The ranging behaviour, activity and social organization of sympatric populations of Reeves' muntjac (Muntiacus reevesi) and roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) in a mainly commercial coniferous forest in eastern England were studied by means of radio‐tracking techniques. Muntjac showed no seasonal changes in range size; muntjac bucks had significantly larger ranges than does at all times of the year. For roe deer there were significant seasonal changes in home‐range size; bucks had largest ranges in the winter months and smallest ranges in September‐October, whereas does had largest ranges during January‐February and minimum ranges during May‐June. There was no seasonal change in the number or size of muntjac core areas; bucks always had larger and more numerous core areas than does. Neither was there a seasonal change in the number or size of roe deer core areas; whilst there was no difference in the number of core areas for roe bucks and does, those of bucks were significantly smaller. There was no seasonal change in daily distance travelled by muntjac bucks or does, or roe bucks, but there was a significant seasonal trend for roe does, whose daily distances travelled were longest during January‐February and shortest during May‐June. Spatial organization of muntjac consisted of groups of overlapping doe ranges but exclusive back ranges; these overlapped with one or more groups of doe ranges. During the summer, roe deer buck and doe ranges overlapped, and some doe ranges were shared with other adult does, but buck ranges were exclusive. During the winter, roe deer were more wide‐ranging and mixed more freely. There was no evidence for spatial separation of muntjac and roe deer; minimum convex polygon ranges overlapped and core areas often coincided. Mean annual activity was 69.3 ± 1.5% for muntjac and 56.4 ± 1.8% for roe deer. Mean length of active periods was significantly greater for muntjac than roe deer, and roe deer had significantly longer inactive periods. For muntjac there were peaks of activity at dusk and dawn, with lower levels of activity during the day and night. For roe deer the dawn and dusk peaks were more clearly defined, and at most times of the year nocturnal activity was higher than diurnal activity. These results are discussed in relation to the physiology of the two species and their patterns of space and food utilization, and the evidence for resource partitioning between the two species is evaluated. It was shown that neither muntjac nor roe deer had an effect on the ranging behaviour, activity and social organization of the other species, but that at very high densities muntjac can have an impact on established roe deer populations by changing their pattern of habitat utilization and by locally reducing their numbers.

Skulls of red deer (Cervus elaphus of known age were examined. A scoring procedure devised for fallow deer (Dama dama) was used to relate tooth wear to a particular age (Brown & Chapman, 1990). The precise sequential nature of tooth wear as it appeared on the slopes and tips of cusps, on the marginal ridges and links between cusps was recorded. From these data a base has been provided from which estimates of age may be made of animals of unknown age. The variability for the scores are given for 95% prediction intervals from the regression of age on total molar wear score.

No abstract

The stages of permanent tooth development observed in radiographs of the mandible are described and analysed for known‐aged red deer (Cervus elaphus). The ages by which the different stages of development were reached have been determined. By allocating scores for these different stages, the scores that may be expected for a particular age have been identified. Lastly, the predicted age was given, together with 95% prediction intervals obtained from a regression of age on total molariform scores. Tooth development in red deer was usually completed by 33 months. These data can be used to assess the ages of animals of unknown age.

The sequence of tooth wear was determined from skulls of fallow deer of known age. A system for scoring molariform tooth wear has been devised so that small but readily recognizable wear changes of the individual cusps may be recorded and used to assess the age of animals of unknown birth dates. The technique can be readily adapted for other ruminant species with the appropriate database.