Fallow deer

In order to study serum biochemistry of Persian fallow deer (Dama mesopotamica), sampling was conducted from eight clinicaly normal Persian fallow deer (three females and ¢ve males) aged between 6 months and 10 years and the following results were obtained: total protein 68.4 þ 5 g/l; albumin 28.1 þ 8.9 g/l; globulin 42.7 þ 7.5 g/l; A: G 0.63 þ 0.25; glucose 6.61 þ 3.41 mmol/l; triglyceride 0.37 þ 0.22 mmol/l; cholesterol 2.86 þ 1.46 mmol/l; blood urea nitrogen 8.91 þ 1.21 mmol/l; creatinin 146.75 þ 53.92 mmol/l; total bilirubin 12.99 þ 2.05 mmol/l; direct bilirubin 7.01 þ 1.88 mmol/l; aspartate aminotransferase (AST) 20.25 þ 7.36 IU/l; alanine aminotransferase (ALT) 26.38 þ 8.94 IU/l; alkaline phosphatase (AP) 118.25 þ 70.79 IU/l; creatine kinase (CK) 219.13 þ 151.81 IU/l; Na 147.5 þ 9.09 mmol/l; K 6.82 þ 1.92 mmol/l; Cl 103.88 þ 5.44 mmol/l; Ca 2.79 þ 0.43 mmol/l; P 1.99 þ0.47 mmol/l; Mg 1.12 þ 0.23 mmol/l. Signi¢cant di¡erences were seen for Na and P between age groups, with higher levels in deer aged less than 2 years (p50.05). Glucose had higher values in does than in stags (p50.05). Correlations between measured parameters were also determined.

The Amudian (late Lower Paleolithic) site of Qesem Cave in Israel represents one of the earliest examples of habitual use of fire by middle Pleistocene hominids. The Paleolithic layers in this cave were studied using a suite of mineralogical and chemical techniques and a contextual sedimentological analysis (i.e., micromorphology). We show that the lower ca. 3 m of the stratigraphic sequence are dominated by clastic sediments deposited within a closed karstic environment. The deposits were formed by small-scale, concentrated mud slurries (infiltrated terra rosa soil) and debris flows. A few intervening lenses of mostly in situ burnt remains were also identified. The main part of the upper ca. 4.5 m consists of anthropogenic sediment with only moderate amounts of clastic geogenic inputs. The deposits are strongly cemented with calcite that precipitated from dripping water. The anthropogenic component is characterized by completely combusted, mostly reworked wood ash with only rare remnants of charred material. Micromorphological and isotopic evidence indicates recrystallization of the wood ash. Large quantities of burnt bone, defined by a combination of microscopic and macroscopic criteria, and moderately heated soil lumps are closely associated with the woodash remains. The frequent presence of microscopic calcified rootlets indicates that the upper sequence formed in the vicinity of the former cave entrance. Burnt remains in the sediments are associated with systematic blade production and faunas that are dominated by the remains of fallow deer. Use-wear damage on blades and blade tools in conjunction with numerous cut marks on bones indicate an emphasis on butchering and prey-defleshing activities in the vicinity of fireplaces.

This paper reconstructs the vegetal diet of the Middle Paleolithic humans in Kebara cave (Mt. Carmel, Israel) on the basis of a large collection of charred seeds and other vegetal food remains uncovered during the excavations. The human choices of mainly legumes reflects the gathering activities during springtime when often the common hunted species (gazelle and fallow deer) were fat depleted. Minor fall activities are indicated by the collection of acorns and pistachio nuts. This vegetal dietary information adds another aspect to the range of subsistence activities of the late Mousterian occupants of Kebara cave, and sheds further light on the semi-sedentary use of the cave as revealed from analysis of animal bones.

