Agricultural land use shapes dispersal in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus).

ABSTRACT:

Background

Dispersal is a fundamental process to animal population dynamics and gene flow. In white-tailed deer (WTD; Odocoileus virginianus), dispersal also presents an increasingly relevant risk for the spread of infectious diseases. Across their wide range, WTD dispersal is believed to be driven by a suite of landscape and host behavioral factors, but these can vary by region, season, and sex. Our objectives were to (1) identify dispersal events in Wisconsin WTD and determine drivers of dispersal rates and distances, and (2) determine how landscape features (e.g., rivers, roads) structure deer dispersal paths.

Methods

We developed an algorithmic approach to detect dispersal events from GPS collar data for 590 juvenile, yearling, and adult WTD. We used statistical models t

SUBMITTER: Gilbertson MLJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9608933 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature