as on its species composition. The average number was 91.6/plantation and ranged from 31 to 154 seedlings.
Within a transect, all fir seedlings were described and each of them provided with a plastic strip with an individual number. In
total, 12 364 fir seedlings were marked and described. The damage to fir seedlings by deer was measured during two consecutive autumns (1998, 1999) and springs (1999, 2000).
Two variables describing level of fir sampling damage were calculated for each fir plantation and research season:
A – percent of fir saplings with damaged leading shoot, and B – percent of twigs damaged per fir sapling. Using multivariate
analysis of variance (MANOVA) influence of various protection measures (chemical, mechanical, mixed = chemical+mechanical) upon level of sapling damage in 4 seasons was estimated. The obtained data were compared to data collected in control
(unprotected) plantations.
Results of MANOVA analysis of 2 variables showed significant differences in fir sapling damage between unprotected fir plantations and those protected in a different way (F=8,546,
p=0,000068 (variable A), F=5,884 p=0,00124 (variable B),
and between 4 research seasons: F=12,258, p<0.000001
(variable A) and F=5,641, p=0.000944 (variable B). Figure 1
shows means of examined variables in four seasons. For both
variables, the degree of fir sapling damage was always significantly lower in autumns (A=10,9% and 13,7%; B= 20,7%
Fig. 1. Mean values of “% of fir saplings with damaged
leading shoot” (variable A) and “% of browsed twigs
per fir sapling” (variable B) calculated by multivariate
analysis of variance for the factor "season" .
415
A
B
Fig. 2. Influence of various protection measures upon “% of fir sampling with damaged leading shoot” (variable A) and upon
“% of browsed twigs per individual fir sampling” (variable B). Calculated for the factors “season” and “protection measure”
by multivariate analysis of variance.
and 18,3%) than in spring (A=22,0% and 24,6%; B=26,5% and 23,3%). No significant difference in examined variables was
noticed between autumns in 1998, 1999 and springs in 1999, 2000.
Percentage of fir saplings with damaged leading shoot (A) on unprotected forest plantations varied from 14,8 % to 34.6 %
(Fig. 2A). Plantations with a mixed protection system had, except for one season, a higher degree of fir leading shoot damage
than control (unprotected) forest plantations. However, these differences were not statistically significant. Chemical or mechanical protection led to a significant decrease in shoot damage in all 4 seasons. Yet, the lowest percentage of saplings with
leading shoot damage in 3 seasons, was recorded for the case of plantations protected mechanically (Fig. 2A).
The highest percentage of browsed twigs per fir sapling was recorded on plantations treated with a mixed protection and on
those, which were not protected (Fig. 2B). Chemical and mechanical protection significantly reduced the value of parameter B.
The mechanical protection worked best, and compared to unprotected plantations, it significantly reduced the degree of sapling
damage. The damage to saplings protected chemically was statistically different in 3 seasons from those unprotected (Fig. 2B).
Generally, methods of chemical and mechanical protection, which are currently used in forest management, protect plantations
well against browsing by deer. The results of this research imply, that the mechanical protection of fir leading shoots deters animals much better, than treating shoots with repellent. It is difficult to explain why treating fir plantations with mixed protection
is so ineffective. The degree of damage in this case was even higher, than for unprotected young fir plantations. It may be possible, that using both methods of protection at the same time makes animals potentially try to l feed more often, and therefore
it exposes young forest plantations to such damage.
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ungulates in the Polish Eastern Carpathians. J. Wildl. Res. 2(3): 195–201.
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Beskidzie Niskim. Lowiec Polski 1: 17-21.
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Praca doktorska. Uniwersytet Jagielloǹski. 98 pp.
Merta, D., B. Bobek, W. Fr˛ackowiak and P. Sulkowski. (2003). Population size, demography and harvest strategy of red dreer (Cervus elaphs, L.) in
Polish Eastern Carpathians. Pirineos. Journal of Mountain Ecology: 47-56.
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Szukiel, E. (2001). Ochrona drzewostanów przed zwierzyn˛a. Centrum Inf. Lasów Państwowych.159 pp.
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416
Investigations on the ethological adaptations of the raccoon
(Procyon lotor, L. 1758) in the urban habitat using
the example of the city of Kassel, North Hessen (Germany),
and the resulting conclusions for conflict management
Frank-Uwe Michler, Ulf Hohmann
Society for wildlife ecology and nature conservation, Germany
Corresponding author: Frank-Uwe Michler. Tel.: +49-3-46-01-24-726, fax: +49-3-46-01-31-272,
Key words: raccoon, Procyon lotor, urbanisation, home range, daytime resting site, population density, telemetry
One cause of the general urbanisation of wild animals has in the first instance to do with the large excess of food which our
affluent society today produces and makes available to wild animals (Prange et al. 2003).
Due to its high ecological plasticity, its ability to climb and its tactile skills, the raccoon has had particular success in claiming
human settlement areas for itself. This is notably applicable in Central Europe for the north Hessian city Kassel, in which raccoon densities of ca. 100 animals per 100 ha were established in places (Gunesch 2003). A marked increase in conflicts with
the population of Kassel led to a research project in 2001/02 on the urbanization of the raccoon being conducted (Michler 2004).
To this end 106 different raccoons over an area of 300 ha were caught in the city area of Kassel. From these animals 17 adult
raccoons (9 females, 8 males) were immobilised with the aid of a ketamine-xylazine anaesthetic agent and fitted with a 90 g
VHF radio collars (corresponding to ca. 1.5 % of average body weight). The telemetric data collection took place between July
2001 and March 2002 over an area of ca. 2200 ha both in the western parts of Kassel city and the bordering Habichtswald. After
the data evaluation of 2785 localisations (1674 night and 1111 day localisations), statements could be made concerning the
home range, the day resting site and the social system under the particular circumstances of an urban habitat (Michler 2003).
The raccoons roamed a remarkably small home range with an average of 129 ha (Sx̄ = 43), whereby the females’ home range
was significantly smaller with an average 36 ha (Sx̄ = 5; Min = 25 ha, Max = 61 ha) than the males’ home range average of
210 ha (Sx̄ = 70; Min = 20 ha, Max = 613 ha). Almost all the raccoons demonstrated clear seasonal changes in the size of the
home range (Michler et al. 2004).
Compared with the home ranges in natural woodland habitats (Hohmann et al. 2000) the measured action ranges in Kassel are
on average ten times smaller.
On the other hand the raccoons in Kassel reached a population density that was around ten times higher than in the woodland
(Hohmann 1998). From 182 raccoon trappings using a catch-recatch rate a population density of 95 animals per 100 ha
(Petersen-/Lincoln Index) was determined (Gunesch 2003). However, this density value cannot be extrapolated to the entire city
area of Kassel as there is a clear density gradient from the city outskirts into the city centre – i.e. the population density constantly decreases with increasing proximity to the city centre. An important cause is probably the increase in sealed surfaces as
well as the decrease in green areas.
In investigations of the day resting sites, 200 different resting sites could be determined in over 30 categories. The racoons
selected the following sites accordingly: buildings 43 %; trees 39 %; and dens above and below the ground 17 %. The racoons
used 52 % of all resting sites only once. However, a relatively small number of sites (14 %) were chosen more than ten times
(max. 94 times; Michler et al. 2004).
In summary it can be said that the most important ethological adaptations of the raccoons in Kassel could primarily be seen in
the use of considerably small action ranges, in a clearly reduced fear of humans, an intensive use of human structures as sleeping and nesting sites, the congregation (aggregation) of many animals over a small area (high population density) with corresponding increased intraspecific tolerance (complex social system) and the exploitation of new food sources (anthropogenic
food supply; Michler 2003).
All these factors together often cause in city habitats a visible conflict with the resident population which considers the raccoons to be a nuisance (Hadidian et al. 1991). Thereby the potential for conflict is multi-facetted: denuded cherry trees, ripped
open binbags and devastated garden ponds are considered mere trifles. More problematic is the entering of buildings where the
attics or chimneys are then used as sleeping or nesting sites. The resulting damage (especially from nesting sites) can quickly
reach the equivalent cost of a new small car. As a result of the high population density and the corresponding increased contact
between human
raccoon and pet
raccoon there is also a serious epidemiological problem through the increased risk
417
of infections for humans and pets through the transfer of diseases and parasites (Jacobson et al. 1982).
In contrast to its American cousins the raccoons in Central Europe have only a limited spectrum of parasites and hardly play a
role as carriers of diseases (e.g. rabies) (Gey 1998). A few parasites can be considered as parasitic zoonoses, however, in
Germany only one nematode (Baylisascaris procyonis) is a potentially dangerous zoonosis pathogen. This is particularly
pertinent for Kassel with the determined roundworm infections in North Hessen of over 70% (Gey 1998).
Despite the conflict potential mentioned opinions on the raccoons within the city area are very varied. The stances range from
effusive affection for the animals linked with intensive feeding up to total rejection. Demands to eliminate the raccoons from
the settled areas and keep them away permanently are not possible partly due to the favourable conditions presented by urban
habitats and partly due to today's laws. Therefore, the primary aim must be to enable a cohabitation between humans and raccoons with minimal conflict. Multiple solutions are necessary for this in the light of the mentioned problems (1.
damage caused in the garden, 2. entering of buildings and 3. fear of zoonoses). The first option has to be habitat management,
i.e. the resources supply for the raccoons must be made lastingly difficult (food supply, sleeping and nesting sites).
The entering of raccoons into buildings is felt to be the biggest problem. In order to avoid damage mere treating of the symptoms is as a rule highly ineffective (removal of individual animals) due to the habit of nesting sites as well as there being a high
population density. Prophylactic measures which make a building „raccoon-proof“ are on the other hand relatively simple and
extremely effective. In order to keep the food supply at a minimum rubbish, compost, food leftovers and fruit trees (metal
guards) should be made inaccessible. In the sensitive area of zoonoses it has been shown that with clear and objective information on the dangers and risks (particularly on the raccoon roundworm) the existing problems and fears can be effectively
removed.
Through education and directed measures it is also possible with relatively few resources to minimise the existing conflict
potential. The most important criteria for this are intensive public relations work and information strategies.
References:
Gey AB (1998) Synopsis der Parasitenfauna des Waschbären (Procyon lotor) unter Berücksichtigung von Befunden aus Hessen. Diss.
Uni. Gießen, pp. 203
Gunesch E (2003) Populationsökologische Untersuchungen urbaner Waschbärpopulationen am Beispiel der Stadt Kassel. - Diplomarbeit Uni.
Göttingen, pp. 81
Hadidian J, Manski DA, Riley S (1991) Daytime resting site selection in an urban raccoon population. In: ADAMS, L. W. et LEEDY, D. L. (eds.):
Wildlife Conservation in Metropolitan Environments. Natl. Inst. for Urban Wildl. USA, Columbia: 39-45
Hohmann U (1998) Untersuchungen zur Raumnutzung des Waschbären (Procyon lotor L. 1758) im Solling, Südniedersachsen, unter besonderer
Berücksichtigung des Sozialverhaltens. Diss. Uni. Göttingen. pp. 153
Hohmann U, Gerhard R, Kasper M (2000) Home range size of adult raccoons (Procyon lotor) in Germany. Z. Säugetierk. 65: 124-127
Jacobson JE, Kazacos KR, Montague FH (1982) Prevalence of eggs of Baylisascaris procyonis (Nematoda: Ascaroidea) in raccoon scats from an urban
and a rural community. J. Wildl. Dis. 18/4: 461-464
Michler FU (2003) Untersuchungen zur Raumnutzung des Waschbären (Procyon lotor, Linné 1758) im urbanen Lebensraum am Beispiel der Stadt
Kassel (Nordhessen). Diplomarbeit Uni. Halle-Wittenberg, pp. 139
Michler FU (2004) Waschbären im Stadtgebiet. – WILDBIOLOGIE 2/2004, Wildbiologie International 5/12, Infodienst Wildbiologie & Oekologie.
Zürich, Schweiz, pp. 16
Michler FU, Hohmann U, Stubbe M (2004) Aktionsräume, Tagesschlafplätze und Sozialsystem des Waschbären (Procyon lotor, Linné 1758) im urbanen Lebensraum der Großstadt Kassel (Nordhessen). Beitr. Jagd- u. Wildforsch. Bd. 29: 257-273
Prange S, Gehrt SD, Wiggers, E. P. (2003) Demographic factors contributing to high raccoon densities in urban landscapes. - J. Wildl. Mgmt. 67/2:
324-333
418
Current status of Iberian ibex (Capra pyrenaica) in Portugal
Moço, Gisela 1; Guerreiro, Margarida 2; Ferreira, Ana Filipa 2; Rebelo, António 3; Loureiro, Armando 3;
Petrucci-Fonseca, Francisco 2 and Pérez, Jesús Mª 1
Departamento de Biología Animal, Biología Vegetal y Ecología. Universidad de Jaén. Paraje Las Lagunillas, s/n.; E-23071,
Jaén, Spain.
1
2
Centro de Biologia Ambiental, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa
3
Parque Nacional da Peneda-Gerês/Instituto da Conservação da Natureza - Quinta das Parretas, Rodovia
Corresponding author: Gisela Moço. Tel.: +351-9-66-62-68-12 (Portugal)/ +34-6-28-45-61-03 (Spain),
fax: +34-9-53-21-21-41, e-mail: [email protected];
Key words: Iberian Peninsula, reintroduction, population assessment, conservation
Extended abstract
Iberian Ibex (Capra pyrenaica) populations decreased extremely during the last centuries due to excessive hunting and habitat
loss (Pérez et al., 2002), and the species became extinct in Portugal and France during the nineteenth century. Prior to its extinction, Serra do Gerês was the last redoubt of the ibex in Portugal for nearly two centuries. The last living specimen was captured
in 1890 (Tude de Sousa, 1927). Ibex subsisted in Spain until the present, and over the last three decades Pérez et al. (2002) have
documented an increasing trend in both total numbers and distribution range of the species.
After one century of ibex absence in Portugal, Spanish authorities started a reintroduction plan of the species in two protected
areas of Galiza province in 1992 - Invernadeiro Natural Park (INP) and Baixa Limia-Serra do Xurés Natural Park (BLSXNP)
(Fig. 1). BLSXNP is contiguous with the Portuguese Peneda-Gerês National Park (PGNP) and together they constitute the
Gerês-Xurés International Park (GXIP). Ibex started re-colonizing PGNP territory in 1998 (Moço et al., 2002).
In 2001 we started monitoring ibex presence and movements in two border mountain massifs: Gerês-Xurés and Amarela-Santa
Eufémia (Fig. 1). Here we present data on this ibex population dynamics, geographical range and prior guidelines for its successful establishment (Moço et al., in litt.).
Surveying was carried out between September 2001 and December 2003. Field sampling on ibex numbers was made by direct
counting (Staines, 1978; Tellería, 1986), considering a ‘minimum number of individuals’ if the possibility of observing all the
individuals was doubtful (Dunham, 2001). Population growth was calculated using a discrete model of exponential population
growth with a time step of one year (Gotelli, 2001). Population structure was described considering ‘adults’ (≥ 2 years), ‘yearlings’ (1-2 years) and ‘kids’ (< 1 year). ‘Juveniles’ refers to both yearling and kids. Sex-ratio and a reproductive index were calculated as in Pérez (2001). Herds were classified following Fandos et al. (1992). Birth season was defined as the interval
between the first and the last evidence of births. Rut season peak was approximately estimated in view of ibex gestation
period, proportion of mixed (presence of adult males and females) herds and herd average sizes (Fandos, 1991; Fandos et al.,
1992). Causes of death and missing individuals were investigated through inquiries to locals and in BLSXNP services. Location
data were included in a Geographical Information System to determine ibex geographical range using the Minimum Convex
Polygon (MCP) method (Dunham, 2001). Average dispersion distances were calculated using linear distances from the centre
of MCP ranges to dispersion locations (Alados & Escós, 1996).
Figure 1. Protected areas in north-western Iberian
Peninsula (IP) where recent ibex reintroductions were performed, with individuals from Gredos National Reserve
(GNR). Gerês-Xurés International Park (GXIP) is evidenced. Black spots in IP correspond to ibex distribution
(adapted from Pérez et al. 2002).
419
Table 1. Ibex demographic data obtained by the
end of 2003: ibex numbers (Und = undetermined); sex-ratio (SR); reproductive index (RI);
average γ (γaverage = ([γ2001/2002 + γ2002/2003] / 2);
instantaneous rate of increase (r=ln [γaverage]) and
doubling time (tdouble=ln(2)/r); γ = finite rate of
increase (γ=Nt+1/Nt); SD = standard deviation; *
= ‘minimum number of individuals’
Our results indicate that tree ibex nuclei inhabit the study area, two of them almost restricted to the Portuguese side. Table 1
summarises the demographic parameters obtained.
An initial population of 18 individuals increased exponentially, originating a ‘minimum’ of 75 animals in 2003, distributed
throughout 9.77 sq km. Data describe typical dynamics of a recently reintroduced population with high reproductive potential
..
(Dunham, 1997; Gaillard, 1988; Pereladova et al., 1998; Pérez et al.,1994; Toıgo et al., 1997). Distinct trends in numbers and
demographic parameters of nuclei appear to have resulted from different initial population structures, reproductive potential,
geographical isolation and human disturbance. Herd dynamics and reproductive cycle fit those described for the species
(Alados & Escós, 1985; Fandos, 1987; Fandos et al., 1992; Gonçales, 1982; Granados 2000; Vigal & Fandos, 1989). MCP areas
vary among nuclei and geographical ranges are expanding. Dispersion rates varied between 2.96 km per year and 5.63 km per
year. Five missing ibex cases were registered, three of them attributed to poaching.
Main threats for this population are poaching, livestock management, presence of stray dogs and non-regulated tourism. Also,
the occurrence of demographic bottlenecks along the history of the founder population, the low number of individuals reintroduced and the observation of ibex with anomalous horn shapes in the study area can be indicators of inbreeding problems.
As an output of these results, the Portuguese conservation status of Iberian ibex was recently proposed to change from ‘Extinct’
to ‘Critically Endangered’ (Cabral, in prep.). We consider stronger surveillance, removal of feral goats and ibex population reinforcements as priority conservation actions towards the studied population.
References
Alados C, Escós J (1985) La cabra montés de las sierras de Cazorla y Segura. Una introducción al estudio de sus poblaciones y comportamiento.
Naturalia Hispanica 28:1-36
Alados C, Escós J (1996) Ecologia y comportamiento de la cabra montés. Consideraciones para su gestión. Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales.
Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, Madrid
Cabral M (Ed) (in prep.) Livro Vermelho dos Vertebrados de Portugal. Instituto da Conservação da Natureza, Lisboa
Dunham K (1997) Population growth of mountain gazelles Gazella gazella reintroduced to Central Arabia. Biological Conservation 81:205-214
Dunham K (2001) Status of a reintroduced population of mountain gazelles Gazella gazella in central Arabia: management lessons from an arid land
reintroduction. Oryx 35:111-118
Fandos P (1987) Croissance et développement foetal du bouquetin de Cazorla (Espagne). Mammalia 51:579-586
Fandos P (1991) La cabra montés (Capra pyrenaica) en el Parque Natural de las Sierras de Cazorla, Segura y las Villas. Colección Técnica, ICONAC.S.I.C., Madrid
Fandos P, Aranda Y, Orueta J (1992) Tamaño y tipo de grupo en la cabra montés (Capra pyrenaica). Relación con el ciclo reprodutivo. Etología 2:
65-70
Gaillard J (1988). Contribution a la dynamique des populations de grands mammiferes: l’exemple du chevreuil Capreolus capreolus. Ph.D. thesis,
University of Lyon, France
Gonçales G (1982) Eco-ethologie du bouquetin en Sierra de Gredos. Acta Biologica Montana 1:177-215
Gotelli N (2001) A Primer of Ecology. 3rd ed. Sinauer Associates, Inc. Sunderland, Massachussets
Granados J (2000) Estatus y distribución de la cabra montés (Capra pyrenaica) en Anadalucía. Tesis doctoral. Universidad de Jaén, Jaén
Moço G, Rebelo A, Loureiro A, Petrucci-Fonseca F (2002) Data on the recent presence of Iberian wild goat (Capra pyrenaica Shinz, 1838) in Portugal.
Poster presented in the III Worl Conference on Mountain Ungulates, 10th-15th July, Zaragoza (Spain)
Moço G, Guerreiro M, Ferreira A, Rebelo A, Loureiro A, Petrucci-Fonseca F, Pérez J (in litt.) The Iberian Ibex Capra pyrenaica returns to its
Portuguese former massif: current status and perspectives
Pereladova O, Bahloul K, Sempere A, Soldatova N, Schadilov U, Prisiadznuk V (1998) Influence of environmental factors on a population of goitred
gazelles (Gazella subgutturosa subgutturosa Guldenstaedt, 1780) in semi-wild conditions in an arid environment: a preliminary study. Journal of Arid
Environments 39:577-591
Pérez J (Coord) (2001) Distribución, genética y estatus sanitario de las poblaciones andaluzas de cabra montés. Universidad de Jaén, Consejería de
Medio Ambiente, Jaén
Pérez J, Granados J, Soriguer R (1994) Population dynamic of the Spanish Ibex, Capra pyrenaica in Sierra Nevada Natural Park (southern Spain). Acta
Theriologica 39 :289-294
Pérez J, Granados J, Soriguer R, Fandos P, Márquez F, Crampe J-P (2002) Distribution, status and conservation problems of the Spanish Ibex, Capra
pyrenaica (Mammalia: Artiodactyla). Mammal Review 32:26-39
Staines B (1978) The dynamics and performance of a declining population of Red Deer (Cervus elaphus). J. Zool. 184:403-419
Tellería J (1986) Manual para el censo de los vertebrados terrestres. Editorial Raíces, Madrid
..
Toıgo C, Gaillard J, Michallet J (1997) Adult survival pattern of the sexually dimorphic Alpine Ibex Capra ibex ibex. Canadian Journal of Zoology
75:75-79
Tude de Sousa (1927) Gerez (Notas Etnográficas, Arqueológicas e Históricas). Imprensa da Universidade, Coimbra
Vigal C, Fandos P (1989) Estimación de la edad de los fetos y de los periodos de celo y parto en la cabra montés de Gredos. Graellsia 45:31-34
420
Helminthological survey of wild canids in Estonia
Moks, Epp 1; Saarma, Urmas 1,2; Talvik, Heli 3 and Valdmann, Harri 1
1
Department of Integrative Zoology, University of Tartu, Vanemuise 46, 51014, Tartu, Estonia
2
Estonian Biocentre
3
Department of Infectious Diseases, Estonian Agricultural University
Corresponding author: Epp Moks. Tel: +37-2-73-75-099, Fax: +37-2-73- 75-830, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: helminths, wolf, red fox, raccoon dog
Carnivores are definitive hosts for wide range of human-threatening helminths, most dangerous species for human and mammals belong to the family Taeniidae. The helminth fauna of wild canids is not fully covered in Estonia. Only some wolf
specimens have been analysed earlier while the helminth fauna of red fox and raccoon dog is completely unknown. In addition
to the previous, the status of extremely dangerous Echinococcus species in Estonia has not been investigated satisficatorily. The
purpose of this paper is to provide the first data on the helminths of wild canids and to clarify the distribution of E. granulosus
and E. multilocularis in Estonia. This study was carried out simultaneously with the helminthological survey of wild ungulates
in Estonia.
About 20 carcasses of red fox, racoon dog and wolf were collected during the sport hunting in winters of 2003/2004 and
2004/2005. The liver, lungs, urinary and gall bladder, stomach, small and large intestine were removed, opened and washed
separately in physiological saline. The washings were clarified by sieving and contents were analysed for helminths; all worms
were counted, identified and fixed in Barbagallo standard solution. The parasites belonging to genus Echinococcus were preserved in 90% ethanol. The identification of trematodes, nematodes and cestodes was made according to Kozlov (1977).
Cestodes of the genus Taenia and Echinococcus were determined according to Verster (1969) and Abuladze (1964). Muscle
samples were investigated by the compression method.
To certify the taxonomic status of Echinococcus species, total genomic DNA was isolated from species morphologically identified as E. granulosus and E. multilocularis. A polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCRRFLP) analysis described by Gonzalez et al. (2002) and sequencing a fragment of NADH dehydrogeanse subunit I (ND1) gene
of the mtDNA was made.
In total, 19 helminth species were found: 8 from wolf, 16 from red fox and 4 from raccoon dog (Table 1). Ten of these species
were recorded for the first time in Estonia. The most common helminth for all host species was Alaria alata; this parasite also
had the highest mean intensity. The second most frequently found helminth species was Uncinaria stenocephala. One wolf
specimen harboured tapeworm E. granulosus and five foxes were infected with E. multilocularis.
Sizes of the PCR-RFLP products were similar to those obtained by
Table 1. Helminths found in wild canids in Estonia. Gonzalez et al. (2002). All analysed E. multilocularis specimens gave
Species new to Estonia are marked with an asterisk identical sequence and the E. granulosus sequence from Estonia was
(*).
found to be identical with fennoscandian cervid strain G10, isolated
from reindeer and moose in Finland (Lavikainen et al., 2003).
Two subspecies of E. granulosus, E. granulosus borealis (North
American origin) and E. granulosus canadensis (Scandinavian origin)
are described earlier (Sweatman and Williams, 1963). Cervid genotype
G10 is supposed to be related to E. g. canadensis (Lavikainen et al.,
2003) but the morphological features (the number of segments and the
length of the gravid proglottid) of E. granulosus G10 in Estonia were
more similar to the E. g. borealis. However, the poor condition of tapeworm specimens did neither allow closer examination of their subspecific status nor to analyse the correlation between morphology and the
mtDNA genotype.
References
Abuladze KI (1964) Echinococcus granulosus (Batsch, 1786) Rudolphi 1801.
In: Abuladze, KI (ed.) Common cestodology: Part 4. Taeniidae –tapeworms of animals and humans and causal agents of their illnesses. Nauka, Moscow: pp. 314-339
(in Russian)
Gonzalez LM, Daniel-Mwambete K, Montero E, Rosenzvit MC, McManus DP, Carate T, Cuesta-Bandera C. Further molecular discrimination
of Spanish strains of Echinococcus granulosus. Exp Parasitol. 2002;102:46-56
Kozlov DP (1977) Key of helminths of carnivores. Nauka, Moscow (in Russian)
Lavikainen A, Lehtinen MJ, Meri T, Hirvelä-Koski V, Meri S (2003) Molecular genetic characterisation of the Fennoscandian cervid strain,
a new genotype group (G10) of Echinococcus granulosus. Parasitology 127:207-21
Sweatman GK, Williams RJ (1963) Comperative studies on the biology and morphology of Echinococcus granulosus from domestic livestock, moose
and reindeer. Parasitology 53:339-390
421
Biological characterization of fallow deer population in
southern Portugal: management influences
MONZÓN, A. 1; PERDIGÃO, A. 2; BENTO, P. 1
1
Centro de Estudos em Gestão de Ecossistemas. Departamento de Florestal, Universidade de Trás-os-Montes
e Alto Douro. Quinta de Prados, 5000-911 Vila Real, Portugal.
2
FENCAÇA
Corresponding author: A. Monzón. Tel.: +351-2-59-35-08-60, fax: +351-2-59-35-04-80, e-mail:[email protected]
Key words: Density, fawn biometrics, Dama dama
Abstract
In the last 20 years many landowners, who see the game as added value to land, established enclosed tourist hunting areas principally in the centre and south of Portugal. This type of enclosed big game exploration permits on safeguarding the animals and
the prior investment done by the landowner.
On the other hand, several tourist hunting areas have introduced the fallow deer (Dama dama) in their proprieties to diversify
the game and because its meat is very appreciable. Nevertheless little studies have been done to characterize these populations
or their management, which is the aim of this study.
The study was carried out in “Herdade de Coelheiros”, with 490.14 ha, in southern Portugal (38º44`N, 07º53`W), during
November 2001 to October 2002 (fig.1).
The climate is Mediterranean. Average annual rainfall (data from 1941-1970) was of 708 mm, with a minimum of 4.3 mm in
July/August, and average annual temperature was 15.4ºC. The study area is within the range of 256-355 m altitude. The landscape is dominated by cork oak (Quercus suber) forest and Mediterranean scrubland.
The population size, the calving places, the newborn fawn biometrics and the rutting areas were monitored by direct observation.
The census was realized by car in November 2001. All animals observed were classified into one age class and gendered. The
results were compared with historical data.
The calving characterization took place in July, previous marking done during the breeding season, in a circular plot of 15 m
radius (Nudd, 1977 in: Higgins et al., 1994) where the fawn was found. The visual obstruction caused by vegetation was measured with a board marked at 10 cm intervals. The board is 1 m high and 20 cm wide and can be read from 15 m in the four cardinal points. The records were classified into 10 classes corresponding to 10 cm intervals. Distances from calving places to
water points and pathway were recorded as well as the percentage of various vegetation layers.
During breeding season, all fawns located were weighed, sexed and body length, shoulder height, front leg length, hind-foot
length, tail and ear lengths were recorded. The mothers were classified into three classes: young (2-4 years), adult and old. After
estimating the age of the offspring, the date of birth by backdating was determined. The analysis was restricted to 14 fawns.
The population density was estimated at 0.34 animals per ha (table 1), while the sex-ratio was estimated at 1.98 females for 1
male in animals > 1 year of age (ratio male/female = 0.5). The population density joins other deer species, Cervus
elaphus, which estimated 0.99 animals per ha. During the period of 1997/2001, the population size increased, with an increment in the number of females, whereas the fawn/doe ratio decreased. A significant correlation between this ratio and females
was not detected.
The calving season takes place during May, after the dissolution of female groups. 14 birth places were possible to be identified: 65% of the places were situated in the south
Table 1. Population size and structure between 1997 and 2001
and located between herbs (48%) or shrub (39%)
with a height ≥ 40 cm. When approached, in 79%
of the cases, the female ran away from the hidden
fawn and 21% of the females stayed near the hidden fawn. The physical characteristics of the calving place selected and the female’s and fawn’s
behaviour show an antipredator strategy. All
fawns younger than 3 days remained hidden by
lying on the ground. The newborn’s cryptic
colour and visual obstruction caused by the vegetation height, also permits on safeguarding the
fawns from predators.
Fonts: ) ERENA; ) Counts recorded by Herdade de Coelheiros gamekeeper; ) this study
1
422
2
3
Table 2. Mean (± SD) Biometrics of fallow deer fawns.
The average fawn biometric status (table 2)
was according to the literature (Braza, et. al.,
1988; Braza et al., 1990), with fawn’s birth
mass higher in males than in females, but it is
not –statistically significant. Significant differences were observed between sexes at birth
(fawns < 3 days) in body length and shoulder
height (Mann-Whitney test, z = 1,936492, p=
0,052816; z =1,936492, p= 0,052816 respectively). The sex ratio of fawn (n = 14) was not different from unity (females/males = 1.33). The birth ratio was estimated at 0.33.
The breeding season began on May 12 and finished on May 30. We noted a tendency for males to be born earlier than females,
and all young mothers calved females. All these results may support the parental investment hypothesis. However no significant differences were found in the average weight between calves’ gender, thus other factors probably conditioned this investment. Braza et al. (1990) suggests environment and population factors as affecting the reproductive performance of females.
They found a clear negative correlation between the number of females and the average weight of the new-borns, which ed
more the males than females. In this study, the high population density and the drought winter of 2001 are susceptible to affect
the physical conditions of females.
On the other hand, during the rutting season, the
reproductive performance of males is related to
factors such as age, social dominance rang, vocal
display or spatial strategies (McElligott et al.,
2001). In this study the rutting season begins in
September and on the 14th 5 harems were
observed. After two days, the rut was drastically
interrupted by hunting manager, whom authorized selective capture of animals. The harems
were destroyed and the groups were dispersed
and mixed. This dramatically affected the mating
success, altering social dominance, thus might
have been the cause of low ratio fawn/doe found.
These results revealed the repercussions of this
type of non-sustainable management: high density with “extra” females, low birth rate, and the
beginning of the rutting season is interrupted for
the harvest selection. Several recommendations
have risen for this type of management.
We thanks to manager of “Heredade Coelheiros”, Mrs Leal, his permission to realize this
study and to hunting keeper, Mr. Prates by field
assistant.
References
Braza F, San José C, Blom A (1988) Birth measurements, parturition dates and progeny sex ratio of Dama dama in Doñana, Spain. J Mamm., 69(3):
607-610
Braza F, San José C, Blom A, Cases V, Garcia J.E (1990) Population parameters of fallow deer at Doñana National Park (SW Spain). Acta Theriologica
35: 277-288
Higgins K. F, Oldemeyer J, Jenkins K, Clambey G, Hrlow R (1994) Vegetation sampling and measurement. In: BOOKHOUT, TH.A. (ed.) Research
and management techniques for wildlife and habitats. The wildlife society, Bethesda, Md: 567-591
McElligott A, Gammell M, Harty H, Paini D, Murphy D, Walsh J, Hayden Th (2001) Sexual size dimorphism in fallow deer (Dama dama) do larger,
heavier males gain greates mating success? Behav Ecol Sociobiol 49: 266-272
423
Annual and seasonal home ranges and habitat preferences
of the mouflon (Ovis gmelini musimon PALLAS 1811)
in southeast Saxony (Germany)
Nitze, Mark 1, Stache, Anja 2, Fuchs Katja 1, Roth, Mechthild 1
1
Dresden University of Technology, Chair of Forest Zoology, Piennerstr. 7, D-01737 Tharandt
2
University of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Landscape Use and Nature Conservation
Corresponding author: Mark Nietze. Tel.: +49-3-52-03-38-31-371, fax: +49-3-52-03 -38-31-317,
Key words: telemetry, home range, MCP, kernelestimation, habitat preferences
Introduction
The wild sheep, Ovis gmelini musimon Pallas 1811, was introduced in different areas of Germany to enrich the spectrum of
native game species. This applies also to Saxony, where mouflons were introduced since 1929 in various regions (Wegner &
Dittrich 2003). In southeast Saxony a mouflon population was founded in 1979/1980 by the release of 17 mouflons.
In the context of the determination of living spaces for the wild sheep in Saxony a research project was carried out on the ranging behaviour of mouflons in the valley of the river Polenz from 2002 to 2004. The investigation area is part of the Saxonian
Switzerland, located in southeast Saxony (Germany) and is characterized by a mosaic of forests, fields and pastures, fragmented by villages and dissected by roads and railways. Large undissected close-to-nature forests as they are typical for other living spaces of the mouflon in the mountainous regions of Germany like the Harz, the Thuringian Forest (Fielitz 2001a, b) and
the Rheingau (Hessen) (Becker 2004) are missing in our study site. Almost all forests are even aged pure coniferous stands,
mainly of pine and spruce.
Methods
The data assessment was based on terrestrial radio telemetry, complemented by visual observations and the analyses of tracks
in the snow. From 2002 till 2004 9 mouflons (6 rams, 3 ewes) of different age classes were collared with radio transmitters and
marked with ear tags. The observation periods of the transmittered mouflon individuals varied between 2 and 28 months.
Annual and seasonal home range sizes were determined by the minimum-convex-polygon-method and the core-weighted-kernelestimation (95%Kernel) using the software GIS ArcView 3.3 and Ranges 6. The assessment of habitat preferences was based
on a combination of methods according to Neu et al. (1974), Byers et al. (1984) and the Jacob-Index.
Results and conclusions
The mouflons in the valley of the river Polenz used bigger sized annual home ranges than it is known from literature data
(MCP100: 1059ha - 1198ha, 95%Kernel: 381ha - 552ha, table 1 and figure 1, see Becker 2004, Fielitz 2001a, b). This may
be caused by the lack of comprehensive undissected forests in the investigation area.
According to the utilization-availability-analyses of habitats the mouflons showed a clear preference for forests. Especially
young stands up to an age of 20 years were preferred. The preference for forests declined with increasing age of the stands (figure 2). Especially the fact, that the mouflons preferred young coniferous stands of an age of 0-20 years as resting sites, does
not correspond with literature data. Likewise a regular utilisation of pastures and fields close to forests mainly between sunset
and sunrise was documented for the mouflons. It is supposed that this is due to an optimization of foraging strategy. The ani-
Table 1: Mean values of annual home ranges of 4 mouflons in southeast Saxony (Germany). (E = ewe, R= ram, + = sufficient
number of bearings, - = insufficient number of bearings according to incremental-area-analyses)
424
Figure 1: Annual home range of a
mouflon ewe (E3) in southeast
Saxony (Germany). Even the core
area estimated according to
Samuel et al. (1985) includes frequently used pastures and fields.
>60 year
old forest
21-60 year
old forest
0-20 year
old forest
Mixed
forest
Deciduous
forest
Coniferous
forest
Field
Grassland
Villages &
Waters
Jacobs-Index
Table 3: Seasonal home ranges of 4 mouflons in southeast Saxony (Germany).
(E = ewe, R= ram, + = sufficient number
of bearings, - = insufficient number of
bearings according to incremental-areaanalyses)
Figure 2:
Habitat preferences of a mouflon ewe (E3) and a mouflon ram
(W6) in southeast Saxony according to Jacobs-Index – investigation period: August 2003 – July 2004;
„-1“ = avoidance of habitat type,
„0“ = utilization according to availability of the habitat type
in the home range,
„1“ = preference of the habitat type
mals combine the advantage of food availability on open areas with the security of a short escape distance into the sheltering
forest.
It was not possible to prove a preference for special crops. However, it is suggested that the utilisation of the areas by the mouflon is based more on tradition than on the selection of specific crops.
No spatial separation was manifested for the seasonal home ranges. Rather a seasonal shifting of the utilisation rate of partial
areas within the annual home range was proved for the mouflons. The highest mean values of seasonal home ranges were estimated for autumn (MCP100: 927ha, 95%Kernel: 469ha), the lowest for summer (MCP100: 68ha, 95%Kernel: 50ha). In spring
the mouflons used an area of 266ha (MCP100), respectively 169 ha (95%Kernel). The results for winter were 266ha (MCP100)
and 232ha (95%Kernel, table 3).
The investigation area is used for local recreation. Mouflons avoided regions with a high frequency of visitors. For example in
wintertime the mouflons preferred feeding sites remote from hiking trials.
425
By track observations of the mouflons in the snow and visual observations it was possible to document frequent crossings of
roads and railways. However, the small river Polenz seemed to be a dispersion barrier for the population of mouflons in the
investigation area.
The results confirm the preference of mouflons for forests but also a regular utilisation of pastures and fields as feeding sites
was documented. In addition the space utilisation of the mouflon seems to be affected by anthropogenic disturbance.
Acknowledgement
We are most grateful to the Hunting Authorities of the Saxony Ministery of Environment and Agriculture for the financial
support of the research study.
References:
Becker R (2004) Untersuchung zur Raum-Zeit-Nutzung des Muffelwildes im Rheingau / Taunus. Diplomarbeit Technische Universität Dresden,
Fakultät für Forst-, Geo- und Hydrowissenschaften
Byers CR, Steinhorst RK (1984) Clarification of a technique for analysis of utilization-availability data. J Wildl Manage 48 (3): 1050-1053
Fielitz U (2001a) Abschlussbericht zum Forschungsvorhaben Satellitentelemetrie an Muffelwild im Bewirtschaftungsgebiet Ostharz. Ministerium für
Raumordnung, Landwirtschaft und Umwelt des Landes Sachsen-Anhalt
Fielitz U (2001b) Abschlussbericht zum Forschungsvorhaben Satellitentelemetrie in Thüringen, Teil II: Muffelwild. Ministerium für Landwirtschaft,
Naturschutz und Umwelt des Landes Thüringen
Johnson DH (1980) The Comparison of usage and availability measurements for evaluating resource preference. Ecol 61 (1): 65-71
Neu CW, Byers C R, Peek JM (1974) A technique for analysis of utilization-availability data, J Wildl Manage 38 (3): 541-545
Samuel MD, Pierce DJ, Garton EO (1985) Identifying areas of concentrated use within the home range. J Anim Ecol 54: 711-719
Wegner D, Dittrich G (2003) Die Muffelwildpopulationen Sachsens. Beitr. Jagd- und Wildforschung 28: 251-256.
426
Is stone marten (Martes foina) food competitor of western
polecat (Mustela putorius) in the Czech Republic ?
Nováková Michaela
Institute of Vertebrate Biology AS CR, Kvûtná 8, 603 65, Brno, Czech Republic
Corresponding author: Michaela Nováková. Tel.: +42-7-76-76-92-42, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: diet, trophic niche overlap, mammals
Extended abstract
The western polecat occurs almost in whole Europe, but during the last 150 years, they have disappeared from or declined in
many countries in Central and Western Europe (Baghli and Verhagen 2003). Abundance of polecat has been permanently
decreasing in the Czech Republic. According to hunting statistic, at present less than 1 000 individuals per year are culled, compared to more than 20 000 individuals in the beginning of the 70’s of the last century (Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech
Republic, unpubl. data). Contrary, abundance of stone marten is increasing (from 2 000 to more than 10 000 individuals
culling per year). Habitat destruction, persecution by man and interference with introduced American mink (Mustela vison)
could be the most important factors of polecat decline (Sidorovich et al. 1999, Sidorovich and MacDonald 2001). The other
reasons could be killing animals in traffic accidents or interspecific competition for food, especially during winter (Kratochvíl
1952). There is only one study about polecat food (Kratochvíl 1952) in the Czech Republic.
The diet of polecat is mainly composed of rodents and amphibians (especially in spring). Lagomorphs, birds and carrion complete the diet (Kratochvíl 1952, Erlinge 1986, Lodé 1997). Other mammals, some invertebrates, crayfish, and some fishes as
well as birds are found in small quantities (Lodé 1993, Lodé 1997). Polecats of some populations behave as specialists, whereas some others remain generalists (Lodé 1997). The composition of diet of polecat as well as marten is correlated with habitat
utilization (Lodé 1994, Lanszki 2003) and season (Kratochvíl 1952, Lanszki 1999).
The diet of stone marten is mainly composed of small and medium-sized mammals, birds, and vegetable food, especially fruit
(Erlinge 1986, Serafini and Lovari 1993). Reptiles, amphibians and insects are supplementary food (Romanowski 1991).
Several authors described competition among mustelids (Powell and Zielinski 1983, Erlinge 1986, Lodé 1993), but only little
is known about food competition between polecat and stone marten (Baghli et al. 2002). The aim of my preliminary study was
to analyze their food composition and the level of their trophic niche overlap.
In total, 65 polecat and 106 marten stomachs from individuals shot or run down in 2000 - 2005 (mostly from winter) were collected for food analyses in South Moravian, Czech Republic. Of these, 17 stomachs of polecat and 14 stomachs of marten were
empty and were excluded from analyses. The diet items from stomachs were divided into groups (see Fig. 1) and frequency of
occurrence and volume of the different foods were quantified under binocular. If it was possible, the species of mammals were
identified according to remains of teeth, paws or fur (Gaffrey 1961, Teerink 1991).
The main part of the diet of both species formed mammals, predominantly rodents and lagomorphs, and birds (Fig. 1, Fig. 2).
Other components of food in both species were insects (Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, Diptera, Lepidoptera), carrion (Sus scrofa,
Capreolus capreolus, Cervus elaphus), earthworms, frogs (Bufo sp.) and remains of plants (leaves, needles, branches, grass,
buds). Some stomachs contained also artificial items as some plastics and foil (included in unidentified material). Fruit was
found only in martens (during all seasons), while fish were found only in polecats (Fig. 1). Similarity index was high
(SI=83.43). Food composition of the two species differed in spring, when polecat stomachs contained significantly more plant
Fig. 1. Relative volume of polecat (MP) and stone marten
(MF) main food components during seasons (sample sizes for
each species and season are given)
Fig. 2. Relative volume of mammal groups in polecat (MP)
and stone marten (MF) stomachs (sample sizes for each
species are given).
427
material (p<0.001) and martens ate more rodents (p<0.05). In autumn polecats consumed significantly more invertebrate
species (p<0.01) as martens.
The diet composition of marten and polecat using analyses of stomach content was similar to the results obtained by faecal
analyses (Blandford 1987, Romanowski and Lesinski 1991, Lodé 1993, Lanszki et al. 1999). Both species preferred mainly
mammals but also birds were consumed in a high quantity contrary to Lodé (1993) who stated that they are a minor component of the polecat diet. Bagli et al. (2002) wrote that niche overlap of food items between marten and polecat is limited and
appears only during winter. Unlike their results, we detected high overlap of their trophic niches also in the spring and autumn.
The small number of stomachs from summer indicates that the overlap of their diet in this part of year is low.
According to our results the stone marten might be an important feeding competitor for western polecat.
The study was supported by GA AS CR S6093003.
References:
Baghli A, Engel E, Verhagen R (2002) Feeding habits and trophic niche overlap of two sympatric Mustelidae, the polecat Mustela putorius and the
beech marten Martes foina. Z Jagdwiss 48:217-225
Baghli A, Verhagen R (2003) The distribution and status of the polecat Mustela putorius in Luxembourg. Mammal Rev 33:57-68
Blandford P R S (1987) Biology of the Polecat Mustela putorius: a literature review. Mammal Rev 17:155-198
Erlinge S (1986) Specialists and generalists among the mustelids. Lutra 19:5-11
Gaffrey G (1961) Merkmale der wildlebenden Säugetiere Mitteleuropas. Akademische Verlagsgesellschaft, Leipzig
Kratochvíl J (1952) [About food and races of western polecat (Mustela putorius L.).] Proceedings V·LZ Brno 1:43-60 (in Czech)
Lanszki J, Kormendi S, Hancz C, Zalewski A (1999) Feeding habits and trophic niche overlap in a Carnivora community of Hungary. Acta Theriol
44:429-442
Lanszki J (2003) Feeding habits of stone martens in a Hungarian village and its surroundings. Folia Zool 52:367-377
Lodé T (1993) Diet composition and habitat use of sympatric polecat and American mink in western France. Acta Theriol 38:161-166
Lodé T (1994) Environmental factors influencing habitat exploitation by the polecat Mustela putorius in western France. J Zool 234:75-88
Lodé T (1997) Trophic status and feeding habits of the European Polecat Mustela putorius L. 1758. Mammal Rev 27:177-184
Powell R A, Zielinski W J (1983) Competition and coexistence in mustelid communities. Acta Zool Fenn 174:223-227
Romanowski J, Lesinski G (1991) A note on the diet of stone marten southwestern Romania. Acta Theriol 36:201-204
Serafini P, Lovari S (1993) Food-habits and trophic niche overlap of the red fox and the stone marten in a Mediterranean rural area. Acta Theriol
38:233-244
Sidorovich V E., Kruuk H, Macdonald D W (1999) Body size, and interactions between European and American mink (Mustela lutreola and M.vison)
in Eastern Europe. J Zool 248:521-527
Sidorovich V E, MacDonald D W (2001) Density dynamics and changes in habitat use by the European mink and other native mustelids in connection
with the American mink expansion in Belarus. Neth J Zool 51:107-126
Teerink B J (1991) Hair of West-European Mammals. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
428
Contamination with cadmium and lead in wild boar
(Sus scrofa) from areas with different anthropogenic impact
R. Orusa 1, S. Robetto 1, N. Ferrari 1, T. Lo Valvo 1, R. Tarasco 2, S. Cerise 1, M. C. Abete 2
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte Liguria e Valle d’Aosta
1
Ce.R.M.A.S. National Reference Centre for Wildlife Diseases, via G. Rey 5 111000 Aosta, Italy
2
C.Re.A.A. National Reference Centre for Animal Alimentation
Corresponding author: R.Orusa. Tel +39-1-65-23-85-58, fax: +39-1-65-23-67-75, e-mail address: [email protected]
Key words: Pollution, bioindicator, ecotoxicology, heavy metals
Heavy metals, such as cadmium and lead, are important environmental pollutants due to the biomagnification which may occur
along the trophic web and the consequential toxicity to organisms that may arise. Human activities are among the main causes
of exposure of wildlife to heavy metals. Surveys on their distribution may thus provide indications on human impact beside
additional health risks evaluation.
Aosta Valley Region is characterised by a main central valley surrounded by ten tributary valleys. Human population is aggregated in the main valley, with 80% of the 120,000 inhabitants settled in 20% of the area. Moreover the main valley represents
one of the most important commercial routes to France with an estimated transit of 2000 trucks/days directed to Mt Blanc
Tunnel. On the other hand, the tributary valleys are exposed to only limited car traffic.