The construction of worldviews and lifeways is ultimately tied up with the various relationships which humans have with their environments. There are several ways of thinking, seeing and doing things in the world. One way of approaching this complexity is to look towards the kinds of relationships which humans have with animals. The social and symbolic significance of food consumption or conspicuous non-consumption is a topic which may afford us some insights into the idiosyncrasies and multiplicities of worldview. This paper will focus more closely on the totemic aspects of possible Early Neolithic worldviews, but I will also argue that we can concurrently use combinations of other more animic, shamanic or perspectivist ontologies as well (see Alberti and Bray 2009, for a current review of animism; Vitebsky 1995, for a popular explanation of shamanism; and Viveiros de Castro 1998; 2004; 2006, for a detailed account of Amerindian perspectivism). This will allow me to move between areas of interest or significance, whilst also demonstrating that a close analysis of the evidence can be read from a variety of angles.

Zooarchaeologists tend to be reluctant in their interpretation of deer remains from archaeological settlements, as anything more than the occasional consumption of venison or indicating the occurrence of local woodland. Such considerations reflect the continued dominance of economic and environmentally-deterministic perspectives within modern zooarchaeological work. This paper highlights the potential cultural importance of deer to late Iron Age and Romano-British society, and argues that by considering the taphonomic and contextual evidence in more detail, the ways in which people behaved towards and engaged with deer suggests more about social organisation and landscape interactions than we have previously considered.

The Early Upper Paleolithic period in the Levant is essential in the studies of the establishment of modern human communities outside Africa, and corresponding archaeological evidence may be used to shed
light on human ecology, economy and demography. Specifically, cultural differences between two Early Upper Paleolithic entities, the Early Ahmarian and the Levantine Aurignacian, raise the question of differing adaptations. In this article we use archaeofaunal remains from the Early Upper Paleolithic sequence at Manot Cave (Western Galilee, Israel), to track human hunting patterns, carcass transport and processing within the Early Ahmarian (46e42 ka) and Levantine Aurignacian (38e34 ka) phases. We test two hypotheses: 1) the Ahmarian and Aurignacian represent adaptations to different environments; and 2) the two entities differ in mobility patterns and site use. Our multivariate taphonomic analysis showed subtle differences in depositional processes between
the two phases and demonstrated a primarily anthropogenic complex. In both phases, human subsistence was based on two ungulate species, mountain gazelle (Gazella gazella) and Mesopotamian fallow
deer (Dama mesopotamica), with some contribution from birds, tortoises and small mammals. Among the gazelles, it appears that female herds were targeted, and that hunting took place close to the cave. The results of the research show great similarity in environmental exploitation between the Ahmarian and Aurignacian phases concerning prey spectrum and choice, carcass transport and processing. These
patterns occupy a middle position between the Middle Paleolithic and the late Epipaleolithic of the region. Despite this, there are also several significant differences between the phases such as increased
exploitation of small game (especially birds) and faster accumulation and higher densities of material in the Aurignacian. This may indicate greater occupation intensity during the Aurignacian compared to the
Ahmarian, and thus could explain the outstanding character of this entity in the Levant.

1. Throughout Europe, the range of many deer species is expanding. We provide current distribution maps for red deer Cervus elaphus, sika Cervus nippon, fallow deer Dama dama and muntjac deer Muntiacus sp. in Ireland, and estimates of range expansion rates for red deer, sika and fallow deer.

The European fallow deer (Dama dama dama) is one of the most widespread cervids, and its distribution has been heavily affected by man. At present, only one wild autochthonous population is reputed to survive in Anatolia, but its census size is dramatically decreasing. This means that a significant portion of the ancestral genetic diversity of this taxon is seriously threatened. In the present study, a portion of the mitochondrial DNA (D-loop) in 37 D. d. dama specimens from three Mediterranean sites, Turkey, the island of Rhodes (Greece), and the Italian Peninsula, and seven individuals of the Persian fallow deer, Dama dama mesopotamica, was sequenced, and the results from the data analysis are interpreted in light of current archaeozoological and biogeographical knowledge. We conclude that: (1) D. d. mesopotamica is strongly differentiated from D. d. dama, confirming the results of previous genetic studies and (2) the Rhodian populations of D. d. dama, founded by humans in Neolithic times, possess a set of mitochondrial lineages, found in no other study populations. The persistence of these haplotypes is particularly significant because human-mediated processes (e.g. domestication) usually result in genetic depletion and erosion of an ancestral genetic pool. In the case of the Rhodes' population of fallow deer, we hypothesize that, during the foundation of this population, humans unknowingly preserved a remarkable portion of the original genetic diversity of the source population(s).

