Pere David's deer in China

Pere David's deer (Elaphurus davidianus) was reintroduced to China after it s extirpation in the country in the nineteenth century. The first reintrodu ction was made to the Beijing Milu Park in 1985 and the second to the Dafen g Milu Natural Reserve in 1986. Those reintroduction sites have different c haracteristics. The Beijing Milu Park is near a metropolitan region and has limited size, whereas the Dafeng Natural Reserve is located in a coastal r egion with little human settlement. Except for a nuclear breeding herd, the Pere David's deer of the Beijing Milu Park were shipped to other sites in eastern China to reduce the grazing pressure on the park vegetation and exp and the distribution of Pere David's deer. The Dafeng Milu Natural Reserve has the potential to hold a large population of Pere David's deer ii more l and were acquired to expand the natural reserve. By the end of 1997, total number of Pere David's deer in China reached 671, half of which were offspr ing from animals in Beijing Milu Park. The Beijing and Dafeng herds remain as 2 of the largest Pere David's deer populations in China, the Beijing pop ulation accounting for 19% and the Dafeng population for 45% of the total p opulation. Pi re David's deer of Beijing Milu Park have been transferred to 12 other locations. During 1987-1997, birth rates and net growth rates did not differ between populations (P=0.09 and P=0.74); however, death rates d iffered (P<0.01). After the period of adaptation, there was a period of pop ulation expansion, during which the birth rate in the Beijing and Dafeng po pulations declined as the population continued to grow. However, population density explained little about variation in birth rates in the Beijing and Dafeng populations; a longer-term monitoring of those populations is neede d to assess plausible density-dependent population growth.