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Impact of Human Activity on Deer Population in DePauw Nature Park

Study exploring how human impact affects deer presence in a nature park through trail observations and camera trap data, with implications for conservation and wildlife management. Results indicate varying trail abundance and deer activity levels in different park areas. Future research on consistent monitoring methods and habitat alterations is suggested.

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Impact of Human Activity on Deer Population in DePauw Nature Park

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  1. Effect of Human Activity on Deer Frequency in the DePauw University Nature Park Amanda Faulkenberg and Caitlin Cleary

  2. Introduction • Idea • Motivation • Previous Research

  3. Connection to Conservation • Are humans going to negatively affect deer? • humans are a perceived threat

  4. Hypotheses and Predictions • Deer trails will be more abundant in the study area further from the human hiking trails compared to those plots found in the area closest to the trails. • More deer photographs will be captured on the camera traps in the plots with the most trails and further from human activity.

  5. Study Location and Species • DePauw Nature Park • Quarry Hillside • Quarry South • 5 plots in each area (randomly selected) • White-tailed deer

  6. Methods: Trail Calculation • Trail Length • Average Trail Width • Total Trail Area

  7. Methods: Plot and Camera Locations • Randomly selected 5 plots in Quarry Hillside and Quarry South off of the grid maps. • Flagged and labeled each corner to the plots (NW, NE, SW, SE) • Chose 4 of 5 plots in Quarry Hillside and Quarry South to place cameras in.

  8. Quarry Hillside and Quarry South

  9. Methods: Photograph Data • 8 cameras total • 4 in Quarry Hillside • 4 in Quarry South • Located in each plot along deer trails (roughly ten meters away) • Cameras used: • Moultrie

  10. Statistical Analysis • Kruskal-Wallis Nonparametric Test

  11. Results: Trails • Significantly more total deer trail area in the Quarry South Plots (Kruskal-Wallis, p=0.008)

  12. Results: Photograph Data • Not Significant (Kruskal-Wallis, p=0.057)

  13. Supplementary Data: Leaf Litter

  14. Supplementary Data: Time of movement

  15. Supplementary Data: Trees • Significantly more trees in the Quarry Hillside plots (Kruskal-Wallis, p=0.008)

  16. Conflicting results • Many trails in Quarry South but small number of deer. • Many deer in Quarry Hillside but small amount of trails.

  17. What Next? • Consistent Cameras? • Implications of the understory • Use of man-made trails • Tree obstructions

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