Habitat use of invasive chital deer is associated with soil mineral content

Catherine L. Kelly; Lin Schwarzkopf; Iain J. Gordon; Anthony Pople; Ben T. Hirsch

doi:10.1071/WR24173

RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

Previous Next Contents Vol 52(7)

Habitat use of invasive chital deer is associated with soil mineral content

Catherine L. Kelly

^A ^B ^* , Lin Schwarzkopf ^A , Iain J. Gordon ^C ^D ^E , Anthony Pople

^F and Ben T. Hirsch ^A ^G

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Townsville, Qld, Australia.

^B Department of Biodiversity, Conservation, and Attractions, Perth, WA, Australia.

^C Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia.

^D James Hutton Institute, Craigiebuckler, Aberdeen, UK.

^E Central Queensland University, Townsville, Qld, Australia.

^F Biosecurity Queensland, Department of Primary Industries, Brisbane, Qld, Australia.

^G Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama, Panama.

^* Correspondence to: catherine.kelly@my.jcu.edu.au

Handling Editor: Lily van Eeden

Wildlife Research 52, WR24173 https://doi.org/10.1071/WR24173

Submitted: 11 October 2024 Accepted: 15 June 2025 Published: 1 July 2025

© 2025 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Context

Ungulates have been introduced to many environments around the world. Some of these populations have become invasive, resulting in severe economic, social, and environmental impacts. In 1886, chital deer (Axis axis) were introduced to north Queensland, Australia, and the population has since grown and expanded.

Aims

To understand where chital deer are likely to occur in the future, we examined the relationship between chital deer abundance and environmental variables at two scales, namely, local and regional.

Methods

The local scale was surveyed using camera traps on a single property, and regional scale data were collected from a landholder survey of properties across the current distribution of chital deer in the region.

Key results

High predicted soil phosphorus was correlated with high relative abundance of chital deer at both the local and regional scales. In addition, at the local scale, higher predicted soil sodium content and normalised vegetation index (NDVI, ‘greenness’), close proximity to homesteads and highways, and lower canopy cover and height were strongly correlated with increased chital deer abundance.

Conclusions

There were more chital in areas with high predicted soil phosphorus at both local and regional scales.

Implications

This study has the following two implications for management: (1) areas with high predicted soil phosphorous content had the highest relative abundance of deer at both scales, and should be the focus of control efforts, and (2) such areas are more vulnerable to future invasion of chital deer and should be monitored closely.

Keywords: Australia, cervid, control, invasive species, management, phosphorus, soil minerals, ungulate.

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