| Every year, millions of people in the United States become active participants in wildlife communities by hunting deer. While the consequences of hunting on deer population dynamics have been well studied, we know surprisingly little about how hunting shapes patterns of wildlife movement and behavior. Recent developments in GPS technology now allow the collection of very high-resolution movement and activity data that can shed light on these questions. At the 5,300 acre Hopland Research and Extension Center in northern California, we have collected data from 360 hunters with wearing GPS units set at 5-second intervals. In collaboration with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), we have also begun deploying GPS collars on 20 legally huntable black-tailed deer (O. hemionus columbianus) bucks, as well as 40 does. Collection of GPS data from both hunters and deer support three major analyses. First, we examine whether and how deer alter their behavior and movement during the course of the hunting season. Second, by collecting spatial data on both human predators and prey, we examine the behavioral responses of deer to hunters in real time at an unprecedented resolution. Finally, we use the spatial data collected from hunters and their kill sites to develop a statewide spatial model of hunting pressure that will help CDFW improve the precision and application of its game management strategies. |