Thirty-two male fallow deer, half 18-and half 30-month-old, were slaughtered after a 4-month feeding trial on pasture alone or with daily supplement of 500 g (dry matter) concentrate/head (eight each 18-and 30-month-old). Neither diet nor age produced significant effects on M. longissimus thoracis et lumborum (LM) and on M. semimembranosus (SM) pH and colour. Meat texture properties (Warner-Bratzler-WB Shear Force and compression), water loss and collagen content were unaffected by diet, while the older deer had higher LM WB peak force values (4.15 vs 4.88 kg) and lower collagen solubility (34.61 vs 22.58%). LM and M. semitendinosus (ST) of the supplemented deer had a higher content of fat (pasture vs concentrate feeding: 0.56 vs 0.72% in LM; 0.55 vs 0.78% in ST) and provided lower PUFA, particularly n-3 PUFA, and higher n-6/n-3 ratio (3.30 vs 4.76 in LM; 3.39 vs 4.63 in ST). Thirty-month-olds' LM and ST were fatter than 18-month-olds', and provided lower PUFA, both in the n-6 and n-3 fraction. #

The site of semen deposition (vaginal, cervical or uterine) and the time required for transvaginal arti®cial insemination (AI) using the Gourley Scope method of AI vs. a standard speculum-guided AI gun was assessed in three species of farmed deer (fallow, red and white-tailed deer). Pregnancy rates using these two transvaginal AI methods were also compared in a commercial herd of fallow does. The estrous cycles of fallow n 53, red n 27 and white-tailed n 27 deer were synchronized using half of a Norgestomet ear implant inserted for 14 days. Following implant removal, does were arti®cially ®x-time inseminated with frozen-thawed semen using either a 0.5 ml standard French-style speculum-guided AI gun or the Gourley Scope method of AI. The time-frame (i.e., duration in minutes) for the AI procedures performed on each animal and the location of semen deposition was recorded. To assess effectiveness of AI, transrectal ultrasonography was conducted in fallow deer 45 days post-AI for pregnancy diagnosis. In fallow does and red deer hinds, use of the Gourley Scope (96.3 and 100%, respectively) enabled a greater P < 0:05 percentage of intrauterine inseminations compared to the speculum-guided AI gun (73.1 and 42.9%, respectively). In contrast for white-tailed does, both the speculum-guided AI gun and the Gourley Scope resulted in a similar proportion of intrauterine inseminations (92.3 and 100%, respectively). The duration for performing the two transvaginal AI techniques were also similar in red and white-tailed deer. However in fallow does, AI with the aid of the Gourley Scope took longer P < 0:05 to conduct than the speculum-guided AI gun (6:6 AE 0:72 and 4:3 AE 0:34 min, respectively). The pregnancy rate using both methods of AI combined was overall 32.1% for fallow does. The total percentage of fallow does that conceived with the speculum-guided AI gun was 42.3% whereas the pregnancy rate using the Gourley method of AI was only 22.2% P < 0:05. Although both AI methods may be acceptable for use in farmed deer, the standard speculum-guided AI gun is simpler and produced more pregnancies compared to the Gourley Scope method in fallow deer, despite a greater proportion of intrauterine inseminations using the Gourley Scope. #

To examine whether fallow deer, Dama dama, have colour vision, we trained four adult females on a two-choice discrimination task, where a positive chromatic stimulus (green) and a negative achromatic stimulus (grey) had similar brightness. The criterion for learning was set at 80% correct responses. To exclude the possibility that the hinds used small differences in brightness to distinguish between the green and the grey stimulus, we conducted a test that differed from the training situation. A light green positive stimulus combined with a dark grey negative stimulus was alternated with a dark green positive stimulus combined with a light grey negative stimulus on every second trial. The positive green stimuli had different reflectance spectra. After training, each of the four hinds showed over 80% correct responses in the test. These results suggest that fallow deer can use colour vision in a discrimination situation by generalizing over slightly different colours, at least in the range of the green spectrum.

