Academic literature on the topic 'Lyme Park (Cheshire, England)'

AbstractThis study (1978-93) was concerned with calf site selection by red deer from three contrasting areas (two deer parks and one deer farm) of north-west England. It arose from initial (1960s-70s) concern over poor recruitment and the high incidence of ‘abandoned’ calves (at one site), and increasing levels of public disturbance in Lyme Park and Tatton Park. A better understanding of calving behaviour could lead to improved management procedures during calving. Habitat selection by adult females was examined indirectly, by recording where calves (0-2 days old) were born in relation to their weight. The deer farm provided a control site, where the effects of their social traditions could be minimized.Calves were born over a wide area of moorland in Lyme Park but confined to a deer sanctuary in Tatton Park. Areas of obvious plant cover were selected in preference to open ground in Tatton Park and in the deer farm. No marked preferences were apparent in Lyme Park, although some areas were used more frequently than others, over all years. Most calves occurred within female home ranges. In Tatton Park, the heaviest calves were found in the preferred calving sites.Calf weights varied widely within and between study sites. On average, the smallest (lightest) calves were recorded in Lyme Park and the heaviest in the deer farm. Sex differences in calf weights occurred in Tatton Park, but not at the other two sites. In general, late-born calves were smaller than those born early in the season. Variations in birthweight were linked to differences in female growth and site conditions. In the absence of more detailed statistics, calf weights can provide a useful measure of population performance.Collectively, these results suggest that red deer can adopt a range of calving behaviours (‘tactics’) depending on the nature of the habitat (presence or absence of cover), perceived predation ‘risks’ (levels of disturbance), established social traditions and, possibly, parental investment. Cover appeared to be a primary requirement for calving. In the absence of cover, other behaviours were adopted. In some cases, these behaviours were not in the best interests of the calf, asparent females rarely returned tofeed their calves during the day and often engaged in energetically costly diversionary activities. In deer farms, conflicts between hinds may be exaggerated by limited access to ground cover, similar social status and low variance in calf weights.In view of thesefindings, there is a need to devise new ways of attracting captive deer to cover, perhaps by modifications to the habitat mosaic. Observations from Tafton Park show that deer readily use refuges (the sanctuary), when available, although it may be difficult to initiate new behaviours where long-established traditions occur (eg Lyme Park). Mortality amongst calves is unacceptable in deer parks, but further work under more controlled conditions, is required to establish the mechanisms of calf site selection. Effective methods of locating calves are desirable for management purposes.

The numbers of visitors to greenspaces in the United Kingdom has increased over the last few years as the health benefits of spending time in greenspaces have become better known. This has led to problems for conservation ecologists due to increased numbers of reported human-wildlife encounters. Deer are often found in public spaces and are of particular concern. Previous research suggests elevated levels of stress hormones (e.g., cortisol) in deer is a result of increased human activity. This has been linked to several negative effects on the deer’s health. From a practitioner’s point of view, it is therefore important to implement effective management strategies that are based on scientific evidence to help ensure the welfare of managed deer populations. In an effort to identify the impact of visitor numbers on faecal cortisol concentrations, samples from 2 red deer (Cervus elaphus) herds in Lyme Park (Cheshire), United Kingdom, were collected and analysed. A predictive spatial model was developed based on logistic regression to identify areas within the park of low and high human-deer encounter probability. The faecal cortisol levels were found to be significantly higher on days with a high number of visitors. In addition, landscape features such as buildings and roads increased the probability of human-deer encounters, whereas woodland and scrub decreased the probability. However, human-deer encounter probability changed with distance to the features. By providing local park managers with this scientific data, these findings can directly inform current management efforts to reduce deer stress levels in Lyme Park. In addition, the spatial modelling method has the capacity to be implemented in other parks across the country with minimal cost and effort.

The blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis) and the invasive European fire ant (Myrmica rubra) are both expanding throughout their sympatric range in coastal New England. Ixodes scapularis is the primary vector of the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, which is the causative agent of Lyme disease, and Mount Desert Island, Maine, home to Acadia National Park, currently is affected by a high Lyme disease burden. Ticks have many natural predators, including ants, although no previous studies have investigated interactions between these two species. To test the hypothesis that the presence of M. rubra alters I. scapularis abundance, we collected ticks by drag-sampling at eight ant-infested sites and eight uninfested control sites in Acadia National Park. We found that nymph density was significantly higher at ant-infested sites, while larval density was significantly higher at control sites. In addition, we conducted a laboratory bioassay to measure M. rubra aggression against I. scapularis larvae, nymphs, and adults and Dermacentor variabilis adults, and found that ant aggression was significantly higher against D. variabilis adults than I. scapularis adults. Our findings support the hypothesis that M. rubra has divergent effects across I. scapularis life stages, and we discuss possible ecological mechanisms, including optimal microclimate and predation, that could promote density of nymphs while inhibiting density of larvae.

One Health is a concept that sees human, animal, and environmental health as parts of a single interdependent system. The Covid-19 pandemic, its implications reaching far beyond the direct effects of a coronavirus on people’s health, underlines the importance of this increasingly influential perspective. In practice, One Health has its roots in early affiliations of human and animal health science. Over time, each sphere of inquiry evolved to address its own agenda. Recently, veterinary scientists have led the reintegration, extension, and promotion of One Health sciences to address modern-day problems in which health and people’s general wellbeing are viewed as inseparable. A prerequisite is to set out a framework of concepts and principles enabling clear definition of problems, interrelationships needing to be understood, and the level of aggregation appropriate for quantitative analysis. This paper extends the framework by considering economic trade-offs that inevitably must be made in the human, animal, and environmental sub-systems, and the consequences when policy interventions are superimposed on them. The New Forest National Park in southern England is a case where this perspective is essential. Following the Stone Mountain definition of One Health, first a conventional approach linking human and animal health is taken. Lyme disease, Alabama rot, bovine tuberculosis and strangles are examples of diseases known to be of significant concern. The focus is finding scope for socially efficient risk reduction in response to mitigation resource use. Superimposed on the grazing livestock subsystems are support payments for commoner farmers. The financial incentives provided by what effectively are headage payments have caused animal inventories to grow so much that the wider environment may well be subject to adverse spillover effects that merit investigation.