Zhang Lixun, Sun Zhangyun, An Bei, Zhang Dexi, Chen Liuyang
College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, No. 222, Tianshui South Road, Lanzhou 730000, China.
Yuzhong Mountain Ecosystems Observation and Research Station, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
Animals (Basel). 2022 Nov 7;12(21):3061. doi: 10.3390/ani12213061.
Comprehension of whether human and livestock presence affects wildlife activity is a prerequisite for the planning and management of humans and livestock in protected areas. Xinglong Mountain Nature Reserve (XMNNR) in northwest China, as a green island in a semi-arid mountain ecosystem, is one of the scattered and isolated areas for Alpine musk deer (AMD), an endangered species. AMD cohabits their latent habitat area with foraging livestock and humans. Hence, habitat management within and outside the distribution areas is crucial for the effective conservation of AMD. We applied camera traps to a dataset of 2 years (September 2018-August 2020) to explore seasonal activity patterns and habitat use and assess the impacts of AMD habits in XMNNR. We investigated AMD responses to livestock grazing and human activities and provided effective strategies for AMD conservation. We applied MaxENT modeling to predict the distribution size under current conditions. The activity patterns of the AMD vary among seasons. The optimum habitat average distance to cultivated land ranges of AMD (1503300 m during grass period/1003200 m during withered grass period), distances to the residential area ranges (5005700 m during the grass period/10005300 m during the withered grass period), elevation ranges (23503400 m during the grass period/23603170 m during the withered grass period), aspect ranges (050° and 270360°), normalized vegetation index ranges (0.640.72 during the grass period/0.140.60 during the withered grass period), and land cover types (forest, shrub, and grassland). Results present that the predicted distributions of AMD were not confined to the areas reported but also covered other potential areas. The results provide evidence of strong spatial-temporal avoidance of AMD in livestock, but gradually adjusting to human activities. These camera trap datasets may open new opportunities for species conservation in much wider tracts, such as human-dominated landscapes, and may offer guidance and mitigate impacts from livestock, as well as increase artificial forest planting and strengthen the investigation of the potential population resources of AMD.
了解人类和牲畜的存在是否会影响野生动物的活动，是保护区内人类和牲畜规划与管理的前提条件。中国西北部的兴隆山自然保护区（XMNNR）作为半干旱山区生态系统中的一个绿岛，是濒危物种高山麝（AMD）的零散孤立分布区之一。高山麝在其潜在栖息地与觅食的牲畜和人类共存。因此，分布区内和区外的栖息地管理对于高山麝的有效保护至关重要。我们将相机陷阱应用于一个为期2年（2018年9月至2020年8月）的数据集，以探索季节性活动模式和栖息地利用情况，并评估兴隆山自然保护区内高山麝习性的影响。我们调查了高山麝对牲畜放牧和人类活动的反应，并为高山麝保护提供了有效策略。我们应用最大熵模型来预测当前条件下的分布范围。高山麝的活动模式随季节而变化。高山麝最佳栖息地到耕地的平均距离范围（草期为1503300米/枯草期为1003200米），到居民区的距离范围（草期为5005700米/枯草期为10005300米），海拔范围（草期为23503400米/枯草期为23603170米），坡向范围（050°和270360°），归一化植被指数范围（草期为0.640.72/枯草期为0.140.60），以及土地覆盖类型（森林、灌木和草地）。结果表明，高山麝的预测分布范围不仅限于已报告的区域，还覆盖了其他潜在区域。结果提供了高山麝在空间和时间上对牲畜有强烈回避，但逐渐适应人类活动的证据。这些相机陷阱数据集可能为更广泛区域（如人类主导的景观）的物种保护带来新机遇，并可能提供指导，减轻牲畜的影响，以及增加人工造林并加强对高山麝潜在种群资源的调查。