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) based on oligonucleotide primers targeting the mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene was applied to the specific identification of meats from red deer (Cervus elaphus), fallow deer (Dama dama), and roe deer (Capreolus capreolus). The use of a common reverse primer, together with forward specific primers for red deer, fallow deer, and roe deer, allowed the selective amplification of the desired cervid sequences. The specificity of each primer pair was verified by PCR analysis of DNA from various game and domestic meats. The assay can be useful for the accurate identification of meats from cervid species, avoiding mislabeling or fraudulent species substitution in meat products.

Mammal faunas referred to the late-Middle Pleistocene have been known for a long time from Latium, especially from the 'Bassa Campagna Romana', where the explosive products of the Sabatinian and Alban volcanic districts are interbedded with sedimentary cycles, that represent alluvial fills. The faunas have been examined by several authors but discordant opinions have been expressed about the age of the beds where the faunas were found. The faunal associations of Castel di Guido-La Polledrara-Malagrotta, Riano Flaminio and Torre in Pietra (lower beds) belong to the first sedimentary cycle named the Aurelia Formation, which is related to oxygen isotope stage 9. The character of these faunas suggests several cool-temperate oscillations within this stage and the presence of an open environment along the coast, whereas, inland, deciduous forests, indicating moist temperate conditions, were present. The associations of Torre in Pietra (upper beds), Vitinia, and Sedia del Diavolo are referred to a second sedimentary cycle, named the 'Vitinia Formation', related to oxygen isotope stage 7; these associations are modern in character, and are generally dominated by fallow deer. The climatic conditions were warm-temperate and wet, with an expansion of thermophilous forests. ᮊ

We have investigated food choice in individual fallow deer (Dama dama) encountering different relative frequencies of food types in the form of bowls containing pellets with either high or low concentrations of hydrolyzable tannin. We performed two similar experiments, one with large and one with small differences in tannic acid concentration. With small differences in tannic acid concentration, the ratio of the consumption per low-and high-tannin bowl was independent of frequency of occurrence, but with large differences in tannic acid concentration, we found frequency-dependent food choice. The deer ate proportionally less from high-tannin bowls if these occurred at low relative frequency. Variation between frequency treatments in the average order of encounter of bowl types might have produced this effect, because we found that the deer left a high-tannin bowl more quickly if they had switched to it from a low-tannin bowl. We argue that the perceived contrast between the tastes of different food types can play a role for food choice by mammalian herbivores.

Reintroductions often rely on captive-raised, naïve animals that have not been exposed to the various threats present in natural environments. Wild animals entering new areas are timid and invest much time and effort in antipredator behavior. On the other hand, captive animals reared in predatorfree conditions and in close proximity to humans may initially lack this tendency, but can reacquire some antipredator behavior over time. We monitored the changes in antipredator-related behaviors of 16 radiocollared Persian fallow deer (Dama mesopotamica) reintroduced to the Soreq Valley in Israel from 2 breeding facilities: one heavily visited by the public (The Biblical Zoo of Jerusalem, Israel) and the other with reduced human presence (Hai-Bar Carmel, Israel). We monitored each individual for up to 200 days after release, focusing on flush and flight distance, flight mode (running or walking), and use of cover. In addition, we compared fecal corticosterone (a stress-related hormone) from samples collected from known animals in the wild to samples collected in the breeding facilities. Reintroduced individuals from both origins exhibit increased flush distance over time; flush and flight distances were larger in individuals from Hai-Bar; use of cover increased with time, but was greater in Hai-Bar Carmel animals; corticosterone levels were significantly higher in fecal samples from reintroduced animals than in samples from captive animals; and Hai-Bar Carmel animals had an 80% survival rate over the 200 days, whereas no animals from the Biblical Zoo of Jerusalem survived. Reintroduced Persian fallow deer reacquired antipredator behaviors after the release, but the process was slow (months) and differences between conditions at the breeding facilities that were seemingly benign (e.g., number of visitors and other human related activities) influenced this process and consequently affected the success of the reintroduction. Captive breeding facilities for the purpose of reintroduction should minimize anthropogenic disturbances.

