Production of ecological wild meat products in the hunting organizations of the Hokkaido island (Japan) and the Amur region (Russia)

With the growth of the population of our planet, the problem of food production is increasing. In this situation, the importance of hunting farms in providing people with environmentally friendly meat products is increasing. During the study period, about 380 elk, 350 red deer, 2800 roe deer, 240 reindeer, 400 musk deer and 125 bears were harvested annually in Amur region. In Japan, game meat products are obtained mainly from sika deer, wild boar and brown bear. Meat products are used in food by hunters, sold to restaurants within the country and exported. As a result of our research, we came to the following conclusions: the game products in Amur region are mainly used by the hunters themselves in their private consumption, and only a small part of them goes for sale in food stores and agricultural markets. Even smaller amounts of wild meat products go to restaurants. Hunting is unpopular in Japan, and young people in general are not ready to engage in it. In our opinion, "wild meat" is an attractive environmentally friendly product for people in Russia and Japan and can undoubtedly serve to attract tourists to places of recreation and into gastronomic tours in Japan and Russia

Seasonal Migration and Home Ranges of Tibetan Antelopes (Pantholops hodgsonii) Based on Satellite Tracking

Background: Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii) , an endemic species of the Tibetan Plateau listed on IUCN Red List, migrates over the long distances for calving. It has an unequal feature that only females do seasonal migration. However, the problems of seasonal migration and inhabitation of Tibetan antelope have not yet been clarified. Methodology: To identify the ecological drivers of the Tibetan antelope migration in terms of geographical characteristics, topographical variables of their home ranges and the factors affecting the habitat selection within the seasons, there are utilized the Argos transmitter satellite tracking of the Tibetan antelope. The analysis was made by using the LoCoH Hull method for the home range estimation made for this species for the first time. Results: Tibetan antelope has spent more time on the way back from calving, than the way forward. The annual habitation area varies from 2024-2908 km^2 with average of 2409 km^2 and the wintering place locates in a valley with the average HR of 441 km^2. Conclusion: The results of monitoring and LoCoH Hull Home Range (HR) analysis showed that the calving ground location continues to be stable, while wintering places changes easily, one-third of samples changed its wintering pastures and could be adjacent to different groups. This is an important results that leads to the protection and management of endangered species on the Red List like Tibetan antelope

Evaluation of Camera Trap Surveys for Estimation of Sika Deer Herd Composition

Camera trap method has been developed for monitoring wildlife, however, most studies using camera trap depend on baited camera sites to attract target wildlife. This is likely to bias estimates of population structure. We evaluated the use of non-baited camera trap for the estimation of herd composition of sika deer (Cervus nippon). Camera trap showed a distinct seasonal pattern in sex ratios (males/100 female), which remained lowest between May and October but increased in November. Sex ratios were influenced by the number of observed males, because the ratios were positively correlated with the number of males but not females. The number of males increased in autumn during rutting season. Fawns/100 female ratios showed a distinct seasonal pattern. Highest and lowest fawns/100 female ratios were obtained in November and May, respectively. The decrease of fawns/100 female ratios in May comparing with that in November may be because of the overwinter mortality of fawns. Camera trap method is superior in term of continuously conduct in long-term, collect reasonable seasonal patterns, automatically record large numbers of sample sizes and useful in all weather conditions