Mori Taiki, Iwagami Sho, Yamagawa Hiromi, Suzuki Kei K
Kyushu Research Center, Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, Kurokami 4-11-16, Kumamoto 860-0862, Japan.
Department of Disaster Prevention, Meteorology and Hydrology, Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, FFPRI, Matsunosato 1, Tsukuba 305-8687, Japan.
Animals (Basel). 2023 Mar 13;13(6):1044. doi: 10.3390/ani13061044.
Deficient minerals in overabundant populations could act as an attractant to cull sika deer (). Because selective culling of female deer is reported to be effective in reducing sika deer populations, it is particularly important to clarify the differences in mineral requirements between males and females. Here, using global plant trait data and a published list of sika deer feed plants in Japan, we estimated whether feed plants provide sika deer sufficient sodium (Na), calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg), and compared the results between males and females. An analysis of 191 feed plant species suggested that feed plants can provide sufficient Mg, whereas sufficient Na and Ca is not always provided, especially when the intake is small or the deer large. Na deficiency was more intense for lactating females than males, suggesting that Na can be an effective attractant for selectively culling female deer. In summary, this study demonstrated that sika deer in Japan might require extra Na and Ca sources in addition to feed plants, and therefore these minerals could be useful for developing effective culling methods.
在鹿群数量过多的情况下，矿物质缺乏可能会成为捕杀梅花鹿的诱因。由于据报道选择性捕杀雌鹿对减少梅花鹿种群数量有效，因此明确雄性和雌性梅花鹿在矿物质需求上的差异尤为重要。在此，我们利用全球植物性状数据和已发表的日本梅花鹿饲料植物清单，估算饲料植物是否能为梅花鹿提供足够的钠（Na）、钙（Ca）和镁（Mg），并比较了雄性和雌性之间的结果。对191种饲料植物物种的分析表明，饲料植物可以提供足够的镁，而钠和钙并不总是能提供充足，特别是当摄入量少或鹿体型大时。哺乳期雌性梅花鹿的钠缺乏比雄性更严重，这表明钠可能是选择性捕杀雌鹿的有效诱因。总之，本研究表明，日本的梅花鹿除了饲料植物外可能还需要额外的钠和钙来源，因此这些矿物质可能有助于开发有效的捕杀方法。
