Characteristics of tracks formed by wild deer in Natsumushi-yama [Japan] pasture of Sanriku town
2010
Hosokawa, Y., Miyazaki Univ. (Japan). Faculty of Agriculture
Foraging and tracking by wild deer (Cervus Nippon centralis) have damaged and deteriorated the pasture in Natsumushi-yama hills of Sanriku town, Iwate prefecture. Fence was constructed outside the pasture for preventing cattle from escaping and pasture from invasion by wild deer. The situation of gates, being especially important to capture highly-strung wild deer, should be decided by studying the deer track. This paper describes the characteristics of deer tracks. Results are summarized as follows. Deer tracks in the outside of fence distributed in parallel and right angle against fence, and sometimes crossed and composed net. In the pasture side, those tracks were found clearly as straight ways toward the pasture. From the border of pasture, however, those disappeared gradually. The average section formation of the tracks was the ditch type with about 6-cm depth and about 27-cm bottom width. The soil in 2.5-5 cm depth of the center of deer track was particularly compacted harder by deer trampling, and the soil hardness was 1.5 MPa at the maximum and 1.1 MPa at the average. Their characteristics show almost similar them of cattle in a pasture. Therefore, the situation of capturing gate should be selected at the deer track, crossing each other, gathered outside the fence, and at the site of deer track with a bigger section formation and a harder soil.
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