Wildlife Diversity and the Impact of Human Disturbance on Activity
Patterns: A Case Study of the Labagoumen Nature Reserve, Beijing, China
Abstract
Understanding the impact of human activities on wildlife is crucial for
effective biodiversity conservation and management. To assess mammal
diversity and human disturbance impacts in the Labagoumen Nature
Reserve, Beijing, we conducted a camera trapping survey from July 2019
to August 2022. Over 33,842 camera trap days yielded 5,002 identifiable
photos of mammals, representing 13 species from 9 families and 5 orders,
including new records of Eurasian red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) and
Asian badger (Meles leucurus). The top five species by relative
abundance index (RAI) were Siberian roe deer (Capreolus pygargus, RAI =
5.50), wild boar (Sus scrofa, RAI = 1.96), Eurasian red squirrel (RAI =
1.86), raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides, RAI = 1.59), and Pére
David’s rock squirrel (Sciurotamias davidianus, RAI = 1.38).Activity
rhythm analysis at 34 camera sites revealed unimodal patterns for
Eurasian red squirrel, wild boar, and Pére David’s rock squirrel, a
bimodal pattern for Siberian roe deer, and a trimodal pattern for
raccoon dogs. Peak activities of all species were offset from peak human
activities, with the highest overlap for Eurasian red squirrel and Pére
David’s rock squirrel, and the lowest for raccoon dogs. Monthly and
seasonal patterns showed the highest mammal activity in September, and
peak human disturbances in May and October. Further analysis of the
overlap between mammal daily activity rhythms and human disturbances
during tourist and non-tourist seasons revealed that the overlap index
for most species was higher during tourist seasons. Wild boars exhibited
a bimodal activity pattern during tourist seasons and unimodal during
non-tourist seasons. These findings enriched the species composition
records of the reserve and revealed significant interactions between
human disturbances and mammal behavior, providing a solid scientific
basis for biodiversity conservation and management in the Labagoumen
Nature Reserve.