Numerical top-down effects on red deer (Cervus elaphus) are mainly shaped by humans rather than large carnivores across Europe

Terrestrial ecosystems are shaped by interacting top-down and bottom-up processes, with the magnitude of top-down control by large carnivores largely depending on environmental productivity. While carnivore-induced numerical effects on ungulate prey populations have been demonstrated in large, relatively undisturbed ecosystems, whether large carnivores can play a similar role in more human-dominated systems is a clear knowledge gap. As humans influence both predator and prey in a variety of ways, the ecological impacts of large carnivores can be largely modified. We quantified the interactive effects of human activities and large carnivore presence on red deer (Cervus elaphus) population density and how their impacts interacted and varied with environmental productivity
Data on red deer density were collected based on a literature survey encompassing 492 study sites across 28 European countries. Variation in density across study sites was analysed using a generalised additive model in w...