We analysed 70 adult wild boar collected during the hunting season 2004/2005 with the aim to test for differences among the
heavy metal concentrations in animals coming from the main valley and from the tributary valleys. Concentrations of cadmium
and lead in the livers of the sampled wild boar were analysed by spectrophotometry. Statistical analysis were performed through
generalised linear models with stepwise procedures in order to identify variables (hunting site and wild boar biology traits) with
a significant influence on heavy metal concentrations.
The analysis evidenced geometric mean values respectively of 1.09 mg Cd/kg (±0.01 S.E., N=71) and 1.39 mg Pb/kg (±0.121
S.E., N=71).
No significant difference was identified in cadmium concentrations between areas differing in the degree of urbanisation (GLM
deviance=0.17, d.f.=1, P=0.67; high degree of urbanisation 1.101 mg/kg (±0.02 S.E., N=33), low degree of urbanisation: 1.07
mg/kg (±0.01 S.E., N=37).
In contrast, for lead concentration a significant difference was found between the areas (GLM deviance=15.19, d.f.=1, P<0.01;
high degree of urbanisation 1.605 mg/kg (±0.27 S.E., N=33), low degree of urbanisation: 1.239 mg/kg (±0.08 S.E., N=37).
Cadmium and lead concentrations did not differ significantly according to age or sex of the wild boar groups (all P>0.5). The
variability in individual behaviour or the exposure time (age) seems to play a minor role compared with environmental conditions. In particular, the variability observed in the heavy metal concentrations in our sample seem to be related more to anthropogenic pollution than the biology of the wild boars.
Moreover the statistical distribution of the concentration values resulted over-dispersed with the most of the animals exhibiting
low concentration while only a limited percentage showed high concentrations. In particular, 15% of the analysed samples gave
lead values higher than the maximum concentration of 0.5 mg/kg allowed by the European Council Regulation (n 466/2001).
Even if our measures refer to liver which is likely to have higher concentrations compared with meat, the finding of high lead
concentrations raises concerns regarding the use of the hunted wild boar for human consumption.
Our study suggests that there is a need for further information on the health risks associated with the consumption of hunted
animals and indicates that the wild boar is a sensitive indicator of anthropogenic pollutants.
429
Game mammals and pedogenic processes in forest ecosystems
of steppe Dnieper Region
Pakhomov Olexandr
Corresponding author: Olexandr Pakhomov. Tel.: +380 0562 469282, fax: +380 056 7768906,
Key words: environment forming activity, humification, mineralization, biodiversity, bioproducers
Under the steppe conditions of the Dnieper region the functioning of forest ecosystems has significant difficulties. The limiting factors are the dry climate, a significant evaporation constant and soil dryness. All this leads to a delay in the pedogenic
process and to a decrease in productivity (phyto- and zooproduction) of steppe forests. An increase in their productivity is related, as a rule, to a necessary increase in the intensification of pedogenesis. A consideration of these circumstances is especially important in the case of the establishment of viable forest plantings in steppe and of forest rehabilitation of technogenic landscapes. At the same time, in a severe steppe environment a functioning forest ecosystem with an optimum number of animals
forming a part of this environment, builds up nearly normal ecological conditions.
Among various types of environment forming activities of animals a significant place is occupied by locomotive (digging) and
tropho-metabolic (excremental) activity. Many researchers have paid attention to the great ecological value of fossorial activity of mammals for formation of soil’s physical properties (Leutert, 1983; Abaturov, 1984; Cox George, 1990; Roper, 1992).
One of the major biotic factors determining the process of pedogenesis is ascribed to the special role of mammals in the formation of a chemical mode and the humification of soils. (Yadav, Jha, 1988; Bulakhov, 1997). The change in physical and
chemical properties of soil by mammals considerably accelerates the process of mineralization, intensifies the cycle of
substances in steppe forests, and helps it approach a woody type of natural ecosystem in a steppe zone (Bel’gard, 1971, Zlotin,
Khodashova, 1974). We have paid attention to the activity of game mammals due to the great importance of mammalian activity as a biotic factor enhancing the development of soil processes. Hunting intensively uses game mammals. The factors of
reproduction and forage supply are taken into account solely for their rational use. Their environmental role, as a rule, was not
taken into account in the decisions on the volume of their withdrawal from ecosystems. Therefore, our attention was also attracted to the role of these animals in the pedogenic processes, causing an increase in the ecological sustainability of forest ecosystems in steppe. Among wild mammals, the greatest soil forming influence is exerted by: mole Talpa europaea (Insectivora:
Talpidae), wild boar Sus scrofa (Artiodactyla: Suidae), elk Alces alces and roe deer Carpiolus europaeus (both Artiodactila:
Cervidae). Studies on the influence of these wild mammals were carried out on the basis of the comparative analysis of physical, chemical and biotic properties of the soil in places influenced by animals and without their influence (control). All instruments readings were carried out using the common methods of soil study. Our research yielded the following results.
Under the influence of environment forming activity of wild mammals in the steppe zone the physical properties of soils are
considerably improved. Soil hardness is considerably decreased (under fossorial activity – 4-17 times, under excremental influence – 1.1-1.3 times), accessible field humidity of the soil increases (by 4-23 % and 2-11 % respectively).The aeration of
the soil increases (by 13-39 % and 6-14 %). Microelements are taken out in the subsurface, readily available trophic layers of
the soils. Humus is redistributed more regularly in soil horizons. The humification process intensifies (1.2-1.4 times under fossorial activity and 1.1-1.3 times under excremental influence). The pH Parameter rises (from 6-14 and 3-16 % respectively),
the mineralization process accelerates (1.1-1.7 and 1.2-1.8 times respectively). The amount of bioreducers – microflorae
increases (1.3-3.8 times and 1.2-3.2 times). In this connection the degree of enzymatic activity of soils grows 1.5-2.4 times.
The specified factors of the influence of game mammals on the formation of physical and chemical properties testify to the
importance of their participation in soil forming processes in steppe forests, considerably raising their ecological stability and
mitigating the influence of the factors causing moisture deficiency.
Thus, environmental forming activity of wild mammals intensifies pedogenic processes and, to a certain extent, blocks the
severe pressure of the steppe factors and provides optimum conditions for the existence of forests in the steppe zone.
References
Abaturov BD (1984) Mammals as a component of ecosystem. Science, Moscow (in Russian)
Bel’gard AL (1971) Steppe Forestry. Wood Industry, Moscow (in Russian)
Bulakhov VL (1997) Vertebrates role in metals transformation intensification in steppe forests soil of Ukraine. Extended abstracts of Fourth
International Conference on the Biochemistry of Trace Elements. University of California, Berkeley: 371-372
Cox George W (1990) Soil mining by pocket gophers along topograph gradients in a mima moundfields: Ecology 71: 837-843
Leutert A (1983) Einfluss der Feldmaus, Microtus arvalis (Pall) and dia floristishe Zusammensetzung von viesen Oekosystemen. Veroff Globot Inst
ETH, Stiftung Rubel, Zurich: p.126
Roper TJ (1992) The structure and function of badger setts. J Zool 4: 691-694
Yadav K, Jha KK (1988) Effect of poultry manure and sewage studge on the humification and functional groups humic substances. J Indian Soc Soil
Sci 3: 439-444
Zlotin RI, Khodashova KS (1974) Role of animals in biological circulation. Science, Moscow (in Russian)
430
The body mass measurements and diet of the song thrush
(Turdus philomelos) on the island of Cyprus
N.Paralikidis, N. Papageorgiou, I. Katelaris, Ch. Kordatos, V. Kontsiotis.
Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki, Department of Forestry and Natural Environment, Laboratory of Wildlife, GR54006, Thessaloniki, Macedonia, Greece
Corresponding author: Nikolaos Paralikidis. Tel.: +30-2-31-09-92-686, fax: +30-2-31-09-92-324,
Key words: body mass, measurements, diet, thrush, Turdus philomelos
Abstract
Body weights and condition indices are used in physiological and ecological studies to measure the health of individual birds
(Hine et al. 1996, Wysocki 2002). Breeding success, clutch size, home range, predation and many other factors can be
affected from body mass and condition (Boon & Ankney 1999, Cresswell 2003), positively or negatively. Also, during
migration, birds present a remarkable transformation on their body increasing their weight (Browne & Aebischer 2004).
The aim of this research was to examine the body-mass measurements and diet of song thrush in Cyprus during autumn migration. Fieldwork was done from 2003 to 2004 and we totally collect 180 individuals (80 adults and 100 juveniles) from hunting
bags. Following measures were taken: a) Wing length, b) Tarsus length, c) Bill length, d) Body length, (using a digital calliper)
and e) Body mass (using a spring-balance). Individuals were all freshly killed. Measures were taken according to Svensson
(1992) and ages were distinguished according to Cramp & Simmons (1980) description.
We analyzed 180 gizzards in two years (96 gizzards in 2003 and 84 gizzards in 2004). We found 154 gizzards full (85,55%)
and the rest empty. Identification and classification of the consumed plant and animal species were carried out using an
Olympus stereoscope, with 1:6 zoom. Plant species were identified on the basis of specimens collected in the field during the
hunting season and with reference related information found in the literature (Hanf 1983, Flood 1986). Animal species were
identified from the untouched remains of their heads, legs and jaws or from whole insects and again with reference to information in the literature (Chinery, 1991).
The research took place in the island of Cyprus. The study area was near to Nicosia. The elevation was from 300-500m. The
composition of vegetation in higher areas was mainly quercus coccifera 65% and pines 35% and in lower areas was mainly
cereals, citrus trees, olives etc.
The composition diet 2004 is constituted mainly by olives 36,6%, green leaves 20%, snails 6,6%, seeds 7,2%,insects 23,2%,
worms and larva’s 5,5%, unknown 12,4%.
The composition diet 2005 is constituted mainly by olives 30,7%, green leaves 50,7%, snails 3%, seeds 10,7%,insects 31,22%,
worms and larva’s 7,53%, unknown 11,5%.
Similar findings were published by Cramp & Simmons (1980). Gruar et al. (2003) found that the song thrush the summer diet
was dominated by earthworms, snails, beetles and insect larvae (mainly Coleoptera and Lepidoptera) in England.
Davies and Snow (1965) working in woodland and parkland in Oxford shire found that in summer the mainly food was earthworms and snails.
Mean values and range of body measurements are presented in Table 1.
431
References
Boon L. & Ankney D. (1999). Body size, nest initiation date, and egg production in Ruddy Ducks. The Auk, 116: 228-231.
Browne S. & Aebischer N. (2004). Temporal variation in the biometrics of Turtle doves Streptopelia turtur caught in Britain between 1956 and 2000.
Ringing and migration, 21: 203-208.
Chinery, M. 1991. Collins Guide to the Insects of Britain and Western Europe. Collins. England
Cramp, S. & Simmons, K.E.L. (1980). Handbook of the Birds of Europe the Middle East and North Africa. The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Vol.
II, Oxford University Press, London, U.K.
Cresswell W. (2003). Testing the mass-dependent predation hypothesis: in European blackbirds poor foragers have higher overwinter body reserves.
Animal Behaviour, 65: 1035-1044.
Davies , P.W. & Snow , D.W. 1965. Territory and food of the Song Thrush .Br.Birds. 58: 161-175.
Derek Gruar, Will Peach & Roy Taylor .2003. Summer diet and body condition of Song Thrushes Turbus philomenos in stable and declining farmland
populations. Royal Society for the Protection of Birds , The Lodge Sandy Bebfordshire.
Flood, R.J. 1986. Seed Identification Handbook. National Institute of Agriculture Botany. Cambridge. England.
Hanf, M.1983. The Arable Weeds of Europe. BASF. Lady Lane, Hadleight. Suffolk.U.K.
Hine C., Havera S., Whitton R. and Serie J. (1996). Fall and spring body weights and condition indices of ducks in Illinois. Transactions of the Illinois
State Academy of Science, 89: 197-213.
Svensson L. (1992). Identification Guide to European Passerines. Stockholm.
Wysocki D. (2002). Biometrical analysis of an urban population of the Blackbird (Turdus merula) in Szczecin in Poland. The Ring, 24: 69-76.
432
The body mass measurements and diet of the black francolin
(Francolinus Francolinus Francolinus Linnaeus 1766)
on the island of Cyprus
N.Paralikidis, N. Papageorgiou, I. Konstantinou,Th. Christakis and A.Tsiobanoudis.
Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki, Department of Forestry and Natural Environment, Laboratory of Wildlife, GR54006, Thessaloniki, Macedonia, Greece
Corresponding author: Nikolaos Paralikidis. Tel.: +30-2-31-09-92-686, fax: +30-2-31-09-92-324,
Key words: body mass, measurements, black francolin, Francolinus francolinus
Abstract
(Hine et al. 1996, Wysocki 2002). Breeding success, clutch size, home range, predation and many other factors can be
affected from body mass and condition (Boon & Ankney 1999, Cresswell 2003), positively or negatively. The aim of this
research was to examine the body-mass measurements and diet of black francolin on the island of Cyprus. Fieldwork was done
from 2003 to 2004 and we totally collect 84 birds (45 males and 39 females) from hunting bags. Following measures were
taken: a) Wing length, b) Tarsus length, c) Bill length, d) Body length, (using a digital calliper) and e) Body mass (using a
spring- balance). Birds were all freshly killed. Measures were taken according to Svensson (1992) and sexes were distinguished
according to Cramp & Simmons (1980) description.
We analyzed 84 gizzards and the same crops. We found all gizzards full and 18 crops 21,43% was empty. Identification and
classification of the consumed plant and animal species were carried out using an Olympus stereoscope, with 1:6 zoom. Plant
species were identified on the basis of specimens collected in the field during the hunting season and with reference related
information found in the literature (Hanf 1983, Flood 1986). Animal species were identified from the untouched remains of
their heads, legs and jaws or from whole insects and again with reference to information in the literature (Chinery, 1991).
The research took place in two areas in the island of Cyprus. The first area is near of City of Pafos and the composition of
vegetation was 40%, citrus trees 40% , cereals 20% fields in rotation 5% forest. The elevation was from 0-250 m. The other
area was near in Nicosia and the composition of vegetation was 50% cereals, olives and fruit trees 10%, horticulture 10%, fields
in rotation 5%, pastures 5% and reeds places 5%.
Mean values and range of body measurements are presented in Table 1 and Table 2.
The composition diet 2004 is constituted mainly by cereals seeds 55,55%, seeds of herbs 100%, insects 85,18%, worms and
larvas11,11%, green leaves 3,7%,fruits and olives 34,6% and unknown 11,11%.
The composition diet 2005 is constituted mainly by cereals seeds 66,60%, seeds of herbs 100 %, insects 81,20%, worms and
larva’s 40,60 %, green leaves 28,10%, fruits and
Table 1
olives 51,60 % and unknown 21,80.
Table 2
Similar findings were published by Cramp &
Simmons (1980). Black francolin is omnivorous
,with wide variety of plant and animals, but especially seeds and insect. Collected chiefly on
ground, though occasionally pecks berries off
plants whilst perching. In India Ali and Ripley
(1969) fount that black francolin feeding some
times with small amphibians (e. g toads Bufo),
small reptiles (lizards),and molluscs.
433
References
Ali,S. & Riplay,S.D. (1969) Handbook of the birds of India and Pakistan.Bombay.
Chinery, M. 1991. Collins Guide to the Insects of Britain and Western Europe. Collins. England
Flood, R.J. 1986. Seed Identification Handbook. National Institute of Agriculture Botany. Cambridge. England.
Hanf, M.1983. The Arable Weeds of Europe. BASF. Lady Lane, Hadleight. Suffolk.U.K.
434
Habitat use of red deer in the military training area of
Vogelsang: Conclusions for a visitor management strategy in
the Eifel National park
Michael Petrak 1, Jörg Pape 2, Karl-Heinz Schöder 2, Markus Vollmer 2, Charles Dejoze 3, Frank Bosch 4
1
LÖBF-Forschungsstelle für Jagdkunde und Wildschadenverhütung, Pützchens Chaussee 228, 53229 Bonn
2
Bundesforstamt Hauptstelle Wahnerheide
3 Camp Vogelsang
4
Buchet 27, 94086 Bad Griesbach, Statistics
Corresponding author: Michael Petrak. Tel: +49-2-28-97-75-50, fax: +49-2-28- 43-20-23,
Key words: habitat use, national park, observation of red deer, red deer, visitor management.
Introduction
The Eifel National Park belongs to the Westeifel and the German-Belgian Nature Park, Nordeifel – Hohes Venn. The Rureifel
and especially Vogelsang is the centre of the red deer population within the region.
Thirtyfour percent of the National park belonging to “Vogelsang” have been used as a military training area since 1949. The
Vogelsang area is a large undisturbed habitat, where red deer are still active during the day. The entire region of Eifel and
Ardennen accommodates one of the largest red deer populations in Central Europe. From 2004 – 2005, the red deer’s feeding
was observed to analyze habitat use under undisturbed conditions. From this observation, a basic visitor management strategy
was created.
Study area
The military training area, Vogelsang, was established after World War II in an area dominated by agriculture and forests. The
management of the area including the forestry has been maintained by the federal forest service. (BABKA 1996). The
Vogelsang is now part of the National Park. In 2006, the Belgian forces will leave the Camp.
The Red deer population has learned that well organized military training activities pose no danger to them. Since military training areas are closed for the public, any disturbance to the red deer was limited to the military training activities. This made it
possible for red deer to follow their physiological demands as ruminants of the intermediate feeder type, and be active during
the day. An effective visitor management strategy should take the unique chance and develop possibilities for people to watch
free living red deer.
The main habitat types are explained in tab. 1.
Snow fall begins in December and often lasts until March. The average temperature is 6° C. Rainfall ranges from 600 mm in
the east and up to 1100 mm in the west.
The seasons, based on a phenological system are: time before
Tab. 1: Number of red deer, feeding on the different habitat types.
spring:18 March – 10 April, first
spring:11 April – 14 May, spring:
15 April – 15 June, early summer:
16 June – 20 July, mid summer: 21
July – 18 Augus,t late summer: 19
August – 9 September, early
autumn: 10 September – 25
September, autumn: 26 September
- 9 October,late autumn: 10
October. – 16 November, winter:
17 November – 17 March.
The
phenological
seasons
(DEUTSCHER
WETTERDIENST 2005 and own observation)
1 = open grassland, managed by mowing;
2 = open grassland, managed by sheep grazing, 3 = open areas with succession,
mean the red deer have similar
4 = oak forests from former coppice system,
5 = pole stands of spruce,
7 = timber stands of spruce,
supply of cover and fodder crop.
8 = special habitats for example around buildings, 9 = pasture,
10 = way
435
Tab. 2: preference index, calculated from red deer observed, feeding on a habitat type to expected numberof red
deer.
1 = open grassland, managed by mowing;
4 = oak forests from former coppice system,
8 = special habitats for example around buildings,
Tab. 3:
Niche size during the year.
2 = open grassland, managed by sheep grazing,
5 = pole stands of spruce,
9 = pasture,
3 = open areas with succession,
7 = timber stands of spruce,
10 = way
Material and methods:
Habitat use of red deer was studied by means of direct observation, using standardized file
cards for documenting date, number, age class and sex, behaviour and habitat type.
From march 2004 to February 2005 in the military training area of Vogelsang, 4929 reed deer
were observed during feeding (785 observations) (tab. 1). This observation was used to get
a basis for creating a visitor management strategy which will be implemented from the
beginning of 2006, when the soldiers have departed.
For all seasons and the distribution of feeding red deer differs significantly from a random
distribution (Chi-Square for all seasons ≥ 252.4 > 27.88; df = 9; p = 0.001 (SACHS 1988) ).
For feeding red deer the preference index for the different habitat types is calculated as follows
observed red deer feeding on a habitat type
RSF =
Expected number of red deer feeding on a habitat type, calculated
from the percentage of this habitat type within the study area
The data were transformed into a resource matrix (relative number of red deer, feeding on
the different habitat types during a certain seson) and the niche breadth is calculated according to COLWELL AND FUTUYAMA (1971)
NBi =
- ∑ Pij log Pij
With Pij
= relative number of red deer, observed feeding on
resource class j during season I in relation to the total number of
red deer observed feeding during the season i.
Niche size (tab. 3), as a measure of the actively used resource spectrum in regards to the choice of food plants
(“the converse of specialisation”) and the habitat preference index of feeding red deer (tab. 2), indicate the importance of the
open grasslands of Vogelsang for red deer. Seasonal changes in niche sizes of red deer are closely correlated to seasonal changes
in food supply. Over the year, the amount of the resource spectrum used is inversely proportional to the supply. Niche size in
winter increases to a maximum of 1.43, indicating an expanded utilization of the resource spectrum to meet metabolic needs;
or a decreased selectivity in the choice of food plants with the decreasing supply. The minimum niches in the time before spring,
autumn, and in late autumn coincides with the concentration of red deer on open grasslands. This is a result of the synchronization and synlocalization of the open habitats for red deer. Of course, this offers a great chance for the observation of red deer,
but depends on the absence of human disturbance.
The preference of red deer for open habitats has been shown in many studies (CLUTTON-BROCK 1982, PETRAK 1993,
SCHMIDT 1992, 1993, BÜTZLER 2001, STAINES 1977, SCHAAL 1991).
436
As an intermediate feeder (HOFMANN 1985) red deer prefer feeding grounds with a good food supply of shrubs and grasses.
Man is the main disturbing factor for red deer, the extent of disturbance depends on time and location, distance and human
behaviour (PETRAK 1996, 1998, JEPPESEN 1987, PUNGA 1990). In contrast to other human activities, the behaviour of soldiers is very good for predicting the disturbance intensity of the red deer. Vogelsang offers the unique chance of observing red
deer in open habitats, but only when the visitor management strategy is as efficient as the management which was employed
by the Belgian soldiers and federal foresters in the past.
A visitor management strategy, which takes the needs of the red deer into consideration, is the key to the success of the red deer
population. Red deer behaviour during the last decades under the conditions of a military training area gives a solid basis for
the development of the Eifel National Park visitor management strategy.
References
BABKA, T. (1996): Standortskartierungswerk für die Liegenschaft Vogelsang. Bundesforstamt Nordrhein Hürtgenwald –Gey, Nordrhein-Westfalen
(Erläuterungsbericht)
BÜTZLER, W. (2001): Rotwild, Biologie, Verhalten, Umwelt, Hege. 5. Aufl. BLV Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, München, Wien, Zürich.
CLUTTON-BROCK, T.H.F. E., Guinness and S.D. Albon (1982): Red Deer; Behaviour and ecology of two sexes. In: Wildlife behaviour and ecology,
Hrsg: G.B. Schaller, 1-378, Edinburgh
DEUTSCHER WETTERDIENST, KLIMA- UND UMWELTBERATUNG (2005): Daten zu Schleiden-Schöneseiffen, Kall-Sistig, MonschauKalterherberg. Essen.
GEORGII, B., SCHRÖDER, W., 1978: Radiotelemetrisch gemessene Aktivität weiblichen Rotwildes (Cervus elaphus L.) Z. Jagdwiss. 24: 9-23
HOFMANN; R. R. (1985): Evolutionary Steps pf Ecophysiological Adaption and Deversification of Ruminants: A Comparative View of their Digestive
System. Öcologia 78, 443-457
JEPPESEN, J. L. (1987): Impact of Human Disturbance on Home Range , Movements and Activity of Red Deer (Cervus elaphus ) in a Danish
Invironment. Danish Rev. of Game Biology 13, 2, 2-38.
PETRAK, M. (1993): Nischenbreite und Nischenüberlappung bei der Nahrungswahl von Rothirsch (Cervus elaphus Linné, 1758) und Reh (Capreolus
capreolus Linné), 1758) in der Nordwesteifel. Z.Jagdwiss. 39, 161-170
PETRAK, M. (1996): Der Mensch als Störgröße in der Umwelt des Rothirsches (Cervus elaphus L., 1758). Z.Jagdwiss. 42, 180-194
PETRAK, M. (1998): Integration of the demands of red deer (Cervus elaphus) and man in relation to forestry, hunting and tourism. Gibier Faune
Sauvage, Game Wildl. Vol. 15 (Hors série Tome 3), p. 921-926
PUNGA, K. (1990): Influence des activités humanes sur lùtelisation des gagnages par le cerf rouge (Cervus elaphus L.), en Hautes Fagnes (Belgique).
Cahiers de Ethologie appliquéet10: 95-104.
SACHS, L. (1988): Statistische Methoden: Planungen und Auswertungen. 6. Aufl. Springer-Verlag, Berlin Heidelberg,
SCHAAL, A. (1991): Deplacements chez le cerf (Cervus elaphus) après des captures au filet. Gibier Faune Sauvage 8, 115-126.
SCHMIDT, K. (1992): Über den Einfluß von Fütterung auf das Raum-Zeit-Verhalten von alpinem Rotwild. Z. Jagdwiss. 38, 88-100
SCHMIDT, K. (1993): Winterecology of nonmigratory Alpine Red Deer. Oecologia 95, 226-233.
STAINES, B. W. (1977): Factors affecting the Seasonal Distribution of Red Deer (Cervus elaphus) at Glen Dye, North-East Scotland.
Ann. Appl. Biol. 87, 495-512.
437
Hematological values in fallow deer (Dama dama L.)
from Brijuni Islands in Croatia
POLJIČAK-MILAS, NINA 1, TEREZIJA SILVIJA MARENJAK 1, ALEN SLAVICA 2, ZDRAVKO JANICKI 2,
EDUARD KOLIĆ 3
1
Department of Pathophysiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Heinzelova 55, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia.
2
Chair for Game Biology and Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb,
3
National Park «Brijuni»,
Corresponding author: Nina Poljičak-Milas. Tel.: +38-5-12-39-01-82, fax: +38-5-12-39-01-84, e-mail [email protected]
Key words: red blood cells indices, total leukocyte count, differential leukocyte count
Brijuni Islands comprise of 14 islands cowering the area of 734 ha. The islands are situated in the north Adriatic Sea, in front
of the western Istrian coast. Brijuni are in the Mediterranean climate zone with the average year air temperature of 14ºC and
plenty of humidity which enable the rich vegetation growth of underbush, holm oak, laurel and wide grasslands of 124 ha. Since
1900, the autochthonous animals and plants were endangered by imported alochthonous game animals: fallow deer, axis deer,
mouflons and hares. These animals live without any fear of predators and they are not exposed to any mayor anthropogenic
stress. The favourable living conditions have facilitate enhanced reproductive ability of fallow deer, but in the same time the
food resources are insufficient for these large number of animals (16 animals per ha). Besides, in the National Park Brijuni no
alteration in plant cover is permitted, and as a consequence, all vegetation available to deer (except poisonous plants like oleander and various species of cactus) is shaped by their grazing. Supplemental food, mainly corn, is constantly given to animals
and inappropriate foodstuff is often offered by careless tourists. The comparative study of fallow deer from the Brijuni Islands
and from the continental hunting grounds of Croatia documented numerous differences in biochemical values between animals
(Poljičak-Milas et al., 2004). The results of conducted study indicate that besides age, sex and sampling methods, nutritional
and environmental factors should be considered when evaluating serum biochemical parameters of fallow deer. The present
study is resumption of research aimed to determine the physiological ranges of hematological parameters in the blood of fallow deer from Brijuni National
Table 1.Comparison of hematological parameters in experimentalfallow deer
Park.
The study was conducted on 45
free ranging fallow deer from
Brijuni National Park in Croatia
between March and April, 2004.
Blood samples were obtained
from shot animals which were
neither chased nor excited in other
ways prior killing. In order to
reduce the variation associated
with diurnal rhythms, blood samples were taken at the same time
in the morning, between 10 and
12. Blood for hematological
analyses was taken immediately
after killing from the jugular vein
into vacuum tube with K3-EDTA
(BD
Vacutainer
Systems,
Playmounth, UK). Blood samples
were stored and transported at
+4ºC until analysed, 10 h after
withdrawal.
Hematological
parameters, total white blood cell
count (WBC), red blood cells
count (RBC), hemoglobin concentration (Hb), packed cell volume
(PCV), as well as calculated red
RBC = Red blood cells count, Hb = hemoglobin concentration, PCV = packed cell volume, MCH= mean cell hemogloblood cell parameters, mean cell
bin, MCV = mean cell volume, MCHC = mean cell hemoglobin concentration, RDW = red cell distribution, WBC = total
leukocyte count, seg. = segmented neutrophils.
hemoglobin (MCH), mean cell
438
volume (MCV), mean cell hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) and red cell distribution width (RDW) were determined using
hematological counter SERONO – 9120 Baker System. White blood cell differentiation was performed microscopically on
blood smears stained with May-Grünwald-Giemsa method. The animals in the research were divided in four groups regarding
the gender and age. The juvenile groups consist of animals up to 18 month (9-11), and adult groups, animals older than 18
months (2-8 year). The distribution of each variable was tested by Shapiro-Wilks' W test. Mean values, standard deviations and
95% confidence limits for mean values of each parameter and comparisons of mean values were done with STATISTICA 6.1
software (StatSoft Inc. 2003 USA).
Judgement of basic physiological ranges and variability in individual species is important to provide reference data for diagnosis of disease and for the monitoring of health status. Moreover, game animals can serve as an environmental quality bioindicator. The results of comparative hematological parameters between the particular groups of animals are presented in the table
1. The comparison of hematological parameters regarding the gender showed no significant differences between juvenile male
and female animals. Regarding the red blood cell indices, in the elderly animal groups, males had significantly higher MCH
than females (Table 1.). Although, the average values of RBC, Hb and PCV in our study agree with the results of Kováč et al.
(1997) research, conducted on similar groups of fallow deer, the significantly higher Hb and PCV was demonstrated in referred
research. In our study, the adult females had significantly higher PCV, MCV, but lower MCHC than juvenile females. On the
other hand, there were no significant differences in red blood indices between the adult and juvenile male animals. Even though
the average Hb and PCV values in juvenile male animals were lower than in adult males, wide individual variability in juvenile group was the possible reason why these differences was not statistically confirmed. Specifically, in the juvenile female
group, two fawns had rather low RBC, Hb and PCV, whereas in the juvenile male group, in one fawn exceptionally low RBC
and Hb were observed. Zomborszky et al. (1997) found the similar variations of red blood cell indices in six-month-old fallow
deer. It is presumed that the blood composition of deer game (white tailed deer, mule deer and roe deer) reaches adult values
by about 6 moths of age (Chapman, 1977). The differences in red blood cell indices between the age groups of deer in our study
may have been also an impact of physiological blood differences between the adult and juvenile animals, since the RBC, Hb
and PCV values were the lowest in the youngest animals in groups. To exclude anemia, it would be of great importance to
evaluate the serum iron concentration as well as percent of transferrin saturation. Also, the available food should be analysed.
The mycrocites, which are generally commonly seen in young animals of most species, as well as in our research, may be also
observed in iron deficiency and pyridoxine deficiency anemia. In our research the RBC and Hb values in blood of adult animals were lower than in the research of physically restrained fallow deer (Zomborszky at al., 1997), and trapped and thereafter
transported female fallow deer (English and Lepherd, 1981). The higher RBC count and Hb concentration in stated studies were
related to excitement and a consequent blood release from the spleen. In the judgment of the results, nutritional and management differences should not be omitted. There was no difference in the total WBC count between investigated groups of deer,
and this supports the published data for a number of species of deer, in which there were no marked species, sex or age differences in the WBC count (Chapman, 1977). Regarding the white blood cell differentiation, the significantly higher eosinophile
count was detected in adult males comparing to juvenile males, which was possibly result of the higher exposure of adult animals to endoparasitic invasion. The average WBC count in all animal groups ranged over the similar, rather low values (3.774.27 x 109/L) with lymphocytes as predominant white cells. Several researches on fallow deer presented different total and differential WBC count (Peinado et al., 1999; Zomborszky et al., 1997; Kováč et al., 1997), probably because of stress during the
immobilisation and manipulation of animals, as well as anesthetic administration. In addition, nutrition, stage of gestation and
disease are further possible environmental and physiological factors that should be taken into the consideration while evaluating results.
Data are expressed as mean ± standard deviation: *P < 0.05, **P < 0.001; ABetween juvenile and adult male animals;
B
Between juvenile and adult female animals; C Between adult male and female animals.
References
Chapman D (1977) Haematology of the deer. In: Archer R K, Jeffcott L B (eds.) Comparative clinical haematology. Blackwell, Oxford: pp. 345-346
English A W, Lepherd E E (1981) The haematology and serum biochemistry of wild fallow deer (Dama dama) in New South Wales. J Wildl Dis 17:
289-295.
Kováč G, Ciberej J, Paulíková I, Seidel H (1997) Haematologicalindices in fallow deer.Acta Vet Brno 66: 203-211.
Peinado V I, Celdrán J F, Palomeque J (1999) Basic hematological values in some wild ruminants in captivity. Comp Biochem and Phys 124: 199-203.
Poljičak-Milas N, Slavica A, Janicki Z, Robić M, Belić M, Milinković-Tur S (2004) Serum biochemical values in fallow deer (Dama dama L.) from
different habitats in Croatia. Eur J Wildl Res 50: 7-12.
Zomborszky Z, Horn E, Tubol S, Gyodi P (1997) Some haematological and immunological parameters of farmed deer in Hungary. Acta Vet Hung 45:
75-84.
439
Habitat utilization and social interactions of wildcats
(Felis silvestris) in Dinaric Mountains (Slovenia)
Potočnik Hubert, Skrbinšek Tomaź, Kljun Franc, Kos Ivan
University of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Faculty, Department of Biology, Ve_na pot 111. SI-1000 Ljubljana
Corresponding author: Hubert Potočnik. Tel.: +38-6-31-79-41-00, fax: +38-6-1-25-73-390, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: radiotelemetry, home range, habitat preferences
The wildcat (Felis silvestris) is distributed through most of Eurasia and throughout the African continent. Despite this vast distribution, it is still poorly known. The fossil records suggests that the European form of the wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris)
is the oldest, descended from the Martelli's cat (Felis lunensis) about 250 000 years ago.
In Holocene, the wildcats' distribution area extended continuously over Western, Middle and a part of Eastern Europe. The great
deforestation pressure in Europe, especially in the lowlands, resulted in fragmentation and extensive habitat loss for the species
(Nowell and Jackson 1996). Many recent European populations of the wildcat are relatively small, isolated and exposed to
break-up, reduction and alteration of the habitat. Therefore, in order to maintain these populations at feasible levels and safeguard their adaptive potential, studies on cross-breeding with the domestic cat population, dispersal of young cats, recent distribution development, predator-prey relations and social organization are necessary to ensure the conservation of the species
(Stahl 1986, Soule 1987, Stahl and Artois 1994, Poto_nik and Kos 2000). Their largest populations are on the Iberian Peninsula
and in southeastern Europe. The wildcat is present in all parts of Slovenia except in the high Alps.
Unlike many other felids, which live in open habitats, wildcats prefer forests. They are primarily found in highest numbers in
broad-leaved or mixed forests. The study was carried out in the northwestern part of Dinaric Mountains, a mountain range forming the northwestern border to the submediterranean costal area of the Balkan penninsula. The centre of the study area is situated at 45°40'N, 14°41'E in Kocevje forests of the southern Slovenia. Mixed forests with predominating Omphalodo-Fagetum
forest community with dominant beech Fagus sylvatica and fir Abies alba represent a part of the biggest forest region in central Europe. The altitude ranges from 500 to 1297 m a.s.l. Due to the limestone geological foundation, the area is subject to
karst phenomena. Pot holes, karst caves, dolines, dry water tunnels, ledges, natural arches, and cracks between geological layers offer shelter and a range of potential lairs to the wildcats. That results in a specific relief with mosaic-structured microclimate. Nowell and Jackson (1996) states that wildcats are not present in areas, where the surface covered with snow is greater
than 50%, snow cover is more than 20 cm deep, and stays for more than 100 days per year. Although the regional climate of
the study area does not fit these conditions, the steep, southern and south-western exposed slopes do.
The research was focused on spatial distributions and social interactions of the wildcats. The results were compared with other
wildcat and feral cat populations. The habitat use and the habitat selection were examined according to different relief and vegetation parameters. We tried to get answers about their social interactions, such as: Does overlapping of home ranges between
and/or within sexes? Is overlapping time dependent? Does presence of one animal influence the movements of another?
440
NW
W
SW
S
SE
E
NE
N
percent (%)
40
Figure 1: Wildcats showed preference for SW
exposed forest slopes, especially during winters, when they represent microclimatic islands
without snow and with available prey, which is,
besides prey abundance, a very important factor for wildcats' survival in a region of Dinaric
Mounatins.
The traps used were the double-door box type. They were set out on paths normally used by wildcats, often on logging roads
and narrow trails, where a wildcat was forced to either walk through or make a long detour. The roof of the trap was fixed with
six wooden pins that a big and strong animal such as a bear could easily break, and thus escape from the trap – a 'bear permeable trap' (Potočnik et al. 2002).
All captured animals were immobilized with ketamine hydrochloride (Ketalar®) in combination with medetomidine HCl
(Domitor®). Antidote, atipamezol HCl (Antisedan®), was used to suspend the effects of medetomidine. The drugs were injected intramuscularly with a blowpipe or by hand with a syringe. Numeric characters were tattooed on the inner side of the
animal's ear, and a radio collar was placed around the animal's neck. We used triangulation and homing in methods for
localization of the animal. Activity sensor in the radio-collar also enabled determining its activity status.
The analysis of the wildcat's habitat use was carried out at two levels of sampling. At the first level a single radiolocation was
used as a sampling unit, while at the second the sampling unit was the animal. We used compositional analysis, which allows
to test for overall departure from random use and additionally uses the animal as sampling unit, rather than the radiolocations
(Aebischer et al. 1993). We compared habitat use between seasons and between sexes. We used fixed kernels as a utilization
estimator and minimal convex polygons – MCP-s as a range estimator of wildcats’ home ranges. Spatial shifts and associated
habitat use were examined using Jenrich-Turner centroids and wildcats core areas (50% kernel). Wildcats' social organization
was analyzed through static and dynamic interaction analysis. Static interactions were determined by home range overlaps
between specimens of both sexes. Independence, attraction or avoidance between two individuals was determined with use of
dynamic interaction analysis (Millspaugh and Marzluff 2001).
Traps were set out for 696 trap-days between the years 1999 and 2003. Up to five traps were used at the same time. Thirteen
wildcats and one lynx were caught as target species. The specimens considered wildcats had all field characteristics of wildcats, as described by Ragni and Possenti (1996). Another animal was deliberately trapped in a barn near a hunting lodge, but
was considered feral cat after the pelage identification. The total catching success for wildcats was 1 wildcat/58 days. During
research 965 localizations were made and 3676 activity measurements were taken.
The main, time-independent spatial distribution pattern of the wildcats was non-random and aggregated. They were primarily
(91 – 100 % of localizations) associated with a forest habitat and showed preference for steep, SW exposed slopes and altitudes
between 680 and 920 m. The preferences were stronger in the cooler seasons. The analysis of wildcats' habitat use in the
cooler seasons 99/00 and 00/01 respectively revealed more frequent use of the open habitat in the season 00/01. The reason for
this and for selection of steeper slopes in the 99/00 is probably in deeper snow cover and break out of forest small mammals in
the 99/00 season. These habitat types represent microclimatic islands without snow and with available prey, which is, besides
prey abundance, a very important factor in the winter period (Stahl 1986). Wildcats were more frequently in the open habitat
during night, while during the day they preferred forest cover and a steep, rocky habitat that was also more frequently used by
the females.
Home range sizes of the two female wildcats were 264 ha and 1275 ha respectively, while males’ ranged from 895 ha to 1876
ha. The smallest home range among males was that of the subadult male. No significant difference in home range sizes between
the sexes was found, except for the young adult female and the feral cat. The formation of home ranges was changing
seasonally with spatial shifts between seasons. The shifts were most synchronized at the end of the summer 2000. It was typical for the females only that they returned to the same seasonal home ranges in subsequent years. Wildcats’ habitat use on the
third order selection (Johnson 1980) was similar to that on the second order selection. They preferred southern and southwestern slopes and altitudes between 760 and 920 m.
Spatial distribution of wildcats showed high overlapping of home ranges between the sexes. Overlapping within the sexes was
not found. The small sample size weakened our ability to confirm significant differences in home range overlapping between
sexes in winter and total home ranges. Despite inter-sexual home range overlapping, dynamic interactions indicates a
tendency towards strong active avoidance between these pairs. That indicates a strong chemical communication. Scent marking using feces, sprayed urine, or anal secretions must be used for marking of home ranges in order to provide both spatial and
temporal information that may reduce the probability of confrontation (Bailey 1980). Strong territorial system and exclusively
solitary life probably enhance wildcats survival in the resource limiting/poor habitat of Dinarics.
References
Aebeischer NJ, Robertson PA, Kenward RE (1993) Compositional analysis of habitat use from animal radio-tracking data. Ecology, 74: 1313 – 1325
Bailey TN (1980) Factors of bobcat social organization and some management implications. In: Chapman, JA and Pursley, D (ed.) Proceeding of
Worldwide Furbearer Conference. Frostburg, Maryland: pp. 984 - 1000
Johnson DH (1980) The comparison of usage and availability measurements for evaluating resource preference. Ecol 61: 65 - 71
Kurtén B (1968) Pleistocen mammals of Europe. Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London
Millspaugh JJ, Marzluff JM (2001) Radio-Tracking and animal populations. Academic Press, New York
Nowell K, Jackson P (1996) European wildcat, Felis silvestris, silvestris group Schreber, 1775. In: Nowell, K and Jackson, P (ed.) Wild cats: Status
survey and conservation action plan. IUCN, Gland: pp. 110 – 113
Potočnik H, Kos I (2000) Distribution and population size estimation of wildcats (Felis silvestris) and lynx (Lynx lynx) in Slovenia. Ministry of environment and spatial planning, Ljubljana
Potočnik H, Kljun F, Račnik J, Skrbinšek T, Adamič M, Kos I (2002) Experience obtained from box trapping and handling wildcats in Slovenia. A
Theriol 47: 211-219
Ragni B and Possenti M (1996) Variability of coat colour and marking system in Felis silvestris. It J Zool 63: 285-292
Soule ME (1987) Introduction. In: Soule, ME (ed.) Viable populations for conservation. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge: pp. 1-10.
Stahl P (1986) Le Chat forestier d'Europe (Felis silvestris Schreber, 1777); Exploitation des ressources et organisation spatiale. PhD thesis, University
of Nancy, Nancy
Stahl P and Artois M (1994) Major problems and implications for conservation. In: Stahl, P and Artois, M (ed.) Status and conservation of the wildcat (Felis silvestris) in Europe and around the Mediterranean rim. Council of Europe Press, Strasbourg: pp. 57-60
441
Seasonal dynamics – major factor affecting prevalence assessment of sarcoptic mange in red fox (Vulpes vulpes)
PREISLER Jiří 1, BÁDR Vladimír 2
1
State Veterinary Institute, Liberec 30, CZ-463 11, Vratislavice n. Nis., Czech Republic
2
Department of Biology, University of Hradec Králové
Corresponding author: Vladimír BÁDR. E-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Sarcoptes scabiei, scabies, seasonal dynamics, red fox
Introduction
Sarcoptic mange caused by the mite Sarcoptes scabiei has been described practically all over the world, in 104 species of both
domestic and wild animals belonging to 27 families and 10 orders. Animals of the dog family are often affected. Most of the
literature from North America describing scabies is devoted predominantly to coyotes, foxes and wolfs. High prevalence of the
disease has been reported (Todd, Gunson and Samuel 1981; Pence and Windberg 1994).
Wild red fox has been monitored extensively in the USA. Pryor (1956) carried out the greatest investigation of this kind (a total
of 60, 846 animals were examined) but in that time situation in red fox was not critical, 780 animals were infested, which is
1.28% prevalence. In Europe, the described mange epizootic in red fox in Scandinavia is well known (Mörner 1992). A spontaneous reestablishment was observed in the population of red fox in late 1980s (Lindström et al. 1994). Similar course of the
infection was documented in other countries. Apparently, the prevalence of sarcoptic mange can reach at the height of epizootic tens of per cent when the population of the dog family is decimated for few following years, but then rapid increase of the
population to the original number can be observed.
A precondition for the assessment of sarcoptic mange development in a certain area can only be a corresponding expression of
mange prevalence in the host population. Prevalence is almost exclusively expressed in the simplest way, as a yearly prevalence by calculating the ratio: number of positive animals/total number of examined animals. This is the procedure of several
authors while describing the infection in the recent years (Schoffel et al. 1991; Lassing, Prosl and Hinterdorfer 1998; Goldová,
Lazar and Letková 2001).
There is no doubt of high occurrence of sarcoptic mange but the figures showing prevalence are not correct and cannot be used
for any yearly comparisons because limitations for the use of the simplest way of calculation have not been considered. Major
preconditions include seasonal, stable occurrence of scabies or a sufficient, constant number of animals examined over certain
time periods (e.g. months). There is awareness of mange development under impaired climatic conditions, in these latitudes in
winter, in subtropical regions and in tropics in dry season.
Material and methods
10,035 and 8,090 foxes were examined for sarcoptic mange at the State Veterinary Institute in Liberec over the periods 19941996 and 1999-2002, respectively. Samples provided for examinations of rabies were used there. Macroscopic skin lesions connected with the parasitic mite Sarcoptes scabiei were examined. Skin samples were collected from all animals with clinical
signs. The samples were macerated for 48 h
in 10% KOH at 37°C and scabies was validated microscopically. The numbers of examined and positive animals are shown in Tab.1.
Examinations from the periods 1994-1996
and 1999-2002 are assessed separately, but
always for 3 or 4 successive years because
even at more than 2,000 animals examined
per year, the number of positive ones is not
sufficient for statistical evaluation (the effect
of small figures).
Results
Of 10,035 foxes examined in the period
1994-1996, only 280 were positive, which
gives the average of 24 animals per month.
Similarly, 8,090 animals were examined in
the period 1999-2002 with 359 positive,
442
which is 30 heads per month in average.
Figures 1 and 2 showing the seasonal
dynamics of mange have a similar course,
with absolute minimum in July and a
maximum in October. The proportion of
the values is about 20-fold.
Discussion
Sarcoptic mange has a severe course in
fox. Incubation period depends on the
infection dose and varies between 10 and
30 days. In this period, small papules are
formed (Stone et al. 1972; Samuel 1981).
Lesions of keratosis are developed 4-5
weeks after exposure. Within 1-2 months
post infection, plucking out of hair can be
observed at the affected sites (Bornstein,
Mörner and Samuel 2001) and macroscopic skin lesions are visible. Therefore
the infection should be distinguished within 6 weeks post infection. Further process of mange in fox is very fast and infected
animals die after 2-4 months post infection (Stone et al. 1972; Stocker 2000), therefore time division into months is suitable.
Examination of fox by monitoring macroscopic lesions and microscopic visualization cannot be specified by serological diagnosis (ELISA) as seroconversion was seen around 5 weeks post infection (Bornstein, Zakrisson and Thebo 1995). Therefore
it is clear that an objective error is made here, which is demonstration of the disease only after 1 month post infection and consequent undervaluation of prevalence by about 1/3 compared to the actual status.
The effect of seasonal dynamics on the calculation of the average yearly prevalence has been totally neglected. Stable occurrence of scabies in fox during twelvemonth has been exactly excluded (Preisler 1998) as marked seasonal dynamics was found
after examination of 43,355 foxes over the period 1981-1996. A minimum of positive findings were recorded in summer and
maximum in autumn. A
total of 741 animals were
positive. However, prevalence of 1.71% (expressed
as the ratio 741/43,355) was
not correct as prevalence
should have been calculated
as the average of 12 monthly prevalences because the
number of animals examined in particular months
was not stable, it ranged
from 2,457 to 4,929 animals. Repeatedly, the highest numbers were examined in summer when the prevalence of mange is the lowest. In this particular case, the undervaluation is less than 10% because the correct value of prevalence is 1.87%. However, at examination of
lower numbers of foxes and greater monthly variations, the error is adequately increasing! Nevertheless, irregular supply of
samples is actually the only real situation. In some countries hunting of fox in the time of cubs rearing is forbidden, in other
months there is different concern in hunting.
