The Function of Mounting Behaviour in Farmed Red Deer Calves

The function of mounting behaviour was studied in farmed red deer (Cervus elaphus) calves. On the basis of previous work, we tested two alternative hypotheses about the function of this behaviour. The first hypothesis deals with the proximate function of the behaviour. Three predictions were tested: (1a) mounting behaviour attracts the attention of the mother and/or consolidates the mother–calf bond; (1b) mounting is intended to obtain more milk; (1c) mounting is intended to prevent other calves from sucking from the mother. The second hypothesis deals with an ultimate function in practising for future life with two predictions tested: (2a) mounting behaviour is part of calves' play behaviour promoting development of the calf's locomotor and social skills; (2b) calves gain sexual experience through mounting behaviour. For the study, 50 hind‐calf pairs were observed. The maternity of individual hinds was confirmed by a genetical analysis. The hinds were classified as ‘maternal’ and ‘non‐maternal’ and the calves as ‘filial’ and ‘non‐filial’. We recorded 40 cases of mounting behaviour involving 25 hinds and 21 calves. Our results suggest that the mounting behaviour of red deer calves serves several different functions depending on the circumstances. In association with suckling, calves of both sexes mounted maternal hinds mainly to attract their attention and to achieve another suckling. In situations not associated with suckling, mounting by male calves might be considered part of their sexual training. On the other hand, mounting by female calves probably reflects the attempt to maintain contact with their mother in tense situations.     

Relationships between Behaviour and Antler Cycle Timing in Red Deer

The factors affecting the stag social hierarchy and antler cycle timing in a herd of red deer were analysed. The analysis was based on behaviour records of the herd between 1972 and 1983. The alpha stag was not usually the oldest stag present. Changes in rank were commoner in periods of hard antler than during velvet periods. The frequency of rank changes was correlated with the number of stags present but not with the number of hinds; it was also positively related to indicators of the level of aggression such as the incidence of antler breakage, the number of harem-holding stags per rut and the incidence of post-casting rank loss. The number of stags killed in fights was not correlated to any of the indicators of aggression except the number of harem-holders per rut. Rank loss after antler casting and the change of harem-holding stags during the rut were both relatively rare events indicating year-round, stable social relationships in the herd. The relationships between rank and casting date and between rank and cleaning date previously reported were related to the level of aggression among the deer. The higher the level of aggression, the closer the relationship between rank and the timing of the antler cycle. The small difference in the level of aggression between the periods of casting and cleaning is thought to be the result of the seasonally different social background. The number of hinds present did not appear to affect antler casting, antler cleaning or the general indicators of the level of aggression. It is concluded that the results support the previously advanced hypothesis that behaviour modulates antler cycle timing in Cervids.     

圈养条件下白唇鹿行为观察

１９９８年３～４月,我们对圈养条件下白唇鹿行为进行了研究,发现雌雄间没有亲密行为发生,攻击行为也较少（只占５．９３％）。而攻击行为主要表现于雄雄间（６２．２２％）、雌雌间（３１．８３％）。雌雄性个体对外界干扰因子均比较敏感。     

Correlates of Territoriality in Rutting Red Deer

The mating strategy most commonly reported for male red deer, Cervus elaphus, is the defence of females (harems), territoriality having been described only in Doñana, Spain. We observed rutting males at five different populations in Spain and during 4 consecutive yr in Doñana. Female defence was the only strategy observed in two of the populations, whereas territorial defence coexisted with female defence in the remaining three populations. Territorial defence appeared to be more costly than female defence, in terms of rates of aggressive interaction, and territorial males tended to gather more females per d than non-territorial ones. Both mating strategies seemed to respond to local variations in habitat, which in turn affected female distribution. Females concentrated in areas with high-quality forage, and most territories contained patches of high-quality food (i.e. greater quality within boundaries) or were located along main routes used by females. The results are interpreted in the light of environmental conditions in southern Europe, where the rut coincides with the less favourable season for herbivores (in terms of food resources) after the hot and dry summer. Under such conditions of food scarcity coupled with patchy distribution, females tend to concentrate on the remaining patches of green swards, and males benefit from defending the food resources that attract females.     