From mid-April to late November, i.e., during antler growth phase and main breeding season, a group of four (later three) male fallow deer was treated with increasing doses of the antiandrogen cyproterone acetate (CA). Throughout the treatment period, plasma testosterone levels of the bucks were either undetectable or only slightly above the detection limit of 0.1 ng/ml. In marked contrast to controls, testicular volumes and neck girths of the CA treated bucks were basal during the application period, proving the strong antigonadotropic effect of CA (testicular volume) and the absence of androgen action at the normal target organs (neck girths), respectively. Antler growth in the CA treated bucks occurred during the normal time span for fallow deer and the antlers produced were of species specific shape. From this it is concluded that in fallow deer, onset, duration, and termination of antler growth are independent of androgen action. Velvet shedding in the CA treated bucks however did not occur at the normal time (late August/early September), but was postponed until late December/early January, i.e., about 5 weeks after the termination of CA application. Activity of alkaline phosphatase in the experimental animals increased during the antler growth phase, but was markedly lower than in controls. Maximum body weight in the CA treated bucks was reached already in June, i.e., about 3 months prior to controls. Furthermore, the rut associated, drastic decline in body weight observed in controls did not occur in the experimental animals. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

... Font Size: Decrease Font Size Increase Font Size. ... Due to poor reproductive success at the HaiBarCarmel prior to 1990, few females older than 5 are available. ... century: yon Schubert reported sighting a fallow deer in 1837 in the Mount Tabor region of Palestine (Paz, 1980), and ...

When you enter Room 7 of the British Museum, after passing through two colossal lamassus, you are taken through time to the NorthWest Palace of the Assyrian King Ashurnasirpal II (883-859 BCE). This is the imperial palace of the King in Nimrud (ancient Kalhu or Biblical Calah; Mesopotamia, modern-day Iraq), the capital city at the heart of the Assyrian Empire. Room 7 is a long hall " decorated " with alabaster-bas wall reliefs from that palace. After being neglected for more than 2500 years, British archaeologist Sir Henry Layard and his workmen unearthed the remains of the NorthWest Palace in 1845. Layard shipped many reliefs on the Apprentice and these large and heavy slabs reached the British Museum in January 1849. I will publish a series of articles about these reliefs, addressing their finer details, which are not easily recognised.

Background: The role of wildlife as a brucellosis reservoir for humans and domestic livestock remains to be properly established. The aim of this work was to determine the aetiology, apparent prevalence, spatial distribution and risk factors for brucellosis transmission in several Iberian wild ungulates. Methods: A multi-species indirect immunosorbent assay (iELISA) using Brucella S-LPS antigen was developed. In several regions having brucellosis in livestock, individual serum samples were taken between 1999 and 2009 from 2,579 wild bovids, 6,448 wild cervids and4,454 Eurasian wild boar (Sus scrofa), and tested to assess brucellosis apparent prevalence. Strains isolated from wild boar were characterized to identify the presence of markers shared with the strains isolated from domestic pigs. Results: Mean apparent prevalence below 0.5% was identified in chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica), Iberian wild goat (Capra pyrenaica), and red deer (Cervus elaphus). Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), fallow deer (Dama dama), mouflon (Ovis aries) and Barbary sheep (Ammotragus lervia) tested were seronegative. Only one red deer and one Iberian wild goat resulted positive in culture, isolating B. abortus biovar 1 and B. melitensis biovar 1, respectively. Apparent prevalence in wild boar ranged from 25% to 46% in the different regions studied, with the highest figures detected in South-Central Spain. The probability of wild boar being positive in the iELISA was also affected by age, age-by-sex interaction, sampling month, and the density of outdoor domestic pigs. A total of 104 bacterial isolates were obtained from wild boar, being all identified as B. suis biovar 2. DNA polymorphisms were similar to those found in domestic pigs. Conclusions: In conclusion, brucellosis in wild boar is widespread in the Iberian Peninsula, thus representing an important threat for domestic pigs. By contrast, wild ruminants were not identified as a significant brucellosis reservoir for livestock.