Examination of 100 – 200 animals per year, which is at even distribution 8 – 16 per month, is absolutely insufficient. If such
a low number of foxes have been examined for several years, there is no point in making prevalence assessment. Unbalanced
supply of foxes is unavoidable, according to the cited authors. Basically, there is no undervaluation of the actual prevalence as
in our earlier study with higher supply of foxes during summer with a minimum prevalence. Undervaluation can occur in countries with a year-round hunting of fox and financial motivation of hunting even in summer. The effect of unbalanced supply of
samples at high number of the examined animals can be eliminated by calculation of the average monthly prevalence and a subsequent determination of the average yearly prevalence. Investigation of sarcoptic mange at the State Veterinary Institute had
the advantage of high number of the animals examined. The primary examination for rabies, occurrence of this viral disease
and fears for this infection ensured supplies of highly representative samples too. In other cases, overestimation of the real
prevalence occurs. However, it is not only the case of countries where hunting of fox is unlimited, except for rearing the cubs.
Supply of samples based on a mere accord with hunters, without any financial stimulus and without fears for infection, can be
dangerous. There is a threat of breaking the independence of selection. Animals with a high-quality winter fur are not supplied
because of the hunter’s interest. Absence of animals in summer can cause another misrepresentation. Thus, animals supplied in
autumn with the highest prevalence of mange are examined.
We suppose that most of the prevalence estimated as 20% and more can be based on this incorrect procedure.
443
References
Bornstein S, Zakrisson G, Thebo P (1995) Clinical picture and antibody response to experimental Sarcoptes scabiei var. vulpes infection in red fox
(Vulpes vulpes). Acta Vet Scand 36:509-519
Bornstein S, Mörner T, Samuel WM (2001) Sarcoptes scabiei and sarcoptic mange. In: Samuel WM, Pybus MJ, Kocan AA (eds.) Parasitic diseases of
wild mammals, 2nd Ed. Iowa State University Press, Ames: pp. 107-119
Goldová M, Lazar P, Letková V (2001) Sarcoptic mange in wild red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) (A mini survey). Folia Veterinaria 45, 1:14-17
Lassing H, Prosl H, Hinterdorfer F (1998) Zur Parasitenfauna des Rotfuchses (Vulpes vulpes) in der Steiermark. Wien Tierärztl Monats 85:116-122
Lindström ER, Andrén H, Angelstam P, Cederlund G, Hörnfeldt B, Jäderberg L, Lemnell PA, Martinsson B, Sköld K, Swensson JE (1994) Disease
reveals the predator: Sarcoptic mange, red fox predation, and prey populations. Ecology 75:1042-1049
Mörner T (1992) Sarcoptic mange in Swedish wildlife. In: Artois M (ed.) Health and management of free-ranging mammals, Part One. Rev sci tech
Off int Epiz 11(4):1115-1121
Pence DB, Windberg LA (1994) Impact of a sarcoptic mange epizootic on a coyote population. J Wildl Manage 58:624-633
Preisler J (1998) Sarcoptic mange in red fox (Vulpes vulpes) in the Czech Republic [In Czech]. Lynx (Praha) 29:99-100
Pryor LB (1956) Sarcoptic mange in wild foxes in Pennsylvania. J Mamm 37(1):90-93
Samuel WM (1981) Attempted experimental transfer of sarcoptic mange (Sarcoptes scabies, Acarina: Sarcoptidae) among red fox, coyote, wolf and
dog. J Wildl Dis 17:343-347
Schoffel I, Schein E, Wittstadt U, Hentsche J (1991) Zur Parasitenfauna des Rotfuchses in Berlin (West). Berliner Munchener Tierärztl Wochenschr
104:153-157
Stocker L (2000) Practical Wildlife Care. Blackwell Science Ltd.
Stone WM, Parks E, Weber BL, Parks FJ (1972) Experimental transfer of sarcoptic mange from red foxes and wild canids to captive wildlife and
domestic animals. New York Fish and Game Journal 19:1-11
Todd AW, Gunson JR, Samuel WM (1981) Sarcoptic mange: An important disease of coyotes and wolves of Alberta, Canada. In: Chapman JA, Pursley
D (eds.) Worldwide Furbearer Conference Proceedings, 3.-11. August 1980, Frostburg: pp.706-729
444
Assessing the diet quality of red deer (Cervus elaphus L.)
via faecal nitrogen
Céline Prevot 1, Julien Lievens 2, Sabine Bertouille 2, Alain Licoppe 2
1
Convention RW-UCL « Gestion des ongulés sauvages en Région Wallonne ». Centre de Recherche de la Nature, des Forêts
et du Bois – Laboratoire de la Faune sauvage et de Cynégétique. Avenue Maréchal Juin 23, B-5030 Gembloux. Belgique.
2
CRNFB - LFSC Centre de Recherche de la Nature, des Forêts et du Bois –
Laboratoire de la Faune sauvage et de Cynégétique
Corresponding author: Céline Prevot. Tel.: +32-8-16-26-427, fax : +32-8-16-15-727, e-mail : [email protected]
Key words: Faecal nitrogen, diet quality, red deer (Cervus elaphus L.), Belgium
Abstract:
Faecal indices are often used to assess diet quality in free-ranging ungulates [LESLIE et al., 1985 ; ARMAN et al., 1975].
Nitrogen is the most common constituent of faeces used as indicator. We assessed diet quality of red deer (Cervus elaphus L.)
in three different areas from Belgium, with faecal nitrogen indicator: (1) a territory of Famenne, (2) a territory of Hautes-Fagnes
and (3) a territory of Moyenne et Haute Ardenne. We also tested the faecal cellulose index.
We collected 1794 faeces samples from 1985 until 2003. Droppings were collected on the one hand on hunted deer (from 1st
October till 31st December), and on the other hand, on the floor.
The three study areas differed by type of forest, pedology and climate. According to their diet quality, the three study areas can
be ranked as following: (1) >> (3) > (2) [GOFFIN, 1983; KAPOSO, 1994]. We compared the population living on these areas.
We assessed the differences of diet quality according to individual characteristics (sex and age). We also studied the annual,
seasonal and monthly evolution of diet quality. Finally, other factors were tested : altitude, pedology, deer population density,
environmental characteristics.
Age
Results showed no difference of faecal nitrogen according to sex, but well according to age (adults vs fawns). The faecal nitrogen rate is generally higher for fawn than for adults.
Territory
The sample coming from the richest area, the territory of Famenne (1), presented the highest faecal nitrogen rate. The samples
from the two other study areas showed lower faecal nitrogen rates. They both present hard climatic and soil conditions.
Nevertheless, we found, for (2), a higher faecal index than for (3).
Population density
Moreover, the temporal variable seems to have an influence on diet quality. Annual differences may be due to the change in
population density (cf. Figure 1). Indeed, the faecal index seems to be density-depending, we found a correlation of 50% in
Hautes-Fagnes (2).
Seasons
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1989
1988
1987
The variations of diet quality among months and seasons were also significant. Among seasons, we found a decrease in diet
quality in winter, compared to autumn and to spring. With regard to the monthly variation, February and March showed the
lowest nitrogen index values (cf. Figure 2). The most critical period, for food availability, seems to be the end of February and,
Figure 1: Annual evolution of the red deer population density (grey, deer/100ha) and of the faecal nitrogen index (black,
% dry matter) in the territory of Hautes-Fagnes.
445
this, in spite of the artificial food supply. In April, on the
beginning of the vegetation season, we found out an increase
of the faecal index values. Besides, we observed, through the
monthly evolution of the faecal index rate, seasonal differences between study areas (cf. Figure 2).
Altitude
(a)
Altitude had also an influence on the quality of available food.
Note that the poorest area have also the highest altitude, and
results are therefore correlated.
Soils
(b)
Pedology, more specifically drainage classes, did not seem to
have an influence on the faecal index.
% MS
Other environmental variables
Among the environmental variables that we tested, we found
no differences due to the habitat composition (% open areas,
% deciduous trees, % coniferous trees).
Conclusion
The vegetation richness, depending on the altitude, the population density and the temporal variables (seasons and months)
Figure 2 : LEFT – Monthly evolution of faecal nitrogen
seemed to be the most relevant factors explaining diet quality,
for the whole datas; RIGHT – Monthly evolution of faecal
with seasons and months.
nitrogen for each area. The decrease of the nitrogen index started earlier in winter in Hautes-Fagnes than in the other study
areas, and the increase of the nitrogen index started later in
springtime in Hautes-Fagnes.
References
Arman P., Hopcraft D., McDonald I. (1975). Nutritional studies on East African hervivores. 2. Losses of nitrogen in the faeces.
Br. J. Nutr. 33:265-276
Leslie D.M., Starkey E.E. (1985). Fecal indices to dietary quality of cervids in old-growth forest. J. Wildl. Manage. 49(1) :142-146
Goffin R. (1983). Bases écologiques de la mise en valeur cynégétique des forêts belges à Ongulés-gibier et particulièrement à Cerf. Doctorat en
Sciences de l’environnement, Fondation Universitaire Luxembourgeoise, Arlon, 153p.
Kaposo L.M. (1994). Charge relative exercée par le Cerf (Cervus ekaphus L. 1758) sur la végétation de deux massifs forestiers ardennais. Doctorat
en Sciences, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgique, 159p.
446
Roe (Capreolus capreolus) and red (Cervus elaphus) deer
foraging habits under snow conditions
Prokešová Jarmila, Barančková Miroslava, Homolka Miloslav
Institute of Vertebrate Biology AS CR, Květná 8, 603 65, Brno, Czech Republic
Corresponding author: Jarmila Prokešová. E-mail: [email protected]
Key words: winter diet, competition, browsing impact
Extended abstract
Snow cover considerably influences the access to feeding sources (Gilbert et al. 1970, Klein 1985). In consequence to the limitation of feeding sources, interspecific (respectively intraspecific) competition frequently occurs (De Boer & Prins 1990,
Putman 1996). During winter, deer are forced to feed on low nutritive shoots of deciduous and coniferous trees (Holand &
Staaland 1992). Competition between them can result in high browsing impact. The height and length of snow cover usually
influence total rate of damage caused by shoot browsing and bark stripping (Ueda et al. 2002, Bugalho & Milne 2003). The
influence of snow on habitat selection and feeding ecology was documented in Northern Europe (Rudd et al. 1983, Mysterud
et al. 1997) and in Northern America (Armstrong et al. 1983, Beier & McCullough 1990, Pauley et al. 1993). Based on the synthesis of our results from different localities of the Czech Republic (Homolka 1990, 1995, Homolka & Heroldová 2001,
Barančeková 2004, Prokešová 2004), we tried to prove the influence of snow cover on gradation of deer interactions from the
point of view of height of their browsing impact. We tested the hypotheses that the proportion of woody plants in deer diet will
positively correlate with height of snow cover, and in the areas with higher snow cover the overlap of trophic niches and browsing impact on shrub layer will be higher.
The research was carried out in different habitat types: deciduous forest (floodplain forest), mixed forest (Drahanská vrchovina Upland, Beskydy Mts) and coniferous forest (Brdy Mts, Jeseníky Mts). On each area we compared the diet of red and roe
deer between the period before snowing (A), snowing period (B) and the period after the thawing of snow (C). We analysed
291 pellets of red deer and 271 pellets of roe deer by microscopic analysis (Homolka & Heroldová 1992). Index of similarity
was used to characterise the overlap of trophic niches (Anthony & Smith 1974). Browsing impact was detected by counting of
browsed shoots. The density was established using culling data. The food supply was determined in the last period on transects
by estimation of cover of plant species. Data after arc-sin transformation were analysed using ANOVA with Scheffe post-hoc
test (Sokal & Rohlf 1981).
The red deer diet significantly differed between periods, i.e. the snow cover influenced food supply and caused changes in the
proportion of main feeding components (Fig. 1). On all areas regardless of snow cover’s height, the proportion of browse
(deciduous and conifers) in the diet significantly increased in the snowing period compared with the period A. Contrary, the
proportion of browse declined between B and C and proportion of other components as Rubus sp. (Beskydy Mts) and grasses
(Drahanská Upland, Brdy Mts, Jeseníky Mts) increased in the diet. Only in the floodplain forest the broadleaved trees formed
the main component also at the end of winter.
percentage of volume (%V)
In the diet of roe deer the browse of trees together with Rubus sp. dominated during whole winter (Fig. 2). The snow cover
caused the increase of the proportion of conifer needless in the diet on all areas except of deciduous floodplain forest. Also the
proportion of broadleaved trees increased (Jeseníky Mts, floodplain forest) or did not change between A and B period (Beskydy
Mts, Brdy Mts). Contrary, the proportion of Rubus declined on all areas except of floodplain forest. Between B and C period
the proportion of browse decreased and Rubus and forbs increased in the diet.
Fig. 1. Diet composition of red deer during
winter
447
percentage of volume (%V)
index similarity (SI) and browsing intensity (%)
Fig. 2. Diet composition of roe deer during
winter
Fig. 3. Index similarity (SI), density of deer
and intensity of browsing of coniferous (conbrow) and broadleaved (bltbrow) trees.
Our results confirm the hypothesis that snow cover increases the consumption of browse also in the case of relatively low layer.
These data complete findings about importance of snow cover for deer diet composition given by Rudd et al. (1983) and Fischer
& Gossov (1987) (>25 cm) or Cederlund et al. 1980 and Mysterud et al. 1997 (50-60 cm). Only in Brdy Mts the proportion of
conifer needless was still increasing in the third period because of the limitation of other feeding sources (Rubus, deciduous
browse). Index of similarity increased after snowing on two localities (Brdy Mts, Jeseníky Mts) (χ2 test, p1,2 < 0.001) and then
decreased after melting period (χ2 test, p1,2 < 0.05) (Fig. 3) but the height of overlap did not correlate with the height of snow
cover (Pearson correlation, p=0.704). On other localities the influence of snow cover on height of the overlap of trophic niche
was not significant. Browsing of woody plants differed between study areas and the SI and browsing intensity negatively correlated (Pearson correlation, p=0.003 (conbrow), p=0.001 (bltbrow)). In the Beskydy Mts the highest overlap was detected in
the C period. It was caused by presence of very attractive and abundant Rubus. We did not find out relationship between height
of snow cover and the browsing intensity (Pearson correlation, p=0.101 (conbrow), p=0.365 (bltbrow)). In the Brdy Mts the
snowing period was low and short but the browsing intensity was the highest. Contrary to this in the Beskydy Mts the snow
cover was deepest and long-persisted but the browsing impact was low. The browsing was influenced more by deer density and
food supply then by height of snow cover (Homolka & Heroldová 2003). In Beskydy Mts the deer density was low and the
food supply was of high quality, the impact was low. In Brdy Mts the high density together with low abundance of feeding
sources caused extensive reduction of shrub layer. The floodplain forest is a particular locality, where despite the highest density impact was low even though woody plans formed the main component of diet of both species during whole year
(Barančeková 2004, Prokešová 2004).
Snow cover considerably influenced the feeding behaviour of red and roe deer but the browsing impact was effected mainly by
food supply (presence of more attractive feeding sources as the browse) and by the density of large herbivorous regardless of
their feeding strategy (Hofmann 1989).
The study was supported by GA AS CR S6093003.
448
References
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deer diets. J. Wild. Manage. 38: 535-540.
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Bugalho MN, Milne JA (2003) The composition of the diet of red deer (Cervus elaphus) in a Mediterranen environment: a case of summer nutritional constraint? Forest Ecol Manage 181:23-29
Cederlund G, Lyungqvist H, Markgren G, Stralfelt F (1980) Foods of moose and roe deer at Grimso in central Sweden. Results of rumen content analyses. Viltrevy 11(4):169-247
De Boer WF, Prins HHT (1990) Large herbivores that strive mightly but eat and drink as friends. Oecologia 82:264-274
Fisher A, Gossov H (1987) Untersuchungen zur Raum-Zeit-Nutzung des Rotwildes angesichts menschlicher Störeinflüsse unter besonderer
Berücksichtigung der Wintersituation: Fallstudie St. Anton am Arlberg. Centralbl Gesamte Forstwes 104:191-218
Gilbert PF, Walmo OC, Gill RB (1970) Effect of snow depth on mule deer in middle park, Colorado. J Wildl Manage 34:15-23
Hofmann RR (1989) Evolutionary steps of ecophysiological adaptation and diversification of ruminants: a comparative view of their digestive system.
Oecologia 78:443-457
Holand Ø, Staaland H (1992) Nutritional strategies and winter survival of European roe deer in Norway. In: Brown, RD (ed.) Biology of deer. Springer,
New York: pp. 423-428
Homolka M (1990) Food of Cervus elaphus in the course of the year in the mixed forest habitat of the Drahanská vrchovina Highlands.
Folia Zool 39:1-13
Homolka M (1995) The diet of Cervus elaphus and Capreolus capreolus in deforested areas of the Moravskoslezské Beskydy Mountains. Folia Zool
44:227-236
Homolka M. Heroldová M (1992) Similarity of the results of stomach and faecal contents analyses in studies of the ungulate diet. Folia Zool 41:193208
Homolka M, Heroldová M (2001) Native red deer and introduced chamois: foraging habits and competition in sub alpine meadow-spruce forest area.
Folia Zool 50:89-98
Homolka M, Heroldová M (2003) Impact of large herbivores on mountain forest stands in the Beskydy Mountains. Forest Ecol Manage 181:119-129
Klein DR (1985) Population ecology: the interaction between deer and their food supply. In: Fennessy, PF, Drew KR. (eds.) Biology of deer production, vol. 22. Royal Society of New Zealand: pp. 13-22.
Mysterad A, Bjornsen BH, Østbye E (1997) Effects of snow depth on food and habitat selection by roe deer Capreolus capreolus along an altitudinal
gradient in south-central Norway. Wildl Biol 3:27-33
Pauley GR, Peele JM, Zager P (1993) Predicting white-tailed deer habitat use in northern Idaho. J Wildl Manage 57:904-913
Prokešová J (2004) Red deer in the floodplain forest: the browse specialist? Folia Zool 53:293-302
Putman RJ (1996) Competition and resource partitioning in temperate ungulate assemblies. Chapman Hall, London
Rudd WJ, Ward AL, Irwin L (1983) Do split hunting seasons influence elk migrations from Yellowstone National Park? Wildl Soc Bull 11:328-331
Sokal RR, Rohlf FJ (1981) Biometry. Freeman and Co., New York
Ueda H, Takatsuki S, Takahashi Y (2002) Bark stripping of Hinoki cypress by sika deer in relation to snow cover and food availability on Mt Takahara,
central Japan. Ecol Research 17:545-551
449
Predation impact of raptors on grouse
Reif, Vitali 1, Tornberg, Risto 1, Korpimäki, Erkki 2
1
Dept. of Biology, University of Oulu, PL 3000, FIN-90014 Oulu, Finland
2
Dept. of Biology, University of Turku, FIN-20014 Turku, Finland
Corresponding author: Vitali Reif. Tel.: +358-8-55-31-264, fax: +358-8-55-31-061, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: goshawk, common buzzard, capercaillie, black grouse, hazel grouse
Predation impact of raptors on small game is a topical issue in game management and general ecology. Hunters and gamekeepers often suspect birds of prey as direct competitors, especially in the light of marked decrease of numbers of small game
in many European countries (mainly as a result of hunting pressure and destruction of habitats). In the middle of the 20th century, sweeping accusations of raptors (along with carnivores) as the main cause of this decline and related general extermination pushed many raptor species to the brink of extinction. On the other hand, representatives of Errington’s (1956) view argued
that predators take only the ‘doomed surplus’, and several studies indicated that birds of prey cannot be responsible for the
decrease in small game (e.g. Galushin 1970, Rush & Keith 1971). However, other studies showed that in certain conditions raptors can seriously impact on small game, especially in northern ecosystems, and sometimes cause economical problems for
gamekeepers (see Kenward 1977, Thirgood et al. 2000, Tornberg 2001) (review in Valkama et al. 2005).
Another reason which invites the attention to raptors as small game predators is their role in wildlife cycles. Among several
hypotheses that have been put forward to explain cyclicity in small game populations, some consider birds of prey as an important component in the cause of these cycles, mainly via killing grouse young (Hagen 1952, Lack 1954, Angelstam et al. 1984,
1985, Keith & Rusch 1989, Korpimäki et al. 1990). In Finland, 6-7 year cycles of grouse had disappeared in the beginning of
1990s, and predation, which could have had intensified due to forest fragmentation, was claimed as one of the factors, involved
in this phenomenon.
Despite of the long history of studies of birds of prey, the question about the role of raptors in general decrease of numbers of
small game as well as in their multiannual cycles is not solved yet. Generally, data on predation impact of raptors on small game
is scarce due to insufficient information on numbers of both raptors and small game, which would be simultaneously collected
over a large area (Valkama et al. 2005). In Finland, country-wide grouse counts made by hunters, which also detect proportion
of young, i. e. reproductive rate of grouse (see Lindén et al. 1989), enable us to approach to the analysis of raptor predation.
We analyzed the predation impact of the goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) and the common buzzard (Buteo buteo) during the nesting period (June-July) on the three forest grouse species (the capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus), the black grouse (Tetrao tetrix)
and the hazel grouse (Bonasa bonasia), for an area of about 3000 km2 in western Finland during 1984-93. The area is situated
in southern boreal zone and consists of coniferous-dominated forest mixed with agricultural fields. The analysis is based on
long-term data on the diet composition, nesting performance and reproductive success of the raptors over a large time span (see
Reif et al. 2001, 2004a, Tornberg et al. 2005), and the annual data on grouse species density, published by the Finnish Game
Research Institute. Special attention was paid to the size and proportions of chicks of different grouse species in the diet of raptors (Reif et al. 2004b), as well as to the possible bias in the collection of prey remains, which was examined by means of video
recording at goshawk and buzzard nests in 2002–2004 (Reif & Tornberg, in prep.). Other input data such as consumption rate
of raptors, sex ratio, summer mortality and brood size of grouse were obtained from literature sources.
% of grouse chicks
The predation rate of these two species of raptors on young of grouse during raptors’ nestling period in June-July was, on average, 1.3% for the capercaillie, 8.5% for the black grouse and 7.8% for the hazel grouse (Fig. 1). About 2/3 of predation was
Fig. 1. Proportions of young grouse killed by breeding goshawks
and common buzzards in June – July during 1985 to 1992.
450
attributed to the goshawk. Important cause of mortality of chicks was the killing of grouse females (black grouse and hazel
grouse), mostly by the goshawk. Young of black grouse and hazel grouse suffered from the heaviest loss. The predation rates
fluctuated largely among the years. The fluctuations most likely depended on vole abundance, mainly because buzzards use
juvenile grouse as alternative prey in poor vole years (Reif et al. 2001).
The estimated value of predation impact of the goshawk and the buzzard on the populations of grouse suggest that, in certain
years, these two raptors can affect the reproductive success of grouse and thus can be an important factor in limitation of their
density.
References
Angelstam P, Lindström E, Widén P (1984) Role of predation in short-term population fluctuations of some birds and mammals in Fennoscandia.
Angelstam P, Lindström E, Widén P (1985) Synchronous short-term population fluctuations of come birds and mammals in Fennoscandia – occurrence
and distribution. Holarct Ecol 8:285-298
Errington P (1956) Factors limiting higher vertebrate populations. Science 124:304-307
Galushin VM (1970) A quantitative estimation of predatory birds’ pressure upon game birds’ populations in the Central Region of the European part
of the USSR. In: Bannikov AG et al. (eds.) Transactions IX Int Cong of Game Biol. Moscow: pp. 553-562
Hagen Y (1952) Rovfuglene og viltpleien. Gyldendal Norsk forlag, Oslo
Keith LB, Rusch DH (1989) Predation's role in the cyclic fluctuations of ruffed grouse. Proc Int Ornithol Cong 19:699-732
Kenward RE (1977) Predation on released pheasants (Phasianus colchicus) by goshawks (Accipiter gentilis) in central Sweden. Viltrevy 10:79-112
Korpimäki, E., Huhtala, K. & Sulkava, S. 1990. Does the year to year variation in the diet of eagle and Ural owls support the alternative prey hypothesis? Oikos 58:47-54.
Lack D (1954) The natural regulation of animal numbers. Oxford Univ. Press, London
Lindén H (1989) Characteristics of tetraonid cycles in Finland. Finnish Game Res 46:34-42
Reif V, Tornberg R, Jungell S, Korpimäki E (2001) Diet variation of common buzzards in Finland supports the alternative prey hypothesis. Ecography
24:267-274
Reif V, Jungell S, Korpimäki E, Tornberg R, Mykrä S (2004a) Numerical response of common buzzards and predation rate of main and alternative prey
under fluctuating food conditions. Ann Zool Fenn 41:599–607
Reif V, Tornberg R, Huhtala K (2004b) Juvenile grouse in the diet of some raptors. J Raptor Res 38:243–249
Rush DH, Keith, LB (1971) Seasonal and annual trends in numbers of Alberta ruffed grouse. J Wildl Manag 35:803-822
Thirgood SJ, Redpath SM, Newton I, Hudson PJ (2000) Raptors and red grouse: conservation conflicts and management solution. Cons Biol 14:95104
Tornberg R (2001) Survival, ranging, habitat choice and diet of the goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) during winter in Northern Finland. Ibis 143:41-50
Tornberg R, Korpimäki E, Jungell S, Reif V (2005) Delayed numerical response of goshawks to population fluctuations of forest grouse.
Oikos (in press).
Valkama J, Korpimäki E, Arroyo B, Beja P, Bretagnolle V, Bro E, Kenward R, Manosa S, Redpath SM, Thirgood S, Vinuela J (2005) Birds of prey as
limiting factors of gamebird populations in Europe: a review. Biol Rev 80:171-203
451
Prevalence and distribution of sarcoptic mange
in wild carnivores of NW Italian Alps
Remonti Luigi 1, Balestrieri Alessandro 1, Cerise Simone 1, Robetto Serena 1, Mosca Alessandro 2, Orusa Riccardo 1
1
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale Piemonte Liguria and Valle d’Aosta – Aosta’s Unit. Ce.R.M.A.S. National Reference
Centre for Wild Animal Diseases (Aosta, Italy). Via Guido Rey, 5 – 11100 Aosta Italy
2
Regione Autonoma Valle D’Aosta. Assessorato Agricoltura e Risorse Naturali - Ufficio Fauna.
Corresponding author: Riccardo Orusa. Tel.: +39-1-65-23-85-58, fax: +39-1-65-23-67-75, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: red fox, stone marten, badger, Sarcoptes scabiei.
Extended Abstract
Sarcoptic mange is a highly contagious skin infection caused by a sub-macroscopic burrowing mite – Sarcoptes scabiei
(Acarina: Astigmata, Sarcoptidae), a species divided into a number of morphologically identical varieties with a high degree of
host specificity. The disease has been reported for more than one hundred species of wild and domestic mammals (Bornstein
et al., 2001). Transmission occurs by direct or indirect contact and the prevalence of infection is higher in social animals, for
which epidemics have been reported (red fox [Vulpes vulpes], Lindstrom & Mörner, 1985; Mörner, 1992; wolf [Canis lupus],
Todd et al., 1981; wild coyote [Canis latrans], Pence et al., 1983).
Only few cases have been reported for stone marten (Martes foina) (Ryser-Degiorgis et al., 2002) and for badger (Meles meles)
(Holt & Berg, 1990), although they form social/family groups which share the same setts (Woodroffe & Macdonald, 1993),
should enhance mange transmission.
On the contrary, S. scabiei infections are endemic in European red foxes. Epizootics can cause devastating mortality (Morner,
1992), but generally they do not seem to have long-term effects on fox populations (Pence & Ueckermann, 2002).
As a plausible consequence of the severe disease, animals fail to feed, infected animals having lower fat reserves than uninfected ones and clinical signs of accelerated muscle catabolism (Newman et al., 2002).
In order to investigate sarcoptic mange prevalence and distribution, 251 foxes, 40 stone martens and 57 badgers of Aosta Valley
region (north-western Italian Alps) were examined between 2001 and the beginning of 2005.
The study area is about 3264 km2 in size, with altitude ranging from 310 to 4810 m a.s.l. The climate is alpine-continental, with
long and cold winters. Snow covers the ground from 22 to 180 days per year, depending on altitude and exposure. Mean annual temperature ranges from 10.4°C to –4.5°C.
The whole body surface of each animal was carefully inspected for the presence of clinical lesions referable to Sarcoptes
scabiei. In the presence of suspected lesions, skin scraps were examined in 10% potassium hydroxide in order to identify the
mite on the basis of diagnostic features (Pence et al., 1975). Sarcoptic mange lesions were classified in three classes of progression of the disease, according to wild canids pattern (Pence & Ueckermann, 2002).
Sarcoptic mange was observed in 26.3% ± 2.8% of foxes and in 5.0% ± 3.4 % of stone martens. No badger was found to be
infected by Sarcoptes scabiei, while otoscopic examination revealed black ceruminous exudate indicative of the presence of ear
canker mites Otodectes cynotis in an old male (1.75% ± 1.7%). Mange prevalence in foxes was similar to those reported for
other European countries (14-25%; Schoffel et al., 1991; Gortazar et al., 1998; Lassnig et al., 1998; Schuster et al., 2001; Sréter
et al., 2003; Goldovà et al., 2003). Prevalence rate could have been underestimated for the presence of chronic-subclinical form
which are not easily detectable even by means of skin scrapings (Bornstein, 2004). On the opposite, mangy animals could come
closer to villages in search of easy trophic sources (Todd et al., 1981) and they could be more prone to be run over by cars.
About 28% of foxes showed initial lesions, 22% was filed as class II and 50% as class III. The average dermatitis score
(ADS=2.2) was slightly higher than that reported for Hungary (Sréter et al., 2003).
No age (Juv.=28.0%; Ad.=22.8%; χ2 =0.61, 1d.f., n.s.), sex ( =28.5%; =25.5%; χ2 =0.23, 1d.f., n.s.), height (5001000=25.9%; 1001-1500=25.0%; 1501-2000=30.3%; χ2=0.8, 2d.f., n.s.) or time (2001=22.8%; 2002=35.0%; 2003=28.6%;
2004=25.5%; χ2 =2.68, 3d.f., n.s.) related differences in mange prevalence emerged, while prevalence varied with longitude
(west=33.3% centre=18.2% east=44.1% χ2 =16.1 2d.f. P=0.0003), with a minimum value in the central part of the study area.
It is difficult to explain the longitudinal gradient emerged. The central part of the study area includes the wider urbanized area
of the region, where richer trophic resources (garbage) are supposed to be available for foxes. Food availability affects population density and thus the lower prevalence emerged in this area could be due to the presence of “stable, saturated fox populations ... restraining immigration and favouring emigration”, like previously reported for south Sweden during mange outbreak
at the end of the 70’s (Lindstrom and Morner, 1985). Nevertheless it could simply be a consequence of a sampling artefact, the
63% of carcasses coming from the central zone.
452
The body condition of affected foxes was worse than that of non-infected ones: cachectic individuals (absence of perirenal fat
and muscle atrophy) were significantly more numerous among infected animals (33% vs. 4%; χ2 =39.02, 1d.f., P<0.0001).
The similar values of prevalence found during the four-years sampling period pointed out that sarcoptic mange steadily
occurred without marked fluctuations and can represent a limiting factor for red fox populations in alpine habitats (Pence &
Ueckermann, 2002).
References
Bornstein S (2004) Sarcoptic mange in pigs. Pig. News and Information, 25 (1): 11N-24N.
Bornstein S, Morner T, Samuel WM (2001) Sarcoptes scabiei and sarcoptic mange. In: Samuel WM, Pybus MJ, Kocan AA (Eds) Parasitic diseases of
wild mammals, 2nd Ed. Iowa State Univ. Press, Ames, 107-119.
Goldova M, Lazar P, Letkova V, Kocisova A, Kurlic J, Soroka J (2003) Occurrence of Sarcoptes scabiei in wild foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in East Slovakia.
In: Esposito L, Gasparrini B. III International Symposium on Wild Fauna, 24-28 May 2003, Ischia, Italy.
Gortazar C, Villafuerte R, Lucientes J, Fernandez-De-Luco D (1998) Habitat related differences in helminth parasites of red foxes in the Ebro valley.
Vet Parasitol 80: 75-81.
Holt G, Berg C (1990) Sarcoptic mange in red fox and other wild mammals in Norway Nord Veterinaertidsskr 102: 427-432.
Lassnig H, Prosl H, Hinterdorfer F (1998) Zur Parasitenfauna des Rotfuchses (Vulpes vulpes) in der Steiermark. Wiener Tieraztl Wschr 85: 116-122.
Lindstrom E, Morner T (1985) The spreading of sarcoptic mange among swedish red foxes (Vulpes vulpes L.) in relation to fox population dynamics.
Rev Ecol (Terre & Vie) 40 (2): 211-216.
Morner T (1992) Sarcoptic mange in Swedish wildlife. In: Artois, M. (Ed.). Health and management of free-ranging mammals, Part one. Rev sci tech
Off int Epiz 11 (4): 1115-1121.
Newman TJ, Baker PJ, Harris S (2002) Nutritional condition of red foxes with sarcoptic mange. Can J Zool/Rev Can Zool 80 (1): 154-161.
Pence DB, Ueckermann E (2002) Sarcoptic mange in wildlife. Rev sci tech Off int Epiz 21 (2): 385-398.
Pence DB, Casto SD, Samuel WM (1975) Variation in the chaetotaxi and denticulation of Sarcoptes scabiei (Acarina: Sarcoptidae) from wild canids.
Acarologia 17: 160-165.
Pence DB, Windberg LA, Sprowls R (1983) The epizootiology and pathology of sarcoptic mange in coyotes, Canis latrans, from south Texas. J
Parasitol 69: 1110-1115.
Ryser-Degiorgis MP, Ryser A, Bacciarini LN, Angst C, Gottstein B, Janovsky M, Breitenmoiser U (2002) Notoedric and sarcoptic mange in free-ranging Lynx from Switzerland. Journal of Wildlife Diseases 38 (1): 228-232.
Schoffel I, Schein E, Wittstatt U, Hentsche J (1991) Zur Parasitenfauna des Rotfuchses in Berlin (West). Berl Munch Tieraztl Wschr 104: 153-157.
Schuster R, Wanjek C, Bartnik C, Wittstatt U, Baumann M, Schein E (2001) Leberegelbefall und Raude beim Rotfuchs in Berlin. Berl Munch Tieraztl
Wschr 114: 193-196.
Sreter T, Szell Z, Varga I (2003) Ectoparasite infestations of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in Hungary. Vet Parasitol 115: 349-354.
Todd AW, Gunson JR, Samuel WM (1981) Sarcoptic mange: an important disease in coyotes and wolves of Alberta, Canada. Worldwide Furbearer
Conference Proceedings, Frostburg, Maryland, 706-729.
Trainer DO, Hale JB (1969) Sarcoptic mange in red foxes and coyotes in Wisconsin. Bulletin of Wildlife Diseases Association 5: 387-391.
Woodroffe R, Macdonald DW (1993) Badger sociality-models of spatial grouping. Symp Zool Soc Lond 65: 145-169.
453
Spatial structure of large mammals’ populations in transformed ecosystems of industrial regions
Reva Olexandra
Corresponding author: Olexandra Reva. Tel.: +38-(0)-5-62-46-92-82, fax: +38-(0)-5-67-76-89-06,
Key words: ecosystem, pollution, settlement structure
In industrial regions of the South of Ukraine the basic technogenic factor, causing significant transformational processes, is industrial
pollution of ecosystems. In those regions there are the most critical environmental conditions, when the contamination level exceeds the
developed norms of allowable concentration by several times (Prisnyakov et al., 1993). Pollution of ecosystems causes sharp pauperization of biodiversity and changes animals’ population structure. The changes in population structure of large mammals may be easily
revealed, supervised and assessed. Among various parameters of population structures the important place is occupied by spatial structure of populations (or settlements). The spatial structure of population was originally considered as usual animal’s settlement. However,
concept of “type of settlement” is not always put in frameworks of various spatial distributions of animals in populations under different ecological conditions. Therefore the most acceptable notions were proposed for mammals by V. E. Flint (1978) and subsequently
developed for various animals (Chernova, Bylova, 1981). The spatial structure of population is the valuable indicator of the population
state and, indirectly, of environmental conditions. Deviations in spatial structure of the population from a model one, which is inherent
in the given species, are important indicator of initial processes of disturbance of environmental conditions.
Usually, at studying the influence of transformation ecosystems on animals, attention is paid to the change in number, age, sexual structure of populations and reproduction (Gursky, 1975; Vershinin, Pyastolova, 1995; Koval’chuk, Mishkevich, 1995). The spatial structure
of populations, in this respect, still remains an insufficiently studied problem.
Our research was conducted in steppe and forest ecosystems of the steppe zone of Ukraine during the last 10 years. Objects of research
were the fox Vulpes vulpes (Canidae), the badger Meles meles (Mustelidae), the European roe deer Capreolus capreolus, the elk Alces
alces (both Cervidae) and the wild boar Sus scrofa (Suidae). Research was carried out in steppe and forest (steppe ravine with oak
groves) ecosystems with different levels of industrial pollution. Non-polluted or lowly polluted (control) ecosystems, where initial environmental conditions were kept up to the greatest degree, have been chosen. Exceed of Maximum Allowable Concentration (MAC) of
pollutants in non-polluted ecosystems was estimated as up to 1.5-fold, in moderately polluted – 3-5-fold, and in strongly polluted
ecosystems – 8-10-fold.
Taking into account considerable migrations of ungulates, the study of their populations’ spatial structure was based on revealing and
mapping places of ungulates’ beds. Found points of constant allocations of the animals at the time of migrations have given the basis,
with a sufficient degree of reliability, to establish their valid spatial structure of population. Study of their populations’ spatial structure
in rather identical ecosystems (steppe ecosystems, steppe ravine with oak groves), distinguished only by a level of industrial pollution,
has shown common regularities in change of the spatial structure. Thus, the spatial structure of V. vulpes under initial environmental
conditions was common diffusive in steppe ecosystems with allocation of insignificant centers of the fox concentration in the ravine oak
groves. The increase of steppe ecosystems’ pollution led to formation of the openwork (variant of contagious) spatial structure of population with the attributes of pulsing structure. The spatial structure of the badger populations (only in the ravine oak groves) was characterized by the discontinuous tape distribution concentrated at the upper third of the ravine slopes. In medium transformed ecosystems
they turned into the openwork structure with moving to the middle one-third of the ravine slope. The amount of settlements significantly reduced. In strongly transformed ecosystems the badger colonies disappeared.
Initial structure of ungulate populations may be characterized as openwork with little centers of animal congestions. In medium polluted ecosystems (steppe ravine oak groves) populations, as a rule, are transformed into unstable pulsing structures. In strongly transformed
ecosystems the ungulate population changes into dotted one with sharp reduction of the settlements number.
Thus, the spatial structure of populations of large mammal is closely related with the level of environmental contamination and reflects
reaction of a population to an increasing level of their ecological stability under rigid technogenic pressure. At the same time parameters of spatial structure of a population can serve as a bioindicator (biomarker) of environmental conditions.
References
Chernova NM, Bylova AM (1981) Ecology. Education, Moscow (in Russian)
Flint VE (1975) Spatial structure of populations of mammals. Science, Moscow (in Russian)
Gursky IK (1975) Wild boar, deer, elk, noble deer in northwest Black Sea Coast In: Ungulates of fauna of the USSR. Science, Moscow: 79-80.
(in Russian)
Koval’chuk LA, Mishkevich NV (1995) Mechanisms of adaptation of animals to climatic and anthropogenic factors of environment.
In: 1st Conf Sustainable Development: Environmental Pollution and Ecological Safety. DSU, Dnipropetrovsk: 52-53. (in Russian)
Prisnjakov VF, Vinnichenko AN, Shpak NV (1993) Environmental conditions in Pridneprovsky region. Bull. Dnipropetrovsk Univ: Biology Ecology 1:
4-6. (in Russian)
Sokolov VE (1979) Taxonomy of mammals. Higher School, Moscow. 3. (in Russian)
Vershinin VL, Pyastolova OA (1995) Theoretical basis of sustainability of animals populations under conditions of anthropogenic influence. In: 1st Conf.
Sustainable Development: Environmental Pollution and Ecological Safety. DSU, Dnipropetrovsk: 50-51. (in Russian)
454
Preliminary results of a spanish hunting federation
common quail (Coturnix coturnix) ringing programme
Rodríguez-Teijeiro, José Domingo 1; Puigcerver, Manel 2; Gallego, Secundino 1, Nadal, Jesús 3 & Ponz, Carolina 3
1
Dep. de Biologia Animal, Fac. de Biología, Univ. de Barcelona
2
Dep. de Didàctica de les Ciències Experimentals i la Matemàtica, Fac. de Formació del Professorat, Univ. de Barcelona.
Passeig Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain.
3
Dep. de Producció Animal, Escola Tècnica Superior d’Enginyeria Agrònoma, Univ. de Lleida
Corresponding author: Manel Puigcerver. Tel.: +34-9-34-03-50-36. fax: +34-9-34-03-50-13, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Common Quail movements, ringing recoveries, Atlantic metapopulation.
We present here some preliminary results concerning a Spanish Hunting Federation Ringing Programme of Common Quail
(Coturnix coturnix) in Spain, which started in 2002 and continues at the present time. This programme is funded by
FEDENCA (Foundation for the Study and Defence of Nature and Hunting), and is coordinated by Santiago Iturmendi, Head
of the Burgos Hunting Delegation. The programme is an example of collaboration between Spanish hunters, who carried out
ringing tasks, and the Common Quail team of the Universities of Barcelona and Lleida, which designed the programme, taught
ringing methodology to the hunters who collaborated in the project, analysed the data and also carried out ringing tasks.
One of the most important aims of this project is to study the movements of the species, which is extremely mobile and still
poorly known. Apart from its peculiar migratory movements, the Common Quail proceed towards suitable habitats (mainly
wheat and barley) when harvesting tasks have completely cleared them. These nomadic movements, forced by the use of
ephemeral habitats, may occur either in latitude (aestival movements, according to Munteanu and Maties 1974) or in altitude
(transhumant movements, see Heim de Balsac and Mayaud 1962). Moreover, due to an unbalanced sex ratio in favour of males
during the breeding season (almost 5 males per female in Northeast Spain, see Rodríguez-Teijeiro et al. 1992), males show
movements in search of females (“Don Juan” movements, Rodríguez-Teijeiro et al. in prep.).
Due to the small size of the species (around 100 g weight), it is currently impossible to monitor their movements by means of
satellite transmitters; we have used radiofrequency transmitters in previous studies (see for example Rodríguez-Teijeiro et al.
2003), but they have only been useful to register “Don Juan” movements of little extent (2-3 km) in some cases. Therefore,
ringing is still the best method to collect data concerning Common Quail movements, in this case focused on the Atlantic
metapopulation (Guyomarc’h 2003).
The capture method consisted in defining 10 hearing points within a study area. In each one of these points, a decoy tape of
female quail was used to detect singing males and to attract them towards a net horizontally extended over the cereals, to capture them. Empirically, we stated that the decoy tape attracts males within a radius of 150-200 m, and for that reason each
hearing/capturing point was at a distance of 400 m. During the entire breeding season, these 10 hearing/capturing points were
visited once a week.
Frequences
The Project started in 2002, in a pilot trial, and 658 individuals were ringed in 9 Spanish provinces of 3 Autonomous
Governments. Since then, it has been growing and consolidating. In 2003, 1446 individuals were ringed (which represents an
increase of 126.7 %) in 17 Spanish provinces (an increase of 88.9 %) of 6 Autonomous Governments. Finally, in 2004 a total
of 2366 individuals were ringed in 20 Spanish provinces of 8 Autonomous Governments. Therefore, in the last two years, 3812
individuals have been ringed, this representing 40.7 % of all the Common Quails ringed in Spain in the period 1969-2002.
Figure 1: Days elapsed from the capture to the recapture of
ringed individuals
455
Figure 2: Bi-directionality found in males recovered on different
days and in different places from where they were ringed.
Orientation of males ringed in places of geographic longitude (at
the West of Greenwich meridian): black triangle, within 0º to 1º;
yellow triangle, in places from 1º to 2º; blue triangle, from 2º to
3º; red triangle, from 3º to 4º; green triangle, from 4º to 5º; violet triangle, from 5º to 6º.
With regard to recoveries, 60 ringed individuals were recovered in 2002 (47 belonging to our ringing programme, that is, a
recovery rate of 7.1 %), 96 in 2003 (recovery rate: 6.6 %) and 172 in 2004 (recovery rate: 7.3 %). Most of these recoveries
occurred during the hunting season (mid August to mid October); however, three different situations were reported:
a) Individuals which were recaptured the same day of ringing at the same place.
b) Individuals recaptured at the same place on a different day of that on which they were ringed.
c) Individuals recaptured on different days and in different places.
With regard to a) the possibility, this may happen only when hearing/capturing points are not distant enough, clearly suggesting that the methodology has not been correctly applied by the ringers. Fortunately, it represents a low percentage of the recaptures (9-18 %).
In b) this is possible if we bear in mind that males have a turnover rate of 95 % in 15 days in Catalonia (Northeast Spain,
Rodríguez-Teijeiro et al. 1992) due to a constant inflow and outflow of males throughout the breeding season. This would
clearly suggest that sedentariness in those recaptured males occurs because they have had the chance of mating in the same
place they were ringed, and that, consequently, they did not need to do “Don Juan” movements in search of females. 46-65 %
of recoveries belong to this category. However, as the probability of recapturing a male after 20 days of capture is very low
(p=0.24, see figure 1), it suggests a slower turnover rate than that found in Catalonia, probably due to a higher number of
females.
c) The possibility (26-35 % of recoveries) shows interesting results: male recoveries occur in higher places above sea level than
those where they were ringed (t=2.20, 66 d.f., p=0.03). Due to the fact that the biological cycle of winter cereals is delayed by
altitude and, consequently, harvesting tasks too, it strongly suggests that nomadic altitudinal movements in search of suitable
habitats are on the basis of these movements. Moreover, recoveries in 2002 and 2003 show a clear East-West
bi-directionality, instead of the expected Southwest direction towards winter quarters in Africa of a migratory individual
(Rayleigh test: r2=0.73, p=0.033, n=6 for year 2002; r2=0.42, p=0.004, n=34 for year 2003; see figure 2). This bi-directionality is independent of the longitude where individuals have been ringed.
All in all, results obtained clearly indicate that autumn migratory movements overlap with nomadic movements in search of
suitable habitat and with “Don Juan” movements of males in search of females.
References
Guyomarc’h JC (2003) Elements for a Common Quail (Coturnix c. coturnix) management plan. Game Wildl Sci 20 (1-2): 1-92.
Heim de Balsac, Mayaud N (1962). Les oiseaux du Nord-Ouest de l’Afrique. P. Chevalier Ed, Paris.
Munteanu D, Maties M (1974). The seasonal movements of the Quail in Romania. Trav Mus Hist Nat ‘Grigore Antipa’ 15: 365-380.
Rodríguez-Teijeiro JD, Puigcerver M, Gallego S (1992) Mating strategy in the European Quail (Coturnix c. coturnix) revealed by male population density and sex-ratio in Catalonia (Spain). Gib Faune Sauv 9: 377-386.
Rodríguez-Teijeiro JD, Puigcerver M, Gallego S, Cordero PJ, Parkin DT (2003) Pair bonding and multiple paternity in the polygamous Common Quail
Coturnix coturnix. Ethology 109: 1-12.
456
Genetic differences in predator avoidance behaviour
of pheasants (Phasianus colchicus)
Rütting T 1, Brandt HR 2, Clauß W 1, Dzapo V 2, Engel P 2, Kaletsch A 2, Selzer D 1,2
1
Institute of Animal Physiology, University of Gießen, Wartweg 95, 35392 Gießen, Germany
2
Institute of Animal Breeding and Genetics, University of Gießen
Corresponding author: T. Ruetting. Tel.: Tel: +49-6-41-99-35-052, fax: +49-6-41-99-35-059,
Key words: tonic immobility; behavioural test; fear
The aim of our study was to determine predator avoidance behaviour of different subspecies of Phasianus colchicus. We found
behavioural differences depending on genetic variability, which could be a measure for the applicability of the subspecies concerning their release to the wild and predator avoidance, respectively.
