Summary1. Human harvesting has a large impact on natural populations and may cause undesirable life-history changes. In wild ungulate populations, unrestricted trophy hunting may cause strong selection pressures resulting in evolutionary change towards smaller trophies. It has rarely been tested how harvesting selection varies in space and time, and whether directional hunter selection is sufficiently strong to induce long-term decreases in trophy size in centuryscale data. 2. We analysed two unique data sets of harvesting records spanning decade and century scales to identify changes in trophy size and how harvesting selection varies in space and time in red deer Cervus elaphus. We contrasted predictions from the trophy-hunting depletion, the restricted trophy hunting and the hunting pressure hypotheses. 3. Foreign hunters selected older and larger males than local hunters, but selection patterns for age-specific trophy size between counties and over time were dynamic. Patterns of red deer trophy size development from exhibitions (representing the 'upper tail' of antler sizes) were remarkably similar across Hungary from 1881 to 2008. A weak decline in trophy size between 1881 and 1958 was followed by a strong increase in trophy size between 1958 and 1974, culminating in a period of stable antler tine numbers and a weak decline in beam length until 2008. 4. We rejected the trophy hunting depletion hypothesis due to the increase in trophy size after a period of decline; patterns were most consistent with the hunting pressure hypothesis. Large increases in trophy size during 1958-1974 were likely due to a relief in hunting pressure due to implementation of strict management regulations allowing stags to grow old after the massive overharvesting during World War II, but we cannot exclude impacts from environmental factors, and that data from trophy exhibitions may underestimate trends. 5. Synthesis and applications. Trophy hunting does not necessarily lead to a non-reversible decline in trophy size, even over century-long time-scales. To ensure sustainable trophy hunting management, we need to consider factors such as spatial and temporal refuges, compensatory culling, saving stags until prime-age culmination and higher prices for larger trophies.

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Advances in ecological science and increasing public environmental awareness have resulted in changes in the management of renewable natural resources. To achieve sustainable use of wildlife, managers need reliable data on populations, habitats, and the complexities of ecological interactions. The National Game Management Database (NGMD) was first mandated by the Hungarian Game Management and Hunting Law in 1996. In this paper, the authors summarize the origins, characteristics, development, and results leading to the final establishment of and uses for the NGMD. Goals of the NGMD are to store data on game populations and game management, provide input to spatial analyses and mapping, and to facilitate decision-making and planning efforts of game management administration. It contains information on the populations of game species, data from annual game management reports, trophy-scoring data, maximum allowed and minimum huntable population size, and maps and long-term game management plans for each GMU and the 24 game management regions. In Hungary, the NGMD was the first operating database in wildlife management and nature conservation providing full GIS capabilities, supporting geographical analyses.

Ma Magyarországon még a természetvédelmi oltalom alatt álló területeknek is csak egy részéről állnak rendelkezésre terepi felvételezéssel készült részletes élőhelytérképek. A cikkben röviden bemutatott ökoszisztéma-térkép, ha ezeket nem is helyettesítheti, de az eddig rendelkezésre álló országos léptékű adatbázisokhoz (pl. a széles körben használt Corine Land Cover-höz) képest részletesebb térbeli és tematikus felbontással rendelkezik, így mind a kutatás, mind a tervezés számára többletinformációt szolgáltathat azokról a területekről, ahol terepi felmérések nem állnak rendelkezésre. A térkép 2015-16-os, illetve kisebb részben 2017-es adatok felhasználásával készült. Főként létező, rendszeresen frissülő adatbázisokra épül, távérzékelt adatok feldolgozásával kiegészítve. A feldolgozási módszertan számos olyan újszerű elemet tartalmaz, amely kifejezetten alkalmas nagytömegű, különböző forrásból származó és különböző jellegzetességekkel bíró adatbázisok együttes kezelésére. A térkép rövid bemutatása mellett a cikk kitér a validálás lehetőségeire és kezdeti eredményeire is.

Compiling a high-resolution country-level ecosystem map to support environmental policy: methodological challenges and solutions from HungaryHigh-resolution ecosystem maps increase the efficiency of policy implementation. However due to challenges related to both data and methods, such maps of appropriate scale and quality are still rarely available for nationwide analyses. We present solutions to some typical challenges of nationalscale ecosystem mapping through the new Ecosystem Map of Hungary. It is a comprehensive, spatially and thematically detailed map with a hierarchical typology. The mapping methodology combined several novel elements from the integration of various large-scale databases in a (theoretical) data cube to the use of image-based predictive mapping (with a Random Forest classifier, using Sentinel 1-2 and environmental data). A participatory method involving local experts was used for validation, addressing the lack of suitable reference data as well as improving map-maker -map user interaction. Besides the original objective of supporting conservation-related decision-making, further uses emerged from a variety of fields including spatial planning, education and recreation.

The iodine-containing hormones produced by the thyroid gland play a role in the complex neuro-hormonal regulation of antler development. The proper function of the thyroid depends on the adequate iodine supply of the organism, which is directly related to the iodine content of food and drinking water. The purpose of this study was to explore the connection between the iodine content of the water base, which has a strong correlation with the iodine concentration of environmental components available to animals, and the antler weight of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) shot in Hungarian hunting areas. Using a general linear model, controlling for the collective effects of other environmental factors (deer population density, harvest rate, land use, and soil fertility information), the iodine content of the water base explained 51.4% of the total variance of antler weights. The results suggest that antler weights increase with increasing iodine concentration regardless of other factors; thus, the environmental iodine distribution can be a limiting factor suppressing roe deer performance assessed here as antler weight. Further experimental studies of controlled iodine uptake are needed to define the exact physiological iodine requirements of roe deer bucks.