To understand the pattern of vigilance behavior in Père David’s deer and its adaptation to human disturbance,we carried out an experiment in the Dafeng Père David’s Deer Nature Reserve.In a large paddock,we observed vigilance behaviors of free-ranging Père David’s deer.In spring and summer,we used a laser-range finder to measure the alert-distance of the Père David’s deer group in the large paddock.Our data indicate that the vigilance behaviors in Père David’s deer included scanning,stare,walking away,flee,alarm calls and pawing ground for alert.After statistical analysis,we found that:(1)the expression of vigilance behavior in Père David’s deer was depend on intensity of human disturbance;(2)keeping seasonal factors constant,there was a significant difference among different types of alert distances;furthermore,the stare distance was significantly longer than the distance of walking away and fleeing;(3)the stare distance in semi-free ranging Père David’s deer in summer was significantly greater than in spring,but the distances of walking away and the distances of fleeing exhibited no significant difference between the two seasons.These results indicated that:(1)the main factor affecting vigilance behavior in Père David’s deer was human disturbance under the captive breeding situation and(2)Père David’s deer adopted different vigilance behavior in response to human disturbance under different circumstances.In animal conservation,it is important to consider the relationship between vigilance behavior and human disturbance.
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