Wild Sika Deer Invasions of the Grasslands within Livestock Farms

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  • 牧場草地における野生シカの侵入実態
  • ボクジョウ クサチ ニ オケル ヤセイ シカ ノ シンニュウ ジッタイ

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Abstract

The objectives of this study were to (1) obtain fundamental information on the presence of wild Sika deer (Cervus nippon) in grasslands and (2) investigate the effectiveness of two fencing methods for reducing the damage to meadows invaded by wild Sika deer. We designed two experiments. The first experiment was conducted from January 2014 to December 2015. We used a light census survey to determine the frequency of occurrence of wild Sika deer in grasslands within the Iriki Livestock Farm, which is the Experimental Farm maintained by the Faculty of Agriculture at Kagoshima University. Sika deer were observed on nights throughout the study period, within and outside of the grasslands. The monthly average number of deer visiting the grasslands was 179. The monthly maximum number was 270 (April 2014), and the minimum was 97 (November 2015). In the second experiment during February to March 2015, we investigated the behavioural responses of wild Sika deer to two types of fences (a physical protective mesh fence with a height of 175–200 cm, and a 5-wire electric fence with a height of 140 cm) enclosing 2 ha of meadow. Seven Sika deer passed through gaps under the physical protective mesh fence. Of the 27 Sika deer observed near the electric fence, 14 of the animals explored the fence but ultimately avoided it. The remainder of the observed Sika deer entered the meadow, most of them passing through the electric fence without touching the wires. These findings indicate that Sika deer do depend on the grasslands within livestock farms and that more effective methods for preventing Sika deer invasions are urgently needed.

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