Background: The role of wildlife as a brucellosis reservoir for humans and domestic livestock remains to be properly established. The aim of this work was to determine the aetiology, apparent prevalence, spatial distribution and risk factors for brucellosis transmission in several Iberian wild ungulates. Methods: A multi-species indirect immunosorbent assay (iELISA) using Brucella S-LPS antigen was developed. In several regions having brucellosis in livestock, individual serum samples were taken between 1999 and 2009 from 2,579 wild bovids, 6,448 wild cervids and4,454 Eurasian wild boar (Sus scrofa), and tested to assess brucellosis apparent prevalence. Strains isolated from wild boar were characterized to identify the presence of markers shared with the strains isolated from domestic pigs. Results: Mean apparent prevalence below 0.5% was identified in chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica), Iberian wild goat (Capra pyrenaica), and red deer (Cervus elaphus). Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), fallow deer (Dama dama), mouflon (Ovis aries) and Barbary sheep (Ammotragus lervia) tested were seronegative. Only one red deer and one Iberian wild goat resulted positive in culture, isolating B. abortus biovar 1 and B. melitensis biovar 1, respectively. Apparent prevalence in wild boar ranged from 25% to 46% in the different regions studied, with the highest figures detected in South-Central Spain. The probability of wild boar being positive in the iELISA was also affected by age, age-by-sex interaction, sampling month, and the density of outdoor domestic pigs. A total of 104 bacterial isolates were obtained from wild boar, being all identified as B. suis biovar 2. DNA polymorphisms were similar to those found in domestic pigs. Conclusions: In conclusion, brucellosis in wild boar is widespread in the Iberian Peninsula, thus representing an important threat for domestic pigs. By contrast, wild ruminants were not identified as a significant brucellosis reservoir for livestock.

Studies on predation by the wolf (Canis lupus) have often reported contradictory results about the role of prey density and vulnerability on wolf prey use. We investigated dietary response and prey selection by wolves in a high-density and multi-species ungulate community, analysing scats collected over a period of 11 years in the Casentinesi Forests, Italy. The second most abundant species, wild boar (Sus scrofa), was found to be the main wolf prey, and we did not observe any dietary response of wolves to variations in the density of either primary or secondary prey species. Selection patterns were uniform throughout the study period. Wolves strongly selected for wild boar piglets, while roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) fawns and adults, red deer (Cervus elaphus) adults and fallow deer (Dama dama) adults were avoided. Wolf preference for wild boar was inversely density dependent. Within each species, juveniles were preferred to adults. Medium-sized, young individuals of both wild boar and roe deer were optimal prey, although with different selection patterns related to the different anti-predator strategies adopted by each prey species. The results of this study suggest that in productive ecosystems with high density and high renewal rates of prey, selection patterns by wolves are determined by prey vulnerability, which is connected to prey age and body size. The different patterns of wild boar versus cervids use by wolf across Europe seems to be related to their relative abundances, while the strong selection of wild boar in Italian Apennines with respect to the more frequent avoidance in central-eastern Europe is better explained by higher piglet productivity and smaller body size of adults boar in Mediterranean temperate forests.

The objective of this study was to determine the wildlife hosts of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) in the Czech Republic. A total of 8 796 wildlife animals were examined by culture of faecal or tissue samples during the years 2002-2007. MAP was isolated from 12 (0.5%) out of 2 296 red deer (Cervus elaphus), two (0.2%) out of 835 roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), 78 (5.7%) out of 1 381 fallow deer (Dama dama), 28 (3.2%)out of 866 mouflons (Ovis musimon), four (2.5%) out of 162 chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra) and from one (0.1%) out of 805 wild boar (Sus scrofa). MAP was not cultured from 82 badgers (Meles meles), 55 martens (Martes foina), one pine marten (Martes martes), 25 brown hares (Lepus europaeus), five rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), nine European polecats (Mustela putorius), two steppe polecats (Mustela eversmannii), two American minks (Mustela vison), four raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes procyonoides) and four Eurasian otters (Lutra lutra). MAP was isolated from three (2.0%) out of 149 small terrestrial mammals: one (5.9%) out of 17 brown rats (Rattus norvegicus), one (1.7%) out of 59 common voles (Microtus arvalis) and one (2.6%) out of 39 lesser white-toothed shrews (Crocidura suaveolens). Culture examinations of 34 house mice (Mus musculus) and 2 113 pigeons (Columba livia f. domestica) were negative. All 123 in vitro growing MAP isolates from wild ruminants were of IS900 RFLP type B-C1. One mouflon infected with a MAP strain which did not grow on the tested media was after IS1311-PRA-PCR assessed as being infected with a "sheep" strain. The RFLP type of the MAP isolate from the wild boar was of the RFLP type A-C10. Although the detection of MAP in wildlife in the Czech Republic was not very high, their role as a potential risk factor for cattle should be considered.

