Knowledge of directional tendencies among long-distance movements by animals can be important in planning conservation and management strategies for wildlife at the landscape scale. The direction of 23 long-distance movements (≥2 km) among a non-migratory population of white-tailed deer Odocoileus virginianus on the Osceola National Forest, Florida, during 1989–1991 was examined. Direction of dispersal by 10 yearlings (7 males, 3 females) was non-uniform in distribution and averaged 95°. Direction of 13 excursions by 12 adults (2 males, 10 females) also was non-uniform but was bimodally (east-west) distributed; mean directions of the two distributions were 83° and 261°. Thus, both excursions and dispersals of radio-instrumented deer were on an east-west axis. No prominent landscape features that would direct deer movement were apparent. However, the fact that deer movements followed a consistent directional trend, even in a relatively homogeneous landscape, may have important implications for management of gene flow among small populations.
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1 December 1996
Directional long-distance movements by white-tailed deer Odocoileus virginianus in Florida
John C. Kilgo,
Ronald F. Labisky,
Duane E. Fritzen
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Wildlife Biology
Vol. 2 • No. 4
1996
Vol. 2 • No. 4
1996
dispersal
Florida
Odocoileus virginianus
pine flatwoods
white-tailed deer