Previously published data clearly indicate that losses of game-farmed pheasants released to the wild are relative high compared
with losses of wild pheasants (WAURISCH 1975, PIELOWSKI 1981, HILL & ROBERTSON 1988, BRITTAS ET AL. 1992).
Further studies additionally indicate that wild pheasants are shyer and more anxious than reared pheasants (MAJEWSKA ET
AL. 1979, KRAUSS ET AL. 1987). From these observations one can conclude, that survival of pheasants in general, but especially of game-farmed pheasants depends on their ability to protect themselves from predators and maintained flight reflexes
and natural dread.
The tonic immobility (TI) is described to be an index for timidity and thereby a measure for predator avoidance behaviour. It
was demonstrated that longer duration of TI positively correlates with timidity (SCHÜTZ ET AL. 2001). GALLUP (1979)
describes the tonic immobility as the best method to measure timidity in animals.
In our study, we determined the TI of three pheasant subspecies by behavioural tests as described by JONES & FAURE (1981).
For this purpose, chicks of three pheasant subspecies including the black-necked pheasant (Phasianus c. colchicus), the green
pheasant (Ph. c. versiculor) and black pheasant (Ph. c. mut. tenebrosus) were hatched, reared and housed under exactly the same
conditions. The following behavioural parameters were determined and compared within the different subspecies: the number
of inductions needed to induce immobility, the duration of the tonic immobility, the latency due to the first movement of the
head and the number of head movements.
Based on the performed tests, we found differences in TI between the different subspecies. Especially the Versicolor chicks
exhibited with 1.9 inductions obviously lower number of inductions to achieve immobility than the other two subspecies
(p<0.001, figure 1). It was also evident that only in the Versicolor group all individuals reached tonic immobility (observation,
data not shown). Further the duration of TI with 556 seconds was highly significantly longer compared to the Colchicus and
Tenebrosus chicks (p<0.001, figure1). Comparing the behaviour of the Colchicus and the Tenebrosus chicks concerning the
induction and the duration of the immobility, no significant changes were observed.
Also we found that the Versicolor chicks had a highly significantly higher average latency time before the first movement of
the head (approximately 7.5 minutes), compared to the other subspecies. The lowest average latency time was observed within the group of the Tenebrosus chicks (figure 2).
Fig. 1: Average number of inductions necessary to induce TI and
average duration of TI among different subspecies of pheasant
chicks (n=132)
time [sec]
number
The
Fig. 2: Average latency time to the first head movement and average
number of head movements per hour of pheasant chicks of different
subspecies (n=132)
457
findings show: 1) that green pheasant chicks (Versicolor) possessed the most effective predator avoidance behaviour within the
tested subspecies was additionally supported by the fact, 2) that Versicolor chicks exhibited the most frequent movements of
the head per hour which represents an index for the wakefulness of the animals (p<0.05 comparing the Vesicolor group and the
Tenebrosus group, figure2).
From the results of the behavioural tests presented in this study, we found that chicks of Phasianus colchicus versicolor showed
the highest timidity of all three groups while the chicks of Phasianus colchicus tenebrosus showed the lowest timidity.
Following the statement of BOYER ET AL. (1973) “inactivity equals wildness” the Versicolor chicks exhibited the highest
wildness in comparison to the other subspecies.
The tonic immobility (TI) as a native unlearned fear reaction is a major defence mechanism against predators. This instinctive
behaviour has evolved due to the selection pressure of predators (GALLUP 1977, JONES ET AL. 1991) and represents a
suitable method to test timidity in animals and pheasants, respectively. It can be expected that pheasants exhibiting higher
timidity will have higher chances to survive after releasing to the wild, because of the better adaptation to predators as shown
by results of GALLUP (1977). Therefore, Versicolor chicks are supposed to have more effective predator avoidance behaviour
in the wild compared to the other subspecies and therefore have a higher chance of survival after releasing to the wild.
To confirm the hypothesis that pheasants with higher timidity have also higher survival rates after releasing to the wild, it would
be necessary to start telemetric outdoor studies with the different pheasant subspecies.
References:
Boyer J-P, Melin J-M, Bourdens P (1973) Activity test on young pheasants. Ann Génét Sél anim 5: 417-418
Brittas R, Marcström V, Kenward RE, Karlbom M (1992) Survival and breeding success of reared and wild ring-necked pheasants in Sweden.
J Wildl Manage 56: 368-376
Gallup GG Jr (1977) Tonic Immobility: the role of fear and predation. The Psychological Record 1: 41-61
Gallup GG Jr (1979) Tonic immobility as a measure of fear in domestic fowl. Anim Behav 27: 316-317
Hill D, Robertson P (1988) Breeding success of wild and hand-reared ring-necked pheasants. J Wildl Manage 52: 446-450
Jones RB, Faure JM (1981) Sex and strain comparisons of tonic immobility (“righting time”) in the domestic fowl and the effects of various methods
of induction. Behav Processes 6: 47-55
Jones RB, Mills AD, Faure JM (1991) Genetic and experiential manipulation of fear-related behaviour in Japanese quail chicks.
J Comp Psychol 105: 15-24
Krauss GD, Graves HB, Zervanos SM (1987) Survival of wild and game-farm cock pheasants released in Pennsylvania. J Wildl Manage 51: 555-559
Majewska B, Pielowski Z, Serwatka S; Szott M (1979) Genetische und adaptative Eigenschaften des Zuchtmaterials zum Aussetzen von Fasanen.
Z Jagdwiss 25: 212-226
Pielowski Z (1981) Weitere Untersuchungen über den Wert des Zuchtmaterials von Fasanen zum Aussetzen. Z Jagdwiss 27: 102-109
Schütz KE, Forkman B, Jensen P (2001) Domestication effects on foraging strategy, social behaviour and different fear responses: a comparison
between the red junglefowl (Gallus gallus) and a modern layer strain. Appl Anim Behav Sci 74: 1-14
Waurisch S (1975) Erfahrungen bei der Entwicklung des Fasanenbesatzes im Wildforschungsgebiet Milkwitz. Beitr Jagd- u Wildforsch 9: 489-503
458
Seroprevalence of six reproductive pathogens in european
wild boar (Sus scrofa) from Spain:
the effect on wild boar female reproductive performance
Ruiz-Fons Francisco 1, Vicente Joaquín 1, Vidal Dolo 1, Höfle Ursula 1, Villanúa Diego 1, Gauss Ceres 3,
Segalés Joaquim 2, Almería Sonia 3, Montoro Vidal 1, Gortázar Christian 1
1
Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos IREC (CSIC-UCLM-JCCM), Ronda de Toledo s/n, 13005 Ciudad Real, Spain
2
Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Departament de Sanitat i d'Anatomia Animals, Facultat de Veterinaria,
Universitat Autonoma de
Departament de Sanitat i d'Anatomia Animals, Parasitologia i Malalties Parasitarias, Facultat de Veterinaria, Universitat
Autonoma de Barcelona
3
Corresponding author: Francisco Ruiz-Fons. Tel.: +34-9-26-29-54-50, fax: +34-9-26-29-54-51, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Diseases; Ovulation rate; Litter size; Resorption
Introduction
Populations of the European wild boar (Sus scrofa) have largely increased in Spain during the last 30 years
(Saez-Royuela and Telleria, 1986; Gortazar et al, 2000). The European wild boar is a polygynous species, with an autumnal
breeding season influenced by environmental conditions.
Both, the domestic pig and wild boar have common pathogens (Lipowsky, 2003; Mason and Flemming, 1999) and the European
wild boar could constitute a disease reservoir for the domestic pig (Cvetnic et al, 2003). Some of these pathogens are capable
of producing reproductive failure in pregnant sows, reducing litter size or killing the complete litter. The most relevant viral
diseases producing reproductive failure in domestic pigs are porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) and
porcine parvovirosis (PPV) (Mengeling et al, 2000), but other diseases affect the reproductive biology of suids, including viral,
bacterial and parasitic agents.
Our goals were to describe some risk factors that explain the presence of antibodies against these six significant pathogens
among Spanish wild boar and to determine, by means of a correlational study, the potential role that these diseases may have
on reproductive parameters in wild boar females.
Table 1. Mean reproductive parameters (mean ± SEM) and seroprevalence (mean ± SEM %) for different pathogens and the
mean index of pathogen seroprevalence (MIPS) through age-by-management groups. The p values of statistical tests for
differences between age and management type in regard of pathogens´ seroprevalence are shown.
a) Significant differences between sub-adults and adults from the same estate type (p<0.05).
b) Significant differences between similar aged animals from open and fenced estates (p<0.05).
c) Significant differences between estate type for adults and sub-adults together (p<0.05).
d) Significant differences between age classes considering both estate types together (p<0.05).
459
MIP S
Figure 1. Differences found in MIPS (± SEM) through
age-by-management groups. Diiferences between individuals same aged in fenced and open estates were statistically significant (p<0.05).
Between 2000 and 2003 data were collected from hunter-harvested wild boars in 54 Spanish localities. Every animal was morphometrically characterized, weighed and necropsied in detail. Based on tooth eruption patterns, boars were classified as juveniles, sub-adults, and adults (Saenz de Buruaga et al, 1991). Blood was collected from the heart into sterile tubes and after centrifugation serum was obtained. Reproductive tracts were collected from all animals and inspected in the laboratory to determine number of corpora lutea and litter size. A partial resorption index was established calculating the difference between number of viable fetuses and number of corpora lutea. Females were also classified as primiparous or multiparous according to
their age and body size.
Hunting estates were classified as open or fenced according to data obtained through a personal interview to gamekeepers
regarding management.
Serological tests were performed to detect antibodies against ADV, PPV, PRRSv, porcine circovirus (PCV2), Brucella spp. and
Toxoplasma gondii. We defined an index called mean index of pathogen seroprevalence (MIPS) that states the number of different pathogens against which any female had antibodies, ranging from 0 to 6.
Results
Results regarding differences in reproductive parameters and data regarding antibody prevalence against the tested pathogens
according to age class and estate type are presented in table 1.
When pathogen serological status was not considered, statistically significant differences in ovulation rate and litter size were
observed between adults and sub-adults
T. gondii was statistically related to ovulation rate and partial resorption index. T. gondii seronegative females had a higher partial resorption index than seropositive ones. No apparent relationships were evidenced regarding the prevalence of antibodies
against ADV, PPV, PCV2 and Brucella spp. and any of the reproductive parameters.
When the MIPS was tested, statistical differences were found for each age class and for both together, between open and fenced
estates. The highest values for this index were found in adults from fenced estates (Table 1, Figure 1).
Discussion
Reproductive parameters found in our study are comparable with other European studies (Mauget, 1972; Mauget, 1980;
Aumaitre et al., 1982), although litter size in fenced estates was only comparable to that recorded in Doñana National Park
(Spain) during a drought period (Fernandez-Llario and Carranza, 2000).
PPV was in our study widely distributed among Spanish wild boar populations. No apparent relationship could be established
between PPV and reproductive parameters.
No antibodies against PRRSv were detected in our sera, which indicates that PRRSv appears to be of little or no importance
among Spanish wild boar populations.
Brucella spp. produces abortion at all stages of gestation, but normally this implies abortion of all of the fetuses. Since we were
only able to study effects on partial resorption and litter size, other adverse effects of Brucella spp. on wild boar reproduction
may have gone undetected. In any case, the 29.7 % seroprevalence found suggests, in contrast to previous data (Vicente et al,
2002), that Brucella should be further studied in the wild boar in Spain.
In our study females seropositive against T. gondii had lower values of the partial resorption index than seronegative females.
The fact that T. gondii produces abortion only in a primary infection during pregnancy could explain our results.
For each of the pathogens tested, seroprevalences were higher in fenced estates. Hence, current hunting management systems
may be contributing to the maintenance of the circulation of pathogens in wild boar populations. The differences observed
460
between open and fenced estates regarding the mean index of pathogen seroprevalence suggest that animals from fenced estates
are more prone to suffer from multiple infections than those from open estates.
Our results could indicate that reproduction is not as efficient in fenced as in open estates and that the studied pathogens, in this
situation, may have a role in the population dynamics of the wild boar. In fact, the wild boar seems to have a role in the maintenance of ADV, PPV, PCV2, Brucella and T. gondii in Spanish mainland. Nonetheless, more work is needed to determine the
epidemiology of these diseases in the European wild boar from Spain and their role in Animal Health.
References
Aumaitre A, Morvan C, Quere JP, Peiniau J, Valet G (1982) [Productivité potentielle et reproduction hivernale chez la laie (Sus scrofa scrofa) en milieu
sauvage]. Journées Recherche Porcine en France 14: 109-124
Cvetnic Z, Mitak M, Ocepek M, Lojkic M, Terzic S, Jemersic L, Humski A, Habrun B, Sostaric B, Brstilo M, Krt B, Garin-Bastuji B (2003) Wild boar
(Sus scrofa) as reservoirs of Brucella suis biovar 2 in Croatia. Acta Vet Hung 51(4): 465-473
Fernandez-Llario P, Carranza J (2000) Reproductive performance of the wild boar in a Mediterranean ecosystem under drought conditions. Ethol Ecol
Evol 12: 335-343
Gortazar C, Herrero J, Villafuerte R, Marco J (2000) Historical examination of the status of large mammals in Aragon, Spain. Mammalia 64: 411-422
Lipowski A (2003) European wild boar (Sus scrofa L.) as a reservoir of infectious diseases for domestic pigs. Med Weter 59(10): 861-863
Mason RJ, Fleming PJS (1999) Australian hunters and the surveillance of feral pigs for exotic diseases. Wildlife Soc B 27(2): 395-402
Mauget R (1972) [Observations sur la reproduction du sanglier (Sus scrofa L.) à l`état sauvage] Ann Biol Anim Bioch 12(2): 195-202
Mauget R (1980) [Régulations écologiques, comportementales et physiologiques (function de reproduction), de làdaptation du sanglier, Sus scrofa L.,
au milieu] Doctoral thesis
Mengeling WL, Lager KM, Vorwald AC (2000) The effect of porcine parvovirus and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus on porcine
reproductive performance. Anim Reprod Sci 60: 199-210
Saenz de Buruaga M, Lucio AJ, Purroy J (1991) [Reconocimiento de sexo y edad en especies cinegéticas] Diputación Foral de Alava, Vitoria
Saez-Royuela C, Telleria JL (1986) The increased population of the wild boar (Sus scrofa L.) in Europe. Mammal Rev 16: 97-101
Vicente J, Leon-Vizcaino L, Gortazar C, Cubero MJ, Gonzalez M, Martin-Atance P (2002) Antibodies to selected viral and bacterial pathogens in
European wild boar from Southcentral Spain. J Wildlife Dis 38: 649-652
461
Fluctuating asymmetry, horn quality, and postmortem sperm
parameters in spanish ibex (Capra pyrenaica hispanica)
Santiago-Moreno J. 1, Toledano-Díaz A.1, Pulido-Pastor A.2, Gómez-Brunet A.1, López-Sebastián A.1
1
Dpto. Reproducción Animal. SGIT-INIA, Avda. Puerta de Hierro Km 5,9. 28040 Madrid. Spain.
2
Consejería de Medio Ambiente, Junta de Andalucía. DP. Málaga
Corresponding author: J. Santiago-Moreno. Tel.: +34-1-34-74-022, fax: +34-1-34-74-014, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: epididymal spermatozoa, testicles, wild goat
Introduction
Horns are secondary sexual characters used by males of many ungulate species for intra-sexual fights during the rut. In this way
the dominant males with most developed horns are naturally selected for reproduction. Several studies on wild ruminants have
suggested that horn quality may be correlated with semen quality (Roldan et al., 1998; Gomendio et al., 2000). The aim of the
present study was to determine whether inter-individual differences in horn asymmetry and horn size are related to differences
in sperm quality in a wild population of Spanish ibex (Capra pyrenaica hispanica), by analyzing horn data and data on epididymal spermatozoa collected post-mortem.
We collected morphometric horn data from a total of 59 mature males (9-15 yr of age) that were legally hunted during the rutting season. The testicles were recovered and epididymal spermatozoa were collected within a variable range of time after dead
(2h-60 h). Percentage of motile spermatozoa, motility rate, plasma membrane integrity, sperm viability, sperm morphology, and
acrosome integrity were determined. After death, the outer horn length and the horn base circumference at the horn-skull junction, were measured with a measuring tape. Absolute asymmetry was calculated as the difference between the two measurements of the right and left horns. Relative asymmetry measures were calculated according to the formula by Maylon and Healy
(1994): Asymmetry = ❘ (L - R) ❘/ (L + R), where L = measurement from the left horn, R = measurement from the right horn.
Based on horn length (HL) normally reached at 9 years of age horns were classified as L1 (HL ≥ 60 cm, normal length), L2
(HL 50 - 59 cm, short length) or L3 (< 50 cm, very poor length). Based on basal circumference measures (HB), horns were
classified as B1 (HB ≥ 20 cm, normal) or B2 (HB < 20).
Using these measures, horn quality (HQ) was calculated for each animal as the sum of the values for length (L = 1, 2 or 3),
basal circumference (B = 1 or 2) and asymmetry between the respective length (AL) and base (AB) values of the left and right
horns: HQ = L + B + AL + AB
On the basis of HQ, animals were assigned to one of four horn index- categories (HI): HI1 (HQ = 2), good horn condition; HI2
(HQ = 3), normal horn condition; HI3 (HQ = 4), poor horn condition; HI4 (HQ = 5), very poor horn condition.
Table 1. Sperm parameters (x ± e.s.) obtained from 59
Spanish ibex males at different times after death and categorized according to the index of horn quality (HI).
Groups according the time elapsing between the death and
spermatozoa recovering: I) 1.5-3.5h, n = 7; II) 4-9 h, n =
31; III) 11-16 h, n = 10, IV) 32-60 h, n = 11. Categories
according the horn index: HI1, good horn condition; HI2,
normal horn condition; HI3, poor condition; HI4, very
poor condition. %MP: percentage of motile spermatozoa;
MR: motility rating; %SM: percentage of morphological
sperm abnormalities; %NE: percentage of live spermatozoa; %HOST: percentage of typical tail coiling spermatozoa indicative of swelling; %NAR: percentage of normal
apical ridge sperm cells.
462
Viable epididymal spermatozoa could be retrieved from dead animals many hours after death. However, sperm parameters were
affected (P < 0.05) by the elapsed time between death of the animal and time of spermatozoa collection. Due to this, within
each group, sperm parameters were not correlated with animal age. Horn measures showed a wide range of individual variation in both horn lengths (36-78 cm) and basal circumference (16-23 cm). Horn base circumference was correlated with horn
length (r = 0.55, P < 0.001). The diameter of the testicular parenchyma was 5.09 ± 0.07 cm (range: 3.90 - 6.00 cm). Testicular
diameter was not correlated with horn length (r = 0.16, P = 0.22), but tended to be significantly correlated with basal circumference (r = 0.25, P = 0.06). The measures of testicular diameters were not correlated with horns quality index (r = -0.13, P =
0.30). The time of the death significantly affected the percentage of motile spermsy (P < 0.01), motility rate (P < 0.05), and the
percentage of normal apical ridge sperm cells (P < 0.01). The percentage of spermatozoa with cytoplasmatic droplets always
remained above 80%. Sperm parameters were not influenced by the quality of the horns (Table 1). Global absolute asymmetry
(mean ± s.e.) was more pronounced for horn length (1.36 ± 0.24 cm) than for horn base circumference (0.07 ± 0.05 cm).
Relative asymmetry of horn length was not associated with sperm qualitative parameters. Our findings suggest that morphometric horn characteristics do not reflect the reproductive condition in Spanish ibex. According to the sperm-competition theory, reproductive success is a function of both pre- and post-copulatory strategies (Preston et al., 2003). Contrary to this this
theory, qualitative sperm characteristics in Spanish ibex were not related to morphometric horn characteristicsrns, and thus the
reproductive success would be primarily related to pre-copulatory strategies (fighting ability related to horn development).
References
Gomendio M, Cassinello J, Roldan ERS (2000) A comparative study of ejaculate traits in three endangered ungulates with different levels of inbreeding: fluctuating asymmetry as an indicator of reproductive and genetic stress. Proc. Royal Soc. London, Series B. 267:875-882.
Malyon C, Healy S (1994) Fluctuating asymmetry in antlers of fallow deer, Dama dama, indicates dominance. Anim. Behav. 48:248-250.
Preston BT, Stevenson IR, Pemberton JM, Coltman DW, Wilson K (2003) Overt and covert competition in a promiscuous mammal: the importance of
weaponry and testes size to male reproductive success. Proc. Royal Soc. London, Series B 270:633-640.
Roldan ERS, Cassinello J, Abaigar T, Gomendio M (1998) Inbreeding, fluctuating asymmetry, and ejaculate quality in an endangered ungulate. Proc.
Royal Soc. London, Series B 265:243-8.
463
Recent situation on rabies of animals
in Moscow and Moscow region
Sazonkin V.N. 1, Domsky I.A. 2
1
Russian State Center on Quality and Standardization of Medicines for Animals and Feeds,
5, Zvenigorodskoye Shosse, Moscow, 123022, Russia, Phone:
2
Prof. B.M. Zhitkov Russian Research Institute of Game Management and Fur Farming, RAAS
Corresponding author: V.N. Sazonkin. Tel.: +7-0-95-25-93-546, fax: +7-0-95-25-31-491, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: diagnostics, natural and urban foci, fox, cat
Abstract
During recent years an epizootic situation on rabies in Russian Federation, including Moscow Region, remains serious.
Laboratory examinations carried out in 2003-2004 revealed 36 cases of rabies in animals. That disease is registered in all
regions of Moscow Region. The main sources of a causative agent of rabies in natural foci are foxes (38.8%), and in cities –
cats (41.6%). An epizootic role of cats in spreading a causative agent increased significantly in recent years. For that reason it
is necessary to carry out a complex of specific antiepizootic measures.
Introduction
Rabies is an infectious disease extremely dangerous for man and animals. It is characterized by the affection of a nervous system, practically absolute lethality and is one of the most widespread zooanthroponoses that has great socioeconomic consequences all over the world (Selimov, 1987; Dudnikov, 2002; Nedosekov, 2003).
According to the data of experts of the World Organization of Health (Report of 1994), in spite of antiepizootic and antiepidemic measures, over 50 thousand people and over 1 million animals die of rabies in the world annually.
The analysis of the spreading of rabies in Russian Federation during the recent 10-year periods is indicative of worsening of
epizootic situation. During 1981-2000 18 858 cases (in 2002 – 2200 cases, in 2003 – 3200 cases) of rabies in animals with a
different level of spreading over regions were registered.
In various geographical zones in certain periods of time different biological forms of rabies’ virus circulate. They differ in the
level of pathogenicity for certain species of animals and in patomorphological changes they cause in central nervous system.
For example, a simultaneous circulation of the virus of Arctic and classical rabies in different regions of Russian Federation,
and also an African virus “uluphoto”, a certain virus of rabies in Arctic foxes in Zapolyarie, herpeslike virus
“D-K”, etc. takes place (Nedosekov, 2002). In certain periods viruses that abruptly change an epizootic background and
epizootic situation predominantly spread. In particular, a “strengthened” virus giving the clinic of an ascending Lardy paralysis with a short period of incubation sometimes “breaks” the course of antirabic vaccination (Yagodinsky, 1977; Vedernikov,
2002).
The main carriers and sources of rabies causative agent in Russian Federation are wild carnivorous animals – fox, raccoon dog,
corsac, jackal, wolf, Arctic fox and also other species of animals (Domsky, 2002). In cities the main carriers of infection are
dogs and cats.The spreading of rabies and the forming of new natural foci are associated with the rise of the numbers of wild
animals susceptible to rabies, especially foxes that remain the main natural reservoir of rabies infection (Vedernikov et al., 2002;
Dudnikov, 2002; Makarov, 2002). Lately the role of dogs in spreading rabies considerably decreased, though their impact as
the source of people infecting with hydrophobia is great.
Table 1. Cases of rabies in animals of Moscow Region for
2003 per months
464
Table 2. Cases of rabies in animals from districts of Moscow
Region in 2003-2004
Annually the number of people that are injured by infected animals increases. Just in 2001 over 450 ths victims sought antirabic
help in traumatic polyclinics of the country. In 2002 twenty persons, including 5 children, died of rabies. In more than 80 countries of the world dogs are the main reservoir of urban rabies (Bogel, 1978; Joshi, Bogel, 1983).
The goal of our work is to estimate the situation on rabies of animals in Moscow and Moscow Region in 2003-2004. For that
purpose the analysis of all cases of the death of animals on the basis of the results of laboratory examinations, veterinary reports,
and also veterinary-sanitary control in the areas with the cases of rabies was carried out.
Results of Studies
In 2003 439 samples of pathologic material of animals’ brain were delivered to Moscow Veterinary Laboratory with suspicion of
rabies, in 2004 – 411 samples. During laboratory examinations with the method of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
24 positive samples (5.4% of the total number of delivered in 2003) and 12 positive samples (2.9% of samples delivered in 2004)
were revealed. A monthly picture of verified cases of rabies during 2003 is shown in Table 1.
As it is seen from Table 1 fox is the source of rabies in 11 cases (45.8 %), dog – in 2 (8.3 %), cat – in 10 cases (41.7 %). The goat
that died of rabies in August 2003 had a contact with a fox in a grazing meadow near a village of Drovnino of Podolsk District,
Moscow Region. Unfortunately, in August of the same year a person, a resident of the city of Pereslavl-Zalessky, infected with
rabies, died. A seasonal prevalence of rabies in animals was revealed. But it should be taken into account that in wild animals (fox)
the peak of disease falls on an early-spring period (February-April), the period of activity of animals associated with the rut, and
on a summer period (June-August) – their leaving of holes and dispersion of their young.
In domestic animals the peak of disease falls on an autumn period that follows the summer one when their contact with animals-carriers of the virus in a natural focus of disease is most possible.
In 2004 pathologic material from 128 dogs, 197 cats, 19 foxes, 8 squirrels, 2 wild boar, 1 raccoon dog was delivered for examination. Pathologic material from 32 dead rats, 16 mice, 1 guinea pig, 7 hamsters, 8 hedge-hogs, 1 rabbit, 1 polecat and 1 weasel
was also delivered to the laboratory. 12 positive cases of rabies were found after laboratory examinations. Three positive cases
were found when examining samples from foxes. All dead animals were from Moscow Region – Klin, Dmitrov, Mytishchi
Districts. One case of rabies was recorded after examining a dead raccoon dog from Mytishchi District, three cases – after
examining dead dogs of private persons from Moscow (in a summer period those dogs lived in country cottages in different
districts of Moscow Region) and five positive cases of rabies were found after examining dead cats.
Thus, during 2003-2004 in Moscow Region 36 cases of rabies in animals from different districts of the Region were registered,
and verified by laboratory experiments (Table 2).
As it is seen from Table 2 in almost all districts of the Region rabies was diagnosed. An especially serious situation is observed
in Dmitrov, Podolsk, Serpukhovo and Mytishchi districts where for a two-year period rabies was verified by laboratory tests in
2-7 cases.
It is important to point out, that in recent years rabies is regularly found in the material from Vladimir, Kaluga, Tula and
Yaroslavl Regions adjacent to Moscow Region. The fact that the number of the cases of rabies in cats increased is especially
alarming. In this connection an epizootic role of that domestic animal significantly rose, and cat became the most dangerous
source of hydrophobia for man.
Conclusion
The analysis showed that within 2003-2004 in Moscow and Moscow Region among various species of animals 36 cases of
rabies were recorded and verified by laboratory examinations.
It was found that in a natural focus the main carrier of rabies’ virus is fox, and among domestic animals in the recent time –
cat. The role of those animals in spreading rabies is equally a leading one within natural and urban foci. In total 80.5 % of all
officially registered cases of rabies (including fox – 38.8 % and cat – 41.6 %) fall on those foci.
Thus, it was found out that in the territory of Moscow and Moscow Region at present there is a natural and urban foci of rabies.
To eliminate it and to decrease its activity a complex of specific antiepizootic measures should be urgently carried out.
References
Bogel K. Rabies. Health of World. – 1978. – P.22-25 (Rus.).
Committee of experts of WOH on rabies. The 8 th report. Geneva. WOH, 1994. – P.117.
Domsky, I.A. (2002) Natural focus of rabies and its basic hosts. Veterinary Pathology p. 119-122 (Rus.).Dudnikov, S.A. (2002) Biological and economic problems of infectious diseases of wild animals and their role in pathology of agricultural animals and people. – Pokrov. p. 107-111 (Rus.).
Hedosekov, V.V. (2003) Thesis for a Doctor’s Degree. – Pokrov. (Rus.).
Joshi, D.D., Bogel, K. (1983) Prev. Infec. Diseases 10/4: 600-603 (Rus.).
Makarov, V.V. (2002) Rabies: foci of world nosoarea and general patterns of control // Veterinary Pathology 1: 12-20 (Rus.).
Selimov, M.A. (1978) Rabies. – Moscow. (Rus.).
Vedernikov, V.A., Shabalin, A.A., Kharkevich, A.A., Gulyukin, A.N., Klementiev, N.A.. Sezov, V.A., Kolomytsev, S.A. (2002) Review of epizootic situation on rabies in Russian Federation in 2000 and prediction for 2001. Veterinary Pathology 1: 52-59 (Rus.).
Yagodinsky, V.N. (1977) Dynamics of epizootic process. – Moscow– p 149-152 (Rus.).
465
Agricultural damage by wild boar Sus scrofa in Luxembourg
Schley Laurent 1,2, Krier Ady 1, Cellina Sandra 2, Roper Timothy J. 2
1
Direction des Eaux et Forêts, 16 rue Eugène Ruppert, L-2453 Luxembourg
2
Department of Biology & Environmental Science, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton
Corresponding author: Laurent Schley. Tel.: +35-2-40-22-01-314, fax: +35-2-40-22-01-350, e-mail:
[email protected]
Key words: wildlife management, supplemental feeding, population increase
The wild boar Sus scrofa L. has long been known to be a cause of damage to agricultural crops (Mackin 1970, Kristiansson
1985, Labudzki & Wlazelko 1991, Schley & Roper 2003). This is also the case in Luxembourg, where this problem has
increased dramatically over the past 20 years (Schley 2000). The objective of the present study was to analyse the incidence of
agricultural damage by wild boar in Luxembourg both geographically and over time, and to present some details about the main
crops concerned by the damage.
We analysed 8803 damage compensation forms received since 1998. We then related the damage by wild boar to the numbers
of wild boar shot by hunters both in terms of their development over time and in terms of their geographic distribution, and
analysed the seasonal distribution of damage for major crops. A description of the study site can be found in EFOR Ingénieurs
Conseils (1995) and Schley (2000).
wild boar shot
Demage (Euro)
Together with numbers of wild boar shot, the financial impact of wild boar damage has increased dramatically over the past 20
years (Fig 1.). Highly significant correlations between the level of damage and the numbers shot were found both in terms of
development over time (Pearson product moment correlation: r=0.812, n=33, P<0.01) and geographic distribution (r=0.448,
n=118, P<0.01). Only from November to January, the financial impact of wild boar damage is very low; during the rest of the
year it is relatively high. The greatest problem is damage to grassland, followed by damage to maize and other cereals (see also
Boisaubert & Sand 1994, Bouldoire & Havet 1981, Macchi et al. 1992). All types of damage were seasonally distributed.
Assuming that the numbers shot reflect
trends in population size, the results
indicate that the amount of damage is
strongly related to the numbers of wild
boar present. Moreover, this result
seems to be a clear indication that the
year-round supply of massive quantities of supplemental food by hunters in
the form of grain maize and other cereals (Cellina et al. 2004) has had little
or no impact whatsoever in reducing or
even only in stabilising wild boar damage in Luxembourg.
1995
1980
In terms of management recommendations, all short-term human-influenced
factors leading to the increase of wild
boar populations should be critically
examined. One notable example is
year-round supplemental feeding with
large quantities of food, carried out for
a number of different reasons. Instead of stabilising or reducing damage, this practice is indeed widely believed to have an
important effect in increasing wild boar populations, amongst other factors (Schley 2000, Eisfeld & Hahn 1998, Geisser 2000,
Groot Bruinderink et al. 1994, Hahn 2002).
In view of the results of the present study, supplemental feeding should therefore be stopped in order for humans to contribute
as little as possible to the increase of wild boar populations and, as a consequence of the latter, to the increase of wild boar damage.
References
Boisaubert B, Sand E (1994) Le sanglier en France. Evolution des prélèvements et des dégâts. Bull Mens ONC 191: 11-19
Bouldoire J-L, Havet P (1981) Nature et importance des dégâts aux cultures causés par les grands gibiers et les sangliers. Bull Mens ONC 48: 10-16
Cellina S, Schley L, Krier A, Roper TJ (2004) First results on the diet of wild boar Sus scrofa in Luxembourg. 5th international wild boar and suidae
Symposium, August 31-September 5, 2004, Kraków, Poland
EFOR Ingénieurs-Conseils (1995) Naturräumliche Gliederung Luxemburgs. Service de l’Aménagement des Bois et de l’Economie Forestière,
Administration des Eaux et Forêts, Luxembourg
466
Eisfeld D, Hahn N (1998) Raumnutzung und Ernährungsbasis von Schwarzwild. Forstzoologisches Institut der Universität Freiburg, Stegen-Wittental,
61 pp
Geisser H (2000) Das Wildschwein (Sus scrofa) im Kanton Thurgau (Schweiz): Analyse der Populationsdynamik, der Habitatansprüche und der
Feldschäden in einem anthropogen beeinflussten Lebensraum. Dissertation zur Erlangung der naturwissenschaftlichen Doktorwürde, Universität
Zürich
Groot Bruinderink GWTA, Hazebroek E, van der Voot H (1994) Diet and condition of wild boar, Sus scrofa scrofa, without supplemental feeding.
J Zool, London 233: 631-648
Hahn N (2002) Raumnutzung und Ernährung von Schwarzwild. LWF aktuell 35/2002: 32-34
Kristiansson H (1985) Crop damage by wild boars in Central Sweden. In: Proceedings of the XVIIth Congress of the International Union of Game
Biologists, Brussels, 605-609
Labudzki L, Wlazelko M (1991) Saisonale Dynamik der vom Schwarzwild im Feldanbau verursachten Schäden im Forschungsgebiet Zielonka.
Z Jagdwiss 37: 250-257
Macchi E, Gallo Orsi U, Perrone A, Durio P (1992) Wild boar (Sus scrofa) damages in Cuneo Province (Piedmont, Italy NW).
Ongulés/Ungulates 91: 431-433
Mackin R (1970) Dynamics of damage caused by wild boar to different agricultural crops. Acta Theriol 15: 447-458
Schley L (2000) The badger Meles meles and the wild boar Sus scrofa: distribution and damage to agricultural crops in Luxembourg.
D.Phil. Thesis, University of Sussex, UK
Schley L, Roper TJ (2003) Diet of wild boar Sus scrofa in Western Europe, with particular reference to consumption of agricultural crops.
Mam Rev 33: 43-56
467
Falconry – Cultural world heritage
Dr. Sigrid D. Schwenk
Forschungsstelle für Jagdkultur an der Technischen Universität München, Research Institute for Hunting Culture at the
Technical University Munich, UTM - WZW, Alte Akademie 8, 85354 Freising
Corresponding author: Sigrid Schwenk. Tel.: +49-1-71-74-19-092, fax:+49-8-16-17-13-900,
Key words: Frederick II; al-Gitrif; Moamin
Falconry is one of the most fascinating aspects of hunting history worldwide. Originating among the peoples of Skyths and
Sarmates, falconry has been clearly documented since the 3rd century AD. In Middle and Western Europe we can find positive
proofs since the 5th century (e.g. Paulinus of Pella, Sidonius Apollinaris), in Persia since the period of the Sassanides (3rd – 7th
century).
The most impressive work in the European history of falconry is undoubtedly the magnificent work by Emperor Frederick II
“De Arte Venandi cum Avibus”. This book, written in the first half of the 13th century, has been and still is the “bible” of
European falconers, the manual for theory and practice of falconry.
Frederick II of Hohenstaufen - grandson of Emperor Frederick I (Barbarossa), son of Emperor Henry VI and his wife Constance
of Sicily, 1194 born in Jesi near Ancona, 1259 died at Castel Fiorentino near Lucera, crowned King of Sicily in 1198, chosen
King-Emperor and crowned at Mainz in 1212 (in 1215 crowned a second time at Aix-la-Chapelle), 1220 crowned Holy Roman
Emperor at Rome by Pope Honorius III, 1228 crusade to the Holy Land, 1229 crowned himself King of Jerusalem – in his crusade through Egypt and Palestine, acquired his first-hand knowledge of falconry as it was practiced by the Arabs of Syria and
in other parts of the Near East.
In addition to extensive travelling in his huge empire, to the fighting of many battles and wars, and to many interior difficulties, Frederick II not only constructed quite a few admirable monuments in art and architecture – e.g. Castel del Monte – or
created a modern State by means of his reformatory efforts in public administration, but also wrote a voluminous treatise on
falconry, „De Arte Venandi cum Avibus“ - The Art of Falconry. In this compendium he wanted „to correct the many errors
made by our predecessors who, when writing on the subject, degraded the noble art of falconry by slavishly copying the misleading and often insufficient statements to be found in the works of certain hackneyed authors. We have investigated and
studied with the greatest solicitude and in minute detail all that relates to this art. Inter alia, we discoverd by hard-won experience that the deductions of Aristotle, whom we followed when they appealed to our reason, were not entirely to be relied upon.
Our main thesis, then, is The Art of Falconry; and this we have divided into two cardinal sections. The first contains the argument, by which we mean contemplative thought, or theory; the second illustrates practice, which portrays experimental action.
Our purpose is to present the facts as we find them.“ (General Prologue). Frederick’s II „ De Arte Venandi cum Avibus“ consists of a General Prologue and six books: I The structure and habits of birds; II Of falcons used in hunting, their furniture, care,
and manning; III On the use of the lure; on training falcons to fly in a cast; on educating gyrfalcons to fly at cranes; and on
hounds used in falconry; IV Crane hawking with gyrfalcons and other falcons; V Heron hawking with sakers and other falcons;
VI Hawking at the brook with the peregrine falcon. The first book includes a lengthy introduction dealing with the anatomy of
birds, an intensely interesting description of avian habits, and the excursions of migratory birds – a novelty in the literature on
falconry to begin with an ornithological dissertation on the prey. Frederick II based his treatise on experiences and experiments
– and for that reason his book is recognized as the first zoological treatise written in the critical spirit of modern science.
The principal merit of Emperor Frederic II was that he built a bridge between orient and occident, combining the sciences and
the experiences of falconry in the Arabic (e.g. the work of Moamin) and in the European world. Frederic II could read the
Arabic books on falconry – for most of us that is impossible as long as we are no Arabists. Since the publications of Detlef
Möller and Francois Viré we know more in this field. The first - indirect - reference to falconry in the Near and in the Middle
Orient can be found in the Babylonian Talmud, from the second half of the 3rd century AD. About 600 AD papers were produced on falconry by Byzantine, Persian and Indian physicians, at the court of the Sassanides. Around 700, Emir Adham ibn
Muhriz al Bahili collected written traditions on falconry in Arabic and non-Arabic (but translated into the Arabic) language. In
Damascus, in the 2nd or 3rd decade of the 8th century the young al-Gitrif ibn Qudama al-Gassani combined the written traditions
in his own and in Adham’s name in one work. In the period from 724 to 744 al Gitrif ibn Qudama al-Gassani was Master of
the Hunt in Damascus at the Court of Caliph Hischam and Caliph al-Walid II. In the year 775, the Abbasidian Caliph Abu
Abdallah Muhammad al-Mahdi received a book on falconry from Byzanz and as a result of that he commissioned al-Gitrif to
compile all works of falconry known at that time. Al-Gitrif executed the order in ten years’ time by combining his earlier
written work with the book of a Turkish Chacan. Under the reign of Caliph al-Ma’mun (813 – 833), al-Haggag ibn Haytama
copied the work of al-Gitrif. By changing small parts of the written text; the work known as the al-Haggag-version of al-Gitrif
was created.
468
Another author summarized the work of al-Gitrif in a shortened version with a didactic discourse on sicknesses of birds of prey
at the beginning, the so-called Iskandar-version. Under the reign of Caliph al-Mutawakkil (847 – 861), Hunayn ibn Ishaq, a
physician and translator of Greek papers wrote a book on falconry for the caliph by using the work of al-Gitrif. In the first half
of the 10th century the Arab poet Kusagim wrote a hunting book (Kusagim al-masayid wal-matarid) by consulting the alHaggag-version of al-Gitrif. In the year 1200 Abu l-Qasim composed the “Book of Gitrif”. Around 1240 the work of “Moamin”
(probably Hunayn ibn Ishaq) was translated from Arabic into Latin and contained large sections of the first part of al-Gitrif’s
work. Arabic literature on falconry reached its peak in the 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th centuries. The oldest dated manuscript of
the al-Haggag-version appeared in the year 1396, the oldest dated manuscript of the Iskandar-version in the year 1444.
The following presents a survey on the contents of the al-Haggag-version of the al-Gitrif: There are 153 chapters, the first 46
deal with the birds of prey, especially with four species mainly used for falconry: the goshawk, the peregrine falcon, the saker
and the eagle, their nature, behaviour, treatment, feeding and training. In chapter 48, the signs of good health, in chapter 49 the
signs of sicknesses are discussed. The remaining chapters present the diseases of the birds of prey, their medical care and their
cure.
With the work of Frederick II we recognize how far Frederick II exceeded the Arabic sources, how much more modern his view
and his knowledge of the art of falconry was and is, and we can understand, that even now Frederick II provides a leading
role and is a model for falconers. In his work we can see and feel how close the relationship between the falconer and his bird
of prey is, how trusting the interactions between the man and the bird, which still remains a wild creature to a certain degree.
Only exact observation, patient getting used to each other and careful training create the mutual atmosphere of confidence
which is so important and necessary for successful hunting with a bird of prey for many years.
Falconry represents a cultural world heritage, existing almost worldwide for centuries, appreciated at least for nearly two thousand years. Unique and basic in this kind of hunting – or better: in this kind of art – is the close relationship between the man
and the bird. They live together, they know one another exactly and they respect each other. The falcon has learned to trust the
falconer - in training or in hunting he flies away and comes back voluntarily. Falconry as a hunting method very close to nature
is absolutely ecological; it is environmentally conscious and promotes the preservation of the quarry as well as the birds of prey
to ensure their continuity. Thus it is a good example for the wise and sustainable use of nature.
In 1972 the UNESCO passed the “International Agreement on the Protection of the Cultural And National Heritage of the
World”, which has been signed by 178 nations so far. In 1992 a further Program – “Memory of the World” – was added; the
newest provision is thought to protect intangible cultural heritage worldwide. Recognition as “Cultural World Heritage by the
UNESCO” means accepting the responsibility and obligation to maintain the cultural heritage concerned in its original form.
At the moment, falconers and representatives of falconry are trying hard to have falconry recognized as a cultural world heritage by the UBESCO. For this reason the survival of traditional falconry, practised with full human reponsibility for the conservation of nature is warranted.
References
Al Gitrif ibn Quadama al-Gassani (1988) Die Beizvögel (Kitab dawari at-tayr). Georg Olms, Hildesheim Zürich New York
Friderici Romanorum Imperatoris Secundi De arte venandi cum avibus ...edidit Carolus Arnoldus Willemsen, Tom. I,II.Lipsiae MCMXLII
Friederich des Zweyten...Kunst zu Beitzen. Onolzbach 1756. Reprint 1994 (Nachwort von Sigrid Schwenk)
Viré F. (1967) Sur l’identité de Moamin le Fauconnier. In: Comptes rendus de l’Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres. Paris: pp. 172 - 176
469
Investigations on the ecotoxicology of game animals in Russia
Alexey A. Sergeyev, Vladimir G. Safonov
Russian Research Institute of Game Management and Fur Farming of RAAS, Engels str. 79, Kirov 610000, Russia,
Corresponding author: Prof. B.M. Zhitkov. Tel.: +7-8-33-23-20-204, e-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]
Key words: Heavy metals, wildlife, pollution, safety of people
In Russia, ecotoxicological research has been done for almost a century, although the term was introduced into practice much
later and is still not widely used today. At the beginning of the 20th century, the outstanding Russian scientist and philosopher
V.I. Vernadski undertook first studies and devised a progressive theory on the relationship between the chemical composition
of organisms and their environment. His followers A.P. Vinogradov and A.I. Voinar studied the significance of microelements
for animals and plants. In the early 1970s, findings in wild and domestic animals living in areas with natural biogeochemical
abnormalities were published. Studies on the content of chemical pollutants of anthropogenic origin in wildlife were first carried out in the former USSR in the 1960s. However, at that time the results of those studies were classified as secret. They were
therefore not published in the scientific literature open to the public and not communicated by mass media. First accessible publications appeared in the late 1970s/early 1980s. At the same time, large-scale studies on wildlife ecotoxicology were started
by the Institute of Ecology of Animals and Plants in Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg); however, mainly on Muridae. First papers
on pollutant levels in game animals were published in the mid-1980s. Studies concentrated on wild ungulates in the Baltic
States (Hordejarv, Ott, 1983), and later on ungulates and carnivores in Byelorussia (Deryabina 1995, 1996; Savchenko and
Sidorovich 1994). The paper by V.S. Bezel “Population Ecotoxicology of Mammals”, published in 1987, was of great scientific and theoretical significance. It considered micro-mammals, certain species of small Mustelidae, and waterfowl. The
period of democratic changes in Russia was characterized by a considerable decrease in scientific activities, due mainly to a
lack of funding. However, in the second half of the 1990s, research on game animal toxicology re-started due to an improved
economic situation and the availability of new analytical methods. Presently, about ten Russian scientific centers are engaged
in ecotoxicological studies on game animals [Russian Research Institute of Game Management and Fur Farming, Russian
Academy of Agricultural Sciences (working in the regions of Kirov, Astrakhan, Arkhangelsk, Novosibirsk, Ulianovsk,
Udmurtia, Tyva and elsewhere), Institute of Forestry of the Karelian Scientific Center, Russian Academy of Sciences (Karelia),
South Branch of Murmansk Sea Biological Institute, Kola Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences (south of the
European part of Russia), Institute of Ecology of Plants and Animals (Tyumen, Sverdlovsk and Chelyabinsk regions), Institute
of Geochemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences (Belgorod and Voronezh regions), Far East Agrarian University (Primorie),
Russian Scientific Institute of Veterinary Sanitation, Hygiene and Ecology, Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences (Nizny
Novgorod region and Yakutia)].
So far, data on the chemical composition of the organs and tissues of at least 27 species of game mammals (5 ungulate, 3 rodent,
2 lagomorph, 16 carnivore, and 1 insectivore species) and 18 species of game birds (10 Anseriformes, 6 Galliformes,
1 Limicolae and 1 Rallidae) were published. Game animals, whose meat is consumed by humans, are studied most actively,
especially moose (Kiryukhin and Telepnev, 1997; Medvedev 1998, 2004; Safonov et al. 2002; Sergeyev et al. 2004) and roe
deer (Senchik, 2004; Tyutikov et al. 1997), beaver (Davletov 1999; Safonov et al. 2000), brown bear (Medvedev 1998 2004;
Sergeyev et al. 2004), and several game birds – Galliformes (Bezel, Belski, 2003; Bezel et al. 2004; Lebedeva 1997; Sergeyev
2003; Sergeyev, Shulyatieva, 2002) and Lamellirostris (Lebedeva, 1999; Sergeyev, 2003; Sergeyev, Shulyatieva, 2002).
Mostly, samples of liver, kidneys, lungs, heart, and skeletal musculature are analyzed for heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Fe,
occasionally also Hg, As, Ni, Cr, Mn), sometimes also spleen, integument, bone and adipose tissue. Pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PHB), polychlorinated dibenzodioxins (PDD), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PDF), and dioxins are less
frequently studied.
Today, in Russia wildlife ecotoxicological studies focus on:
- the bioavailability, bioaccumulation and migration of toxic substances at the organismal and population levels under natural
conditions.
- the development and reproduction of game animals and other components of the biocoenosis under conditions of chemical
pollution.
- the use of game animals as biomonitors
- the safety of game meat for human consumption.