Aspects of Aggressive Behaviour in Polecats

• 1 Das Verhalten von Iltissen und Frettchen in einer 16-m²-Arena gegen Artgenossen wird beschrieben.
• 2 Außerhalb der Fortpflanzungszeit werden Fremde belästigt (hier ?ritual aggression” genannt), aber nicht besiegt.
• 3 Während der Fortpflanzungszeit (März bis Juli) kämpfen ♂♂ mit Fremden: sie ergreifen den Eindringling im Nacken, halten ihn fest, versuchen ihn zu schütteln und schleppen ihn umher. Der Gepackte rollt sich über den Boden, bis der andre loslassen muß, und versucht, seinerseits ebenso zuzupacken.
• 4 Ein unterlegener Iltis droht abwehrend mit gekrümmtem Rücken und hochgehaltenem Kopf, öffnet das Maul und weist dem Gegner unter Pfauchen oder Kreischen die Zähne. Der Sieger dreht den Kopf zur Seite und geht breitseits vor.
• 5 ♀♀ sind weniger angriffslustig als ♂♂; sie kämpfen gelegentlich, aber kurz und ohne den Gegner zu unterwerfen. ?Ritual aggression” zeigen sie nur gegen fremde ♀♀.
• 6 Begegnungen zwischen ♂ und ♀♀ in der Paarungszeit sind beschrieben. Ist das ♀ bereit, so kommt es zur Kopula; sonst versucht das ♂ zu kopulieren, das ♀ aber dreht sich auf den Rücken und schnappt sanft nach Genick und Schnauze des ♂. Läßt sich das ♂ nicht abweisen, so kann es zum Kampf kommen: das ♂ schleppt das ♀ am Genick umher und schüttelt es, das ♀ droht, quiekt und schnappt nach dem ♂. Das ♀ wird nicht besiegt. Auch das ♂ kann einen Kampf beginnen, vor allem, wenn es paarungsbereit ist und das ♂ nicht mitmacht. Das ♀ geht dann in Abwehrstellung und droht.
• 7 Im Januar–März werden die Hoden der Iltis-♂♂ größer und diese angriffslustiger: sie beißen öfter einen Partner ins Genick und halten ihn länger fest. Aber auch in heftigen Kämpfen wird der Gegner nicht unterworfen. Es kommt zu Pseudokopulationen mit ihm, wahrscheinlich ausgelöst durch seine Bewegungslosigkeit.
• 8 Im Iltiskampf fehlt das Drohen vor einem Angriff, entsprechend fehlt jedes Vorspiel vor dem Aufreiten und den Kopulationsversuchen.
• 9 Die Beziehungen zwischen Angriffs-, Sexual- und Spielverhalten sind erortert.

     

Kinship Discrimination and Effects on Social Rank and Aggressiveness Levels in Iberian Red Deer Hinds

Kin recognition is a widespread phenomenon that allows individuals to benefit by enhancing their inclusive fitness, and one of its most common forms is reducing aggressiveness towards relatives. We carried out an experiment with Iberian red deer hinds (Cervus elaphus hispanicus) in order to examine kin biases in dominance behaviour and its consequences on social rank. Three enclosed groups (n = 36, 23 and 21, respectively) were monitored during two lactation seasons and social rank hierarchies were assessed by analysing aggressive interactions matrices with Matman 1.1 software. Aggressive interactions between related hinds was significantly smaller than expected (χ² = 5.02, df = 1, p = 0.025), not only between mother and daughter but also in second and third kinship degrees. Although rates of aggressiveness were similar to data published relating free‐ranging C. e. scoticus, aggressive interactions with relatives were significantly smaller (χ² = 39.0, df = 1, p < 0.001). This reduction of aggressiveness between related hinds was not the result of these hinds having a lower social rank: social rank was only related to age and weight, but not to kinship degree, calf sex or calving date. The decrease of aggressiveness towards first‐, second‐ and third‐degree relatives shows a complex kin recognition system in deer. Possible nepotistic roles in lactation include preventing milk thefts by non‐kin and disturbing feeding of unrelated hinds.     

Correlation of TBE Incidence with Red Deer and Roe Deer Abundance in Slovenia

Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is a virus infection which sometimes causes human disease. The TBE virus is found in ticks and certain vertebrate tick hosts in restricted endemic localities termed TBE foci. The formation of natural foci is a combination of several factors: the vectors, a suitable and numerous enough number of hosts and in a habitat with suitable vegetation and climate. The present study investigated the influence of deer on the incidence of tick-borne encephalitis. We were able to obtain data from deer culls. Using this data, the abundance of deer was estimated and temporal and spatial analysis was performed. The abundance of deer has increased in the past decades, as well as the incidence of tick-borne encephalitis. Temporal analysis confirmed a correlation between red deer abundance and tick-borne encephalitis occurrence. Additionally, spatial analysis established, that in areas with high incidence of tick-borne encephalitis red deer density is higher, compared to areas with no or few human cases of tick-borne encephalitis. However, such correlation could not be confirmed between roe deer density and the incidence of tick-borne encephalitis. This is presumably due to roe deer density being above a certain threshold so that availability of tick reproduction hosts has no apparent effect on ticks'' host finding and consequently may not be possible to correlate with incidence of human TBE.     

Social Organisation in an Enclosed Group of Red Deer (Cervus elaphus L.) on Rhum

Primate social organisation is often considered to be more complex than that of ‘lower’ mammals. The dominance hierarchy, which is given especial emphasis in most studies of social species, has been criticised on the grounds that rank is poorly related to other aspects of social organisation. These two ideas were investigated in an enclosed group of red deer by looking at the relationships between four aspects of social organisation: the dominance hierarchy; social grooming behaviour; non-copulatory mounting behaviour; spatial organisation. The last three aspects have frequently been studied in primates, but rarely in ungulates.     