Interference is expected to occur at feeding areas between species with a similar diet, but few studies have tested this idea for wild ungulates. We analysed interactions between fallow deer, European roe deer and wild boar, in three sites, in a Mediterranean area. We expected that interference should be greater between deer than between them and wild boar. We documented the negative effects of behavioural interference by fallow on foraging behaviour of roe deer, under field conditions. Deer species built up 90% interference interactions, with fallow always dominant on roe, also through direct aggression. Although roe deer decreased feeding and increased vigilance levels in proximity (<50 m) of either fallow deer or wild boar, they were displaced significantly more often by the former than by the latter. Fallow deer were neither displaced nor alarmed by roe and rarely by wild boar. No deer species displaced wild boar. Interference was significantly greater on solitary roe deer, especially females, in spring and roe left the feeding ground most often in the smallest site (13 ha). Roe deer avoided areas where the local density of fallow deer was the highest. During our 4-year-study, roe deer density decreased whereas fallow deer numbers increased. Behavioural interfer-ence may explain how fallow deer outcompete roe deer through spatial exclusion from feeding sites and avoidance of areas with high densities of the former. Fallow deer evolved in semi-arid, relatively poor habitats of Asia Minor: interspecific defence of crucial resources could have developed as a beneficial tactic for its survival.

The ecological tolerances of Neandertals, their ability
to subsist in the dense forests of full interglacials, and their
capacity to colonize northern latitudes are the subject of
ongoing debate. The site of Hollerup (northern Denmark) lies
at the northern extreme of the Neandertal range. Dated by
various techniques to the Eemian interglacial (MIS 5e), this
site has yielded the remains of several purportedly butchered
fallow deer (Dama dama). Taphonomic reanalysis of the
remains from Hollerup and a handful of other Eemian-aged
fallow deer skeletons cast doubt on the interpretation that they
were humanly modified.We place this revised conclusion into
the wider context of human settlement of southern
Scandinavia during the Eemian. Other claims of Neandertal
presence in the region rest on candidate Middle Paleolithic
artifacts, all of which derive from surface contexts. With the
fallow deer material removed as a secure indicator of
Neandertal settlement of Denmark during the last interglacial,
this lithic material must be viewed with renewed skepticism.

The extent to which breeding populations of fallow deer were established in Roman Europe has been obscured by the possibility that the skeletal remains of the species, in particular Dama foot bones and antlers, were traded over long distances as objects in their own right. This paper sets out to refine our understanding of the evidence for the transportation of living and dead fallow deer in Iron Age and Roman Europe. To achieve this, museum archives containing purportedly early examples of Dama antler were searched, with available specimens sampled for carbon, nitrogen and strontium isotope analyses, and compared with data for archaeological fallow deer from across Europe. Importantly, the resulting isotope values can be interpreted in light of new modern baseline data for fallow deer presented here. Together these multi-isotope results for modern and archaeological fallow deer provide a more critical perspective on the transportation of fallow deer and their body parts in antiquit...