A certain body of data on pollutant accumulation in Russian game animals is now available. In addition, the use of game species
as bioindicators of environmental pollution was studied, as was the effect of certain pollutants on population characteristics of
game animals. Background levels of chemical substances in animals were compared with increased concentrations in individ-
470
uals from polluted areas. The influence of chemical factors on the populations of certain game mammals and birds was discussed with respect to management implications and the use of game animals as a human food resource.
However, for large parts of Russia, ecotoxicological data are missing. Thus many questions related to the role of toxic substances in the population dynamics of economically significant mammals and birds and the reaction of these organisms to the
chemical pollution of the environment were studied only insufficiently. So far, no experimental studies on the influence of
ecotoxicants on individual game animals and their populations were performed. Public health authorities never carried out work
on pollutant levels in game meat, and the ecological consequences of using lead shot are insufficiently known.
In late 2003, a general meeting of three Russian Academies (Academy of Sciences, Academy of Medical Sciences and Academy
of Agricultural Sciences) was held under the motto “Science for the Health of Man”. At the end of 2004, the Russian Research
Institute of Game Management and Fur Farming organized an International Scientific Conference “Food Resources of Wild
Nature and Environmental Safety of People”, the proceedings of which provide data from the recent investigations in ecotoxicology of game animals. Due to demographic problems in Russia, poor food rations of people and increased use of natural vegetation and animals, more ecotoxicological research is needed.
References
Bezel VS (1987) Populational Ecotoxicology of Mammals. M.: Nauka, 129 pp. (in Russian)
Bezel VS, Belski YA (2003) Multielement analysis of bone tissue of Tetraonidae of Middle Urals. Ecology.1:66-68 (in Russian)
Davletov IZ (1999) Ecology peculiarities of river beaver under conditions of urbanized environment. Author’s Abstract of Doctor Dissertation in
Biology. Izhevsk: Udmurtia State University. 19 pp (in Russian)
Deryabina TG (1995) Ungulates of Cervidae family in practice of bioindication of pollution of forest ecosystems of Byelorussia by heavy metals (Pb,
Cd). Ecology 2:90-95 (in Russian)
Deryabina TG (1996) Wild boar (Sus scrofa L.) – Bioindicator of pollution of their habitats by heavy metals. Ecology:474-475 (in Russian)
Hodrejarv H, Ott R (1983) On the occurrence of heavy metals in elks (Alces alces). in: Heavy metals environment. Int. Conf. Heidelberg,
Edinburgh.Vol. 1. pp 533-536
Kiryukhin ST, Telepnev VG (1997) Content of heavy metals in tissues and internal organs of wild animals as indicator of technogenous pollution of
environment. In: Fauna and ccology of terrestrial vertebrates of Siberia: Collected Papers. Krasnoyarsk: Krasnoyarsk State University. pp 225-227 (in
Russian)
Lebedeva NV (1997) Accumulation of heavy metals by birds in South-West of Russia. Ecology 1:45-50 (in Russian)
Lebedeva NV (1999) Ecotoxicology and biogeochemistry of geographical populations of birds. M.: Nauka. 199 pp. (in Russian)
Medvedev NV (1998) Birds and mammals of Karelia as bioindicators of chemical pollutions. Petrozavodsk: Karelia Scientific Center of Russian
Academy of Sciences. 135 pp. (in Russian)
Medvedev NV(2004) Ecotoxicological analysis of natural populations of birds and mammals of Karelia under conditions of increasing technogenous
pollution. Thesis for Doctor Dissertation in Biology. Petrozavodsk. 261 pp. (in Russian)
Safonov VG, Saveljev AP, Egoshina TL, Skumatov DV, Sergeyev AA, Shulyatjeva NA, Orlov PP (2000) Heavy metals in beavers and their foods in
Kirov region, Russia. In: 2nd European Beaver Symposium, 27-30 September 2000, Bialowieza, Poland. Program-Abstracts. pp 35-36
Safonov VG, Sergeyev AA, Yegoshina TL, Saveljev AP, Orlov PP, Shulyatieva NA (2002) Are the gifts of Vyatka Forest dangerous? in: Ecology,
Health, Life. Proceedings of the Second Regional Public Conference. Kirov, October 24, 2001. Kirov. pp 54-56
Savchenko VV, Sidorovich V (1994) Content of heavy metals in American Mink: entering, accumulation, discharging, bioindication possibility.
Ecology 6:69-76 (in Russian)
Senchik AV (2004) Environment and morphology peculiarities of Siberian roe deer (Capreolus pygargus Pall) in Amur Region. Author’s Abstract
Doctor Dissertation in Biology. Kirov: Vyatka State Agricultural Academy. 22 pp. (in Russian)
Sergeyev AA (2003) Heavy metals in game birds of Kirov region (Biological, indication and sanitary aspects). Thesis for Doctor Dissertation in
Biology. Kirov: VNIIOZ RAAS.183 pp. (in Russian)
Sergeyev AA, Shulyatieva NA (2002) Heavy metals in migrating Anseriformes. In: Recent problems of nature use, game biology and fur farming.
Proceedings of International Scientific and Practical Conference dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Russian Research Institute of Game Management
and Fur Farming (May 28-31, 2002). Kirov. pp 361-364 (in Russian)
Sergeyev AA, Shulyatieva NA (2002) Heavy metals in hazel grouse of the Cheptsa river basin. In: Recent Problems of nature use, game biology and
fur farming. Proceedings of International Scientific and Practical Conference dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Russian Research Institute of Game
Management and Fur Farming (May 28-31, 2002). Kirov. pp 364-366 (in Russian)
Sergeyev AA, Saveljev AP, Shulyatieva NA (2004) Heavy metals in game animals of Kirov Region. in: Food resources of wild nature and environmental safety of people: Materials of International Conference, November 16-18, 2004. Kirov:VNIIOZ; A.N. Severtsov Institute of Problems of Ecology
and Evolution. Kirov. pp 170-173 (in Russian)
Tyutikov SF, Karpova YA, Yermakov VV (1997) Content of microelements and toxic metals in organs of wild ungulates and agricultural animals in
relation to regional biogeochemical division into districts. Agricultural Biology 6:87-96. (in Russian)
471
Meat quality of birds after using lead shot
Alexey A. Sergeyev, Nelly A. Shulyatieva
Russian Research Institute of Game Management and Fur Farming of RAAS, Engels str. 79, Kirov 610000, Russia
Corresponding author: Prof. B.M. Zhitkov. Tel.: +7-8-33-23-20-204, e-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]
Key words: hazel grouse, cadmium, mercury, Tetraonidae
Introduction
Among the toxic substances contaminating the environment, heavy metals are considered the most dangerous. Determination
of background concentrations of these metals in the tissues of game animals is important when evaluating the questions of safety of meat of wild mammals and birds for human consumption. Toxicants are accumulated in the organism of animals through
feed, water and air. In addition, secondary pollution of meat may result by the use of projectiles containing toxic metals.
Presently, Russian hunters universally use lead shot. The aim of our paper was to estimate the level of secondary pollution of
the meat of Tetraonidae by metals contained in lead shot.
In 2001-2003, 6 black grouse (Tetrao tetrix), 4 hazel grouse (Bonasia bonasia) and 2 capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus) were
harvested in the territory of Zuevka and Belaya Kholunitsa Districts of the Kirov Region. In addition, 3 hazel grouse were
caught with loop traps. Five mm of muscular tissue around an entry wound were excised immediately after shooting of the
birds. As a control, samples from the same muscles were dissected from an uninjured part of the bird body not affected by lead
shot. Muscle samples were analyzed for lead and cadmium.
We further studied a possible contamination of stored bird meat by heavy metals. For that three male hazel grouse were snared
and their pectoral muscles were excised. The muscle from the right side was cut into 10¥10 mm pieces, and a single lead shot
of 3.5 mm diameter was placed into each specimen. The muscle from the left side was cut the same way and used as a control.
Muscle samples of the first hazel grouse were stored at room temperature for 2 days, those of the two other specimens were
frozen (-18°C) immediately after insertion of lead shot and kept at this temperature for 7 and 14 days, respectively. Afterwards,
the shot was removed from the muscle samples. Sample of muscle tissue from the experimental and control groups were dried
at 70°C, powdered, dry ashed and analyzed for lead, cadmium and mercury. Lead and cadmium determination was done by
flame atomic-absorption spectrophotometry, while mercury was determined by the cold vapor technique. Data were analyzed
by t-tests and regression analysis.
Chemical analysis showed that the meat of shot Tetraonidae was polluted not only by lead, but also by cadmium. The concentrations of both elements were increased (lead 1.5-10 times, cadmium 1.8-22.5 times) in the tissue surrounding the entry wound
compared to uninjured muscles (Table 1).
Maximal lead concentration in the muscle tissue along a wound canal was 5.4 µg/g dry wt., mean concentration 3.94 µg/g.
These values exceed the maximum permissible concentration in food (Hygienic requirements.. 1997) by factors of 3 and 2,
respectively. Mean and maximum concentrations of cadmium in the muscle tissue along a wound canal exceeded the maximum
permissible concentration by factors of 6 and 16, respectively.
Much higher levels of lead contamination of game meat have been reported in other studies. In deer and wild boar from Poland
shot with lead-containing rifle projectiles, lead concentrations in tissues along the wound canal amounted to 2300 µg/g dry wt.
(Dobrovolska and Melosik, 2003), exceeding the maximum permissible concentration in food more than 1000 times. Previously
Canadian researchers reported on lead contamination of the meat of waterfowl killed by lead shot (Scheuhammer et al., 1998),
and of increased blood lead levels in children from the Hudson Bay area due to consumption of bird meat contaminated by lead
shot (Smith and Rea, 1995). Johansen et al. (2001) calculated that a hunter in Greenland consuming the meat of one murre taken
Table 1. Concentration of lead and cadmium (µg/g dry wt.)
in uninjured and injured breast muscular tissue of Tetraonidae
by shot
472
Table 2. Content of heavy metals (µg/g dry wt.) in breast
muscles of hazel grouse after two days of storing at a room
temperature
Table 3. Content of heavy metals (µg/g dry wt.) in breast
muscles of hazel grouse after 7 days of storing at a temperature of –18 ºC
with lead shot, would take up about 50 µg of lead, that is a quarter of tolerable daily intake. Cases of acute or chronic poisoning in humans by intake of meat containing lead shot have been reported repeatedly (Hillman 1967; Madsen et al. 1988).
Fig. Dynamic s of transfer of
heavy metals from lead alloy shot
into hazel grouse meat
Our study revealed that the concentrations of lead, cadmium and mercury in the meat of hazel grouse containing lead shot
increased with time. This increase occurred both in samples kept at room temperature and in the frozen samples (Tables 2, 3).
After two weeks of storing at –18 ºC, mean concentration of lead, cadmium and mercury in the experimental samples had
increased by factors of 1.86, 2.25 and 2 times, respectively.
Regression analysis indicated that at a room temperature the transfer of heavy metals (Fig), especially cadmium and mercury,
from shot into meat occurred much quicker than at –18ºC.
Our study thus demonstrated secondary contamination of Tetraonidae meat by heavy metals derived from lead shot. Transfer
of metals from shot to meat was delayed by freezing. Based on our results, it is recommended to excise and discard the meat
along the wound canal and not to store the meat of shot birds for longer time before consumption.
Game animals are often used as indicators of the environmental pollution by heavy metals. When collecting material for analysis, the possibility of secondary contamination of samples by lead, cadmium and mercury derived from shot must be considered.
References
Dobrovolska A, Melosik M (2003). Shot-derived lead contamination in wild boar and red deer tissues. Abstracts XXVIth IUGB Congress,
Braga, Portugal. n.p.
Hillman FE (1967) A rare case of chronic lead poisoning: poly-neuropathy traced to lead shot in the appendix. Ind Med Surg 36:488-492
Hygienic requirements for the quality and safety of food raw materials and food products. (1997). Sanitary rules and standards (San Pi N 2.3.2.56096). Moscow. 270 pp. (in Russian)
Johansen P, Asmund G, Riget F (2001) Lead contamination of seabirds harvested with lead shot — implications to human diet in Greenland. Environ
Pollut 112:501-504
Madsen HHT, Skjodt T, Jorgensen PJ, Grandjean P (1988). Blood lead levels in patients with lead shot retained in the appendix. Acta Radiol 29:745746
Scheuhammer AM, Perrault JA, Routhier E, Braune BM, Campell GD (1998). Elevated lead concentrations in edible portions of game birds
harvested with lead shot. Environ Pollut 102:251-257
Smith LF, Rea E (1995). Low blood levels in northern Ontario — what now? Can J Publ Health 86:373-376
473
Population-habitat relationships for the roe deer
(Capreolus Capreolus L.) and wild boar (Sus scrofa L.)
in Epirus Region, Greece
Sfougaris Athanassios
Laboratory of Ecosystem Management and Biodiversity, Department of Agriculture, Crop Production and Rural
Environment, University of Thessaly, Fytokou str., N. Ionia, 384 46, Volos, Greece.
Corresponding author: Athanassios Sfougaris. Tel./Fax: +30-2-42-10-93-274, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Roe deer, wild boar, Greece
Introduction
Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus L.) is distributed throughout Europe, from Scandinavia and European Russia in the north to
Spain, Italy and Greece in the south (MacDonald and Barret 1993, Danilkin 1996). The wild boar (Sus scrofa L.) has the widest
distribution of any wild pig species. It can be found across Europe and temperate Asia.
Roe deer was once widely distributed in Greece (Sfougaris at al. 1999). Now, although it has a more restricted distribution, it
is present in a large part of Greek forests. It occurs in broad-leaved forests and conifer forests as well. Wild boar is the only
wild ungulate species in Greece that has extended its distribution in recent years and it occurs in shrublands, oak forests and
mixed conifer-deciduous oak. It has also been introduced into the southern part of the country (Peloponnese Region).
In the present paper the results of a study concerning the relationships between population levels of roe deer and wild boar and
various habitat parameters are presented.
Study area
The study was conducted in the Region of Epirus, NW Greece, having an area of 9,203 Km2 or 6.7% of Greece’s surface, during the years 1998-2001. Elevations range from 0 m to 2,637m. Climate is affected by different altitude and morphological factors and ranges from sub-Mediterranean to continental. Annual rainfall ranges from 780mm to 2,200mm.
The vegetation consists of shrublands with Kermes oak (Quercus coccifera), meadows and cultivations at lower altitudes. At
medium altitudes vegetation consists of oak woodlands (Quercus sp.) in mix with shrubs, and at higher altitudes black pine
(Pinus nigra), Beech (Fagus sylvatica), Fir (Abies borisii-regis) occupy a large area. The principal species found in shrub
vegetation were: Quercus coccifera, Quercus ilex, Arbutus unedo, Erica verticilata, Juniperus sp.
Mammalian fauna includes brown bear (Ursus arctos), wolf (Canis lupus), red fox (Vulpes vulpes), stone marten (Martes foina),
wild cat (Felis sylvestris), badger (Meles meles), whereas several species of birds of prey occur, e.g. golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), buzzard (Buteo buteo), goshawk (Accipiter gentilis), sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) and kestrel (Falco tinnunculus).
The animal density (individuals/Km2) was estimated as the mean value of the animal numbers in randomly selected plots of 30320 ha each, distributed to all habitat types available in the study area. A total census of the animals by the drive count method
with the aid of hounds and numerous observers was conducted in each plot (Cemagref 1984, Telleria and Saez-Royuela 1984,
Saez-Royuela and Telleria 1988, Cicognani et al.
Table 1. Mean roe deer and wild boar density (ind./Km2) in Epirus 2000, Mattioli et al. 2004)
Region, during autumn and winter of 1998-2001
For the habitat analysis of the study area, classification of seven SPOT multispectral images was carried out in combination with work on ground control
points (Lillesand and Kiefer 1979). The image spatial resolution was 20m.
The field data showed that the roe deer density
ranged from 0.14 to 4.82 ind./Km2 in the autumnwinter period (Table 1). The higher figures were
recorded in mixed conifer-broadleaved forest with
openings.
The region of Epirus is a good habitat for roe deer
and wild boar. The roe deer densities estimated in
Epirus are close to these reported from other neibouring countries (Bulgaria, F.Y.R.O.M., Romania),
474
but much lower than densities recorded in most European countries, like Austria, Denmark, Germany, Scotland and Hungary
(Prior 1995, Danilkin 1996). The autumn-winter density of the wild boar was estimated at 1.22-5.45 ind./Km2 (Table 1). These
figures are close to or a bit lower than the densities reported from other countries, like France, Russia, Germany, Poland and
norteastern USA (Howells and Edwards-Jones 1997).
The most preferred habitat types by the roe deer were in decreasing order: shrubs with openings, mixed forest (coniferbroadleaved) with openings and mixed oak forest with shrubs and openings (Figure 1). The habitats mostly preferred by wild
boar were, in the same order: shrubs with openings, mixed oak forest with shrubs and openings and a variety of other habitat
types (Figure 2).
The mean density of the roe deer had its highest value in altitudes higher than 1,000m a.s.l. and was reducing with decreasing
altitude, whereas the highest densities for the wild boar were recorded in altitudes 0-300m and 501-1,750m a.s.l. Both species
during the period of autumn-winter mostly used areas with eastern aspect.
Management recommendations
Roe deer: Although its hunting is forbidden, more effective protection of the population is necessary, especially in areas where
wild boar hunting is allowed. Long term monitoring of its populations. Preservation of forest openings through the forest management practices. Planting shrubs and low trees (Sorbus sp., Rosa sp. Sambucus sp., Rubus sp., Prunus sp.), as well as
legumes, in the openings.
% Observation
% Observation
Wild boar: Long term monitoring of its populations, more effective protection, improvement of hunting activity plans on a sustainable basis, preservation of dense maquis and other shrublands and planting potatoes, maize and other preferred food in the
forest openings.
Acknowledgements
I deeply appreciated the collaboration of the people who helped in field data collection: A. Giannakopoulos, H. Goumas,
N. Ieremias, the hunters and Forest Service personnel of Epirus Region. Funding was provided by Greek Ministry of
Agriculture/Directorate of Aesthetic Forests, Parks and Game.
References
Cemagref D (1984) Methodes de recensement des populations de chevreuils. Note techniques 51: 65
Cicognani L, Monti F, Gellini S, Pascucci M (2000) Censusing roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) populations for hunting management: a local experiment in order to increase the benefit cost-ratio. Hystrix 11 (2): 121-125
Danilkin A (1996) Behavioural Ecology of Siberian and European Roe Deer. Chapman and Hall, London, UK
Howells O, Edwards-Jones G (1997) A feasibility study of reintroducing wild boar (Sus scrofa L.) to Scotland: are existing woodlands large enough to
support minimum viable populations. Biological Conservation 81: 77-89
Lillesand T M, Kiefer RW (1979) Remote sensing and image interpretation. John Wiley & Sons, New York.
MacDonald D, Barett P (1994) Mammals of Britain and Europe. Collins, London, 312 pp.
Mattioli L, Capitani C, Avanzinelli E, Bertelli I, Gazzola A, Apollonio M (2004) Predation by wolves (Canis lupus) on roe deer
(Capreolus capreolus) in north-eastern Apennine, Italy. J Zool, Lond 264: 249–258
Prior R (1995) The roe deer. Conservation of a Native Species. Swan Hill Press.
Saez-Royuela C, Telleria JL (1988) Las batidas como metodo de censo en especies de caza mayor: aplicacion al caso de jabali (Sus scrofa L.) en la
provincia de Burgos, Donana. Acta Vertebrata 15: 215-223
Sfougaris A, Tsachalidis E, Giannakopoulos A, Pardalidis T (1999) Research on the ecology and management of the wild boar (Sus scrofa), roe deer
(Capreolus capreolus), red deer (Cervus elaphus) and Balkan chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra balcanica) in Epirus, Greece. Poster presentation at the
24th Congress of International Union of Game Biologists, Sept. 20-24, 1999 Thessaloniki, Greece.
Telleria JL, Saez-Royuela C (1984). The large mammals of Central Spain. Mammal Review 14: 51-56
475
Effects of landscape structure and protection status on grey
partridge (Perdix perdix) in Lagadas area, northern Greece
Sfougaris Athanassios and Tagarakis Aristotelis
Laboratory of Ecosystem Management and Biodiversity, Department of Agriculture, Crop Production and Rural
Environment, University of Thessaly, Fytokou str., N. Ionia, 384 46, Volos, Greece.
Corresponding author: Athanassios Sfougaris. Tel./fax:+30-24-21-09-32-74, e-mail:[email protected]
Key words: Grey partridge, agroecosystem, Greece
Introduction
A dramatic decline of grey partridge (Perdix perdix) populations in most European countries has been recorded during the last
decades (Potts 1986, Koskimies 1992, Gibbons et al. 1993, Tucker and Heath 1994, Aebisher and Kavanagh 1997, Bro et al.
2000). The same trend has been detected in Greece, where its distribution is restricted mainly to the north part of the country
(Thomaides and Papageorgiou 1992, Handrinos and Akriotis 1997). The modifications in the structure of agricultural landscape,
the intensification of farming practices, and the use of agrochemicals are some of the main factors that have caused this decline
(Pain and Pienkowski 1997).
This paper presents the results of a study carried out in 2003 concerning the differences in population density of grey partridge
between two neighboring areas, a protected area (game refuge) and an unprotected area. In both areas, grey partridge hunting
is not allowed. The size of the study area is 9,200 ha, 6,200 ha of which is unprotected and 3,000 ha falls within the game refuge.
The landscape is a typical farmland with cereals being the dominant crop. Uncultivated land and hedgerows form a small part
of the area.
For the analysis of the landscape structure the “line transect” method was used in selected roads, riding on a vehicle at low
speed. In each route the length of each crop adjacent to the road was recorded (Parr et al. 1997). Grey partridge numbers were
counted in spring (March) and autumn (early October) of 2003 with the aid of hunting dogs and observers. During the field
work the human activities and their possible differentiation in both sites of the study area (game refuge and unprotected) were
recorded.
The comparison of the landscape structure of the two study sites showed that cereals and maize are the main crops, covering
66,4% and 60% of the game refuge and unprotected site respectively. However, the proportion of maize is close to the proportion of cereals in the game refuge, in contrast to the unprotected site where the cereal cultivation is much more extensive than
maize (Figure 1 and 2).
The total uncultivated land (fallow, hedgerows, and riparian zones) in the game refuge is larger by 50% than that in the unprotected site. There are no other major differences in the land use pattern between the two sites, except for the higher proportion
of livestock fodder in the unprotected site. Hedgerows cover a small area in both sites.
The grey partridge density in spring was estimated at 6.3 individuals/Km2 in the game refuge, and 4.7 ind./Km2 in the unprotected
site. In autumn, the density was 17.8 indiv./Km2 and 11.2 indiv./Km2 in the game refuge and the unprotected site respectively (Figure
3). The population status of the grey partridge in the study area in 2003 based on the spring and autumn censuses conducted is considered good. However, there are areas in other
European countries where the grey partridge is
much higher (Reitz 1992, Salek and Marhoul
1999, Bro et al. 2000). During the fieldwork in
autumn, coveys of 18, 14 and 13 individuals in
the game refuge and 12, 11 and 9 individuals in
the unprotected site respectively were observed.
During the autumn counts, maize stubble burning and disturbance due to a hunting dog competition were possibly two significant disturbance factors for the grey partridge within the
game refuge. In addition to these, a lot of red
fox tracks were recorded.
476
The farming system in the whole study area is
considered intensive, especially in the case of
maize cultivation in the cereal fields after harvesting in June. Moreover, the use of agrochemicals and human disturbance during the farming
operations are more intensive and last more
months. The traditional farm management of the
study area which was characterized by a more
diverse landscape has been modified during the
last few decades to less diverse and more intensive agricultural landscape. In 2003, approximately 65% of the total cropland was assigned
to cereals and maize. Other crops constituted
only 10-20% of the cropland area.
Conclusions
Indiv./Km2
20
Refuge-Spring
Unprotected-Spring
Refuge-Autumn
Unprotected-Autumn
15
10
5
0
Figure 3. Population density of the grey partridge in Lagadas study area
(indiv./Km2)
The higher grey partridge density in the game
refuge in comparison to the unprotected site
could be attributed to: (a) differences in the
landscape structure, such as the better balance in
cereal-maize proportions and the wider extent of
the total uncultivated land in the game refuge.
(b) Protection status: hunting in the game refuge
is totally forbidden, whereas in the unprotected
site hunting is allowed from 15 September until
28 February. Grey partridge hunting is forbidden throughout Greece. (c) The disturbance due
to hunting dog training and competitions is possibly greater in the unprotected area. (d)
Hedgerows are a very important habitat for the
grey partridge (Church and Potter 1990, Panek
1997) and they cover bigger part (7%) in the
game refuge in comparison to the unprotected
site (3.2%).
The possible differentiation in predator pressure on the grey partridge between the two sites should be studied and evaluated.
Management recommendations
For the conservation and upgrading of the grey partridge population in the study area, the following measures are needed:
1. Extention of hedgerows in both sites, especially in the unprotected site.
2. Restriction of the total area cultivated with cereal and maize in favour of other crops. Promotion of a wider variety of other
crops requiring lower amount of agrochemicals.
3. The reorientation of agricultural policy towards integrated or organic agriculture in the area would positively affect overall
biodiversity, including grey partridge.
4. Hunting dog competitions should be reconsidered so that disturbance during critical periods for the species (pair formation,
egg incubation, etc.) is to be avoided.
5. Upgrading of the game refuge status in the area and more effective safeguarding of the species and law enforcement.
Acknowledgements
We are very grateful to Dr. P. Birtsas, gamekeepers of Lagadas area, J. Retzepis and A. Mesiakaris for their help in field data
collection.
References
Aebisher N, Kavanagh B (1997) Grey partridge. In: Hagemejer, WJ and Blair, MJ (eds) The EBCC Atlas of European breeding birds, their distribution and abundance. T & AD Poycer, London: pp. 212-213
Bro E, Sarrazin F, Clobert J, Reitz F (2000) Demography and decline of the grey partridge Perdix perdix in France. J Appl Ecol 37: 432-448
Church KE, Potter WF (1990) Winter and spring habitat use by grey partridge in New York. J Wildl Manag 54(4):653-657
Gibbons D W, Reid J B, Chapman R A (1993) The New Atlas of Breeding Birds of Britain and Ireland 1988-1991. T & A. D. Poyser, Berkhamsted,
Hertfordshire
477
Handrinos G, Akriotis T, (1997) The Birds of Greece. Christopher Helm, A and C. Black, London
Koskimies P (1992) Population sizes and recent trends of breeding birds in the Nordic countries. Vesi-Ja Ymparistohallinnon Julkaisuja 144:1-43
Pain DJ, Pienkowski MW (1997) Farming and Birds in Europe: The Common Agricultural Policy and its Implications for Bird Conservation. Academic
Press.
Panek M (1997) The effect of agricultural landscape structure on food resources and survival of grey partridge Perdix perdix chicks in Poland. J Appl
Ecol 34:787-792
Parr S, Collin P, Silk S, Wilbraham J, Yarar M (1995) A baseline survey of lesser kestrels in central Turkey. Biological Conservation 72: 45-53
Potts GR (1986) The partridge: pesticides, predation and conservation. Collins, London
Reitz F (1992) Adult survival and reproductive success in abundant populations of grey partridge (Perdix perdix) in north-central France. Gibier Faune
Sauvage 9: 313-324
Salek M, Marhoul P (1999) Seasonal dynamics and causes of loss in the grey partridge (Perdix perdix): results of counts and telemetry observations
in 1997 – 1999. Sylvia 35: 55-67
Thomaides C, Papageorgiou N (1992) Nesting biology and habitat use of the grey partridge (Perdix perdix) in northern Greece. Gibier Faune Sauvage
9: 443-446
Tucker GM, Heath MF, (1994) Birds in Europe: Their Conservation Status. Birdlife International, Cambridge
478
Ecological implication of tourism on big game
of Nepal Himalayas
Shrestha, Tej Kumar
Central Department of Zoology, Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur Campus, G.P.O. Box 6133, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Corresponding author: Tej Kumar Shrestha. Tel.: +977-1-42-79-748, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Big game mammals, ecotourism, Himalayan ecosystem, technology transfer
Nepal is facing a serious ecological problem arising from mass tourism in high Himalayas. Impacts of tourism on the
Himalayan ecosystem of Nepal have been analyzed. A scenario of touristic activity in Himalayan National Parks, Wildlife
Reserves are presented. Various attempt to redress ecological environment of Big game mammals such as Snow leopard
(Panthera uncia), Musk deer (Moschus moschiferus), Blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur), Tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus) and Wild
yak (Bos grunniens) are discussed. Environmental disputes arising from the innovation of new technology transfer are highlighted. Policy aspects for solving ecological problems connected with tourist and modus vivendi for managing and resolving
these current issues are discussed. Suggestions for the sustainable ecotourism in the Himalayan environment are given and
future research areas are highlighted.
Introduction
Himalayan kingdom of Nepal with an area of 147,181 sq. km is a land of great natural and cultural diversity. This country is
situated between China in the north and India in south, east and west. It lies in the central Himalayas of the great Himalayan
chain and possess a broad range of natural environments due to its striking altitudinal variation ranging from lowland riverine
flood-plains of Terai (<150 m) in the south to the magnificent towering grandeur of high Himalayas including Everest (8,848m)
in the north.
Prior to sixties, Nepal was famous for contiguous luxuriant forest and sport hunting of big games such as rhinos and tigers. But
the situation changed with the advent of development in the country and nationalization for forest in 1957 (Shrestha, 1989).
Most of the pristine forests of tropics were lost or heavily deteriorated due to rapid population growth (average annual growth
rate is 2.38%), heavily reliance on forest and mass migration of hungry people from hills to Terai. About ninety percent of 21
million population of Nepal resides in the rural area of the country. During past two decades due to destruction of forest habitat and killing of wild animals by hunters and poachers brought some species on the verge of extinction. Thus, the prime wildlife
habitats are degraded for fragmented as result of land development for cultivation and human settlements.
Impactogram 1
Methods
To study impact of tourism on
important touristic areas such as
Annapurna, Dolpo, Langtang and
Everest regions were visited on
foot between 2002-2004. Overall
scenario is recorded by direct
observation and photographic
records. Local village people, folk
healers, witch doctors and tourists
were interviewed. The data and
information so generated from
direct observation and literature
survey are discussed in this paper
and adjoining Impactogram 1.
Result and Discussion
The history of creation of protected area development dates back to
year 1973. Since this period,
Nepal has successfully set and
exemplary account of conventional wildlife management as well as
479
a model for participatory management of protected areas by introducing buffer zone and allocating certain percent of park revenue for community development. The Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation endeavors to ensure the protection of ecologically significant areas and its appropriate use side by side maintaining high quality wildlife tourism through
the development of protected area in the country. Shrestha 1989, has reviewed impact of tourism on the Himalayan ecosystem
of Nepal.
Overall Biodiversity
The highland Nepal comprise of high mountains, sky high snowy peaks and trans-Himalayan regions in the north with a total
area of 63,090 sq. km. (43% of Nepal’s area). The high mountains are predominantly covered with coniferous forest along with
rhododendron interspersed with alpine pastures. The high Himalayan landscape contains barren rock, snow and ice, and is an
area sparsely covered with alpine vegetation. The trans-Himalayan zone is characterized by little rainfall and sparse vegetation.
In Nepal there are 35 forest types and 75 vegetation types containing 6,500 species of flowering plants.
Nepal has 37% natural forest (5.5 million hectares), 5% shrubland and 12% grassland based on 1986 survey but the forest
coverage has declined to 29% according to recent survey of 1998 (NPC, 1998). There are 185 species of mammals, 847 species
of birds, 100 species of reptiles and 43 species of amphibians and 185 species of fishes are recorded in the country. An estimate
of 6,000 species of moths and 645 species of butterflies occur in Nepal (BPP report, 1995). However, recent estimation is 240
species of mammals, 882 species of birds, 147 species of reptiles and 60 species of amphibians and 204 species of fishes are
recorded in the country (Shrestha, 2003).
Touristic and Religious Environment
Many tourists flock in Himalayan foothills to admire and study wildlife. The Himalayan region of Everest, Annapurna,
langtang and Dolpo is dominated with monastic environment. The Bon Po culture is traditional Tibetan culture alive in
Himalayas particularly Shey Gomba belong to Kangyu Sect and is regarded as a departure from Kalchakra (circle of time),
Tantrism of the Nyungma Sect. It is believed that the Shey gomba was built in the eleventh century and is located in inner Dolpo
at an elevation of 4,573 m. Most of the gombas are decorated with mandala and Buddha paintings and contain valuable artifacts. The sacred prayer wheel, prayer wall, prayer flag, stupa and chorten are common. The animal killing is forbidden because
of the strong religious believe and wild blue sheep (Pseudois nayur) can be seen almost domesticated near Shey gomba.
The crystal mountain area of Dolpo is an altar for pilgrims and centre of tourism. The pilgrims go around the mountain and
attend holy festival at Shey in full-moon day in August. Each and every twelve years, a festival is celebrated for the protection
of villages from devils and Losar is another important festival which marks the new year. The local people have considerable
respect to holy sites and incarnated his holy highness lama. They are kindly people practicing percept of non violence. Their
teaching has been conductive for conservation of Himalayan wildlife.
Management Constraints and Challenges
High priority has been given to protect the area from any adverse environmental or cultural impacts due to tourism. The types
and magnitudes of problems have change in the lapse of time and park managers are facing new challenges which were not
perceived before. Major constraints/challenges as follows.
1. Habitat Modification
Habitat alternation is one of the serious threat that directly affects wildlife habitats outside the Himalayan park. The population
pressure from the surrounding villages affect the situation inside the park because of diversified human activities. The forest of
outer boundary of protected area have practically become a grazing ground for ever increasing cattle population. This area is
also site for collection of firewood, fodder and non-timber forest products. In Langtang national park, the only forest patch left
in the Trisuli valley which joins the park is just a remaining corridor for wild animal’s movement. The forest is heavily used
for collecting fodder and firewood for local consumption and hotels/lodges.
In Langtang park tall and unpalatable grasses have invaded and replaced. As illegal livestock grazing and fodder cutting are
prevalent, grasslands are influenced by these anthropogenic activities. Wetlands are facing problems like siltation, colonization
by weedy vegetation. The park is very much disturbed due to large influx of grass collectors into the park all at once and they
are even penetrating to core areas of Red panda (Ailurus fulgens). Number of encounters with wild animals such as black bear,
wolf, wild dog have been recorded which have caused serious injuries or sometimes death of the local people.
2. Anthropogenic Activity and Poaching
Poaching is still remains a serious problem particularly on species which have high game or commercial value in international market like snow leopard (Panthera uncia) for its pelt, argali sheep (Ovis ammon hodgsoni) for its horn, musk deer for its
pod, snow leopard for its fur and black bear for its gall-bladder. For developing a strong surveillance system to combat poaching, antipoaching units have been formed with the involvement of local people. The anti-poaching units have been very effective in suppress in poaching of endangered species and this systems need to be continued and extended to other protected areas
also.
480
3. Impact of Tourism and Resource Use conflicts
(i) Resource Constraints due to Ecosystem Imbalance
Nepal has 21 million population of its own and receives well over 463,684 tourist each year. Both human and livestock population is growing in the adjacent areas of Everest park whereas forest resources outside the protected areas is depleting. This
park eco-zone continues to face influx of tourist every year putting high demands for fuel wood, timber, leaf litter and live stork
grazing everyday. For gathering dry firewood, fodder and grazing in the mountains no fees are collected. In fact there is neither limit on the number of livestock nor does regulated rotational grazing exist. As yet there is no sustainable grazing policy
and only limited alternate rotational grazing exist. Over-grazing has become a serious concern throughout Everest and Langtang
and it will have more severe consequence in area like Sheyphoksundo, where pasture and barren land constitute over 70% of
the park. Non-timber forest products are essential commodities to many agro-pastoralists and illegal harvest of medicinal plants
at higher altitudes has become an important source of income to them but a threat to biodiversity conservation.
(ii) Wildlife and Man-eating Activity
Increasing predatory wildlife populations especially of common leopard (Panthera pardus), clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) and wolf (Canis lupus) have considerably raised the frequency of livestock depredation in mountain parks. Frequent livestock depredation is a serious threat to subsistence farmers and often loss of human life or serious injury puts the management
in great difficulties.
(iii) Wildlife and Crop-raiding Activity
The succession in grassland has decreased in fodder supplies and consequently, the number of animals coming out the park to
raid the crop has increased. Crop raiding is associated with the spill over of growing populations of large mammals from the
park into adjacent areas and such activities have become a management dilemma. Himalayan tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus) raid
potato and other hardy crops in the mountains while musk deer (Moschus moschiferus), wild boar (Sus scrofa) frequently damage the crops close by the park. They become target of hunters and trappers.
Conclusions and Recommendation
The most of highland national park Everest, listed in the World Heritage Site are facing threats from rapid population growth,
poaching of endangered species, unregulated tourism and declining resources outside protected areas. The areas adjacent to the
park should be designated buffer zones so as to maintain core habitat intact and to meet the legitimate and growing needs of
local people on sustainable basis. A coordinated and collaborative effort of all concerned agencies from local to global level is
needed to manage these site sustainably and effectively. Furthermore, consolidation of existing resources and management
skills need to be enhanced through manpower training.
In this respect, Nepal believe that the World Heritage Convention can play a pivotal role in raising and channeling funds to support to strengthen conservation education programs, preserve cultural heritage and initiate studies on waste disposal, garbage
management, sanitation and energy needs. Harnessing alternative solar and wind energy will play vital role to preserve biodiversity conservation particularly in mountains, it should be promoted to reduce the dependency on forest resources and halting
tides of environmental degradation. Besides, international agencies is strongly requested to support conservation of Everest
National park and sustainable tourism through strengthening antipollution and anti-poaching units and helping in information
sharing and networking of the protected areas in the region.
References
BPP, (1995) Red Data Book of Fauna of Nepal. Biodiversity profiles project Publication No. 4. Department of National Parks and Wildlife
Conservation, Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation. His Majesty’s Government of Nepal, Kathmandu.
NPC, (1998). The Ninth Plan, National Planning Commission (NPC), Kathmandu, Nepal.
Shrestha, TK (1984) Impact of man of wildlife of Nepal. Paper presented at the seminar on Environmental Impact Assessment, held in University of
Aberdeen, Scotland UK, July 8-21.
Shrestha, TK (1989) Impact of Tourism on the Himalayan Ecosystem of Nepal. In S.C. Singh (ed.) Impact of Tourism on Mountain Environment.
Research India Publication, Meerut, India, pp. 41-61.
Shrestha, TK (1997) Mammals of Nepal. B. Shrestha, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Shrestha, TK (2003) Wildlife of Nepal. B. Shrestha, Kathmandu, Nepal.
481
Fat content of pure european wild boar (Sus scrofa scrofa)
(2n 36) and hybrid (2n 37 and 2n 38)
raised in equal conditions
Oscar Skewes 1, Rodrigo Morales 1, Néstor Mendoza 2, Fernando González 1, Jeannette Martínez 1
1
Departamento Ciencias Pecuarias, Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria, Universidad de Concepción, Chillán.
2
Departamento de Bromatología, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad de Concepción. Concepción Chile.
Corresponding author: Oscar Skewes. Casilla 537, Chillán, Chile. Tel.: +56-4-22-08-834, fax: +56-4-22-70-201,
Key words: Wild Boar, fat Content, Outdoor.
Introduction
The European wild boar is being raised in Chile for meat production. Nevertheless there is some interbreeding with domestic
pig which leads to animals with chromosome number of 2n37 and 2n38, although these animal have a European wild boar phenotype (Skewes, 1995). The aim of study was to compare the fat content of the carcass of these three Kariothype groups raised
in identical conditions.
Seven animals of each genotype (2n36, 2n37 and 2n38) and, both sexes, with phenotype of wild boar starting at 60 days until
9 month of age, were maintained in same size outdoor paddocks, and same feeding regime. The animals were fed in kg amount
of 0.4 % live weight /animal/day with ration containing 16 % protein and 3028 ME Kcal/kg. and 2.2 % fat. The animals were
weighted at intervals of 30 days up to the end of the experiment. All the animals were slaughtered at the age of 9 month and
visceral, mesenteric and subcutaneous fat content were measured and statistical comparison (ANACOVA) between genotypes
with following model:
Yij: m + Ji+ β ixij + Eij
Yij = Individual variable.
m = Average population
Jj = Effect of Kariothype of the wild boar.
βixij = Live weight COVAR.
Eij = Residual error.
The comparison of live weight of the groups is presented on Figure 1. Table 1 shows the average of visceral, subcutaneous,
mesenteric fat, weight warm carcass and live weight for each genetic group. The statistical analysis demonstrated that significant differences did not exist, except for the mesenteric fat (P<0,05).
Fig. 1. Live Weight + SD of the three genotypes
Live Weight (kg)
Table 1. Fat weight of carcasses of different genotype of wild boar
482
Bosma (1976) detected in Netherlands, in a population of free living wild boar although in a enclosure, the three genetics groups
(2n36, 37 y 38) with phenotype of wild boar. It would be of interest to investigate, if those animals raised in the wild exhibit
the same productive differences between cariotipic groups as in our study.
The results show that the wild boar classified as pure (2n 36) are leaner and lighter than hybrids raised under some conditions.
Live weight values dispersion is lower in pure wild boar compared to hybrids. Muller et al., (2001) obtained heavier (48kg)
and fatted wild boars at 7 month of age, but working with animals in indoor system and with rations in excess of requirement
of the animals. On the other hand, the live weight of pure wild boar in the present study (47.2 kg) is sligthly higher than those
for free ranging wild boar of same age from Germany (42.5 kg) reported by Briedermann (1990).
References
Briedermann, L. (1990). Schwarzwild. VEB Deutscher Landwirtschaftverlag, Berlín.
Bosma, A. (1976). Chromosomal polymorphism and g. banding patterns in the wild boar (Sus Scrofa L.) from the Netherlands.Genetica 46:391-399.
Skewes, O. (1995). Estudio sobre el impacto del Jabalí (Sus scrofa L.) y su control en el Parque Nacional Vicente Pérez Rosales, X Región, Chile. Fac.
de Medicina Veterinaria, Univ. de Concepción, Chillán, Chile.
Müller, E., G. Moser, H. Bartenschlager & H. Geldermann. (2000). Trait values of growth, carcass and meat quality in Wild Boar, Meishan and Pietrain
pigs as well as their crossbred generations. J. Anim. Breed. Genet. 117:189-202.
483
The willingness of users of farming ecosystems to accept and
apply actions for the improvement of wildlife habitats
K. Skordas 1, P. Birtsas 1, K. Papaspyropoulos 2, C. Sokos 1
1
Hunting Federation of Macedonia & Thrace, 173 Ethnikis Antistasis, 55 134, Thessaloniki, Hellas
2
Laboratory of Forest Economics, of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Corresponding author: Kyriakos Skordas. Tel.: +30-2-31-04-77-128 (205), fax: +30-2-31-04-73-863,
Key words: Farming ecosystems, habitat improvement, willingness to accept (WTA), compensation, management measures,
wildlife species, hunting
The Farming ecosystems are considered as important areas for wildlife species, mainly for the game species. The farming techniques, irrigation systems, fertilization, mono-cultivation, intensive use of farming medication, etc. have negatively influenced
these areas, concerning biodiversity loss and wildlife habitats. Also the damage of natural plant-fences and other elements of
natural vegetation deprive necessary place for the needs of wildlife species.
The European Environmental Policy, as well with national initiatives, encourages the application of management measures in
farming ecosystems, compensating or subsidizing the farmers. However this requires the acceptance and active participation of
the individuals’ farmers, in order to apply environmental actions in their fields and property.
The Hunting Federation of Macedonia & Thrace created and tested a questionnaire trying to approach the willingness to accept
of users of farming ecosystems in order to apply actions for the improvement of wildlife habitats. The questionnaire was used
in the national Agricultural Exhibition of Thessaloniki, in Northern Greece, which is visited by thousands of farmers every year.
A random sample of 200 farmers was selected, of the 4000 thousands visitors that passed from a specific steady stand –point
of the Exhibition. These were equally divided during the open days and during the daily time. In the question if they would like
to leave a small part of their field uncropped or unpicked in order to help wildlife species more than 80% answer YES. In the
question what compensation they would demand for this the 84% of them answer that they do not wish to be compensated. The
sample is divided in farmers that are also hunters and those that are not. There in the farmers that are also hunters 86% of them
do not wish to be compensated, while in the non-hunters farmers the 91% do not want to be compensated. In the questionnaire
are also examined the relations of farming and hunting, the willingness to participate in awareness and information actions.
Also it is examined their opinion if wildlife species disturb or negatively influence agriculture.
The high percentage of WTA (Willingness to Accept) and the fact that hunting is not considered as a negative activity for agriculture is considered as an important basis to apply specific awareness campaign in farmers unions. The fact that a lot of farmers combine the activity of hunting creates precondition to apply awareness programmes as well and in the members of hunting associations.
References
Anagnostopoulou, Maria and Skordas K. (1995) MedWet training sub-project: Application on test site Kerkini, Greece, description of action and applicability of MedWet method for training. A MedWet publication. Greek Biotope/Wetland Centre (EKBY). Thermi. 14 p. (En, Gr su)
Gerakis, A. and Kiriaki Kalburtji (1998) Agricultural activities affecting the functions and values of Ramsar wetland sites of Greece. Agriculture,
Ecosystems and Environment 70:119-128
Filias B. 1993. Introduction in the methodology and techniques of social researches. Athens. Guntenberg publication. 439 p.
Gerakis, A., Kiriaki Kalburtji, and Tsiouris S.. (1998) The role of organic farming in the sustainable development of watershed resources of Greece. P.
638-644. In N. El Bassam, R.K. Bell and B. Prochnow (eds) Sustainable agriculture for food, energy and industry: Strategies towards achievement.
Proceedings of the International Conference held in Braunschweig, Germany, June 1997. James and James (Science Publishers) Ltd, London.
Hoevagel R. (1994) The contingent valutaion method : scope and validity. Institute for Environmental Sudies (IVM), Amsterdam
Katsakiori Maria @ Skordas Kyriakos (1997) Information of the representatives of the local authorities and the NGOs members to promote the
European Environmental Policy. Technical Report. Greek Biotope Wetland Centre, 79 pp
Nadal J. (2002) La vida silveste en los agrosistemas. Seminar, Improvement of habitats for game resources management. IAMZ Saragosa
Pearce, David W,& Turner K., (1990) Economics of Natural Resources and the environment. BPCC Wheatons Ltd, Exeter. 378 p.
Skordas, K. and Maria Anagnostopoulou (editors). (1995) Sustainable management of the water of lake Kerkini. Proceedings of a training course,
Serres, 25-29 September 1995. A MedWet publication. Greek Biotope/Wetland Centre (EKBY), Ministry of Environment, and Ministry of MacedoniaThrace. 144 p. (Gr, En su)
Snedecor W.G & Cochran G. W. (1992) Statistical Methods. The Iowa State University Press. 507 p.
Zalidis, G., S. Stamatiadis, Takavakoglou V., Eskridge K., and Misopolinos N.. (2002) Impacts of agricultural practices on soil and water quality in the
Mediterranean region and proposed assessment methodology. Agriculture Ecosystems and Environment 88: 137-146.
484
Wild boars’ (Sus scrofa) resting site ranges, preferences
and variability concerning drive hunts in mixed forest stands
in Lower Saxony, Germany
Sodeikat, G. & Papendieck, J. & K. Pohlmeyer
Institute of Wildlife Research at the School of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation
Müdener Str. 9, D-38536 Meinersen / OT Ahnsen, Germany
Corresponding author: Gunther Sodeikat. Tel.: 49-5-37-25-393, fax: +49-5-37-26-632,
Key words: Resting areas, Habitat Suitability Model, Home Range, Spider Distance
The population density of wild boar in Lower Saxony, Germany has increased drastically in the last decade. Wild boar cause
extensive damages to crops and their high density increases the risk of Classical Swine Fever (CSF) outbreaks.
Consequently, the reduction of the population density by hunting wild boars in zones with CSF is mandatory. An effective
hunting method is the drive hunt involving with beaters, hunters and dogs (terrier), forcing the wild boar to leave their resting
sites. However, it was uncertain whether this hunting method increases the risk of spreading the wild boars over a wider area,
which would enhance the spreading of the CSF-virus. This situation requires a competent pest management from veterinarians,
hunters, foresters, and wildlife biologists to decrease the damage and reduce the risk.
