AUTHORS: Tadao Kishimoto, Southern Illinois University; Michael Egan, Southern Illinois University; Michael Eichholz, Southern Illinois University; Peter Schlichting, Illinois Department of Natural Resources; Daniel Skinner, Illinois Department of Natural Resources; Guillaume Bastille-Rousseau, Southern Illinois University
ABSTRACT: Human activity can impact wildlife behavior by altering habitat conditions, increasing stress or predation risk, and disrupting natural patterns of movement, foraging, and reproduction. We investigated the impact of non-consumptive recreational activities, specifically mountain biking, on white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) space-use in an exurban forest setting in southern Illinois. Using GPS collar data from 37 individual deer collected before and after trail installation, we assessed whether newly introduced mountain bike trails altered key movement metrics: home range size, core area size, and speed. Home range and core area sizes were estimated using autocorrelated kernel density estimation (AKDE), and scale-insensitive speed estimates were calculated using a continuous-time speed and distance (CTSD) method. Home range size, core area size, and speed estimates were fit to linear mixed-effects models with sex as a covariate and individuals as random intercepts. We found no significant change in home range or core area size following trail installation. We found significant changes in speed for both males and females after trail installation, however, changes were independent of their overlap status with the trails, suggesting the changes were not due to trail installation. These findings contrast with existing literature suggesting human disturbance typically affects wildlife movement. The low frequency of recreational activity and partial habituation to humans may explain the lack of significant behavioral change. This study demonstrates the value of long-term monitoring and underscores the need for further research in areas with heavier recreational use to inform management practices that mitigate the impact of outdoor recreation on wildlife populations.