The SE-Veluwe is a forested area in The Netherlands consisting mainly of Pinus and heathlands and includes mono-and mixed species stands of Fagus sylvatica, Quercus robur, Q. petraea, Picea abies, Pseudotsuga menziesii, Betula pubescens and B. pendens. In this area, forest managers differ in management targets. Managers with a productivity-oriented target feel limited in meeting their target because neighbouring managers with biodiversity as main target do not or insufficiently control ungulate levels. The objective of this study was to assess to what extent ungulate herbivores affect natural regeneration and to gain insight in the spatial interactions between ungulate grazing, forest management and natural regeneration. This was assessed using the model FORSPACE, which is a process-based and spatial-explicit simulation model that integrates the impacts of ungulate grazing (cattle, horse, red deer, fallow deer, roe deer and wild boar) and forest management. We found that spatial interactions caused important local differences including: (i) spatial effects due to forest management; (ii) spatial interactions between ungulate species; (iii) spatial effects due to the distribution of seed sources of trees; and (iv) spatial interactions between plant species and grazing intensity. In general, we conclude that the effects of forest management on regeneration of trees are much more profound than that of ungulate grazing and browsing. Moreover, there are relatively small differences in the effects of the ungulates at very low to very high densities.

IGF-1. Also, a trend for a positive correlation between AUCs of antler length and androstenedione was noted. It is concluded that a plasma androgen concentration at least above a minimal threshold level is a necessary prerequisite for normal antler regrowth in fallow deer, and that this androgen effect is not mediated via circulating IGF-1. The biological role of low levels of androgens may be to sensitize antler cells to the stimulating effect of IGF.

We carried out a detailed taphonomic study of the faunal remains from Nahal Hadera V (NHV), a large Kebaran open-air site on the northern coastal plain, Israel. Faunal remains were previously identified to bone element and species . However, NISP and MNI values were calculated based on teeth and epiphyses only. In this study we identified the maximum number of skeletal elements, including head fragments, vertebrae, ribs, carpals/tarsals, and shaft fragments. Further analyses included search for various bone surface modifications and the study of mode of bone fragmentation. We found minor loss of bones caused by various diagenetic processes, and no signs of carnivore activity. These results suggest that most of the bone destruction was caused during time of occupation, probably for marrow consumption, as indicated by mode of bone fragmentation. Absence of selective transport for gazelle (Gazella gazella) and fallow deer (Dama mesopotamica), the major prey species (with 70% and 20%, respectively), is supported by homogeneous representation of head-limb-toe elements. However, the carcasses may have been processed before transport to the site. Thus, a taphonomic analysis from NHV helps to illuminate the economy of NHV inhabitants and fine-tunes our understanding of the depositional history of the site. However, it does not overthrow results of earlier research using classical methods.

Si le daim est présent dans l’iconographie égyptienne depuis les temps prédynastiques jusqu’à l’époque ptolémaïque, ses attestations sont cependant très rares. On peut alors se demander si l’animal est indigène au territoire égyptien ou si, au contraire, il y a été importé. L'article, prenant en compte les études archéozoologiques les plus récentes, conclut sur un possible importation de l'animal.

Securing natural habitats into which reintroduced species are released and those into which they will radiate is essential for the long-term establishment and viability of reintroduced populations. Consequently, the ability to project future range expansion is critical in reintroduction programs. We evaluated whether numerical growth and spatial expansion of a reintroduced population can be projected based on short-term monitoring of a newly reintroduced population, by studying a Persian fallow deer (Dama mesopotamica) population reintroduced to Israel. Over a five-year period, five to six adult (Ͼ1 yr) females were released semi-annually, for a total of 53 over the research period. We developed an individual-based spatially explicit model that projected spatial expansion of the female population in the wild. Model parameters were derived from empirical studies on movement patterns, home range establishment, behavioral adjustments, and demographic dynamics of reintroduced females during the first three years of the reintroduction project. Significant factors that were found to affect home-range establishment and that were incorporated into the model were: occurrence of Mediterranean woodland; occurrence of moderate terrain; roads; built-up areas; and presence of conspecifics. We tested the model by comparing its projections with field observations at the end of the five-year period since the project's onset, i.e., two years beyond the time on which parameters were based. The model was able to predict the direction and rate of expansion of the population and the main activity areas in the wild during the last two years. By using the model for long-term projection, future potential activity centers and landscape connectivity, important for securing the lands required for the Persian fallow deer future radiation, can be identified.