Since 1998 etho-ecological data of wild boar family groups in mixed forest stands in Lower Saxony, Germany was collected
by the Institute for Wildlife Research. By telemetric observations, behavioural data of ten radio-marked wild boar family
groups, with a total of 230 marked boars, was analysed. Especially the effects of drive hunts on their selection of
day-time resting sites before and after drive hunts are investigated. In the research area an average of 5,8 boar per square kilometre were shot. The main hunting season is during the winter. The drive hunt season lasts only from October until the end of
January (30% of the hunting bag). The wild boar groups were disturbed by the drive hunt in their day-time resting areas mostly only once during a particular hunting season. Single hunts were carried out throughout the year (70% of the hunting
bag).That means the hunting pressure varies considerably throughout the year.
In a first step we investigated the escape reactions after a drive hunt in a mixed forest stand; the results have been presented
annually (Sodeikat and Pohlmeyer 2002, 2003, 2004).
Further, we overlaid the obtained wild boar locations in a GIS (Geographic Information System) and used a HSI-Model, in
which the wild boars’ habitat preferences four weeks before and four weeks after drive hunts were evaluated with the help of
GIS and statistical software.
A basic step in understanding the wild boars’ variation in abundance is to correlate habitat-types with living conditions. The
day-time resting sites are very important areas within the wild
boars’ home range. They are selected depending on climate, food
availability, and safty. The HSI-Model is based on the radiomarked boars’ resting-locations and the vegetation structure,
which was mapped in the 3500 ha large research area.
1225 bearings (one location per day/group) as a statistical basis,
were used for a Habitat Suitability Analysis (HSI-Model), resulting in a suitability map (Fig. 1). The HSI-Model is the basic step
in understanding the wild boars’ habitat preferences in a statistically fortified way. It can be used in the future to extrapolate the
boars’ preferences to a larger landscape, resulting in a habitat
preference grid.
Fig. 1. Research area in Lower Saxony/ Germany: Habitat suitability map of the research area computed with Mahalanobis for
all collected telemetry bearings (n = 1225)
485
Fig. 2. Increasing resting areas (MCP) of nine wild boar
family groups four weeks before and four weeks after
drive hunts (n = 10) in comparison with the total home
range area
The research area’s vegetation is made up of about 50% forest and 50% farmland. We only looked at the forest for the HSImodel, which covers 1646 ha, because almost all resting sites are situated under tree-cover. The forest itself is made up of 30%
pine (Pinus sylvestris), 3% spruce (Picea abies), 5% oak (Quercus spec.), 0,7% larch (Larix europaea) and 9% other deciduous trees. The vegetation structure was mapped for each canopy layer, considering first, second and mixed tree layers, rejuvenescence, shrub layer and all important herbaceous plants. For the tree layers, cover-ratio, type, height and age were registered.
The shrub and herb layers were only mapped by cover and plant species - bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum), bilberry
(Vaccinium myrtillus), grass, black- and raspberry and other herbaceous species.
The wild boars’ locations were classified according to categories, e.g. activity/inactivity, season. For statistical analysis the
logistic regression (PEARCE & FERRIER, 2000), the biostatistical software Biomapper 3 (HIRZEL 2004) and the ArcView
extension Mahalanobis (JENNESS, 2003) were used.
The results from the habitat suitability analysis show a positive linkage between the preferred boar resting sites and the rejuvanescence vegetation layer and the bracken fern coverage. Computations were made for all day-time resting sites, before and
Fig. 3 left: Spider Distance Analysis of resting range of a wild boar family group (no. 1), before and after drive hunt;
right: Box plots of Spider Distance Analysis comparing resting site locations of nine wild boar family groups, collected four
weeks prior and four weeks after drive hunt situation.
486
after high hunting pressure situations and annually between 1998 and 2002 to see if habitat preferences can be correlated with
climatic variations. Here, no correlations were detected. When looking at differences in habitat use caused by drive hunts, also
no drastic changes were found. When validating the three used methods, the Mahalanobis computations showed the best adaptation to actual conditions.
Moreover, we investigated the wild boars’ selection of day-time resting sites four weeks before and four weeks after the drive
hunts. For data analysing we used the Ranges VI program (Kenward 2003) and the ArcView extension Animal Movement. The
resting areas are given as minimum convex polygons (MCP), and displayed as 95% and 100% home ranges area. The centre
of all wild boar groups’ resting areas is calculated as arithmetic mean. To test on differences we used the
T-Test and Welch-Test. For the Spider Distance Analysis the median was used.
Ten drive hunt situations with nine wild boar family groups observed by telemetry were analysed. The mean daytime resting
range of all groups four weeks before the hunt was 183 ha, four weeks after the hunt it was 299 ha (Fig. 2). On average, the
daytime resting range four weeks before the drive hunt in relation to the total home range was 30%, the daytime resting range
after the hunt was 48% of the 627 ha mean total home range. The resting areas after the hunt were mostly shifted, when compared to the areas before the hunt. On average, the resting areas four weeks after the drive hunt were overlapping the resting
areas four weeks before the hunt at only 32%. That means the wild boar avoided the former resting sites and occupied other
quiet hiding places nearby after the drive hunt.
The Spider Distance Analysis includes the mean differences of the resting locations, in relation to the centre point of the resting area, by comparing four weeks before and four weeks after the drive hunt.
The mean distances of the nine wild boar groups’ resting spots to the centre of the resting range before the hunt were 524m.
After the hunt they increased to 915m. (Refer to analysed data in the box plots (Fig.3)).
The resting ranges increased temporarily after the drive hunt in six cases (three significant). In these situations, we could
observe that three wild boar groups temporarily moved up to six km outside their wintertime range. But in all cases the boar
groups returned to the centre of their former home range within a period of four to six weeks at the latest. Four groups
decreased their resting areas (one significant) after the drive hunt.
If the wild boars’ central resting areas were put under hunting pressure and the surrounding areas stayed untouched, the wild
boars, if at all, only moved to the borders of their home range.
In literature one finds only few investigations about the effects of hunting on wild boar movements (BAUBET et al. 1998,
MAILLARD and FOURNIER 1995, CALENGE et al. 2002). Some wild boar groups reduced their resting territories to small
areas which often corresponded to quiet, poorly or unhunted zones, in other cases wild boars increase their resting areas. When
wild boars are frequently disturbed by drive hunts they will finally leave their home range in search of a more tranquil range
(MAILLARD et al. 1996) and this was the case for 9 out of 15 wild boar groups they had observed. If hunting disturbances are
less intensive the groups will stay in their home range.
The results of our observations allow some conclusions about hunting in areas contaminated by swine-fever-virus. A few drive
hunts, well prepared and organized, are very efficient in decreasing the density of a wild boar population. In situations where
the wild boar groups left and changed their resting ranges, a higher infection risk for other wild boars cannot be excluded,
although the escape movements stay only inside their total annual home ranges. However, the advantages of reducing the actual high wild boar population density by drive hunts are evident and we recommend this effective hunting method also in areas
contaminated by swine fever.
References
Baubet E, Brandt S, Touzeau C (1998) Effet de la chassé sur les strategiés d’occupation de l’espace des sangliers (Sus scrofa) .
Analyses préliminaires. -Gibier Faune Sauvage 15 (2): 655-658
Calenge C, Maillard D, Vassant J, Brandt S (2002) Summer and hunting season home ranges of wild boar (Sus scrofa) in two habitats in France. Game
and Wildlife Science 19: 281-301
Pearce J, Ferrier S (2000) Evaluating the predictive performance of habitat models developed using logistic regression. Ecological Modelling 133: 225245
Hirzel A H, Hausser J, Chessel D, Perrin N (2002) Ecological-niche factor analysis: How to compute habitat-suitability maps without absence data?
Ecology 83: 2027-2036.
Jenness J (2003) Mahalanobis distances (mahalanobis.avx) extension for ArcView 3.x,
Jenness Enterprises.
Available at:
http://www.jennessent.com/arcview/mahalanobis.htm.
Kenward 2003 Ranges 6 Software Anatrack Ltd., http://www.anatrack.com
Maillard D, Fournier P (1995) Effects of shooting with hounds on size of resting range of wild boar (Sus scrofa) groups in Mediterranean habitat. IBEX
J.M.E. 3: 102- 107
Maillard D, Fournier P, Fournier-Chambrillon C (1996) Influence of food availability and hunting on wild boar (Sus scrofa L.) home range size in
mediterranean habitat. - Proceedings of „Schwarzwild symposium“, 24-27. 03. 1996, Sopron, Hungary : 69- 81.
Sodeikat G, Pohlmeyer K (2002) Temporary home range modifications of wild boar family groups (Sus scrofa) caused by drive hunts in Lower Saxony
(Germany). Z. Jagdwiss., (Suppl.), 161 - 166
Sodeikat G, Pohlmeyer K (2003) Escape movements of family groups of wild boar Sus scrofa influenced by drive hunts in Lower Saxony, Germany.
Wildlife Biology 9 (Suppl.): 43-49
Sodeikat G, Pohlmeyer K (2004) Escape movements of wild boar piglets (Sus scrofa L.) after trapping, marking and releasing. Galemys 16: 171 – 179
487
Modelling population dynamics of wild boar (Sus scrofa)
in Lower Saxony, Germany
Sodeikat, G. 1, Papendieck, J. 1,2, Richter, O. 2, Söndgerath, D. 2, Pohlmeyer K. 1
1
Institute of Wildlife Research at the School of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation
Müdener Str. 9, D-38536 Meinersen / OT Ahnsen, Germany
2
Institute of Geoecology, Environmental System Analysis
Corresponding author: Gunther Sodeikat. Tel.: +49-5-37-25-393, fax: +49-5-37-26-632, e-mail: Gunter [email protected]
Key words: Jolly-Seber method, Leslie Matrix, Eigenvalues, Elasticity Analysis
Wild boars belong to one of the most successful synanthropic species in Western Europe. Due to various changes of habitat
conditions in the wild boars’ environment there was a vast increase of the population size since the 1960’s in Germany. This is
reflected in a rapid increase of the hunting bag, especially since the eighties. In Lower Saxony we are observing the same trend:
38.716 wild boars were shot during the 2003 hunting season (Fig. 1).
Changes of climatic parameters towards milder winters, a higher frequency of years with oak and beech mast and increasing
yields in agricultural production, mostly corn and wheat, are some of the factors that are improving the nutritional situation
and increase the wild boars reproduction rate. Their high reproductive potential is also supported by intensive baiting from the
hunters. The high density of wild boar causes damages in agricultural crops, enhances the risk of epidemics
(e.g. Classical Swine Fever disease) and causes many conflicts in suburban and urban areas. The current hunting strategy in
Germany is still based on the evaluation of game bag statistics, but this approach is not recommendable. Game managers and
hunters need sound basic data of reproduction rates and recommendations for a reasonable wild boar management, to stem population growth. Therefore it is inevitable to analyse the population dynamics and the environmental resources used by wild boar.
Crop yield [t/ha]
To set up a dynamic population model we used the Leslie-Matrix method (CASWELL, 2000) to explain the vast dynamics within the wild boar population. We calculated the initial
population size, age- and sex-ratio, reproduction rates
and survival rates. This basic information was collected through various sub-projects of the Institute for
Wildlife Research (SODEIKAT & POHLMEYER,
2003). For estimation of the initial population size we
used the Jolly-Seber capture-recapture method
(SEBER, 1982), which was applied to some annual
trapping data sets which were collected during a
telemetry study. This capture-recapture method can
be used for open populations, i.e. for populations with
immigration and permanent emigration, death and
Fig. 1. Annual crop yield in Germany [t*ha-1] and wild boar hunting bag reproduction. From 1998 up to 2003 annual trapping
and marking data sets, with 20 up to 110 trapped
(N*10000-1) in the time period of 1961 until 2004 in Lower Saxony.
boars per year, were collected and analysed. The
Jolly-Seber method estimated a total population size
of 380 wild boars for the total research area (3500 ha)
in the 1999/2000 hunting season.
The age and sex structure was derived from the ageand sex-ratio of boars shot during drive hunts, since
animals are shot quite randomly during these hunts.
The resulting age structure was 60% piglets, 23%
yearlings and 17% older animals. The sex-ratio consists of 53% female versus 47% male animals.
The survival probability (pi) of wild boars in our
modern agricultural landscape is mostly dependent
on the hunting pressure. Only little influence is
Fig. 2. Life cycle with fertility rates (Fi) and survival probabilities (pi) accounted to bad living conditions, since these are
for the three age classes of a wild boar population under fair living con- rarely to be found and also diminuished through the
ditions.
488
Fig. 3. The results of an analysis of the maximum
Eigenvalues (_) under fair living conditions with hunting
pressure. The survival probabilities p1 (piglets) and p2 (yearlings) take values in the range of 0 to 1, p3 (older animals)
is fixed at 88%. The ground level of the figure is at _ = 1. All
values of _ greater than 1 lead to an increasing
population.
hunters’ artificial feeding. The annual hunting bags of the research area were then implemented in the model and subtracted
from the initial population figure resulting in actual survival probabilities.
The fertility rates (Fi) are dependent on the reproduction rates of each animal as well as individual survival probabilities (pi).
These differ under various living conditions. The data used to determine reproduction rates is based on the research work of
STEINFELDT (2004), in which ovaries of shot female boars were examined. Ovaries were collected at various drive hunts in
Eastern Lower Saxony (sample size: 190).
The mathematical model was run for different environmental conditions, depending on weather and food situation but also
anthropogene disturbances, like hunting pressure. These factors are outputted as vital rates and implemented into the LeslieMatrix.
This allowed to predict the wild boars’ reaction to variability under various environmental conditions as well as under human
impact.
Moreover the model was extended with an Elasticity- and a Maximum Eigenvalue (_) analysis linking the results to hunting
recommendations.
Modelling with the Leslie-Matrix has shown that the wild boar population grows even further in spite of the actual hunting pressure (e.g. drive and single hunts). That means under present conditions the wild boar population will increase in the next years.
This increase will continue until the habitat dependent carrying capacity is reached and natural migration will increase even
more, forcing the wild boar into peripheral areas of their natural habitat.
The only possibility to control the wild boar population in the agriculturally used landscape is through reducing their survival
probabilities. That means hunters have to intensify the hunting pressure. Moreover, the Eigenvalue and the Elasticity analysis
suggest that particularly the piglets are the driving force for the wild boars’ increasing population (Fig. 3). Hunting should be
focused even more on piglets to achieve at least a stagnation of the population size at its current level. Of course, the other two
age classes should not remain completely untouched. The older age class is fairly unimportant in relation to the wild boar population increase. Since older sows play a very important role in the social structure of a wild boar family group (BRIEDERMANN, 1986), the hunting pressure on them should be minimized. The yearlings, on the other hand, have a more significant
effect on the population dynamics, although not as much as the piglets, and this should be taken into account in the hunting recommendations. This conclusion is, in line with the results obtained in Austria (BIEBER & RUF 2002).
As an outlook, these results will be implemented into a spatially explicit population model (SEPM) to help investigate epidemiological questions like the spreading of Classical Swine Fever (CSF). By putting up regional models like cellular automata,
which combine the Leslie-Matrix-Model and Habitat Suitability Models to one powerful system, simulations in the real landscape can provide an improved game management.
References:
Bieber C, Ruf T ( 2002) Populationsökologie des Schwarzwildes. Österreichs Weidwerk 8/2002, 11-14
Briedermann L (1990) Schwarzwild. Deutscher Landwirtschaftsverlag Berlin
Caswell H (2000) Matrix population models: Construction, analysis, and interpretation. 2nd ed. Sunderland, Massachusetts, USA
Richter O, Söndgerath D (1990) Parameter estimation in ecology: The link between data and models. Weinheim, Deutschland
Seber G A F (1982) The estimation of animal abundance and related parameters. 2nd ed. London, High Wycombe, England
Steinfeldt A (2004) Sauen im Überfluss. Niedersächsischer Jäger 24/2004:12-15
Sodeikat G, Pohlmeyer K (2003) Escape movements of family groups of wild boar Sus scrofa influenced by drive hunts in Lower Saxony, Germany.
Wildlife Biology 9 (Suppl.): 43-49
489
Siberian game birds under big city influence
Sergei A. Soloviev
Omsk State Pedagogical University, 14 Naberezhnaya Tukhachevskogo, 337, Omsk 644099
Corresponding author: Sergei A. Soloviev. Tel/fax: +7-3-81-22-43-795, e-mail: [email protected], [email protected].
Key words: Omsk, South forest-steppe, urbanization, biological diversity
The three game-bird study areas (Omsk oblast) are located in the South-West of the West Siberian plain going from Kazakhstan
and Central Asia. The flat landscape opens the sites for both cold arctic air from north and for warm air in the south. The average temperature of the area ranges between minus 18°C to minus 20°C (January) and plus 19°C to plus 20°C (July). In the
beginning of May meadows and asp-birch kolki (woods) start greening, but at this time night frosts are still frequent. First study
area: Omsk area (55° 00' N, 73° 15' E) is 494 square kilometers and the population is 1.138.000, and 70 % of the forest-field
landscape is ploughed. The second study area is situated 110 kilometers south of Omsk in the forest-steppe part of the Irtysh
valley (Tavricheskiy region). Third study area is situated 110 kilometers west of Omsk in the interstream area of the Irtysh and
Ishim (Moskelenskiy region, Fig. 1).
The study of the avifauna was carried out from 1972-2004. During 1986-1987 and 1997 between mid May 15 and the end of
August, birds were counted without limiting the width transects with a follow-up re-count of the area with the help of the interval method according to average distance detection (Ravkin 1967). For quantification abundance, we follow suggested A. P.
Kuzyakin (1962, see Tab. 1) The similar word characteristics of bird abundance are stated in the works of several authors
(Finsch 1879, Slovcov 1881, Sotnikov 1892, Morozov 1898) and they don’t contain a numeric assessment but only a subjective assessment. This should be borne in mind while comparing those data with our results. However, the stated comparative
analysis can serve as a starting point for further monitoring of bird population.
In April 1876 Finsh & Brehm (1882) went on expedition to Omsk. They reported that Omsk was inhabited by Cossaks. At the
end of XIX century forest-steppe near one little military Omsk settlement had the features of civilization throughout big area
in the form of rare villages and telegraph-poles and the cultured landscape of the forest-steppe of Omsk was comparatively well
developed only near scarce settlements. Large spaces were still almost unchanged in comparison with landscapes of the
European part of Russia or with landscapes of the Western Europe (Seebohm 1878; Ruzsky 1897). However, at the beginning
of the XX century M. Sijazov (1907) wrote:” The steppes and forests of our motherland Siberia and Stepnoi Krai are in a great
danger of a chaotic flow of migrants from the Urals; hundred thousands of them are coming every year by train and our country will be unrecognizable soon”. Every year they got nearly 10.000 swan skins near Tukalinsk settlement (140 km north to
Omsk) in 1876-79 (Finsh and Brehm 1882). Along the road West to Omsk a lot of ducks and swans on all lakes and rivers were
observed (Finsh 1877). The following influence of Omsk on the number of individuals has been stated: at the end of the XIX
century Greylag Goose (Anser anser) nested on the lakes near Omsk flocking together by the autumn (Sotnikov 1892). Now it
is rare in the nesting season (Tab.1).
Species Number of Individuals in the end 19th Century Number of Individuals per km2 in the end 20th CenturyGreylag Goose
(Anser anser) numerous rare (0,1) Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna) rare rare (0,1)Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) numerous rare (0,6) Green-winged Teal (A. crecca) very numerous very rare (0,08) Gadwall (A. strepera) very numerous very rare
(0,04) European Wigeon (A. penelope) very numerous rare on migration Northern Pintail (A. acuta) very numerous rare (0,9)
Garganey (A. querquedula) very numerous common (5) Northern Shoveller (A. clypeata) very numerous rare (0,2) Common
Pochard (Aythya ferina) common rare (0,3) Tufted Duck (A. fuligula) very numerous very rare (0,04) Grey Partridge (Perdix
perdix) very numerous rare (0,2) Common Quail (Coturnix coturnix) very numerous rare (0,8) Black Grouse (Lyrurus tetrix)
very numerous very rare (0,08) Willow Grouse (Lagopus lagopus) very numerous rare (0,1)
We believe that the main reason of the decrease of the abundance of game-birds is the urbanization of the researched territory
(1825-9.000). Omsk fortress was founded in 1716 at the inflow of the river Om into the Irtysh and occupied the territory of 30
hectares. During the observation period the following facts are carried out- nesting of Mallard, Garganey, Common Pochard,
Tufted Duck. These species of birds successfully bear anthropogenous ecosystem transformation and man's juxtaposition.
Mallard is observed in greater numbers in the Omsk boundaries on the flood-land marshes (90 individuals per km2) and reservoirs (42).
This fact follows statement of many authors that in the 20th century Mallard has become a synanthropic species (Urbanized
1994, Avilova 2001, Avilova et al 2003). Nesting Mallard is noticed in all 13 cities of Volga region and Ural region of Russia
where the adequate researches were carried out (Birds 2001). Green-winged Teal , Gadwall, Northern Pintail and Northern
Shoveller are rarer but also nest and probably are in the process of synurbanization. Mute Swan (Cygnus olor), Whooper Swan
(Cygnus cygnus), Greylag Goose, Common Shelduck, European Wigeon are rare and avoid such units. White-fronted Goose
(Anser albifrons), Lesser White-fronted Goose (Anser erythropus), Red-Breasted Goose (Branta ruficollis), Velvet Scoter
(Melanitta fusca), Long-tailed Duck (Clangula hyemalis), Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula), Goosander (Mergus merganser) are found just during migration periods. During all the time the earlier mentioned birds in the publications (Pallas 1786;
Finsch 1879; Slovcov 1881; Stepanov 1886; Sotnicov 1892; Morozov 1898; Shuhov 1925, 1928, 1930; Johansen 1959;
490
Gingazov and Milovidov 1977; Milovidov and Shevirnogov 1977) are not marked: Bewicki’s Swan (Cygnus columbianus),
Bean Goose (Anser fabalis), Brent Goose (Branta bernicla), Ruddy Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea), Falcated Teal (Anas falcata), Red-crested Pochard (Netta rufina), Ferruginous Duck (Aythya nyroca), Greater Scaup (Aythya marila), Smew (Mergellus
albellus), Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator) and White-headed Duck (Oxyura leucocephala). Grey Partridge and
Common Quail are still nesting. In frosty winters (2001) Grey Partridge pass in Omsk central parks. Lyrurus tetrix has become
very rare and Willow Grouse is rare now.
References:
Books:
Avilova K.V., Korbut V.V., Fokin S.U.(1994) Urbanized population of Anas platyrhynchos in Moscow, Moscow(Rus)
Gingazov A.M., Milovidov S.P. (1977). Avifauna of Western Siberian Plain.,Tomsk University Publishers Tomsk (Rus)
(2001) Birds of Middle Volga Region and near the Urals' cities. Master Line Publishers Kazan (Rus)
Shuhov I.N (1930) Lamellirostral of Western Siberia and adjoining countries.
Detector of Oxyura leucocephala, Aythya, Anas and Tadorna tadorna., Omsk (Rus)
Pallas P.S. (1786) Traveling to the different parts of the Russian Federation.
part 2, book 2, St.-Peterburg (Rus)
Finsh, O, Brehm A. (1882). Traveling to Western Siberia. Moscow (Rus)
Journal papers:
Avilova, K. V. (2001) The history of city group forming of Anas platyrhynchos in Moscow. Anser 7 : 240-255 (Rus)
Shuhov, I. N. (1925) Netta rufina' flight. Siberian hunter and fur maker. J 2-3: 52 (Rus)
Melnikov, I. I. (1887) Omsk, its hunting and hunters. Nature and hunting, Moscow, J 1:1-26(Rus)
Sotnikov, P. I. (1892) Ornithological essay of Omsk localities in brief. Nature and Hunting. J 5: 28-57(Rus)
Finsh O (1877). Ornithological Letters from the Bremen expedition to Western Siberia.
The Ibis. London, vol. 1:, P. 48-66
Finsch, O. (1879). Reise nach West-Siberien im Jahre 1876. Wissenschaftliche Ergebnisse. Gesellschaft in Wien. II Vogel. S.S. 128-280
Johansen, H. (1959) Die Vogelfauna Westsibiriens. Ordnung Anseres. In: J. Orn. 100, Heft 1/3:60 - 336
Sijazov, M. (1907). Between Akmoli and Shuchja (Florist's travelling notes). In: Notes of Western Siberian Division of Russian Imperator Geographical
Society. Book 23. Omsk, P. 1-11 (Rus)
Morozov, A. A. (1898) Birds' list of Akmolinsk region and adjusting locations of Tobolsk and Tomsk provinces. In: Notes of Western Siberian Division
of Russian Imperator Geographical Society. 24. Omsk: p. 1-16 (Rus)
Seebohm H (1878). Contributions to the Ornithology of Siberia. The Ibis. London: vol. 2 :173-184.
Single contributions in a book:
Avilova, K., Eremkin G., Popovkina A. (2003) Current status urban wildfowl population in Moscow. In: 4 th Conference of the European Ornithologists
Union. Chemnitz. Germany: p.11-12
Lavrov, S. D. (1925). Birds of Omsk Localities and their economic use. In: Zapiski of Agricultural Siberian Academy, Omsk: Vol. 4. p.102 (Rus)
Milovidov, S. P., Shevirnogov S. Z. (1997) Omsk birds. Biology questions, Tomsk University Publishers: 15-18(Rus)
Ravkin U. S (1967). To the method of forest landscapes' birds counting. In: Nature of tick- borne encephalitis' focis in Altai, Novosibirsk: Science
Publishers. Siberian Division,p. 66-75 (Rus)
Ruzsky M. D. (1897). A brief essay on fauna of the southern belt of Tobolsk province In: Year-book of Tobolsk Gov. Museum. Issue 17, p. 37-73 (Rus)
Shuhov,I. N (1928). Birds of Middle and North parts of near Irtysh Siberia (list and distribution). Zapiski of Siberian Institute of Agriculture and
Forestry. Omsk: p. 217-240 (Rus)
Slovcov, I. Ya (1881). Traveling notes of the trip to Kokchetavskiy district, Akmolinskaya region in 1878 . In: Notes of Western Siberian Division of
Russian Imperator Geographical Society. Book 3.Omsk Publishers: p. 152 (Rus)
Stepanov, P. (1886). Traveling notes of the trip to the heads of the rivers Tartas and Tara. In: Notes of Western Siberian Division of Russian Imperator
Geographical Society. Book 8. 1.Omsk Publishers: pp. 1-24 (Rus)
Kuzyakin, A. P. (1962). The USSR Zoogeography .In Zapiski of Moscow Pedagogical University: V. 109. part 1, p 3-182 Moskow (Rus)
491
Factors affecting game bags of barbary partridge
(Alectoris barbara), mediterranean hare
(Lepus capensis mediterraneus) and European rabbit
(Oryctolagus cuniculus) in Sardinia
Sotti Francesca, Sacchi Oreste, Meriggi Alberto
Dipartimento di Biologia Animale – Università degli Studi di Pavia, P.za Botta 9, 27100 Pavia
Corresponing author: Alberto Meriggi. Tel.: +39-0-38-28-96-307, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: habitat analysis, potential distribution, management.
Detection of the habitat factors influencing the abundance of game species is an important tool for their management; the habitat analyses related to the potential abundance and distribution of the species gives useful suggestion to management programs
and harvest planning. We considered 3 species of great interest both for conservation and management: the Barbary partridge,
the Mediterranean hare and the European rabbit. The first one is classified as SPEC 2 and endangered because of its limited
distribution in Europe (Tucker & Heath 1994); in Italy it’s only present in Sardinia (Mocci Demartis & Massoli-Novelli, 1978;
Brichetti, 1985). Also the Mediterranean hare populations are dramatically declining in Sardinia (Onida 2003, Spagnesi et al.
2003). Both species are affected by over hunting and the progressive habitat losses, in particular the destruction of
Mediterranean bush to create open spaces for farming and sheep grazing (Sacchi & Meriggi, 1999). The European rabbit is
more spread and studied in Europe but few researches were carried out on the ecology of the species in the Mediterranean island
habitat. The study was aimed to individuate the habitat factors affecting the abundance of the 3 species analysing and modelling their distribution and abundance in relation to the habitat characteristics.
We analysed the game bags of 2001 and 2002 from 91 hunting districts located in the provinces of Nuoro and Oristano (central Sardinia) and mainly characterized by mesophile woods, Mediterranean bush, and crops. Using the software Arcview 3.2
for Windows we calculated the percentage of surface covered by the different land use variables (Corine Land Cover 4th level).
From game bags we calculated 3 different indexes of abundance for each species: number of shoot animals (NSA), number of
shoot animals per km2 (SAD), and SAD referred to the number of hunters (SADH). The statistical analyses were performed by
the software SPSS 12.0 for Windows. We carried out correlation analyses (Pearson product-moment coefficient) to evaluate the
association between the land use variables and to choose subsets of non-correlated independent variables for further analyses.
Then we carried out curve-fit analyses between the abundance indexes and each habitat variable to detect the best model
fitting the original data. Finally, we carried out Multiple Linear Regression Analyses (MLRA, stepwise procedure) between the
abundance indexes and the land use variables to identify the habitat characteristics that affected the abundance of the 3 species;
MLRA were performed by using both all the habitat variables and the subsets of non-correlated variables. The importance of
each land use variable was estimated by the times that it entered the models.
For the province of Nuoro the abundance of Barbary partridge was positively correlated with crops (r=0.329; P=0.029) and
Mediterranean bush (r=0.345; P=0.022) and negatively with mesophile woods (r=-0.330; P=0.027). For the Mediterranean hare
a positive correlation resulted with the percentage of pastures (r=0.433; P=0.003) and a negative one with the mesophile woods
(r=-0.389; P=0.007). The abundance of European rabbit was positively correlated with the dry crops (r=0.688; P<0.0001) and
the pastures (r=0.401; P=0.006).
For the province of Oristano only significant positive correlations resulted, between the abundance of the Barbary partridges
and Mediterranean bush (r=0.399; P=0.009), of Mediterranean hare and reforestations (r=0.440; P=0.004), and between the
abundance of European rabbits and olive groves with crops (r=0.795; P<0.0001).
Tab. 1. Multiple Regression between the indexes of abundance of
the Barbary partridge and land use variables.
Tab. 2. Multiple Regression between the indexes of abundance
of the Mediterranean hare and land use variables.
492
Tab. 3. Multiple Regression between the indexes of abundance of the
European rabbit and land use variables.
The MLRA carried out for the Barbary partridge
reached explained variances of 33.6% (NSA
index) and 41.6% (SADH index), by the selection of 3 and 4 land use variables, all with significant partial regression coefficients (Table 1).
For the Mediterranean hare, the MLR model
explained percentages of variance of 38.8 (NSA
index) and 54.3 (SADH index) by 4 and 6 land
use variables that entered the models (Table 2).
The MLRA concerning the European rabbit
selected 4 habitat variables for Nuoro and other
4 for Oristano, reaching explained variances of
64.2% and 75.6% respectively (Table 3). We identified 24 subsets of non-correlated habitat variables by the regression analyses. For the Barbary partridge the most important variables that entered the models were Mediterranean bush, pastures, olive
groves with crops (with positive effect), and mesophile woods (with negative effect). For the Mediterranean hare the variables
that more often entered the models were crops, pastures, olive groves with crops (positive), and mesophile woods (negative).
Finally the abundance of the European rabbit was mainly affected by dry crops, pastures, olive groves, and olive groves with
crops, all with positive regression coefficients.
Our results revealed constant associations between some land use variables and the abundance of the species object of this
study. The differences between the provinces are probably due to the effects of other environmental factors (i.e. geomorphologic and climatic), a different hunting pressure or competition relationships. The progressive reduction of the Mediterranean
bush would probably conduct the Barbary partridge to the fragmentation and consequently isolatation of the populations, so
that it should be useful to preserve this habitat. The olive groves with crops is a particular old farming practice that is progressively replaced by more intensive farming and it resulted important both for the Mediterranean hare and the European rabbit so
it should be maintained. As a matter of conclusion the conservation of the 3 species considered in this study, can be achieved
by stopping the habitat modifications caused by intensive farming and livestock rearing, and by the tourism increase, which
produced widespread destructions of Mediterranean bush on the Sardinia coasts.
References:
Mocci Demartis A & Massoli-Novelli R (1978) Distribuzione caratteristiche e possibilità di ripopolamento della Pernice sarda
Alectoris barbara. Boll Soc Sarda Sci Nat 17:71-107.
Onida P (2003) Problematiche relative alle reintroduzioni e ai ripopolamenti nella gestione faunistico venatoria nel territorio
provinciale. Cagliari, giugno 2003.
Sacchi O, Meriggi A & Strappo A (1999) Tecniche e miglioramenti ambientali per la reintroduzione degli uccelli e dei piccoli
mammiferi di interesse venatorio. Atti II Conv Reg “Studio , gestione e conservazione della fauna selvatica in Sardegna”.
Oristano (in press).
Spagnesi M, Toso S, Cocchi R & Trocchi V (2003) Documento orientativo sui criteri di omogeneità e congruenza per la pianificazione faunistico-venatoria. Seminario sulle Problematiche relative alle reintroduzioni e ripopolamenti nella gestione faunistico venatoria nel territorio provinciale. Cagliari giugno 2003.
Tucker GM & Heath MF (1994) Birds in Europe: their conservation status. Birdlife Conservation Series n.3.
493
Circadian rhythm of habitat use by red deer (Cervus elaphus)
David Storms, Sonia Saïd, Jean-Luc Hamann, François Klein
Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage, Centre National d'Etudes et de Recherche Appliquée Cervidés-Sanglier,
1 Place Exelmans, 55000 Bar le Duc, France
Corresponding author: David Storms. Tel./Fax: +33-3-88-70-49-48, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words:
Extended abstract
Habitat use by species that are active at various times throughout a 24-hour period may reveal distinct patterns between day
and night periods (Beyer & Haufler, 1994). This might particularly be the case in species such as red deer, which shows a
bimodal 24-h rhythm of activity that peaks at dawn and dusk (Georgii, 1981) and is highly sensitive to human-related disturbance (Douglas, 1971; Jeppesen, 1987). Red deer is an intermediate feeder, with a mixed diet of grass and sedges, and concentrate food items (Gebert & Verheyden-Tixier, 2001) and therefore finds part of its food resources in open areas, whereas it
remains dependent on closed areas for shelter from human-related disturbance.
We studied habitat use by red deer hinds and hypothesised that it would show a bi-modal rhythm dependent on the spatial distribution of open areas providing food and closed areas providing shelter. We expected spatial separation between diurnal and
nocturnal home ranges and predicted that hinds would select areas providing shelter during daylight hours and areas providing
food at night, and that the effect of this bi-modal rhythm of habitat use would be an increase in hourly distances travelled by
the animals at dawn and dusk.
In order to test these predictions, six red deer hinds were captured and fitted with GPS collars in the Petite Pierre National
Reserve (PPNR), a 2800 ha unfenced forest area located in the Vosges mountain range, north-eastern France (48.5°N, 7°E). The
animals were located every day at noon and midnight, and each hour for 24 hours every second day, from March to November
2004. Simultaneously, we mapped the distribution of food and shelter resources by measuring vegetation biomass (Saïd et al.,
in prep.) and horizontal visibility every 100 meters (1 record/hectare).
We estimated diurnal and nocturnal bi-monthly home range and home range cores using kernel methods (Worton, 1989) and
measured the percent area overlap between diurnal and nocturnal cores for each animal (Kernohan et al., 2001). We then used
compositional analysis (Aebischer et al., 1993) to evaluate diurnal and nocturnal resource selection at the home range core
scale. Finally, we calculated mean hourly distances travelled by the animals (Merrill & Mech, 2003), relatively to sunrise and
sunset hours.
Our results (based on GPS data that have not undergone differential correction yet) show that red deer hinds have spatially separate diurnal and nocturnal home range cores (mean (±SD) area overlap: 3.72±2.84%) (see figure 1) and select areas with low
visibility and low ground vegetation biomass during daylight hours, and areas with high ground vegetation biomass and high
visibility at night. Analysis of movement patterns reveals peaks of hourly distances travelled at dawn and dusk.
This study emphasizes the importance of the spatial distribution of shelter from disturbance in the use of habitat by red deer.
These results might help finding ways to mitigate the damage deer cause to forest vegetation during the day when
they remain in areas with low food availability and at night
when they wander in search for food. Providing them with
areas offering simultaneously shelter from disturbance and
food could limit daily movements and damage to sensitive
forest regeneration areas.
Figure 1: Illustration of spatial separation and differential
resource selection between diurnal and nocturnal home
range cores (kernel 50%). (Based on GPS tracking of hind
“Pauline” from 01/04/04 to 31/05/04)
494
Distance parcourue (m/h) + SEM
Distance parcourue (m/h) + SEM
Figure 2: Mean (+SEM) hourly distance travelled by red deer hinds (m/h), relatively to sunrise (LEV) and sunset (COU) hours.
(Based on GPS tracking of 4 hinds from 15/03/04 to 15/06/04)
References
Aebischer NJ, Robertson PA, Kenward RE (1993) Compositional analysis of habitat use from animal radio-tracking data. Ecology 74:1313-1325
Beyer DE Jr, Haufler JB (1994) Diurnal versus 24-hour sampling of habitat use. J Wildl Manage 58:178-180
Douglas MJW (1971) Behaviour responses of red deer and chamois to cessation of hunting. N Z J Sci 14:507-518
Gebert C, Verheyden-Tixier H (2001) Variations of diet composition of red deer (Cervus elaphus L.) in Europe. Mammal Rev 31:189-201
Georgii B (1981) Activity patterns of female red deer (Cervus elaphus L.) in the Alps. Oecologia 49:127-136
Jeppesen JL (1987) Impact of human disturbance on home range, movements and activity of red deer in a Danish environment. Dan Rev Game Biol
13:1-38
Merrill SB, Mech LD (2003) The usefulness of GPS telemetry to study wolf circadian and social activity. Wildl Soc Bull 31:947-960
Kernohan BJ, Gitzen RA, Millspaugh JJ (2001) Analysis of animal space use and movements. In: Millspaugh JJ, Marzluff JM (eds.) Radio tracking
and animal populations. Academic Press, San Diego, California, USA: pp. 125-166
Saïd S, Pellerin M, Guillon N, Fritz H (in prep.) Forage availability assessment for ecological studies of browsers in deciduous woodland.
Worton BJ (1989) Kernel methods for estimating the utilization distribution in home range studies. Ecology 70:164-168
495
Newcastle disease and avian influenza viruses
in migratory waterfowl in Denmark 2002-2004 –
implications for domestic poultry
Ole Roland Therkildsen 1, Kurt Jensen Handberg 2, Poul Henrik Jørgensen 2
1
National Environmental Research Institute, Department of Wildlife Ecology and Biodiversity,
Grenaavej 12, DK-8410 Roende, Denmark
2
Danish Institute for Food and Veterinary Research, Department of Poultry, Fish and Fur Animals
Corresponding author: Ole Roland Therkildsen. Tel.: +45-8-92-01-724, fax: +45-8-92-01-51-4, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: epidemiology, wild birds
Extended abstract
The severe forms of Newcastle Disease (ND) and Avian Influenza (AI) are of major concern in agricultural communities
throughout the World. Any domestic poultry are likely to be seriously affected if infected by these highly contagious diseases
(Alexander 1995).
AI and ND virus infect most bird species, but the greatest variety and largest quantities of these viruses have been isolated from
waterfowl. Today it is widely accepted that these species represent a reservoir of both ND and AI virus (Alexander 2001,
Webster et al. 1992).
Several investigators have demonstrated the presence of AI and ND virus in wild birds (Alexander 1995). Circumstantial evidence has indicated that wild birds may serve as the primary source of virus in outbreaks of AI and ND (Alexander 2000, 2001,
Jørgensen 2001) but also that virulent ND virus may be transmitted from domestic birds to wild birds (Lancaster & Alexander
1975).
During 1995-96, 1998 and 2000 incidents of ND occurred in private house-hold chicken flocks, commercial chicken and turkey
flocks as well as in pheasants (Phasianus colchicus) raised for hunting (Jørgensen et al. 1997, 1999, Jørgensen & Handberg
2001, Therkildsen 2003).
Since 1995, wild birds have been suspected to be responsible for the primary introduction of ND virus into domestic poultry in
Denmark. Likewise, following a large outbreak of ND in 2002, wild birds were apparently implicated as the most probable primary source. Hence, during 2002-2004 a virological survey has been conducted to determine the extent to which migratory
waterfowl could play a role in the dissemination of ND and AI in Denmark.
Faecal samples of fresh droppings were collected in major breeding, staging or wintering areas of waterfowl. In total 19
species/races were included in the survey: great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo sinensis), Bewick’s swan (Cygnus
columbianus), greater white-fronted goose (Anser albifrons), taiga bean goose (Anser fabalis fabalis), grey-lag goose (Anser
anser), Canada goose (Branta canadensis) barnacle goose (Branta leucopsis), light-bellied brent goose (Branta bernicla hrota),
dark-bellied brent goose (Branta bernicla bernicla), dabbling ducks, i.e. mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), pintail (Anas acuta),
wigeon (Anas penelope) and green-winged teal (Anas crecca), lapwing (Vanellus vanellus), gulls, i.e. black-headed gull (Larus
ridibundus), common gull (Larus canus), herring gull (Larus argentatus) and great black-backed gull (Larus marinus). On
some occasions, i.e. when dabbling ducks or gulls occurred in mixed-species flocks, droppings were not identified to species.
One sample consisted of a pool representing 5 birds. In addition, 65 cloacal swabs were taken from individual dabbling ducks
shot during the hunting season. Altogether, l,560 samples were obtained at approximately 20 sites distributed throughout the
country.
Table 1. Overview of the number of samples obtained
during 2002-2004, and the number of AI viruses (AIV),
low pathogenic ND (LPND) and avian paramyxo viruses
(APMV) detected. The following subtypes of virus isolates
have been identified: H1N1, H3N2, H3N6, H3N8, H4N6,
H5N2, H6N5, H6N8, H10N7 and H16N3. The results from
2004 have not yet been analysed in detail.
1
496
Isolation by cultivation. 2 Virus detection by use of RT-PCR.
After collection the samples were stored at +5°C and brought to the laboratory within 24 hours. Usually, initial laboratory analysis was undertaken immediately after delivery. Alternatively, samples were stored in a freezer at –80°C until further laboratory analysis could be carried out. In the laboratory, virus isolation was carried out in accordance with CEC (1992a,b). Detection
of the presence of AIV by RT-PCR and sequencing was carried out as described by Munch et al. (2001) and Fouchier et al.
(2000) while the detection of NDV complied with Jørgensen et al. (1999).
Altogether, these results demonstrate that both AI and ND virus circulate in migratory waterfowl occurring in Denmark. In particular, dabbling ducks (Anas sp.) showed high rates of prevalence emphasising the importance of this group when elucidating
the spread of AI and ND virus.
The potential of waterfowl to spread virus is beyond doubt: they are highly mobile, and regularly move between local sites.
Waterfowl, more than any group of organisms migrate over long distances, and are the most obvious candidates for vectors of
long-distance spread of virus. Therefore this group of birds constitute a primary key to understand how ND and AI are introduced to commercial poultry.
However, the actual mechanism that link waterfowl and poultry has not yet been identified, and especially the ecology of waterfowl, in particular their habitat use and migratory patterns, has only been considered to a limited extent when discussing the
spread of diseases from waterfowl to poultry.
Naturally, in most cases the occurrence of waterfowl is closely associated with the presence of water (i.e. the largest concentrations of waterfowl are found in wetlands, especially outside the breeding season). In Denmark, most of the wetlands are distant from poultry farms, the latter being situated in rural areas with a mixture of agricultural and forest habitats. Consequently,
waterfowl behaviour and habitat preferences in combination with landscape features and food resource distribution significantly reduce the potential for contact between waterfowl and poultry. Hence, although waterfowl generally are characterised by a
high prevalence of both ND and AI virus, the habitat match is poor.
In contrary, other species (e.g. passerines), from which both ND and AI virus have been isolated regularly, are widely
distributed in farmland. They occur on or near poultry premises and therefore provide a better habitat match. Despite the lower
prevalence of virus typically found in these species (Alexander 1995, Stallknecht & Shane 1988), they may possess a hitherto
overlooked potential for the transfer of virus between wild birds and poultry. In addition, certain groups of species are of special interest considering their occurrence in both wetland habitats and farmland enabling them to serve as biological vectors
between waterfowl and poultry.
Therefore, more research is needed to assess the extent to which other species than waterfowl can serve as biological vectors
or simply are dead-end hosts.
References
Alexander DJ (1995) The Epidemiology and Control of Avian Influenza and Newcastle-Disease. Journal of Comparative Pathology 112 (2): 105-26.
Alexander DJ (2000) A review of avian influenza in different bird species. Veterinary Microbiology 74: 3-13.
Alexander DJ (2001) Newcastle disease. British Poultry Science 42: 5-22.
CEC (1992a) Council directive 92/40/EEC of 19 May 1992 introducing Community measures for the control of avian influenza. Official Journal of
the European Communities L167, 1-15.
CEC (1992b) Council directive 92/66/EEC of 14 July 1992 introducing Community measures for the control of Newcastle disease. Official Journal of
the European Communities L260, 1-20.
Fouchier RA, Bestebroer TM, Herfst S, Van Der Kemp L, Rimmelzwaan GF, Osterhaus AD. 2000. Detection of influenza A viruses from different
species by PCR amplification of conserved sequences in the matrix gene. Journal of Clinical Microbiology. 38: 4096-4101.
Jørgensen PH, Renström L, Manvell RJ, Hansen HC, Engström B, Nielsen OL, Alexander DJ, Frost KM (1997) The occurrence of Newcastle disease
in Denmark and Sweden 1995-1996. Characterisation of avian paramyxoviruses 1 isolates. Presented at the XI'th International Congress of the World
Veterinary Poultry Association, August 18-22, Budapest, Hungary.
Jørgensen PH, Handberg KJ, Ahrens P, Hansen HC, Manvell RJ, Alexander DJ (1999) An outbreak of Newcastle disease in free-living pheasants
(Phasianus colchicus). Journal of Veterinary Medicine Series B-Infectious Diseases and Veterinary Public Health 46: 381-387.
Jørgensen PH, Handberg KJ (2001) Emergence of Newcastle Disease in Denmark during the period 1995-1998. Infectious Disease Review 3: 25-30.
Munch M, Nielsen LE, Handberg KJ, Jørgensen PH (2001) Detection and subtyping (H5 and H7) of avian type A influenza virus by reverse
transcription-PCR and PCR-ELISA. Archives of Virology.146: 87-97.
Stallknecht, DE, Shane, SM (1988) Host range of avian influenza virus in free-living birds. Vet. Res. Commun. 12, 125-141.
Therkildsen, OR (2003) Newcastle Disease i vilde fugle. En gennemgang af litteraturen med henblik på at udpege mulige smittekilder for dansk
fjerkræ. Technical report from NERI 448: 62 s. (In Danish).
Webster RG, Bean WJ, Gorman OT, Chambers TM, Kawaoka Y (1992) Evolution and ecology of influenza A viruses. Microbiological Reviews 56:
152–179.
497
Seasonal variations in testicular activity and horn growth
in two mediterranean wild ruminant species:
Spanish ibex (Capra pyrenaica hispanica) and
European mouflon (Ovis orientalis musimon)
Toledano-Díaz A. 1, Santiago-Moreno J. 1, Gómez-Brunet A. 1, Pulido-Pastor A. 2, López-Sebastián A. 1
1
Dpto. Reproducción Animal. SGIT-INIA, Avda. Puerta de Hierro Km 5,9. 28040 Madrid. Spain.
2
Consejería de Medio Ambiente, Junta de Andalucía. DP. Málaga
Corresponding author: Adolfo Toledano-Díaz. Tel.: +34-9-13-47-40-46, fax: +34-9-13-47-40-14, e-mail: [email protected]
Keywords: testosterone, testicle, seasonality
Introduction
One of the common features of most wild species is the development of a restrictive period of sexual activity in order to give
birth at the optimal time of year, allowing the new-born to grow under favourable environmental conditions. Hence, seasonal
variations in reproductive activity is an essential adaptation to climatic changes in temperature and food availability to allow
the survival of the species. Adult males of many wild ruminants species show marked annual cycles of testicular involution and
recrudescence, including the transition between totally arrested and highly active spermatogenesis (Asher et al. 1999).
