Recreation and hunting differentially affect deer behaviour and sapling performance

Humans are increasingly acknowledged as apex predators that shape landscapes of fear to which herbivores adapt their behaviour. Here, we investigate how humans modify deer space-use and their effects on vegetation at two spatial scales; zones with different types of human use (largescale risk factor) and, nested within that, trails (fine-scale risk factor). In zones with three contrasting types of human activities: 1) no recreation, no hunting, 2) with recreation, no hunting and 3) with recreation and hunting, we linked deer space-use (dropping counts) to browsing intensity, relative growth and survival of planted saplings. Plots were located at two distances to trails (20 versus 100 m) to test how trails affect deer space-use and sapling performance. Additionally, plots were distributed over forest and heathland as risk effects are habitat-dependent. Deer space-use was highest in the zone without recreation or hunting, resulting in higher browsing levels and lower sapling growth and survival, but only in heathland. In contrast, deer space-use and sapling performance did not differ between zones with recreation only and zones with recreation and hunting. Deer dropping counts were lower near trails used for recreation, but this was not associated with browsing impact or sapling performance. Our results show that recreational use modifies deer space-use which is associated with browsing impact on woody vegetation, while seasonal hunting activities in zones with recreation did not have additive year-round effects. Yet, effects were only observed at the larger scale of recreation zones and not near trails. Furthermore, deer space-use was only associated with sapling performance in open heathland, where high visibility presumably increases avoidance behaviour because it increases detectability and decreases escape possibilities. This suggests that recreation creates behaviourally mediated cascading effects that influence vegetation development, yet these effects are context-dependent. We advocate incorporating human-induced fear effects in conservation, management and research

Recreation and hunting differentially affect deer behaviour and sapling performance

Humans are increasingly acknowledged as apex predators that shape landscapes of fear to which herbivores adapt their behaviour. Here, we investigate how humans modify deer space-use and their effects on vegetation at two spatial scales; zones with different types of human use (largescale risk factor) and, nested within that, trails (fine-scale risk factor). In zones with three contrasting types of human activities: 1) no recreation, no hunting, 2) with recreation, no hunting and 3) with recreation and hunting, we linked deer space-use (dropping counts) to browsing intensity, relative growth and survival of planted saplings. Plots were located at two distances to trails (20 versus 100 m) to test how trails affect deer space-use and sapling performance. Additionally, plots were distributed over forest and heathland as risk effects are habitat-dependent. Deer space-use was highest in the zone without recreation or hunting, resulting in higher browsing levels and lower sapling growth and survival, but only in heathland. In contrast, deer space-use and sapling performance did not differ between zones with recreation only and zones with recreation and hunting. Deer dropping counts were lower near trails used for recreation, but this was not associated with browsing impact or sapling performance. Our results show that recreational use modifies deer space-use which is associated with browsing impact on woody vegetation, while seasonal hunting activities in zones with recreation did not have additive year-round effects. Yet, effects were only observed at the larger scale of recreation zones and not near trails. Furthermore, deer space-use was only associated with sapling performance in open heathland, where high visibility presumably increases avoidance behaviour because it increases detectability and decreases escape possibilities. This suggests that recreation creates behaviourally mediated cascading effects that influence vegetation development, yet these effects are context-dependent. We advocate incorporating human-induced fear effects in conservation, management and research

Human recreation shapes the local scale impact of ungulates on the carbon pools of a temperate coniferous forest

Greenhouse gases accumulation constitutes one of the main problems of modern society. Forests, which are a main terrestrial carbon sink, could represent a great help to reduce carbon footprints. Recent studies show that animals play a big role in carbon dynamics, and while the impacts of animals such as ungulates are affected by human presence, these effects have not been considered in studies on carbon stocks. Here, we studied the impact of ungulates on different carbon pools of a temperate coniferous forest at the Veluwe area (Gelderland, the Netherlands), and incorporated the influence of humans on ungulates presence and vigilance at fine spatial scales. We selected 22 paired plots at 20 and 100 m distance from human trails, ensuring that all of them had comparable environmental conditions. We divided each plot in three subplots, and in each subplot, we collected a sample of aboveground vegetation, understory litter and soil. Using camera traps in the same plots, we related differences in presence and behaviour of ungulates with the above-mentioned carbon stocks measured in the same plots. We found consistently fewer ungulate visits per day at 20 m than at 100 m from human trails, while their vigilant level was not significantly different. The concentrations of carbon were substantially higher in all three measured carbon pools at 20 m than at 100 m distance from the human trails. Hence, our study suggests that ungulates not only have an impact on the carbon stocks of temperate forests, but moreover that this impact is affected by human presence through the proximity to human trails. We suggest that for a proper understanding of carbon dynamics in forests, not only the impact of animals should be considered, but also how this impact is influenced by human activities

Context dependence of risk effects : Wolves and tree logs create patches of fear in an old-growth forest

Large mammalian carnivores create areas perceived as having high and low risk by their ungulate prey. Human activities can indirectly shape this landscape of fear by altering behavior and spatial distribution of carnivores. We studied how red deer perceive the landscape of fear in an old-growth forest system (Białowieża Primeval Forest, Poland) both at large and fine spatial scale. Camera traps were placed at locations with and without tree logs (fine-scale risk factor) and at different distances from the core of a Wolf territory and human settlements (large-scale risk factor). Red deer avoided coming close to large tree logs and increased their vigilance levels when they were present in close vicinity. The strength of these effects depended on the distance to the Wolf core area; deer perceived tree logs as more risky when wolves were more often present. Hence, tree logs inside Wolf core areas create fine-scale patches of fear with reduced deer browsing pressure, thereby enhancing chances for successful tree recruitment. Human presence shapes this landscape of fear as Wolf core areas are located far from human settlements. This "human shadow" on predator-prey interactions is therefore an important component that should be taken into account in human-dominated landscapes