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MILJØFORSK-Miljøforskning for en grønn samfunnsomstilling

Damage and beyond: role of farmland for red deer populations

Alternative title: Utover beiteskader: Betydningen av landbruk for hjortebestanden

Awarded: NOK 12.0 mill.

Agricultural practices are changing globally putting biodiversity at risk. However, agriculture also contributes with high quality forage to the benefit of some wildlife species. In this way, the natural and farmed landscapes have coupled dynamics. Farmland constitute only 3 % of Norway's land area and are naturally placed on the most fertile soils. Land use and climate changes have contributed to an extreme growth in the populations of red deer causing damages to farmland crops. Yet, we have little quantitative knowledge of how much farming contribute to the production of wild red deer, the drivers of red deer use of farmland, and how we can predict damages as a basis for damage mitigation. The #AgriDeer project aim to resolve these issues. Using red deer marked with GPS-collars, we aim to quantify how use of farmland by red deer vary at the individual level depending on age and sex, and at a landscape level depending on farmland availability, climate and population density. Using novel DNA methods (metabarcoding), we aim to determine from faeces how much farmland affect diet and parasitism of red deer. Using new population models coupling body growth to survival and reproduction, we will also estimate how use of farmland affect population dynamics of red deer. Lastly, we will assess how well red deer habitat use and population density can predict broad level damage by red deer across wide environmental gradients. #AgriDeer will provide essential knowledge on the role of farmland for red deer ecology as a basis for damage mitigation. The project involve active participation of the Landbruk Nordvest, Norwegian Environment Agency, the Norwegian Farmer Union and the Norwegian Forestry Association to ensure high societal relevance and impact. WP1. Tilde Hjermann joined the project on 15 June 2021. She is well under way with analyzes of how deer use infields throughout the year. A special focus in the first round of analyzes is how the deer's migration pattern affects this. WP2. The Department of biosciences granted the PI a 3-year post doc. We have therefore strengthened the team with a candidate (Jason L. Anders) with experience in both parasites and eDNA (metabarcoding), and who can work full time on this. We collected several environmental samples (faeces) during this summer's fieldwork on WP4. We have started to decide on the final layout of runs, choice of primers etc. Preparations for sequencing runs are underway. We are also in the process of obtaining positive DNA controls on known parasites we expect to find. The plan was to run DNA analyzes on collected samples during 2021 at the NINA lab, and that analyzes would be completed in 2022. The DNA analyzes required for work package WP2 have been somewhat delayed (as we describe in the revision letter). This is a major strengthening of WP2. WP3. We have a first version of an Integrated Population Model up and running. We are in the process of creating features for how body weight is linked to survival. We have chosen to work thoroughly, and re-analyze older data instead of using previous parameterizations. WP4. The field work on WP4 consists of two parts, 1) large-scale assessment and 2) grazing exclosures. After a more detailed planning, we planned to have two assessments the same year - to the first and second hay harvest (instead of two seasons for the same harvest, while the part with grazing exclosures will form a time series over years). We therefore carried out two assessments of grazing damage on a broad scale, before the 1st and 2nd hay harvest in 2021 and then finished with assessments on a large scale. The material is being processed as part of a Master's thesis (Nikolai Bilet). We have also implemented the use of grazing exclosures according to plan. We have also obtained access to data at the time of hay harvest from TINE, so they are ready for later analyzes. The project has therefore had a good start.

Agricultural practices are changing globally putting biodiversity at risk. However, agriculture also contributes with subsidies to wildlife in the form of high quality forage. In this way, the natural and farmed landscapes have coupled dynamics. Farmland constitute only 3 % of Norway’s land area and are naturally placed on the most fertile soils. Land use and climate changes have contributed to an extreme growth in the populations of red deer causing damages to farmland crops. Yet, we have little quantitative knowledge of how much farming contribute to the production of wild red deer, the drivers of red deer use of farmland, and how we can predict damages as a basis for damage mitigation. #AgriDeer is organized in four work packages (WP) that aim to resolve these issues. We aim to quantify (WP1) how use of farmland by red deer vary at the individual level depending on age and sex, and at a landscape level depending on farmland availability, climate and population density, (WP2) how much farmland affect diet and parasitism of red deer (using metabarcoding approaches), (WP3) how use of farmland affect population dynamics of red deer (using Integral Projection models and Integrated Population models), and lastly, (WP4) assess how well red deer habitat use and population density can predict broad level damage by red deer across wide environmental gradients. We have a unique database of >700 GPS-marked red deer. Management of natural resources takes place within a socio-ecological system, and it is becoming increasingly clear that co-design and co-production of knowledge with important user groups is becoming an effective tool for implementation and use of science. #AgriDeer will provide essential knowledge on the role of farmland for red deer ecology as a basis for damage mitigation, and the active participation of the Landbruk Nordvest, Norwegian Environment Agency, the Norw. Farmer Union and the Norw. Forestry Association secure likelihood of high societal impact.

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MILJØFORSK-Miljøforskning for en grønn samfunnsomstilling