Sperm Flagellum Volume Determines Freezability in Red Deer Spermatozoa

The factors affecting the inter-individual differences in sperm freezability is a major line of research in spermatology. Poor sperm freezability is mainly characterised by a low sperm velocity, which in turn is associated with low fertility rates in most animal species. Studies concerning the implications of sperm morphometry on freezability are quite limited, and most of them are based on sperm head size regardless of the structural parts of the flagellum, which provides sperm motility. Here, for the first time, we determined the volumes of the flagellum structures in fresh epididymal red deer spermatozoa using a stereological method under phase contrast microscopy. Sperm samples from thirty-three stags were frozen and classified as good freezers (GF) or bad freezers (BF) at two hours post-thawing using three sperm kinetic parameters which are strongly correlated with fertility in this species. Fourteen stags were clearly identified as GF, whereas nineteen were BF. No significant difference in sperm head size between the two groups was found. On the contrary, the GF exhibited a lower principal piece volume than the BF (6.13 µm³ vs 6.61 µm³, respectively, p = 0.006). The volume of the flagellum structures showed a strong negative relationship with post-thawing sperm velocity. For instance, the volume of the sperm principal piece was negatively correlated with sperm velocity at two hours post-thawing (r = −0.60; p<0.001). Our results clearly show that a higher volume of the sperm principal piece results in poor freezability, and highlights the key role of flagellum size in sperm cryopreservation success.     

东北马鹿和东北梅花鹿F_1杂种精母细胞联会复合体分析

作者以界面铺张-硝酸银染色技术,对东北马鹿和东北梅花鹿的F_1可育杂种的精母细胞联会复合体进行亚显微观察及分析。在减数分裂前期,杂种鹿精母细胞中形成31条完整的常染色体联会复合体、一个端着丝粒染色体/中着丝粒染色体的三价体和XY双价体。这进一步证明,两种亲本鹿的染色体具有高度的同源性,其差别仅在于一个罗伯逊易位。三价体的顺式构型可能和杂种鹿的可育性有关。     

Seasonal Variation of Diurnal and Ultradian Rhythms in Red Deer

To describe the normal rhythmic behavioural patterns and to test procedures for the detection of short-time disturbances, 4 red deer were studied in 2 quasi-natural enclosures. Activity and feeding were recorded by means of the storage-telemetrysystem ETHOSYS®. Daily and monthly mean values, power spectra and 'Degrees of Functional Coupling' (DFC) were calculated. DFC were applied to measure stability and harmonic synchronisation between ultradian rhythms and the 24-hours period. The general patterns of activity and feeding were nearly identical in all animals and closely related to photoperiod change. Levels of total activity and feeding were lowest in winter and highest in summer. In winter highest activity was generally observed in daylight hours and shifted gradually to dark hours in summer. Spectral analysis of activity and feeding revealed a time pattern in which ultradian components, between 4.8 and 12 hrs in period length, mostly exceeded the diurnal rhythm power. Compared to winter higher frequencies were found in activity and feeding in spring, summer and autumn. During such periods up to 8 strong bouts of activity per day (3-hrs rhythm) were observed. These rhythmic patterns are discussed in the context of red deer feeding strategy. Short-term disturbances by humans and changing feeding conditions resulted in lowered DFCs. Time pattern analysis of long-term and continuously measured behavioural parameters proved to be an appropriate approach for observing general living conditions and for detecting disturbances.     

Going Out to Mate: Excursion Behaviour of Female Roe Deer

Among mammals, female searching behaviour for a mate has been poorly investigated in behavioural studies on sexual selection. The social organization of roe deer and its physiological constraints suggest the existence of searching strategies by females. Using radiotracking and direct observation we studied the spatial behaviour and intersexual interactions of 32 roe does during the rut in two areas of Tuscany, central Italy. Respectively, 55% and 33% of females performed excursions outside their usual home ranges during the peak of the rut (15 Jul.–15 Aug.). Excursions ranged from 0.6 to 3.0 km, if measured in a straight line, and lasted 30–52 h. During excursions, females (1) moved quickly in one direction; (2) met and were courted by a male; (3) copulated with a male and (4) returned to their home ranges after mating. Before starting an excursion, roaming females were observed to approach unsuccessfully males already courting other females. Most likely excursions represent a condition dependent mating tactic adopted by a variable proportion of females and involving active searching behaviour.     

马鹿线粒体DNA研究新进展

线粒体DNA作为理想的分子遗传标记被广泛应用于马鹿进化生物学、种群遗传学和保护生物学的研究.该文阐述了mtDNA在马鹿中的研究进展,重点介绍马鹿mtDNA序列的研究概况及其多态性在马鹿物种识别、起源和进化、地理分化、遗传多样性和保护管理等方面的应用情况.