The effect of COVID-19 confinement on the activity behaviour of red deer.

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically affected people's social habits, especially those related to outdoor activities. We intended to understand the effects of the two national lockdowns in Portugal on the presence and activity of a wild population of red deer (Cervus elaphus) by analysing data from camera traps installed at Lousã mountain, in the central part of Portugal. The cameras were set between 2019 and 2021, and a total of 2434 individual contacts of red deer and 182 contacts of people were recorded. Results showed a higher human presence in the mountain area during the COVID-19 outbreak, especially during the first lockdown in 2020 (0.05±0.17 individuals/day), compared to the same period of the year before the pandemic (0.02±0.05 individuals/day), which resulted in an increase of people by 150%. The increase in human presence did not have a significant direct effect on the presence of red deer. Despite the low overlap of activity patterns between people and red deer, deer showed avoidance behaviour in the 24h after the detection of human presence on camera traps, as well as an increase in daily activity during the 2020 lockdown, showing red deer's awareness of human visitation. These results showed that people's increased search for cultural services in wild environments during COVID-19 lockdowns, such as hiking and biking, seemed to influence the population of red deer, albeit momentarily.