Abstracts

Abstract: Population monitoring is a critical component in wildlife ecology and management. Use of infrared-triggered camera (hereafter; camera) surveys for white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus; hereafter deer) population estimation is popular among landowners. However, camera surveys often involve placing bait in front of the camera to capture animals more frequently, which could introduce biases in parameter estimates by failing to meet the assumption of equal detectability among animals and locations. However, no study has explicitly examined whether the use of bait during camera surveys can provide an unbiased sample of the population, and to what effect it alters the spatial and temporal pattern of deer. Using movement data from 18 deer (9 male and 9 female) fitted with SirTrack satellite GPS collars, we examined the sexual difference in spatial and temporal patterns of GPS-collared deer immediately before, during, and after the introduction of bait and their interaction with percent canopy coverage. Mantel test showed significant shifts in space use between male and female deer before, during, and after baiting. Both males and females did increase their use of locations immediately adjacent to bait sites after the application of bait; however, only males appeared to adjust their overall movements to select for those areas in closer proximity to bait sites indicating that bait had a stronger influence on males. Moving window frequency distributions indicated that males temporarily moved their peak deer distances farther away from bait stations after bait was removed giving support for a search-like behavior. This study gives support of the potential for the use of bait during camera surveys to favor males and ultimately violate the assumption of equal detectability. Managers should be aware of potential biases in their data and how they may affect management decisions.