Coordinated seasonal changes of the morphological state of all parts of the reproductive tract and the production of spermatozoa and testosterone guarantee a successful reproduction within the short period of mating activity (Goeritz et al. 2003).
Furthermore, these events are strongly synchronised with the development of secondary sexual characters, such us the horns
(Lincoln, 1998). Thus, wild ruminants game species attain maximum horn development just before the onset of the breeding
season (Lincoln, 1998), and it has been suggested that low testosterone levels sustained through the sexually inactive period,
are required to promote male-type horn growth , whereas high testosterone levels prior to the rut inhibits their growth (Lincoln,
1994, 1998).
(a)
(c)
Scrotal circumference
(cm)
Horn base circumference
growth (cm/season)
The European mouflon (Ovis orientalis musimon) and the Spanish ibex (Capra pyrenaica hispanica) are wild ruminants species
both originated in the Mediterranean Basin. Despite that they are living in the same latitude, previous studies show that the
onset of the sexual activity is about one month earlier in mouflon ewes than in ibex females (Santiago-Moreno et al., 2001,
2003). A similar lag-time in gonadal activity between males of these species should be expected and, thus we hypothesized a
delayed arrest in the horn growth in ibexes.
(d)
Testosterone
(ng/ml)
Horn lenght
growth (cm/season)
(b)
Figure 1. Seasonal changes in the horn growth (cm; mean ± S.E.M), scrotal circumference (cm; mean ± S.E.M) and plasma
testosterone concentrations (ng/ml; mean ± S.E.M). (a) Horn base circumference, (b) horn length, (c) scrotal circumference
and (d) plasma testosterone. Spanish ibex (■) European mouflon (❍).
498
Six ibexes and five mouflons, aged 1-4 yr, were housed in captive regimen under natural daylength conditions, at a latitude of
40° 25’N, in adjacent enclosures. The animals were acclimated to routine strains and handling. Animal manipulations were performed according the Spanish Policy for Animal Protection, RD223/1988, which conforms to the European Union Directive
86/609, about protection of animals used for experimental and other scientific purposes.
Three blood samples (10:00 h, 11:00h, 12:00 h) were collected twice monthly (two weeks apart) for 12 months, by jugular
venepuncture and centrifuged at 1500 g for 15 minutes. The plasma was separated and a pool of 1 ml aliquots of the three
samples was made and stored at -15°C until required for testosterone analysis by radioimmunoassay. This regimen of sampling
was used in order to increase precision of the assessment of mean concentration because of the marked fluctuations, over
relatively short periods, in peripheral plasma levels of testosterone The horn growth and the scrotal circumference were weekly recorded throughout 12 months. The rate of horn growth was measured weekly using the distance from de base to a
reference mark made at the upper edge of the horn, and the horn base circumference around the horn-skull from both horns.
(Santiago-Moreno et al. 2005)
The seasonal variations in horn growth and scrotal circumference in both ibexes and mouflons are depicted in the Figure 1. The
ibexes show a strong seasonality in horn growth (P < 0.001) with largest growth occurring in spring( 0.77 ± 0.09 cm) and lowest growth in winter (0.24 ± 0.05 cm). The largest values for the horn base circumference were recorded in spring (0.41 ± 0.09
cm) with no growth in autumn. The scrotal circumference also displayed a seasonal variation (P < 0.001). The minimum values were observed in spring (14.88 ± 0.44 cm), and it gradually increased to reach maximum size in autumn (18.58 ±0.39 cm).
In the mouflon, the seasonal variations of horn growth was gentle. The horn length increased in spring (1.49 ± 0.25 cm,
P < 0.01), maintained in summer (1.29 ± 0.22 cm, P < 0.05), and decreased in autumn (0.8 ± 0.4cm). The horn base circumference did not show seasonal changes. The scrotal circumference followed a seasonal variation ( P< 0.001), with a minimum
in spring (21.78 ± 0.86 cm) and maximum size in autumn (27.68 ± 0.66 cm).
Marked seasonal changes in the plasma concentrations of testosterone occurred in mouflon and Spanish ibex (P < 0.001)
(Figure 1d). Plasma testosterone concentrations begin to increase in summer in both species, but it was stronger for mouflons.
The highest concentrations were reached during autumn (5.48 ± 0.72 ng/ml and 2.94 ± 0.72 ng/ml, in mouflons and ibexes,
respectively), and the lowest levels were found in winter (0.94 ± 0.27 and 0.39 ± 0.07 ng/ml, in mouflons and ibexes, respectively) and spring (1.03 ± 0.18 ng/ml and 0.17 ± 0.03 ng/ml, in mouflons and ibexes, respectively). Plasma testosterone concentration was correlated with scrotal circumference in both ibexes (R = 0.86, P < 0.001) and mouflons (R = 0.64, P < 0.01).
The result show that both species display a similar seasonal pattern of horn growth and testicular activity. Although the onset
of the increase in plasma testosterone levels occurred, in both species, in summer, the significant decrease of horn growth was
only observed in autumn, coinciding with the maximum testicular size (Santiago-Moreno et al., 2005) and highest plasma concentrations of testosterone (Lincoln, 1998), which support the fact that peripheral plasma levels of testosterone play a role in
the regulation of the horn development.
References
Asher GW, Monfort SL, Wemmer C. (1999) Comparative reproductive function in cérvidos:
implications for management of farm and zoo
populations. J Reprod Fertil Suppl. 54:143-156.
Goeritz F, Quest M, Wagener A, Fassbender M, Broich A, Hildebrandt TB, Hofmann RR, Blottner S. (2003) Seasonal timing of sperm production in
roe deer: interrelationship among changes in ejaculate parameters, morphology and function of testis and accessory glands. Theriogenology 59:14871502.
Lincoln G.A. (1994). Teeth, horns and antlers: the weapons of sex. En: The Differences Between the Sexes. Short, R.V. and Balaban, E., eds. Cambridge
University Press, Cambridge, pp 131-158.
Lincoln G. A. (1998). Reproductive seasonality and maturation throughout the complete life-cycle in the mouflon ram (Ovis musimon). Anim. Reprod.
Sci. 53, 87-105.
Santiago-Moreno, J., Lopez-Sebastian A., Gonzalez-Bulnes A., Gomez-Brunet A., Tortonese, D. (2001). The timing of the onset of puberty, extension
of the breeding season, and length of postpartum anestrus in the female mouflon (Ovis gmelini musimon). Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine 32(2):
230-235.
Santiago-Moreno, J., Gomez-Brunet, A., Gonzalez-Bulnes A., Malpaux, B., Chemineau P., Pulido-Pastor, A., Lopez-Sebastian, A. (2003). Seasonal
ovulatory activity and plasma prolactin concentrations in the Spanish ibex (Capra pyrenaica hispanica) maintained in captivity. Reproduction Nutrition
Development 43(3): 217-224.
Santiago-Moreno, J., Gómez-Brunet A., Toledano-Díaz A., González-Bulnes A, Picazo R.A., López-Sebastián A. (2005). Influence of age on the relationship between annual changes in horn growth rate and prolactin secretion in the European mouflon (Ovis gmelini musimon). Anim. Reprod. Sci. 85:
251-261.
499
Warthogs (Phacochoerus africanus) resettling
on an abandoned cattle ranch in Tanzania
Treydte, A.C. 1, Suter, W. 2, Edwards, P.J. 1
1
Geobotanical Institute ETH, Zürichbergstr. 38, 8044 Zürich, Switzerland
2
Wildlife Ecology, Biodiversity Section, Landscape Dept., Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL
Corresponding Author: A.C. Treydte phone: + 41-1-32-10-187, e-mail: [email protected],
Key-words: rangeland, boma, structural and nutritional changes, coastal savanna, Africa
In recent decades African savannas have been increasingly used for ranching (Voeten & Prins 1999), with the result that livestock biomass today exceeds that of indigenous ungulates. The replacement of the natural and sustainable multispecies animal
production system by a single species system has usually had drastic effects on savanna ecosystem structure and function
(Young et al. 1995). While changes in vegetation structure and in the nutritional quality of plants caused by high densities of
cattle grazing have often been observed (Stelfox 1986, Augustine 2003), very little is known about the nutrient redistribution
through wildlife and the ‘recolonization’ process of native ungulate species entering such an altered landscape. Free ranging
wildlife species might act as habitat restorers when they resettle in patches that are nutritionally and structurally attractive in
an otherwise depleted rangeland.
This study was carried out on a former cattle ranch, Mkwaja Ranch, in Tanzania which was in operation for almost 50 years
and which now forms part of the Saadani National Park (TANAPA 2002; Figure 1). We described some of the vegetational
changes caused by ranching and the first steps towards recolonization of the savanna ecosystem by wildlife. To investigate the
presence and abundance of wild ungulate species we used fixed width and DISTANCE sampling on walking transects on a large
scale within the entire protected area. We then focussed upon patches of a particular type of habitat, the former cattle herding
grounds or “bomas”, and used indirect observations based on tracks and signs to investigate the use of these areas by the common warthog (Phacochoerus africanus). Finally, a variety of analytical techniques were employed to gain information about
the diet of warthogs from their faeces. These techniques include determination of nitrogen and phosphorus contents, crude ash
content, 15N/14N and 13C/12C-isotope fractions and microhistological analyses of plant remains.
Our wildlife survey showed that between 2001 and 2003, immediately after the ranch closed and the entire area became a
National Park, only a few browser species dominated in the bush-thicket / savanna mosaic of the former ranch. However, one
of the most abundant species present on the rangeland was also one medium-sized grazer, the common warthog. We were interested in how this native, non-migratory ungulate (Cumming 1975) could utilize an area severely altrerd by domestic livestock.
The study of habitat use based upon a combination of tracks and other signs revealed most signs being found and highest
warthog presence in and around the former paddock centres, the “bomas” (Figure 2). The observed preference for these former
herding grounds could be explained partly by their characteristic vegetation structure and plant species composition. Here, some
of their favoured grass species (Cumming 1975) could be found in high densities. During drought conditions, warthogs
favoured the centres and marginal structures of paddocks with their high grass and forb species diversity and with patches of
bush thickets that could serve as shelter.
Dietary analyses of warthog faeces indicated that this medium-sized grazer, a non-ruminant, foraged intensively in and close
to paddock centres. Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) contents of plants were elevated within and adjacent to bomas (Figure 3).
N and P content in faeces suggested that warthogs were able to fulfil their nutrient requirements over all seasons, while the crude ash content (taken as a measure of soil content) suggested that they obtained only a small proportion of their food by rooting, particularly in areas
with plants of low nutritious quality. The data for δ13C in faeces indicated that the percentage
of C4 grasses in warthog diet varied between 77% and 97%. Values of δ15N were especially
high in plant and soil samples close to paddock areas, and high values in faeces indicated that
animals tended to feed in paddocks, at times covering distances of several kilometres to reach
these forage sites. The analysis of epidermal fragments in faeces indicate that warthogs prefer
Figure 1. Study site: The coastal savanna area had been divided into
rangeland and Game Reserve when the ranch was established in the
1950s (horizontal black line). These areas are now combinedand protected as Tanzania’s 13th National Park”Saadani” (black line).
500
Figure 2. Warthog presence and activity (± 1 SE) in and around former bomas.
PC = paddock centre or “boma”, modified through trampling and defaecation,
PM = paddock margin, immediately adjacent to the boma and strongly grazed,
AS = scrub of Acacia zanzibarica, high monospecific Acacia densities caused
by intensive cattle grazing
SV = surrounding vegetation, mainly unused by cattle. Within seven former paddocks in each vegetation zone at least two 300 m2 strip transects were distributed; the average number of signs produced by the warthog (digging,
dung pellet groups, hoof prints) is shown. The presence index shows
whether a sign produced by the warthog was present or absent. Surveys
were conducted in July, August and February, i.e. rather dry months, during which food and habitat selection should be crucial for animal survival.
Figure 3. Nutrient content (± 1 SE) in plants, faeces and soil within thee vegetation zones. Columns without common letter indicate significant differences
between matrices. Vegetation zones are described in the text:
PC = paddock centre,
PM = paddock margin,
SV = surrounding vegetation.
The vegetation zone AS (see Figure 2) is not shown due to small sample size.
the grass Cynodon dactylon, a species of particularly high nutritional quality which
is most abundant in paddock centres. The conclusion from these various analyses
and from direct observations is that warthogs use paddocks extensively; by feeding
in these areas. However, at times resting and defaecating elsewhere, they may contribute to a nutrient redistribution away from the nutrient-enriched paddock centres
to the more nutrient-poor surrounding vegetation, though this process is likely to
be very slow.
The former Mkwaja Ranch represents a large-scale mosaic of vegetation types,
including patches with very high nutrient levels in an otherwise nutrient-depleted
landscape as was also shown by Augustine (2003) in Kenya. From the year 2001
onwards, when the ranch closed down, a process of recolonization by wildlife could begin. The increasing use of the area by
‘pioneer’ wild ungulate species, amongst them the common warthog, is part of this process. This selective grazer seemed to utilize this area intensively, mainly feeding in and around bomas, and similar behaviour was found by Stelfox (1986) for wildlife
in Kenya. This study has demonstrated some of the constraints for resettling wildlife in an altered savanna; the high bush
encroachment on the ranch presented a rather hostile environment for most savanna grazers (De Bie 1991). However, we also
identified the preferred habitats of one pioneer species, the common warthog, and we showed preferred feeding grounds and
fodder species of this highly selective species. We see the common warthog as an indicator that there is potential for an increase
in species richness of wildlife on Mkwaja Ranch. Future management of this altered savanna landscape should be based on an
understanding of the specific habitat requirements of other species as well, and on promoting natural facilitation processes
(Sinclair et al. 1995) that will allow the entry of more demanding species
References
Augustine DJ (2003) Long-term, livestock-mediated redistribution of nitrogen and phosphorus in an East African Savanna. Journal of Applied Ecology
40: 137-149
Cumming DHM (1975) A field study of the ecology and behaviour of warthog. Museum Memoir No.7. The trustees of the National Museums and
Monuments of Rhodesia, Salisbury
De Bie S (1991) Wildlife Resources of the West African Savanna. Wageningen Agricultural University Papers 91 (2). Veenman Drukkers B.V.,
Wageningen, NL
Sinclair A, Arcese P (1995) Serengeti II: Dynamics, Management and Conservation of an Ecosystem. Serengeti Research Insitute Workshop, Seronera,
Tanzania
Stelfox JB (1986) Effects of livestock enclosures (bomas) on the vegetation of the Athi Plains, Kenya. African Journal of Ecology 24: 41-45
TANAPA (2002) Saadani and Bagamoyo. African Publishing Group, Tanzania National Parks, P.O. Box 3134, Arusha, Tanzania
Tobler M, Cochard R, Edwards PJ (2003) The impact of cattle ranching on large-scale vegetation patterns in a coastal savanna in Tanzania. Journal of
Applied Ecology 40:430-444
Voeten MM, Prins HHT (1999) Resource partitioning between sympatric wild and domestic herbivores in the Tarangire region of Tanzania. Oecologia
120: 287-294
Young TP, Patridge N, Macrae A (1995) Long-term glades in Acacia bushland and their edge effects in Laikipia, Kenya. Ecological Appliactions 5: 97108
501
Population demography of the species wild boar
(Sus scrofa, L., 1758) in Peloponnesus and Sterea Hellas,
South Creece
E. P. Tsachalidis 1, P. Konstantopoulos 2
1
Associate Professor, Democritus University of Thrace, Department of Forestry and Environmental Management and Natural
Resources, Laboratory of Ecology – Wildlife Management, GR-68200, Orestiada, Evros, Greece
2
Forester Conservationist, 3rd Hunting Federation of Peloponnesus
Corresponding author: Efstathios P. Tsachalidis. Tel.: +30-6-94-68-00-953, fax: +30-2-52-10-60-411,
e-mail: [email protected]. / [email protected]
Key words: Population, demography, density, questionnaires, Greece, gamekeeper
Abstract
This study focuses on the presence, horizontal distribution, population situation and density of the wild boar (Sus scrofa) per
prefecture in Peloponnesus and Sterea Hellas, in Southern Greece, during the year 2004.
Today in Greece, hunting activitiy is exercised by about 250.000 hunters for recreation or/and for physical exercise. Sus
scrofa is a traditional and great game for a large number of Greek hunters. The species can be found in continental Greece. It
prefers maintainous, wooded areas which are adjacent to cultivated land and they provide a wide variety of vegetation with
clearings and a lush hydrographic network (Spiridonidis 1993). According to the figures that refer to the long-term game and
the abundance of game during 1995-2003, it is evident that from these hairy game, the hunting preference for the wild boar
takes second place (11.04%) after the hare (17, 89%) (Karampatzakis 2005). Hunting this species is permitted from 15/09.. to
20/01..( about 4 months) and only 3 times a week(Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday). Each hunting team (up to 12 people) is
allowed to hunt only 2 wild boars per outing.
There are few studies conducted regarding its hunting activity and the species in Greece until now: Sfougaris et al. (1999),
Tsachalidis (2003), Tsachalidis and Tsantopoulos (2003), Tsachalidis et al. (2003), Konstantopoulos and Tsachalidis (2004),
Tsachalidis and Hadjisterkotis (2004), Tsachalidis et al. (2004) and Paralikidis et al. (2004).
In Europe, studies concerning the distribution and population situation of the species have been conducted by: Dardaillon
(1986), Cahill and Llinoma, (2002), Korytin et al. (2002), Rosell et al. (2002), Vigros (2002), Bobek et al. (2004) and Markov
et al. (2004).
The main objective of this study is the distribution and mapping of the presence of the species in the study area. Futhermore,
data are given on the basis of estimations regarding the population situation and the relevant density per perfecture. The
findings of the study will contribute to a proper hunting policy.
Table I. Distribution per prefecture, the area and density of the species Wild boar
(Sus scrofa) in Sterea Hellas and Peloponnesus, South Greece, during the year
2004.
502
Methodology
This study is part of a wider research that
concerns all over Greece and was carried
out by means of questionnaires during
August and September 2004. Throughout
this period the overestimations of the population are minimized due to the fact that
the species remains in its territory, because
of the species is not hunted, there is abundance and variety of food and the presence
of offsprings, so the movements of species
are usually limited.
The collection of data was gathered by
Federal gamekeepers, using specifically
formed questionnaires. The questionnaires
were handed out to the Federal gamekeepers at the beginning of the Summer of
2004, after training on the proper
collection of data, and they were requested
to fill in the questionnaires towards by the
end of summer time (after breeding seaPoster Presentations
son). Futhermore, outdoor observations had already been made on the basis of bio index(feces-scats, rooting, mud baths) and
on the spot observations.
Each Federal gamekeeper recorded data in one specific area, which did not stretch more than 600 km2. In this way, data were
collected regarding the appearance of the species, its geographical range, its territory and density. By this method, in a short
period and at a low cost data were gathered for the first time concerning the wild boar in Greece.
Due to the wide range of the research for practical reasons, this method was considered to be the most appropriate one in comparison with other known methods which are strenuous, extravagant and time-consuming. This modified method has been
applied by a lot of foreign researchers (Markov 2004, Monaco 2004).
In this study, by the term “appearance areas”, we mean the areas where the species is permanently and constantly present for a
lot of years.
Results-Discussion
According to the findings of the research, the today's total area that the population of the species covers in the study areas of
Southern Greece, is estimated at 36.070,0 km2 and the total population is about 6.240 individuals. From the figures of table I,
it is concluded that the species is not found in 2 prefectures of S. Hellas, (Attiki and Eubia), while in Peloponnesus only in
Argolida. Also, according to table I, the mean density of the species in S. Hellas and Peloponnesus is estimated to be 1,26 and
0,98 ind./km2, respectively, ranging from 0,86 to 1,46 ind./km2 and from 0,78 to 1,24 ind./km2, respectively. The highest mean
density in St. Hellas is recorded in Fthiotida prefecture (1,46 ind./km2) and in Peloponnesus in Arcadia prefecture
(1,24ind./km2), while the maximum density in St. Hellas is recorded in Aitoloacarnania (4,67 ind./km2) and in Peloponnesus in
Arkadia (4,0 ind. /km2).
From the figures of the table below, it is concluded that S. Hellas has better habitats than Peloponnesus. This conclusion is justified by the highest values of the mean and maximum density.
References
Bobek B, Kwakowicz R, Ligocki D, Metra D, Zajak E (2004)Estimation of Wild boar population in various region of Poland. Proc. of 5th International
Wild Boar and Suide Symposium. Jagiellovian University, September 1-6, 2004. Krakow, Poland.
Cahill S, Llinoma F (2002) Demographic aspects of Wild boar (Sus scrofa) in Collserola Park Barcelona. Proc. of 4th International Wild boar
Symposium, September 19-22 ,2002. Lousa, Portugal.
Dardaillon M (1986) Seasonal variations in habitat selection and spatial distribution of wild boar (Sus scrofa) in the Camargue, Southern France.
Behavioural Processes, 13: 251–268.
Karampatzakis Th (2005) “Research on recording on hunting game and the observation of game population. 6th Hunting Federation of Macedonia Trace, Thessaloniki. Panthiras magazine 2005: 122 -127.
Konstantopulos P, Tsachalidis, E. P (2004) Reintroduction of the species Sus scrofa (Wild boar) in Peloponnesus, Southern Greece. Vth International
Wild Boar and Suidae Symposium. Jagiellovian University, September 1-6, 2004. Krakow, Poland. (in press).
Korytin N, Bolshakov V, Markov N, Pogodin N (2002) The effect of habitat structure on the distribution and abundance of Wild boar (Sus scrofa) in
Middle Urals. Proc. of 4th International Wild boar Symposium, September 19-22 ,2002. Lousa, Portugal
Markov N, Neifeld N, Estafjev A (2004) Ecological aspects of dispersal of the Wild boar (Sus scrofa, L.,1758) in the Northeast European Russia.
Russian Journal of EcologyVol. 35(2): 131-134.
Monaco A., Carnevali L, Riga F, Toso S (2004) Status, distribution and Management of Wild boar (Sus scrofa) on the Italian Alps. Proc. of 5th
International Wild boar Symposium, and Suide Symposium. Jagiellovian University, September 1-6, 2004. Krakovia, Poland.
Paralikidis N, Tsachalidis E. P, Tsompanoudis A, Konsiotis V Gasios A.(2004) Economic analysis of Wildboar (Sus scrofa) in Epirus, Greece. Proc.
of 5th International Wild Boar and Suide Symposium. Jagiellovian University, September 1-6, 2004. Krakow, Poland.
Rosell, C, Navas F, de Tejada S (2002) Wild boar (Sus scrofa) population in a Mediterranean wetland area. Impact and control of their expansion. Proc.
of 4th International Wild boar Symposium, September 19-22 ,2002. Lousa, Portugal .
Sfougaris A, Giannakopoulos A, Pardalidis T, Tsachalidis E. P, Anni, A (1999) Research on the ecology and management of the Wild Boar (Sus scrofa), Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), Red deer (Cervus elaphus) and Balkan chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra balkanika) in Epirus, Greece. XXXIV
International Congress of the Union of Game Biologist (ICGB). Thessaloniki September 20 -24, 1999
Spiridonidis D (1993) Status and Biology of the species: Sus scrofa (Wild boar) and Meles meles (Badger) in Greece during the year 1991.
Dissertation Thesis. T.E.I Drama.
Tsachalidis, E. P, Hadjisterkotis E.(2004) Wild boar (Sus scrofa) hunting and socioeconomic trends in Northern Greece during the years 1993 and 2002.
Proc. of 5th International Wild Boar and Suide Symposium. Jagiellovian University, September 1-6, 2004. Krakow, Poland. (in press).
Tsachalidis, E. P, Papageorgiou N, Paralikidis N, Hadjisterkotis E, Arambatzis G (2004) Food habit of Wildboar (Sus scrofa) in Northeastern Greece.
Proc. of 5th International Wild Boar and Suide Symposium. Jagiellovian University, September 1-6, 2004. Krakow, Poland. (in press).
Tsachalidis, E.P (2003) Change in issue of hunting licenses in the area of Macedonia and Thrace during the period 1975-2000. Geotechnical Scientific
Issues Vol. 14 (3): 41-48.
Tsachalidis, E. P, Tsantopoulos G.E (2003) Relationship between personal characteristics of the hunter and category of the game dog. Ann. Scient.
Forest. Dept Vol. N (in press)
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North Greece. Ann. Scient. Forest. Dept Vol. N (in press)
Vigros, E (2002) Factors affecting wild boar (Sus scrofa L.) occurrence in highly fragmented Mediterranean landscape. Can. J. Zool. 80: 430-435.
503
Current status and distribution of the species Perdix perdix
(grey partridge) in Greece
E. P. Tsachalidis
Associate Professor, Democritus University of Thrace, Department of Forestry and Environmental Management and Natural
Resources, Laboratory of Ecology – Wildlife Management, GR-68200, Orestiada, Evros, Greece
Corresponding author: Efstathios P. Tsachalidis. Tel.: +30-6-94-68-00-953, fax: +30-2-52-10-60-411,
e-mail: [email protected]. / [email protected]
Key word: Perdix perdix, Gray partridge, status, distribution, Greece
Abstract
The present research is referred to the status of the population of grey partridge during 2004. The purpose of this study is to
give information for the horizontal and vertical distribution, distribution boundary, as well as the estimation of mean, maximum
and minimum density of the species per prefecture.
The research was conducted in early autumn 2004. Data collection was done through appropriate questionnaires, distributed to
the game keepers of the Hellenic Hunting Association after a relevant training. In the questionnaires, they recorded their observations of species population. The research was conducted after the breeding season.
The method of questionnaires was used because the game keepers have great experience and knowledge and come in frequent
contact with the subject of the study and, after the proper training and guidance, they contributed in the best possible quality of
the collected data. In addition, with this method which cover an
extended area, in short time and with little cost a great number of
Table I. Distribution per prefecture, the area and density
information, regarding the status of species population were
of the species grey partridge (Perdix perdix) in Greece
gathered.
Every game keeper recorded his observations in his control area.
Thus information about the presence of the species, the distribution, the altitude and the area that species occupies in Greece was
gathered, as well as data about the possible reasons of population
decrease and the main measures that will enable population recovering.
On the base the results of these research, nowadays, the total
population of the species occupies an area around 130.000 ha,
and the total number of the pairs is estimated approximately
9.250.
According to the data presented in map 1 and table I, it is concluded that, as far as the horizontal distribution is concerned, the
species was recorded in two (2) Thessaly prefectures (Larisa and
Trikala), distributed in three different regions, which are the southern limit of its distribution; in two (2) Thrace prefectures (Rodopi
and Xanthi), distributed in six different regions and in the majority of the Macedonia prefectures, in overall sixty seven regions.
Isolated individuals that were observed in the above-mentioned
prefectures were not taken into account in the population estimation.
The species is absent in the Macedonian prefectures Kavala,
Pella and Pieria, in which probably the population disappeared
before the year 1995. It is also absent in Epirus, Sterea Hellas,
Peloponnesus and the Islands.
As far as the vertical distribution is concerned, the species has
been recorded in a large range, from an altitude of 40 to 2.200 m.
The highest distribution point
Map 1. Areas of Distribution (in was recorded in Grammos
gray) of the species grey mountain (Kastoria) 2.200 m,
partridge (Perdix perdix) in pre- near the village Grammos,
during the summer.
fectures of Greece.
504
Based on these data the mean density was calculated in 7,14 pairs per km2 and the mean minimum and maximum density was
0,13 and 29,76 pairs/km2 respectively. The highest mean density is observed in the prefecture of Thessaloniki and the lowest in
the prefecture of Larisa.
Since 1980, the species is under protection and its hunting is forbidden, as its population was in a critical point of reduction and
it was in danger of extinction. Based on the results of a research conducted before 1995 (Papaevangelou et al. 2001), the species
population has been gradually increasing. This is because the species is now protected and at the same time its population has
moved in higher altitudes, where the farming and grazing activities are exercised in a traditional way, so that the species is not
greatly pressed. It is characteristic that in sub-urban areas, where there is available place, the status of population is better compared to other non sub-urban areas, probably because in these areas the illegal hunting is not easy and the use of herbicides is
rather low.
References
Aebischer N.J, Potts G.R (1998) Spatial changes in Grey partridge (Perdix perdix) distribution in relation to 25 years of changing agriculture in Sussex,
U.K. Gibier Faune Sauvage. Numéro spéciale, Tome 1. 15: 293–308.
Bro E, Sarrazin F, Clobert J, Reitz F (2000) Demography and the decline of the Grey partridge Perdix perdix in France. J. Appl. Ecol. 37: 432–448.
Bro E, Mayot P, Corda E, Reitz F (2000) Impact of habitat management on Grey partridge populations: Assessing wildlife cover using a multisite
BACI experiment. J. Appl. Ecol. 37: 846–857.
Middleton A.D (1937) The population of partridges (Perdix perdix) in Great Britain during. J. Anim. Ecol. 6, 318–321.
Montagna D, Meriggi A (1994) Population dynamics of grey partridge (Perdix perdix) in northern Italy. Bull. Zool. 58: 151– 155.
Panek M (1991) Veranderungen in der Populationsdynamik des Rebhuhns (Perdix perdix) in der Gegend von Czempin , Westpolen, in den Jahren 1968
bis 1988. Z Jagdwiss 37:116–124.
Panek M (1992a ) The effect of environmental factors on survival of grey partridge (Perdix perdix) chicks in Poland during 1987–89.
J Appl Ecol 29:745–750.
Panek M (1992b)Mechanisms determining population levels and density regulation in Polish grey partridges (Perdix perdix). In: Birkan M, Potts GR,
Aebischer NJ, Dowell SD (eds) Perdix VI, first international partridge, quail and francolin symposium. Gibier Faune Sauvage 9:325–335
Panek M (2000) Situation of grey partridge population in Poland in the years 1998–2000 (monitoring results). In: Kubiak S (ed) Zwierzyna drobna
jako elementy bioroznorodnosci srodowiska przyrodniczego. Wocawskie Towarzystwo Naukowe, Wocawek, pp 145–154.
Panek M (2002b) Space use, nesting sites and breeding success of grey partridge (Perdix perdix) in two agricultural management systems in western
Poland. Game and Wildlife Sci 19:313–326.
Panek M, Kamieniarz R (1998) Agricultural landscape structure and density of grey partridge (Perdix perdix) populations in Poland. In: Birkan M,
Smith LM, Aebischer N.J, Purroy FJ, Robertson PA (eds) Proceedings of the Perdix VII Symposium on partridges, quails and pheasants. Gibier Faune
Sauvage 15:309–320.
Panek M (2002a ) Breeding biology of the partridge Perdix perdix in western Poland on the basis of radiotelemetric data. Notatki Ornitologiczne
43:137–144.
Papaevangelou E, Thomaides C, Handrinos G, Haralambides A (2001) Status of Partridge (Alectoris and Perdix) species in Greece. Game and Wildlife
Science 18: 253-260.
Potts G.R (1980) The effects of modern agriculture, nest predation and game management on the population ecology of partridges (Perdix perdix and
Alectoris rufa). Ad. Ecol. Res. 11, 1–79.
Potts G.R (1986) The Partridge: Herbicides, Predation and Conservation. Collins, London, UK.
Potts G.R (1990) Causes of Decline of Partridge Populations and Effect of Insecticide Dimethoate on Chick Mortality. In: Lumeij, J.T.,
Hoogeveen, Y.R. (Eds.), The future of wild Galliformes in the Netherlands. Organisatiecommissie Nederlandse Wilde Hoenders, Amersfoort,
Netherlands, pp. 62–71
Potts G.R, Aebischer N.J (1995) Population Dynamics of the Grey Partridge Perdix 1793–1993: Monitoring, Modelling and Management.
Ibis 137 (supplement), pp. S29–S37.
Reitz F (1992) Adult survival and reproductive success in abundant populations of grey partridge (Perdix perdix) in North-Central France.
In: Birkan M, Potts GR, Aebischer NJ, Dowell SD (eds) Perdix VI, first international partridge, quail and francolin symposium. Gibier Faune Sauvage
9:313–324.
Reitz F (2000) The status of partridges in North-Central France. In: Farago S (ed) Proceedings of an international symposium on partridges, quails and
pheasants in the Western Palearctic and Nearctic. Hungarian Small Game Bull 5:151–163.
Tucker G.M., Heath M.F (1994) Birds in Europe. Their conservation status. Birdlife Conservation Series No 3, Birdlife International
505
European quail (Coturnix coturnix) biometrics
in northeastern Greece
Apostolos Ch. Tsiompanoudis 1, Efstathios P. Tsachalidis 1,3, Nikolaos P. Paralikidis 2, Vasilios Kontsiotis 2
1
Technological Education Institute of Kavala, Department of Forestry, Laboratory of Ecology and Wildlife Management,
GR-66100, Drama, Greece.
2
Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki, Department of Forestry and Natural Environment, Laboratory of Wildlife
3
Democritus University of Thrace, Department of Forestry and Natural Resource
Corresponding author: Apostolos Ch. Tsiompanoudis. Present address: Pelopos 1, 68400, Soufli, Evros, Thrace, Greece.
Tel.: +30-2-31-09-92-686, fax: +30-2-31-09-92-324, e-mail : [email protected]
Key words: body mass, measurements, quail, Coturnix cortunix
Abstract
(Hine et al. 1996, Wysocki 2002). Breeding success, clutch size, home range, predation and many other factors can be affected from body mass and condition (Boon & Ankney 1999, Cresswell 2003), positively or negatively. Also, during migration,
birds present a remarkable transformation on their body increasing their weight (Michailov 1995, Browne & Aebischer 2004).
The aim of this research was to examine the body-mass measurements of European quail in northeastern Greece during autumn
migration, in intensively and non-intensively cultivated areas. Fieldwork was done from 2000 to 2004 and we totally collect
208 birds (100 males and 108 females) from hunting bags. Following measures were taken: a) Wing length, b) Tarsus length,
c) Bill length, d) Body length, (using a digital calliper) and e) Body mass (using a spring-balance). We also calculate body condition index (body weight [g]/wing length [mm]) (Hine et al. 1996, Browne & Aebischer 2004). Birds were all freshly killed.
Measures were taken according to Svensson (1992) and sexes were distinguished according to Cramp & Simmons (1980)
description.
During months, birds obtain the maximum mean weight (Fig. 1) and body condition (Fig. 2) in September. Figures are also
present the standart deviation.
Fig. 1
506
weight (g)
weight (g)
Table 1.
Fig. 2
Mean values and range of body measurements are presented in Table 1. Between sexes, significant differences were found in
all measurements (p<0.05 and p<0.01) -females being larger than males- except bill and tarsus length.
Most of the comparisons between males and females showed highly significant differences. Females were larger than males
during autumn migration. Similar findings were published by Combreau et al. (2001), Michailov (1995) and Cramp & Simmons
(1980). Also, migrant birds have the tendency to obtain more fat when they migrate. For European quail the main migrant period is September when most birds pass along Greece (Handrinos & Akriotis 1997). Thus we can explain why quails were havier
and in better body condition in September.
References
Browne S. & Aebischer N. (2004). Temporal variation in the biometrics of Turtle doves Streptopelia turtur caught in Britain between 1956 and 2000.
Ringing and migration, 21: 203-208.
Combreau O., Guyomarc’h J.C. & Maghnouj M. (2001). Seasonal variation in the diet of the common quail (Coturnix c. coturnix) along the Atlantic
side of its range. Game and Wildlife Science, 18 (3-4): 343-362.
Handrinos G. & Akriotis T. (1997). The birds of Greece. Christopher Helm Ltd., London, U.K.
Michailov C. (1995). A study on the Ecology and Biology of Quail (Coturnix coturnix L.) in the higher fields of western Bulgaria. PhD Thesis, Higher
Institute of Forestry and Wood Technology, Sofia (in Bulgarian).
507
The Lynx (Lynx lynx) in the north-east of European Russia:
Distribution, population, use of resources
Mikhail Vaisfeld
Institute of geography RAS.
Corresponding author: Mikhail Vaisfeld. Fax: +7-(0)-95-95-90-016, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Area, distribution, population, skins harvested.
The region comprises three administrative units: Arkhangelsk and Vologda Oblasts and Komi Republic. It has a pronounced
succession of natural zones from northern tundra to southern taiga. The region stretches in west-east direction for over 1,600
km, in north-south direction for about 1,100 km. This region is most forested among other regions of European Russia. Forested
area in the Arkhangelsk Oblast is 53.03%, in Vologda Oblast 70.9%, in Komi Republic - – 72.1% of the total area.
The lynx habitat area covers practically all forested lands of the region. Northern border of the area exceeds the bounds of the
forest northern boundary, the species also inhabiting forest-tundra. Occasional lynx visits far to the tundra zone were also registered (Marvin 1959). The most northern observation was mentioned by Parovschikov (1959), in the Bolshezemelskaya tundra in the area of Vashutkiny Lakes 680 NL and 620 EL in the subzone of willow-shrub tundra (Fig.1).
Recent poll data show that a stable lynx population of about 50 animals inhabits the territory of the Nenets autonomous okrug
which is mainly covered by tundra and sparse woodlands of the forest-tundra and northern taiga zones (Mosheva and Gubar
1996). Data of winter route counts of late 1990s (Matyushkin et al. 2003) show that in many northern and north-eastern areas
of the region (both in forest-tundra and in northern taiga forests of Komi Republic) lynx’s footprints are seldom registered or
not registered at all. However since late 1990s lynx population in the region is growing, mainly owing to south-taiga ecosystems in the Vologda and Arkhangelsk Oblasts.
Lynx distribution within the region is extremely uneven. Lynx population density is reducing from the south-west to the northeast (Fig.1). Most fertile ecosystems in the region are located in the south of the Vologda oblast in the southern taiga forests.
Average population density in mid 1990s was estimated at 1-1.6 animals per 100 km2; in the Arkhangelsk oblast it was below
0.7-0.8; in Komi Republic below 0.2-0.4 animals per 100 km2 (Mosheva and Gubar, 1996). After a slight reduction in late
1990s it started growing and is currently close to the same values (Mosheva 2004).
The lynx inhabits mainly plain taiga and taiga-swamp ecosystems in the region. The predator obviously prefers spruce and
mixed forests to pine woods. Lynx is also rare in extensive floodplains of big rivers (Severnaya Dvina, Pechora, Vychegda).
Similar biotope distribution is typical for Karelia adjusting the region on the west. 36.8% of lynx tracking in Karelia falls on
mixed forests, 23.9% - on spruce forests and 15% on overgrowing clearings, and only 1% on sphagnum pine woods (Danilov
et. al. 2003). At the same time the predator is rather flexible in choosing its habitats. In the Arkhangelsk Oblast we
repeatedly met lynx’s footprints at completely open wetlands, agricultural sites and even in rural villages.
In recent years the lynx in the taiga areas of the region has
started inhabiting old overgrowing clearings formed by
final harvesting. In the region the final harvesting was
widely performed in the 1920s-1930s reaching its maximum in 1970s-1980s. Only in the Arkhangelsk Oblast
annual clearing was nearly 170,000 hectares. By end of
1980s the Vologda Oblast transformed to an area with
deficit of forest resources while previously it was an area
with abundant forest resources (Tyurin et al. 1984). In
Komi Republic the amount of old growth has reduced by
more than 50%.
As in the region, similar to all northern areas of Russia,
lynx’s feeding is based mainly on Alpine hare Lepus
europaeus (to a lesser extent Tetraonidae) the predator’s
preference of cleared areas is quite understandable: Alpine
hare population density in cleared areas is higher comparing to virgin forests. In general lynx distribution patters
are similar to hare distribution patterns (Fig.1, 2).
According inter route counts in 2003 lynx population in
508
the region was estimated at 3.700 individuals, including 2100 in the Arkhangelsk Oblast, 990 in Vologda
Oblast and 610 in Komi Republic (Mosheva 2004).
This is 14.8% of the total lynx population in Russia in
2003 (24,930 animals). The current lynx population in
the region has not reached the values of early 1990s
yet.
Lynx population dynamics in the region is very similar to a “classical one”, so called “Canadian” type
with big amplitude and pronounced cycles following
Alpine hare population fluctuations. It is important to
note that it is not typical for the rest of Russia; it is
typical only for northern edge of the lynx area in
Russia.
Judging Alpine hare’s skins and lynx’s harvesting
(however adequately showing dynamics of these two
species only till end 1980s) this relationship was most
pronounced in Komi Republic and Arkhangelsk
Oblast (fig. 3).
From the ancient times the lynx was considered in the
region and in the country as whole to be the important
trade object and a valuable hunting trophy. There are
no authentic data on scalesof lynx hunting in the past
centuries available. In 19th century annual lynx harvest
in the region hardly exceeded one thousand animals
(Geptner at al. 1972) In the end of the 30th of the 20th
century the number prepared lynx skins was maximal
(fig. 3). Later lynx hunting became not profitable
because of relative cheapness of a skin and high labour
consumption of hunting.
Since the early 1980s the price for lynx skins in the
world fur market has grown considerably. The following significant growth of purchasing prices for furs
(and for lynx fur in particular) in the USSR resulted in
sharp growth of lynx skins harvesting until the end of
the 1980s(fig. 3).
Annual legal harvest of lynx in the region now is
below 100 animals per year. In 2003 72 of totally harvested 92 lynxes were harvested in the Vologda
Oblast, 19 in Arkhangelsk Oblast, and 1 in Komi
Republic (Mosheva 2004). It is extremely difficult to evaluate lynx harvesting in the region as lynx poaching obviously exceeds
legal harvesting by several times.
During the last15 years the lynx nearly lost its game value. Now the attraction of lynx hunt is in the hunt itself (though the price
for its skin is still high). This beautiful and very cautious animal is of great interest for a hunter first of all as an exclusive game
trophy.
Reference
Danilov PI, Rusakov O S, Tumanov IL, Belkin VV, Makarova OA (2003). The North-West of Russia. In: The Lynx. Regional Features of Ecology, Use
and Protection (in Russian). M. “Nauka”, pp. 31-51
Geptner V G, Sludsky A A (1972) Predators (hyenas and cats). In: Mammals of Soviet Union (in Russian). Vol.2 (2):551
MatyushkinYeN, Vaisfeld MA, Neifeld ND (2003) The Nord and North-East of European Russia. In: The Lynx. Regional Features of Ecology,
Use and Protection(in Russian) . M. “Nauka”.pp. 52-84
Marvin MYa (1959) Fauna ground animals Urals Mountains. Mammals (in Russian). Sverdlovsk. UrGU, 154
Mikhailov A (1868) Hunting in woods of the Arkhangelsk province. Sketches of the nature and a life of edge Belomorsk regionof Russia
(in Russian).S.-Peterburg. 279 pp
Mosheva TS, Gubar Yu P (1996) The Lynx. In: Resources of the basic kinds of the hunting animals and hunting territorry of Russia (1991-1995.)
(in Russian). M. pp. 177-197
Mosheva TS (2004) The Lynx. In: Status of Resources Game Animals in Russian Federation 2000-2003. Information & analytical materials.
(in Russian) M.pp.149-158
Parovshchikov VYa (1959) Change of areas and new data about borders of distribution of some mammals of the north of the European part of the
USSR. In: Geography of the population of ground animals and methods of its studying (in Russian). M. Pub. house AS of the USSR, pp. 217-226
Tyurin EG, Nefedov MN, Seryj AA (1984) The Vologda woods (in Russian). Arkhangelsk. North/west publ. House. pp. 125
509
Allozyme diversity of pheasants (Phasianus spp.) from
breeding stations in Serbia and Montenegro
Vapa Ljiljana, Djan Mihajla, Obreht Dragana, Beukovic Milos, Vapa Milan
Faculty of Sciences, Trg Dositeja Obradovica 2, 1Faculty of Agriculture, Trg Dositeja Obradovica 8; 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
and Montenegro
Corresponding author: Ljiljana Vapa. Tel: +381-21-35-01-22, fax: +381-21-45-06-20, e-mail: [email protected],
Key words: electrophoresis, heterozygosity, polymorphism, genetic distance
Abstract
The pheasant breeds are widely used for restocking of natural populations depleted by hunting. The pheasant population number decline was detected during 1970’s in many hunting areas of Europe. One of the possible reasons for pheasant population
number decline, in past several years, might be loss of adaptability in populations originated from breeding stations, caused by
inbreeding depression. The biochemical-genetic and molecular-genetic markers can be used to investigate breeds for the longterm management of natural populations. Microsatellite analyses of two common breeds of pheasants from farms in Italy
showed low levels of heterozygosity as consequence of a poor genetic management (Baratti et al., 2001). Multilocus allozyme
analysis of common snipe (Gallinago gallinago) from seven breeding stations revealed deficit in heterozygotes for three of six
loci analyzed, indicating inbreeding depression (Paulauskas et al., 2002). Allozymes were also proved as good biochemical
markers for the genetic variability analyses of natural and artificial bird populations (Suchentrunk et al, 1999, Vapa et al., 2005).
The aim of this paper was the analysis of genetic variability in pheasant populations from three breeding stations in Vojvodina
province (Serbia and Montenegro), by means of allozyme diversity detection.
Liver tissue samples of 81 pheasant individuals from breeding stations Ristovaca, Sombor and Kikinda, were used for isozyme
analysis. Tissue preparation and vertical polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) were performed (Grillitsch et al, 1992).
Allozyme variability of 20 putative gene loci was screened (isozyme/-system, abbreviation, E.C. number and corresponding
structural gene loci in parenthesis): Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH, 1.1.1.27, Ldh-1, -2); Malate dehydrogenase (MOR, 1.1.1.37,
Mor-1, -2); Malic enzyme (MOD, 1.1.1.40, Mod-1, -2); 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (PGD, 1.1.1.44, Pgd); Octanol
dehydrogenase (ODH, 1.1.1.73, Odh); Superoxid dismutase (SOD, 1.15.1.1, Sod); Glutamate-oxaloacetate transaminase (GOT,
2.6.1.1, Got); Hexokinase (HK, 2.7.1.1, Hk-1, -2); Pyruvate kinase, (PK, 2.7.1.40, Pk); Creatine kinase (CK, 2.7.3.2, Ck-1, -2);
Adenylate kinase (AK, 2.7.4.3, Ak-1, -2); Esterases (EST, 3.1.1.1, Es-1); Aldolase (ALDO, 4.2.1.3, Aldo); Glucose-6-phosphate
isomerase (GPI, 5.3.1.9, Gpi-2). Statistical analysis of electrophoretic data was performed by the BIOSYS-1 program
(Swofford and Selander, 1989) to calculate indicies of genetic variability in pheasant populations, basic parameters of F statistics, as well as genetic distances values according to Nei (1978)
Table 1. Allele frequencies of polymorphic loci and indi- and Rogers (Wright, 1987).
cies of genetic diversity
Polymorphism was revealed in 9 loci: Ldh-1, Mor-1, Mor-2,
Est-1, Mod-2, Pgd, Gpi-2, Odh and Sod (Tab 1.). The significant
deviations of genotype frequencies from Hardy-Weinberg
expectation were detected at two loci for Ristovaca population,
and at four loci in Sombor and Kikinda populations. In individuals from breeding station Ristovaca genotype frequencies deviations were detected at Pgd and Odh loci. Loss of heterozygosity was detected at loci Mor-1, Mor-2, Es-1 and Mod-2 in individuals from breeding station Sombor, and loci Ldh-1, Mor-1,
Es-1 and Mod-2 in individuals from breeding station Kikinda.
This occurrence could be due to inbreeding present within populations, or possible related individuals included in our samples.
The analysis of individuals from three different breeding stations
showed mean values of observed heterozigosity H0=0.137, polymorphism P95%=30% and H/P ratio H/P=0.450, that indicate normal level of genetic variability for bird populations (Tab. 2).
Parameters of F statistics (FIS=0.18 and FST=0.254) revealed
possible presence of inbreeding depression due to loss of heterozigosity, but normal level of genetic differentiation for birds.
