Abstract: The release of animals back into the wild is an important way to ensure the long-term survival of threatened middle and large-sized wildlife species in conservation biology. Study on the activity rhythm and home range characteristic of animals released in the wild is conducive to scientific management. In this study, we take sika deer (Cervus nippon kopschi), Category I Key National Protected Wild Animal Species, as study species. We used Beidou Satellite collar to track activities of released individuals in Qingliangfeng National Nature Reserve of Zhejiang Province. The analysis of its activity rhythm was based on the accumulation of 21 854 high-precision tracking records. We also used the Minimum Convex Polygon method (MCP) and Kernel Density Estimation method (KDE) to study the characteristics of its home range. The results showed that: (1) The daily activity rhythm of sika deer after being released exhibits a bimodal pattern. It peaked in the morning between 06: 00 - 09: 00 and in the evening between 15: 00 - 21: 00. (2) We detected seasonal differences in activity intensity, which was greater in autumn than that in spring, winter, and summer. (3) Home range area is (1534. 10 ±467. 75) hm² based on the MCP method. The 95% and 50% home ranges are (125. 18 ±95. 55) hm² and (18. 24 ±15. 12) hm² based on the KDE method. (4) The home range area (95% KDE) of sika deer is significantly different between seasons (P < 0. 01), which is maximum in autumn and minimum in summer. (5) The overlap index shows that the average overlap index of male and female (OI = 0. 44) is higher than that of the same sex (OI_{between male} = 0. 38, OI_{between female} = 0. 14), and population competition has a certain influence on the formation of home range. We recommend that the key home range area of sika deer in autumn and winter should be paid more attention in the follow-up management, for example, increasing the frequency of patrols, reducing disturbances, and continuing food feeding in winter.

Key words: Release into the wild, Satellite collar, Activity rhythm, Home range, Deer

摘要： 野外放归是保护生物学上维持稀有濒危大中型野生动物种群长期续存的重要途径。对野外放归后动物个体的活动节律和家域特征的研究有利于其科学有效的管理。本研究以国家一级重点保护野生动物华南梅花鹿(Cervus nippon kopschi)为研究对象，利用北斗卫星项圈对浙江清凉峰国家级自然保护区内野外放归个体的活动轨迹进行了追踪。基于累积获取的21 854条高精度追踪记录，对其活动节律进行分析，同时结合最小凸多边形法(MCP)和核心密度估算法(KDE)对其家域特征进行了研究。结果显示：(1)野外放归后的华南梅花鹿日活动节律呈双峰模式，为晨昏活动类型，双峰主要出现于06:00—09:00和15:00—21:00；(2)活动强度存在季节差异，秋季活动强度大于春、冬和夏季；(3)基于MCP计算的家域面积为(1534.10 ±467.75) hm²，基于KDE计算的家域面积为(125.18 ±95.55) hm²(95%)、(18.24 ±15.12) hm²(50%)；(4)华南梅花鹿的家域面积(95% KDE)在季节间存在极显著差异(P < 0.01)，秋季家域面积最大，夏季家域面积最小；(5)重叠度指数显示，雌雄重叠度指数均值(OI=0.44)高于同性别之间的指数(OI_雄性间=0.38，OI_雌性间=0.14)，种群竞争对家域形成有一定影响。建议后续管理中重点关注华南梅花鹿秋冬季的核心分布活动区域，增大巡护频次、减少干扰、冬季持续开展食物投喂等。

关键词: 野外放归, 卫星项圈, 活动节律, 家域, 鹿科动物