Comparative analysis of three pheasant populations showed low
level of interpopulation variability, with the range of modified
*significant deviation of genotype frequencies from Hardy-Weinberg expectation Rogers genetic distance value D=(0.106-0.322) (Fig 1).
based on polymorphic loci and exact Fisher test, criterion p<0.05
510
Table 2. Indicies of genetic variability in pheasant populations
*(Ho – observed population-specific heterozygosity; He – expected population
specific heterozygosity; P95% – rate of polymorphism; A – mean number of alleles per locus; H/P – ratio heterozygosity/polymorphism)
Figure 1. Unrooted Wagner dendogram based on Roger’s genetic distance values
Expected heterozygosity values (He) in various non-endangered bird species and subspecies ranged from 0.0 to 0.158, and
polymorphism varied from 0 and 54.2%, based on 25 or more loci analyzed (Evans, 1987). The values of He and P in our populations (Tab.2), fit the values of genetic variability of non-endangered bird species. Hartl and Pucek (1994) proposed the use
of H/P ratio index, in order to overcome the differences in sample size and loci number analyzed in different mammal populations. Suchentrunk et al. (1999), calculated from Evans (1987) data, the mean H/P value 0.303 for non-endangered bird species.
Except H/P value of 0.18, in the pheasant population from breeding station in Ristovaca, that is slightly above bottom level for
non-endangered bird species, other two populations possess normal level of genetic variability.
Microsatellite analysis of two pheasant breeds showed low level of genetic variability – Ho=0.165-0.191 (Baratti et al., 2001).
In our analyzed breeds, with isozymes as even less powerful markers, Ho values ranged from 0.045 to 0.206, indicating higher
genetic variability in breeds from Serbia and Montenegro. Comparing the analyzed individuals, it is clear that pheasant population from breeding station Ristovaca show the lowest level of genetic variability. The observed heterozygosity Ho=0.045 in
this breeding station was lower then expected He=0.097 under Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. This is probably not the consequence of small number of founders (2000 individuals imported from Dobanovacki zabran breeding station, founded in 1926.
from 10000 individuals imported from England). Loss of heterozygosity might be due to further importation of individuals from
Romania and Czechoslovakia in 1990, with unknown genetic structure. The lower value of observed heterozygosity expected
He, was also present in individuals from Sombor. This could be due to small number of founders (1000 individuals imported
from Subotica breeding station and further exchange with same station). The highest values of genetic variability indicies are
present in pheasants from breeding station Kikinda. Considering the fact that the first individuals were imported from Ristovaca
breeding station (1350), and afterwards male individuals were imported from different breeding stations, it is clear that good
genetic management and importing of individuals with different background affected the genetic structure in positive direction
(higher heterozygosity) in the analyzed population.
In further breeding programs special attention must be paid on avoiding inbreeding within one population and importing individuals from more genetically distant populations.
References
Barrati M, Alberti A, Groenen M, Veenendaal T, Fulgheri FD (2001) polymorphic microsatellites developed by cross-species amplifications in common pheasant breeds. Animal Genetics 32: 222-225
Evans PGH (1987) Electrophoretic variability of gene products. In: Cooke, F, Buckley, PA (eds.) Avian genetics, a Population and Ecological Approach.
Academic press, London: pp. 105-162.
Grillitsch M, Hartl GB, Suchentrunk F, Willing R (1992) Allozyme evolution and the molecular clock in Lagomorph. Acta Theriologica 37: 1-13
Nei M (1978) estimation of average heterozygosity and genetic distance from a small number of individuals. Genetics 89: 583-590
Paulauskas A, Svazas S, Danileviciute A (2002) Multilocus allozyme analysis of common Snipe (Gallinago gallinago) in Lithuania. Acta Zoologica
Lithuanica 12 (3): 318-332
Suchentrunk F, Haller H, Ratti P (1999) Gene pool variability of a golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) population from Swiss Alps. Biological
Conservation 90: 151-155
Swofford DL, Selander RB (1989) BIOSYS-1. A computer program for the analysis of allelic variation in genetics. Release 1.7. Center for Biodiversity,
Illinois Natural History Survey, Champaign
Vapa Lj, Djan M, Obreht D, Vapa M (2005) Allozyme variability of pheasants from breeding stations. Proc. of 8th International Symphosium on
Interdisciplinary regional research Hungary – Romania – Serbia and Montenegro, EPP24: 1 – 7
Wright S (1987) Evolution and the Genetics of Populations, Vol. 4, Variability Within and Among Natural Populations. University of Chicago Press,
Chicago
511
Lungworm (Metastrongylus spp.) occurence and the physical
condition of wild boar (Sus scrofa) in middle Somogy
Varga Gyula 1, Sugár, László 2
1
The Somogy Forestry and Wood Industry Plc.
2
University of Kaposvár, Faculty of Animal Science
Corresponding author: Gyula Varga. Fax: +36-8-25-05-133, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Anthelmintics, wild boar garden, intensity, prevalence, kidney fat index
Lungworm (Metastrongylus spp.) occurrence and the physical condition of wild boar (Sus scrofa) was examined in two boar
gardens (fenced areas) and the surrounding open area of middle Somogy county, SW-Hungary, in the 2003/04 and in the
2004/05 hunting season.
1) Sásostó garden (G1): 300 ha, 88% forest cover and 220 boars prior the hunting season; only the piglets were treated with
anthelmintic (Ivomec injection) one time in Spring (late May).
2) Tótfalu garden (G2): 213 ha, 61 % forest and 170 boars; albendazole containing food was offered for 1-1 week in late May
and late June.
3) The open hunting area (OH): is about 6,000 ha, 67 % afforestation, and its boar population is estimated around 250-300 individuals.
The three age groups are the following: age group 1 (piglets): wild boars under 6 months; age group 2 (yearlings): wild boars
between 0,5 and 1,5 year; age group 3 (adult wild boars): wild boars over 2 year.
During the hunting season (November - January) animals shot were investigated at the carcass collecting sites. Worms were
collected from the lungs (lower airways) and were counted using a stereomicroscope in the laboratory. Kidneys and kidney fats
were collected at the carcass collecting sites too, and we measured them with a digital scales. Bootstrap 2-sample t-test was
applied for the statistical analysis.
In spite of the anthelmintic treatment lungworm occurrence in boars shot in Sásostó garden showed the highest prevalence,
mean intensity and mean abundance datas. The wild boars from the Open hunting area were infected with lungworms at
average level. We found the lowest prevalence and mean intensity values in the Tótfalu garden (Table 1). The huge difference
between the two gardens is because of the different anthelmintic treatments each garden was given.
Significant difference was proved between the open hunting area and the Sásostó garden as well as between the two garden in
the prevalence and mean abundance. However there were no significant difference between the open hunting area and the
Tótfalu garden in the prevalence, mean intenTable 1: Lungworm prevalence, intensity and abundance data in wild boar sity, median intensity and mean abundance.
bags sampled
According to the age groups the prevalence
was on the similar level, and the mean and the
median intensity did not differ strongly from
each other too. We did not find any significant
differences among the three sample groups in
regard of the prevalence, mean intensity,
Table 2: Lungworm prevalence, intensity and abundance data of different median intensity and mean abundance
wild boar age groups
(Table 2).
Table 3: Kidney fat indexes of different age groups
In the case of kidney fat index (KFI) we separated the adult individuals into two sexes. The
piglets were in the worst condition (KFI:
1.99), the yearlings were in middle condition
(KFI: 2.45) and the adults were in the best
condition (male: 3.44; female: 4.42). In
respect of KFI only the adult sows’ value differed significantly (Table 3).
On the basis of the above findings we think
that one anthelmintic treatment (either with
512
albendazole or ivermectin) during the summer is enough – if necessary at all –to avoid the outbreak of a serious lungworm disease.
Acknowledgements
This study was funded by the Game Fund of the Ministry of the Agriculture and Countryside Development in Hungary
(79840/2004.).
References
Bicsérdy Gy, Egri B, Sugár L, Sztojkov V (2000) Vadbetegségek. Mezögazda Kiadó, Budapest.
Caughley G, Sinclair ARE (1994) Wildlife ecology and management. Blackwell Science
Faragó S, Náhlik A (1997) A vadállomány szabályozása. Mezögazda Kiadó, Budapest
Haupt W, Stubbe I (1975) Beitr Jagd-Wildforsch 9: 195
Humbert JF, Henry C (1989) Studies on the prevalence and the transmission of lung and stomach nematodes of the wild boar (Sus scrofa) in France.
Journal of Wildlife Diseases 25(3): 335-41
Jezierski W (1977) Longevity and mortality rate in a population of wild boar. Acta Theriol 22: 337–348
Kutzer E (1992) Zum Einsatz von Ivermectin-Pra mix 0,6% bei Wildschwein (Sus scrofa). Wiener Tierärztliche Monatsschrift 79: 208
Lepojeva O, Kulisic Z, Aleksic N, Dimitrijevic S (1992) Parazitske infekcije divljih svinja u Sremu. Veterinarski-Glasnik 46: 687-690
Mennerich-Bunge B, Pohlmeyer K, Stoye M (1993) Untersuchungen zum Helminthenbefall der Wildschweinpopulation in Berlin (West). Berliner und
Münchener Tierarztliche Wochenschrift 106(6): 203-207
Országos Vadgazdálkodási Adattár (OVA) (2004) Magyarországi vadaskertek (Kimutatás). Gödöllö
Rózsa L, Reiczigel J, Majoros G (2000) Quantifying parasites in samples of hosts. J Parasitol 86: 228-232
SPSS for Windows (2001) Version 11.0.1, Copyright SPSS Inc
Takács A (1996) Adatok a vaddisznó (Sus s. scrofa) endoparazita-fertözöttségéhez Magyarországon. Magyar Állatorvosok Lapja 51: 721-724
513
A serological survey of selected pathogens
in wild boar from Slovenia
Gorazd Vengust 1, Zdravko Valencak 2, Andrej Bidovec 1
1
Institute for Breeding and Health Care of Wild Animals, Fishes and Bees, University of Ljubljana, Veterinary Faculty,
Gerbiceva 60, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
2
Institute for Health Care of Pigs, University of Ljubljana, Veterinary Faculty,
Corresponding author: Gorazd Vengust. Tel.: +38-6-14-77-91-96, fax: +38-6-12-83-22-43, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Sus scrofa; infectious diseases, prevalence
Extended Abstract
Introduction: The wild boar is one of the most important big game species in Slovenia with hunting bag of around 6.000 pigs
per year. The population density of wild boars in Slovenia has increased drastically during the last decade despite the huntingrelated reduction of wild boar population. The hunting bag for wild boar has been increasing by 10% per year but is seems that
wild boar population is increasing even faster. Like in Slovenia wild boar population have increased both in number and distribution range throughout Europe (Artois et al., 2002).
In the last decade evidence has accumulated that in some situations wild boar can act as a reservoir for diseases of domestic
pigs (Nettles, 1989; Laddomada, 2000; Elbers et al., 2000) and movements of these animals can potentially result in dissemination of these diseases (Witter, 1981). Antibodies against different agents in wild boar have been reported in Europe (Oslage
et al., 1994; Albina et al., 2000; Vicente et al., 2002; Elbers et al., 2000; Zupancic et al., 2002) and United States (New et al.,
1994; Gibson et al., 1999). In view of this, our objective was to expand the information on the prevalence of selected infectious
pathogens in wild boar in Slovenia.
Material and methods: Serum samples collected from 178 shot wild boars (Sus scrofa) and were tested by enzyme-linked
immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the presence of antibodies against classical swine fever virus (CSV), porcine reproductive
and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV), porcine respiratory coronavirus (PRCV), swine influenza virus, porcine parvovirus
(PPV), Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (APP), Mycoplasma spp., porcine coronavirus (PCV), Haemophilus parasuis and
swine vesicular disease virus (SVDV) throughout Slovenia during the hunting season 2003/4. The number of samples corresponds to 3% of the total hunting bag.
Results and discussion: By ELISA antibodies against Mycoplasma spp were detected in 38 sera (21%), PPV in 87 sera (49%),
PRCV in 5 sera (3%), Haemophilus parasuis in 33 sera (18%) and APP in 93 sera (52%). There was no evidence for exposure
to CSV, PRRSV, swine influenza virus, PCV and SVDV within the wild boar population. The results show that wild boar may
constitute a reservoir for various infectious agents for pigs. By having this data we are in better position to assess the risk of
dissemination of infective agents and to prevent transmission of these diseases to domestic pigs. This is the first serological
study among wild boar in Slovenia. In general, the results are in agreement with reports from other European countries. In
future, we will extend the research on wild boar diseases that will help to clarify the epidemiological situation among wild boar
in Slovenia.
References
Artois M, Depner KR, Guberti V, Hars J, Rossi S, Rutili D. Classical swine fever (hog cholera) in wild boar in Europe. Rev Sci Tech Oie 21: 287-303,
2002.
Gipson PS, Veatch JK, Matlack RS, Jones DP. Health status of a recently discovered population of feral swine in Kansas. J Wildlife Dis 35: 624-627,
1999.
Elbers, ARW, Dekkers LJM,. Van Der Giessen JWB. Sera-surveillance of wild boar in the Netherlands, 1996-1999. Rev sci tech Off int Epiz 19: 848854, 2000.
Laddomada A. Incidence and control of CSF in wild boar in Europe. Vet Microbiol 73: 121-130, 2000.
Nettles VF,. Erickson GA. Pseudorabies in wild swine. Proceedings of the Unitid States Animal Health Association 88: 505–506, 1984.
New JC, Delozier K, Barton CE, Morris PJ, Potgieter LND. A serologic survey of selected viral and bacterial diseases of european wild hogs, GreatSmoky mountains national-park, USA. J Wildlife Dis 30: 103-106, 1994.
Oslage U, Dahle J, Muller T, Kramer M, Beier D, Liess B. Antibody prevalence of hog-cholera, Aujeszkys-disease and the porcine reproductive and
respiratory syndrome virus in wild boar in the federal states of Sachsen-anhalt and Brandenburg (Germany). Deut Tierarztl Woch 101: 33-38, 1994.
Vicente J, Leon-Vizcaino L, Gortazar C, Cubero MJ, Gonzalez M, Martin-Atance P. Antibodies to selected viral and bacterial pathogens in European
wild boars from southcentral Spain. J Wildlife Dis 38: 649-652, 2002.
Zupancic Ž, Jukic B, Lojkic M, Cac Z, Jemersic L, Staresina V. Prevalence of antibodies to classical swine fever, Aujeszky's disease, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, and bovine viral diarrhoea viruses in wild boars in Croatia. J Vet Med B 49: 253-256: 2002.
Witter JF. Brucellosis. In: Davis JW, Karstad LH, Trainer DO (Eds.) Infectious diseases of wild mammals. Iowa State University Press,
Ames, Iowa, 280-287, 1981.
514
Seasonal food intake of forest and field roe deer
(Capreolus capreolus, L. 1758) in neighbouring habitats
in Saxonia-Anhalt, Germany
Kristin Wäber, Michael Stubbe
Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Fachbereich Biologie
Domplatz 4, 06110 Halle / Saale, Germany
Corresponding author: Kristin Wäber. Stadtweg 19, 39116 Magdeburg, Germany, tel.: +49-3-91-63-13-011,
Key words: diet, rumen analysis, feeding selectivity, food supply
Introduction
Roe deer is an important game animal in Germany living in various kinds of forest as well as on fields. Damage to vegetation
in forest and on farmland is due to increasing populations of roe deer. High density populations of roe deer cause costs and
might be prevented by modern management. In small woodlands roe deer might browse the vegetation on farmland as well.
However, in comparison there is a completely different food supply available on farmlands. Previous studies showed that roe
deer consumed a wide range of plants (Danilkin and Hewison 1996, Stubbe 1997). Also roe deer affect patterns of plant biodiversity (Mysterud and Ostbye 2004).
Consequently we looked at food consumption of roe deer and food supply in woodlands and farmland. We compared food consumption and food supply to determine if roe deer preferred specific plant categories.
Study area
The studies were carried out in the north eastern foothills of the Harz Mountains. The main part of the area (108.5 km2) was
intensively used agriculturally. In the centre of the area there was the deciduous woodland Hakelforest with an area of
13 km2. The study area was classified into two habitat groups: arable land and deciduous forest.
The study of the diet of forest and field roe deer was based on analysis of rumen content. The samples were collected during
the hunting seasons of 2001 and 2002. The available material consisted of rumen contents of 36 forest roe deer as well as rumen
contents of 43 field roe deer. We calculated the relative volume (v) and the relative frequency (f) of each food component in
the rumen content.
Also we studied the utilization of plants by the roe deer in the respective habitat using the Jacobs Index (Jacobs 1974). The
evaluation of food supply based on the mapping of shrubs and trees by the forestry office Halberstadt (Meysel 2002, forestry
office Halberstadt, unpublished) and the mapping of cultivated crops.
Results
In all 25 plant taxa including plant species/genera/families were identified in the rumen content of forest roe deer and 18 plant
taxa including plant species/genera/families in the rumen content of field roe deer. In general the most important food components consumed by forest roe deer throughout the year were parts of trees and shrubs (v = 70,9 %) as well as cultivated field
crops (v = 16,0 %). So we found in almost every rumen content parts of trees and shrubs (f = 83,3 %) and in half of the rumens
herbs (f = 44,4 %). In contrast cultivated field crops (v = 56,7 %), parts of trees and shrubs (v = 22,0 %) and herbs (v = 19,8
%) were the most important components in the diet of field roe deer. Here we detected in nearly all rumen herbs (f = 88,4 %)
and cultivated field crops (f = 83,7 %). In half of all rumen parts of trees and shrubs (f = 65,1 %) were present.
Forest roe deer especially ingested parts of trees and shrubs throughout the seasons (about v = 65 %). Herbs (about
v = 30 %) were an important part of the diet in spring. We often detected cultivated field crops in summer (v = 26 %), autumn
(v = 18 %) and winter (v = 34 %) in the rumen content of forest roe deer. In autumn and winter we also found mast (v = 10
%) in the diet.
Throughout the year cultivated field crops (about v = 44 %) were an important part of the diet of field roe deer. In particular in
spring (v = 34 %), summer (v = 19 %) and autumn (v = 32 %) field roe deer consumed herbs. However, parts of trees and
shrubs comprised about 25 % of volume in rumen content as woodlands occupied small areas in the agricultural landscape.
515
Tab 1. Food consumption (v) of forest and field roe deer throughout the year.
food categories
forest
field
spring
forest
field
summer
forest
Field
autumn
forest
field
winter
n=5
n=7
n=9
n = 29
n = 18
n=4
n=4
n=3
trees and shrubs
75,3
24,9
68,4
21,1
60,0
22,0
53,7
32,9a Mast
Mast
0,8
0,0
1,3
0,0
11,0
0,0
10,1
0,0
Fruits
0,0
0,8
0,9
1,4
1,0
19,6
0,0
0,0
cultivated field crops
0,0
38,2
26,0
57,1
18,3
23,0
33,6
65,8
Grasses
2,4
2,4
0,9
1,2
6,3
2,9
1,3
0,0
Herbs
21,5
33,6
2,6
19,3
3,5
32,5
1,3
1,3
plant species/genera/families
spring
rautumn
winter
Acer campestre
0,0
0,0
2,3
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
Acer platanoides
16,7
0,0
1,3
0,0
3,7
0,0
0,0
0,0
Acer pseudoplatanoides
1,0
2,3
1,1
1,8
0,2
0,0
0,0
0,0
Allium ursinum
19,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,
Anthriscus sylvestris
0,0
0,0
0,0
6,8
1,9
0,0
0,0
0,0
Arctium lappa
0,0
0,9
0,3
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
Atriplex sp.
0,0
0,9
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
Beta vulgaris
0,0
0,0
0,0
2,1
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
Betula pendula
1,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,2
0,0
0,0
0,0
Brassica napus
0,0
1,8
0,0
1,4
16,7
28,03
2,78
0,0
Carpinus betulus
1,0
0,0
18,2
0,0
1,1
0,0
0,0
0,0
Crataegus sp.
1,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,2
0,0
0,0
0,0
Fraxinus excelsior
4,3
0,0
30,6
0,0
10,5
0,0
0,0
0,0
Malus domestica
0,0
0,0
0,3
0,1
0,6
26,3
0,0
0,0
Medicago sp.
0,0
6,8
0,0
5,3
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
Pisum sativum
0,0
0,0
0,0
7,4
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
Plantago sp.
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
1,3
0,0
Poaceae (cultivated)
1,0
83,7
28,7
51,5
0,7
2,6
0,0
20,0
Poaceae (wild growing)
2,9
1,8
0,0
0,7
6,8
2,6
1,3
0,0
Polygonatum multiflorum
1,9
0,0
0,7
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
Populus sp.
0,0
0,0
0,0
18,5
0,0
29,6
0,0
0,0
Prunus domestica
0,0
0,0
0,0
1,1
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
Quercus petraea
47,6
0,0
4,6
0,0
21,3
0,0
9,8
0,0
Rubus sp.
0,0
0,0
0,7
0,0
6,6
0,0
1,3
0,0
Sambucus nigra
0,0
0,9
0,7
0,7
5,8
0,0
0,0
0,0
Stellaria holostea
1,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
Taraxacum officinale
1,0
0,0
0,0
0,7
0,0
8,2
0,0
0,0
Tilia sp.
17,9
0,0
7,7
0,0
19,4
0,0
52,3
0,0
Trifolium sp.
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,1
0,0
0,0
1,3
0,0
Tripleurospermum maritimum
0,0
0,9
0,0
0,7
0,0
1,3
0,0
0,0
Ulmus glabra
1,0
0,0
0,3
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
Urtica dioica
0,0
0,0
2,2
0,9
1,0
1,3
0,0
0,0
Zea mays
0,0
0,0
0,0
0,0
3,1
0,0
0,0
0,0
516
summe
The most important plants were Brassica napus, Quercus petraea and Tilia sp. in the diet of forest roe deer. In contrast in the
food composition of field roe deer Brassica napus, Poaceae (cultivated) and Populus sp. dominated (Tab. 1).
Discussion
The composition of diet of forest roe deer in this study is similar to other analyses of food composition in forest habitats
(Homolka 1991, Heroldova 1997). Parts of trees and shrubs are the most important source of food. Nevertheless, especially in
winter forest roe deer consumed cultivated field crops in the intensively used agricultural areas when food supply in forest was
low. In comparison the most important food component of field roe deer were cultivated field crops, trees and shrubs as well
as herbs. Different previous studies are confirmed with these results (Holisova et al. 1982, de Jong et al. 1995). Field roe deer
found only small areas of woodland in the agricultural landscape, but remains of trees and shrubs were often detected in the
rumen content. This suggests that roe deer preferred trees and shrubs in the field habitat. Similar observations were made by
Kaluzinski (1982). Nilsen at al. (2004) showed that roe deer preferred woodland as habitat in an agricultural-woodland
mosaic landscape in central Norway.
The results showed that the food supply in the habitat influenced the browse selection of roe deer. However, we could not detect
any preference for particular plant species in the rumen contents of forest and field roe deer using the Jacobs-Index.
Nevertheless, these results demonstrated roe deer as typical concentrate feeders (Hofmann 1989), which choose the richest parts
of the vegetation.
Conclusion
In winter there is a large enough food supply for field roe deer in the agricultural landscape. This also applies to forest roe deer
in this research area. So it is not necessary to feed roe deer in winter. Particularly field roe deer need more opportunities to select
herbs. Therefore more attention should be paid to the waysides in the agricultural landscape. Also plantations of trees and shrubs
are essential for roe deer because these are the preferred food sources. These two facts are also important for other animals like
hare (Lepus europaeus) and partridge (Perdix perdix).
Acknowledgement
I am greatly indebted to Dr. J. Meier, Dr. H. Piegert and Dr. K. Wendt-Potthoff for their advice and valuable remarks and to the
hunting department of Saxonia-Anhalt e.V. as well as to the government department for consumer protection, nutrition and agriculture for financial support.
Reference
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de Jong CB, Gill RMA, van Wieren SE, Burlton FWE (1995) Diet selection by roe deer Capreolus capreolus in Kielder Forest in relation to plant cover.
For Ecol Manage 79:91-97
Heroldová M (1997) Trophic niches of three ungulate species in the Pálava Biosphere Reserve. Acta Sc. Nat. Brno 1:1-52
Hofmann RR (1989) Evolutionary steps of ecophysiological adaption and diversification of ruminants: a comparative view of their digestive system.
Holisová V, Obrtel R, Kozená I (1982) The winter diet of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) in the southern Moravian agricultural landscape.
Folia Zool 31:209-225
Homolka M (1991) The diet of Capreolus capreolus in a mixed woodland environment in the Drahanska Vrchovina Highlands. Folia Zool 4:307-315
Jacobs J (1974) Quantitative measurement of food selection. Oecologia 14:413-417
Kaluzinski J (1982) Composition of the food of roe deer living in fields and the effects of their feeding on plant production. Acta Theriol 27:457-470
Mysterud A, Ostbye E (2004) Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) browsing pressure affects yew (Taxus baccata) recruitment within nature reserves in
Norway. Biol Conserv 120:545-548
Nilsen EB, Linell JDC, Andersen R (2004) Individual access to preferred habitat affects fitness components in female roe deer Capreolus capreolus. J
Anim Ecol 73:44-50
Stubbe C (1997) Rehwild – Biologie, Ökologie, Bewirtschaftung. Parey
517
The antler morphometry of red deer (Cervus elaphus)
in the Pszczyna Forest
Wierzbowska Izabela 1, Br˛agiel Witold 2, Śnigórska Katarzyna 1, H˛edrzak Magdalena 3
1
Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, 7 Gronostajowa Str., 30-387 Kraków, Poland
2
Kobiór Forest Inspectorate
3
Department of Breeding Methods and Management of Farm and Wild Animals, Agricultural University of Cracow
Corresponding author: Izabela Wierzbowska. E-mail: [email protected]
Key words: southern Poland, CIC, Castle Museum in Pszczyna, sika deer, elk
Introduction
Red deer is one of the most widely distributed species of big game. In Poland the harvest of this species reached 30,287 individuals in 2004. The total number of red deer in Poland is approximately 103,436 (March 2005). Hunting of stags is of
particular interest due to their valuable trophies. Thus, red deer for many years have been considered as majestic animals which
could be hunted only by royals. In order to improve body conditions and antler quality in red deer, many attempts were utilized
such as providing supplementary feeding, fencing or making special hunting parks.
The Pszczyna district is famous for its forests and historical events including outstanding hunting meetings organised for
emperors, kings and royal guests from all over Europe. Game management in the Pszczyna was considered to be of high
quality. In the 17th century Pszczyna was well know for its venison that was exported to many countries. The numbers of game
species were strictly monitored. The hunting parks and enclosures appeared in early 19th century. The most famous owner of
Pszczyna was the family of the Hochbergs.
The Pszczyna estate passed to Hans Heinrich XI (1833-1907) who became a duke (Herzog von Pless). He was also a holder of
many important positions including Grand Imperial Master of the Hunt. He was a great hunting amateur, thus during his ascendancy many important changes had been put into game management. He was responsibly for introducing new species into the
Pszczyna Forest. In 1864, 14 elks (Cervus elaphus canadensis) were introduced into hunting parks in the Pszczyna Forest.
Followed by fallow deer (Dama dama) (22 individuals) in 1850, European bisons (Bison bonasus) (4 individuals) in 1865, and
sika deer (Cervus nippon) (50 individuals) in 1895.
The animals added splendour and attraction to hunting meetings. All valuable trophies had been shown on the first hunting exhibitions. Many years later Pszczyna passed to Polish government. Nowadays we may visit Castle Museum in Pszczyna which
fortunately did not lose the valuable furnishings and enormous collection of hunting trophies. However, no biometrical assessment of the skulls and antlers was performed so far Thus the main goal of our investigation was to provide information on the
quality and characteristics of trophies which might be used in future studies.
Table 1. The measurements of red deer stags’ antlers [cm],
weight [kg]. First age class (individuals 3 and 4 years old).
518
Table 2. The measurements of red deer stags antlers [cm],
weight [kg]. Second age class (individuals 5 and 8 years old).
Table 3. The measurements of red deer stags antlers [cm],
weight [kg]. Third age class (individuals 9 years old and older).
Study area and methods
The Pszczyna Forest is situated in southern Poland, between
Upper Silesia and the Beskids.
The forest up to 1922 belonged to the Hochbergs (area 23,908
hectares). Nowadays the forest area is 32,000 hectares. Before
19th century the natural forest compositions consisted of
broad-leaved trees which had been replaced by coniferous
species at the end of the century. Currently, one third of forest
compositions are coniferous forests with the dominant pine
trees (72.4%). The big game species include red deer, sika
deer, roe deer, wild boar, and fallow deer. The numbers of
individuals from these species are respectively 541, 20, 2,383,
366 and 99. The elks did not survive, however, the reports
from 19th century ensure that they had successfully hybridized
with red deer.
With permission of the director of the Castle Museum in
Pszczyna an inventory of hunting trophies was undertaken.
Trophies were measured according to the instructions of the
International Council for Game and wildlife Conservation. The
skulls of red deer, sika deer and fallow deer have been
measured, but in this paper only data on red deer antlers are
presented.
Results and conclusions
145 skulls with antlers of red deer were investigated. Although the exact date of culling was not found, it is known that the
whole collection comes from 19th/20th century and belonged to the Hochbergs.
The age of the individuals was estimated by tooth wear and visible features on the skull i.e. the skull sutures. The trophies were
ranked into medal classes (gold, silver and bronze) according to CIC instructions. Data on antler anomalies was recorded too.
Four antlers were ranked as gold medal trophies, 11 as silver medal trophies and 22 as bronze medal trophies. 28% of the antlers
got penalty points for defects such as broken points, artificial colour, and lack of symmetry. There were four malformed antlers
with supernumerary tines probably resulting from injuries during the velvet period and two cases of antlers with spiky main
beams having no tines or only brow tines.
Regarding the comparison with the official statistics on hunting trophies collection from 1918 to 1998 it was found out that the
total number of prizes in Poland was 3,648.
Medal categories were divided into three groups. There were 287 golden medals for the red deer antlers, from which 2%
belonged to stags harvested in the Pszczyna Forest. The number of silver medals was 1,155 (3.5% belonged to the red deer harvested in the Pszczyna Forest). The largest group of rewards was bronze medals. There were 2,206 classified bronze medal
antlers, from which up to 7% were males from our study area.
We wish to stress that the antlers described in our research were not included in this official statistics. The relative number of
medal trophies assessed by our team revealed that the hunting trophies quality from 19th and 20th centuries was very high.
In order to make more comparisons the measured antlers were divided into three age classes (Tab. 1-3). These will be used in
our study on living population of red deer and other ungulate species in the Pszczyna Forest.
To sum up, the majority of studies on red deer biometry present data on antler, body and skull morphology. Our investigation
provides valuable data which might be compared and included into more sophisticated statistical analysis.
Given that sika, elk and red deer had been living in the same area, we presume that some of the individuals are hybrids of the
former species or sub-species. However, no molecular analyses Has been done. The objective of the future project should be to
provide a useful technique for identifying trophies belonging to foreign deer and separate hybrids.
References
Carranza J, Martinez JG, Sánchez-Prieto CB, Fernández-Garciá JL, Sánchez- Fernández B, Álvarez- Álvarez R, Valencia J, and Alarcos S (2003) Game
species: extinction hidden by census numbers. Anim Biod Cons 26:81-84
Dziedzic R (1999) Polskie trofea lowieckie. P.P. Evan, Warszawa [Polish Hunting Trophies] in Polish
Kruuk LEB, Slate J, Pemberton JM, and Clutton-Brock TH (2003) Fluctuating asymmetry in a secondary sexual traits: no associations with individual
fitness, environmental stress or breeding, and no heritability. J Evol Biol 16:101-113
Kruuk LEB, Slate J, Pemberton JM, Brotherstone S, Guiness F, and Clutton-Brock T (2002) Antler size in red deer: heritability and selection but no
evolution. Evolution 56:1683-1695
Ziebura PW (2003) Lowiectwo na Górnym Śl˛asku. Triadapress, Katowice [Hunting on Upper Silesia] in Polish]
519
Age-structure and reproduction of urban and rural red foxes
(Vulpes vulpes) in Denmark - preliminary results
Wincentz, Trine-Lee, Madsen, Aksel Bo
National Environmental Research Institute, Dept. of Wildlife Ecology and Biodiversity, Kalø.
Grenåvej 12, 8410-Rønde, Denmark.
Corresponding author: Trine-Lee Wincentz. Tel.: +45-89-20-15-23, fax: +45-89-20-15-15, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Survival, life expectancy, ovulation, placental scar
Age structure and survival
In the Danish countryside the red fox is without natural enemies but at daytime in the period 1/9-31/1 it is subject to hunting.
Experience from abroad has shown that populations are able to withstand an annual mortality of 60-70% (e.g. Ables, 1975).
The age structure of fox populations reflects mortality and usually depends strongly on the degree of persecution, more persecuted populations having a higher proportion of young animals (Phillips, 1970; Harris & Smith, 1987; Heydon & Reynolds,
2000). In the present study (Wincentz, 2004) a sample of urban red foxes from Copenhagen, mainly road-kills, was collected
in 1997-1998, and a sample of rural foxes, mainly shot individuals, was collected in 1997-2000. All carcasses were aged according to incremental cementum lines in the canines (Ansorge, 1995; Jensen & Nielsen, 1968). The samples were compared with
respect to age composition, sex ratios, survival rates and life expectancy. The age structure differed significantly (P<0.0001)
between the two samples with a younger age composition among rural foxes (fig 1).
This was probably a result of a higher turnover in the rural population due to hunting, as no regulation occurred in the urban
area. However, the urban sample may be biased against young and towards senescent animals, so differences may be less pronounced than observed. Survival rates were constant for all adults with the exception of urban males, who showed a deviant
pattern of survival. It is possible that urban males after establishment in territories suffer very low mortality. Survival rate of
adult females was similar in the two samples, and differences between female populations were mainly associated with juvenile survival, maybe related to differences in distances and timing of dispersal. Family groups in the urban population have been
observed. This could explain the low mortality for urban juveniles. Survival rates were higher for rural females than rural males,
probably due to different exposure to hunting and traffic of the sexes, caused by higher male activity. Adult life expectancy was
similar (3.2-3.6 yrs.) with the exception of a long life expectancy for urban males (4.8 yrs.). Low mortality in the urban area
may be caused by an early-acquired experience with cars and a steady food supply. This may lead to a large proportion of urban
foxes reaching adult age. The differences in regulating factors had no influence on the sex composition of the samples.
Reproduction
Percent
Percent
In areas with low direct persecution and good resources, foxes show low mortality rates and either low litter sizes, high percentages of barren females, or both (Harris & Smith, 1987; Gortázar et al., 2003). On the other hand high mortality rates and
higher productivity are observed in fox populations suffering intense persecution (Yoneda & Maekawa, 1982; Heydon &
Figure 1. Age structures of two samples of urban and rural red foxes from Denmark. Aging was based on cementum annuli in
canines
520
Percent
Figure 2: Frequency distribution of corpora lutea in ovaries of urban and rural red foxes from
Denmark.
Reynolds, 2000). In addition, female age has been suggested as a possible factor affecting reproductive performance (Englund,
1970; Harris 1979; Cavallini & Santini, 1996; Heydon & Reynolds, 2000).
The age-specific reproductive output (fecundity, litter size, barrenness, productivity) of female red foxes was compared
between a sample of 73 urban foxes and a sample of 135 rural foxes. Urban first time reproducers ovulated significantly fewer
ova than older females, but this was not reflected in litter sizes, as estimated by placental scar counts (e.g. Lindström, 1981).
The same pattern was seen for the rural females, who in addition had a tendency towards larger litters as compared to the urban
females. Significantly fewer ova in the urban females supported this tendency (t-test, P=0.02) (fig 2).
The smaller litters and smaller ovulation rates in the urban population may be a result of density-dependence acting on reproduction. Mortality is low in the urban area, which is reflected in a high density. Since group formation has been observed in the
urban area, and groups usually contain barren females, a high proportion of barren urban females was expected. However more
rural than urban females were barren. Productivity for rural females rose through the first four breeding seasons, mainly due to
a significant age-related decrease in barren females. That rural first time reproducers have a higher proportion of barren females
is suggested to originate in physiological rather than social factors, as young of the year were significantly lighter than older
females in January (P=0.02). The productivity of urban females was, as the proportion of barren, similar across breeding seasons.
References
Ables ED (1975) Ecology of the red fox in North America. In: The Wild Canids- their systematics, behavioural ecology and evolution.
(ed. M.W. Fox). Pp. 216-236. Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. New York.
Ansorge H (1995) Notizen zur altersbestimmung nach wachstumslinien am saügetierschädel. Methoden feldökol Säugetierforsch 1:95-102.
Cavallini P, Santini S (1996) Reproduction of the red fox Vulpes vulpes in Central Italy. Ann Zool Fennici 33:267-274.
Englund J (1970) Some aspects of reproduction and mortality rates in Swedish foxes (Vulpes vulpes), 1961-63 and 1966-69. Swedish Wldl 8. 82pp.
Gortázar C, Ferreras P, Villafuerte R, Martín M, Blanco JC (2003) Habitat related differences in age structure and reproductive parameters
of red foxes. Acta Theriol 48 (1):93-100.
Harris S (1979) Age related fertility and productivity in Red foxes, Vulpes vulpes, in suburban London. J Zool, Lond 187:195-199.
Harris S, Smith GC (1987) Demography of two urban fox (Vulpes vulpes) populations. J. Appl Ecol 24:75-86.
Heydon MJ, Reynolds J (2000) Demography of rural foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in relation to culling intensity in three contrasting regions of Britain.
J Zool, Lond 251:265-276.
Jensen B, Nielsen LB (1968) Age Determination in the Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes L.) from Canine Tooth Sections. Dan Rev Game Biol 5 (6):3-15.
Phillips RL (1970) Age ratios of Iowa foxes. J Wildl Mgmt 34:52-56.
Lindström E (1981) Reliability of placental scar counts in the Red fox (Vulpes vulpes) with special reference to fading of the scars. Mamm Rev 11
(4):137-149.
Wincentz T (2004) Population dynamics of urban and rural red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in Denmark. Masters thesis, Institute of Biology, University of
Copenhagen.
Yoneda M, Maekawa K (1982) Effects of hunting on age structure and survival rates of red fox in eastern Hokkaido. J Wildl Mgmt 46 (3):781-785.
521
Diet composition of the otter (Lutra lutra) in carp-farming
ponds
Wiśniowska Lidia
Department of Ecology, Wildlife Research and Ecoturism, Pedagogical University of Kraków,
Corresponding author: Lidia Wiśniowska. Tel.: +48-1-26-62-66-87, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: southern Poland, damage, season, food selection
The research was carried out on 198 adjoining farming ponds (total area 811.9 ha) located near Zator in southern Poland.
Commercial production of carp (Cyprinus carpio) and limited production of such species as big head carp (Aristichthys nobilis),
crusian carp (Carassius carassius), goldfish (Carassius auratus), grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella), ide (Leuciscus idus),
pike (Esox lucius), tench (Tinca tinca), and wels (Silurus glanis) takes place there. Many other species of fish also live in these
ponds, which don’t have any economic importance. 5 line transects with a total length of 30 km were established in the study
area, where once a month (from December 2000 to December 2001) otter spraints were collected. 673 samples were collected.
They represented spring (n=148), summer (n=131), autumn (n=238) and winter (n=156) respectively. 131 samples from each
season, except for summer were chosen at random.. Final evaluation of the otter’s diet was based on 524 spraints samples.
Mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians were identified in a laboratory on the basis of hairs, feathers, frontoparietal bones and
ileum bones (Webb 1976, Pucek et al. 1984, Engelmann et al. 1985, Teerink 1991, Brown et al. 1993). Species of fish were identified using data from papers by Horoszewicz (1960), Webb (1976), and Libois et al. (1987). Characteristic parts of fish skeleton which enabled the determination of body length and mass of fish consumed by an otter were measured with an accuracy of
0.1 mm (Horoszewicz 1960, Mann and Beaumont 1980, Wise 1980, Hallet-Libois 1984, Libois et al. 1987a b, Rolik and
Rembiszewski 1987, Brylińska 2000, Amirowicz pers. comm.). Body mass of amphibians was estimated according to Juszczyk
(1987) and Libois et al. (1987) and birds on the basis of Wiśniowska 1996. Invertebrates were excluded from the calculation.
Fish occurred in 98.2% of samples and amphibians in 6.5% of samples. Percentage of samples where reptiles, birds, mammals
and unidentified vertebrates were found was 0.3%, 1.6%, 2.5% and 0.3% respectively. However, fish (59.5%) and amphibians
(15.5%) dominated in the biomass of food consumed during a year by an otter. The other systematic groups such as: mammals,
birds and reptiles constitute respectively 11.3%, 7.2% and 6.6% of consumption.
Table 1 shows the percentage of various fish species in total biomass of fish consumed by an otter in different seasons of a year.
Only in summer was the proportion of carp in this diet high, constituting 46.3%. During the rest of the year it varied from 4.7%
to 14.8%. However, these were small individuals whose body length was from 6.0-6.9 cm (Fig.1). In this entire year roach
(Rutilus rutilus) was a dominant species (25.2%) in the otter’s diet, while carp made up 20.4% of fish consumed (Fig.2).
Wiśniowska (2002) estimated that during a whole year the otter population in the study area consumes 12.3 tons of food, which
includes fish, amphibians, reptiles and
mammals. Carp in the otter diet amounted
Table 1. Percentage share of various fish species in the total biomass of fish conto 12.1%, which corresponds to 1.49 ton a
sumed by otter
year. It constitutes only 0.35% of the annuSpezies
al carp production that is equal to 422.6 tons
per years. However, mainly carp fry whose
production is only 8.85 tons a year, was
identified in the otter diet in the present
paper. This means that the otter population
consumes 16.8% of this production.
According to available data the percent of
carp in the otter diet varies from 10.8% to
40.6% (Wiśniowska 1996, Lanszki and
Körmendi 1993, Kloskowski 1999). Only
data collected by Lanszki and Körmendi
(1996) by Lanszki et al. (2001) suggest a
considerably large body size of carp in the
otter diet. Most of the authors (Erlinge
1967, Webb 1975, and Brzeziński et al.
1993) indicated that otters consume mostly
small size fish.
522
percentage share
Fig.1. Distribution of body length of carp consumed by the otter
in carp farming ponds. Based upon the relationship between size
of the pharyngeal bone (mm) and the total body length of carp
(Amirowicz unpublished data)
Fig.2. Annual percentage share of various fish species in the total
biomass of fish consumed by otter
[1]-carp, [2]-crusian carp, [3]-roach, [4]-bleak, [5]-able, [6]-other
fish
References
Brown R, Ferguson J, Lawrence M, Lees D (1993) Federn, Spuren und Zeichen der Vögel Europas. AULA – Verlag, Wiesbaden
Brylińska M (2000) Ryby slodkowodne Polski. PWN, Warszawa [in Polish]
Brzeziński M, J˛edrzejewski W, J˛edrzejewska B (1993) Diet of otters (Lutra lutra) inhabiting small rivers in the Bialowieża National Park, eastern
Poland. J. Zool., Lond. 230: 495-501
Engelmann WE, Fritzsche J, Gunther R, Obst F.J (1985) Lurche und Kriechtiere Europas. Neumann Verlag, Leipzig
Erlinge S (1967) Food studies of the fish otter Lutra lutra L. Oikos 19: 259-270
Hallet-Libois C (1984) Modulations de la strategie alimentaire d'un predateur: Eco-ethologie de la predation du martin-pecheur, Alcedo atthis
(L. 1758), en periode de reproduction. Ph. D. Diss. Facultes Universitaires Notre-Dame de la Paix-Namur
Horoszewicz L (1960) Wartości kos̀ci gardlowych dolnych jako kryteriów gatunkowego oznaczania ryb karpiowatych. Rocz. Nauk Roln. 75 B, 2: 238256 [in Polish]
Juszczyk W (1987) Plazy i gady krajowe. PWN, Warszawa [in Polish]
Kloskowski J (1999) Otter Lutra lutra predation in cyprinid - dominated habitats. Z. Säugetierkunde 64: 201-209Lanszki J, Körmendi S (1993) Data
on the role of the otter (Lutra lutra L.) in fish- farming. Halaszat 4: 190-192. (In Hungarian with English summary)
Lanszki J, Körmendi S (1996) Otter diet in relation to fish availability in a fish pond in Hungary. Acta theriol. 41(2): 127-136
Lanszki J, Körmendi S, Hancz C, Martin TG (2001) Examination of some factors affecting selection of fish prey by otters (Lutra lutra) living by
eutrophic fish ponds. J. Zool., Lond. 255: 97-103Libois RM, Hallet-Libois C, Lafontaine L (1987) Le regime de la loutre Lutra lutra en Bretagne
interieure. Rev. Ecol. 42: 135-144Libois R M, Hallet-Libois C, Rosoux R (1987) Elements pour l'identification des Restes craniens des poissons dulcaquicoles de Belgique et du nord de la France. Centre de recherches Archeologiques du CNRS. APDCA. Juan-les-Pins. 3: 1-15
Mann RHK, Beaumont WRC (1980) The collection, identification and reconstruction of lengths of fish prey from their remains in pike stomachs. Fish.
Manage. 11: 169-172
Pucek Z, Ferens B, G˛asowska M, Kowalski K, Mlynarski M, Mulicki Z, Rydzewski W, Serafiński W (1984) Keys to Vertebrates of Poland Mammals.
PWN – Polish Sci. Publ., WarsawRolik H, Rembiszewski JM (1987) Ryby i kr˛aglouste. PWN, Warszawa [in Polish]Teerink BJ (1991) Hair of
West–European mammals. Atlas and identification key. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Webb JB (1975) Food of the otter (Lutra lutra) on the Somerset levels. J. Zool., Lond. 177: 486-491Webb JB (1976) Otter spraint analysis. An
Occasional Publication of the Mammal Society, London
Wise MH (1980) The use of fish vertebrae in scats for estimating prey size of otters and mink. J. Zool., Lond. 192: 25-31
Wiśniowska L (1996) Diet of the otter (Lutra lutra) in fish pond in southern Poland. J. Wildl. Res. 1: 272- 277
Wiśniowska L (2002) Wplyw wydry na produkcj˛e ryb karpiowatych na terenie stawów hodowlanych w rejonie Zatora. Ph. D. Diss. Kraków
Uniwersytet Jagielloński, Polska [in Polish]
523
Perspectives for certification of trophy hunting
Zakharenka Andrew
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, National Capital Region, Alexandria Center
1021 Prince Street, Room 311, Alexandria, VA 22314, USA
Corresponding author: Andrew Zakharenka. Tel.: +1-2-02-62-56-398, e-mail: [email protected]
Key words: Principles of assessment, game management, sustained use
Abstract
The current issues of trophy hunting and biodiversity conservation are challenging and ambivalent. Growing demand, on the
one hand, and declining populations and biodiversity loss, on the other hand, push towards the creation of the system that can
verify game management against a set of environmentally friendly principles. Perspectives for the introduction of such principles are discussed in this paper.
Introduction
Forest certification processes consider the issues of game management order to include multifunctional nature of forest into
management assessment. This fact together with the loss of habitats and species extinction explains the attention to how wildlife
resources are managed and the management is evaluated.
Studies on trophy hunting shows (Haule et. al, 2002; Hurt, 2000) that it integrates important economical, legal and environmental aspects of game management. Trophy hunting also contributes to species conservation, poaching prevention, economic
development of local communities, and stabilizing their social welfare (Haule et al., 2003). Baker (1997) and Leader-Williams
(2000) argue that trophy hunting has already become a powerful conservation tool.
However, it is still often that trophy hunting can lead populations to degradation or extinction. By the year 2003 hunting and
harvest exploitation were considered a major reason for the threatened status of species among 13% of mammals, 7% of birds,
31% of reptiles, and 68% of marine fishes (Holechek et al., 2003). Hoffer (2002) suggests the initiation of the process of certification for trophy hunting destinations/organizers, which will contribute to the species conservation and regulation of wild
species trade.
The problem, which is addressed in this paper, is the lack of knowledge and experience in assessment of trophy hunting for sustained
use of game species. The results of this research will help setting the principles of certification of trophy hunting.
Relevant materials were collected through a review of the primary research literature, contacting Forest Stewardship Council
(FSC) country officers, interviewing game managers and forest owners. Further, the FSC principles wer

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