In modern nature conservation and rewilding there is a need for controlling the movements of large grazers in extensively managed areas. The inflexibility of physical fencing can be a limitation in nature management, and the physical boundaries created by physical fencing can have detrimental effects on wildlife. Virtual fencing systems provide boundaries without physical structures. These systems utilise collars with GPS technology to track animals and deliver auditory or electric cues to encourage the animals to stay within the predefined boundaries. This study aims to assess the use of virtual fencing (Nofence©) to keep twelve Angus cows (Bos taurus) within a virtual enclosure without compromising their welfare. As such, the study examines inter-individual differences between the cows as well as their herd behaviour, when reacting and learning to respond appropriately to virtual fencing. Moreover, the activity of the cows was used as an indicator of welfare. The virtual fencing was successful in keeping the herd within the designated area. Moreover, the cattle learned to avoid the virtual border and respond to auditory cues, where the cows received significantly more auditory warning and electric impulses per week throughout the first 14 days than the remaining 125 days (p < 0.001). The cows were found to express both inter-individual differences (p < 0.001) and herd behaviour. The cattle did not express any significant changes in their activity upon receiving an electrical impulse from the collar. Thus, indicating that there were little to no acute welfare implications associated with the use of virtual fencing in this study. This study clearly supports the potential for virtual fencing as a viable alternative to physical electric fencing. However, it also shows that both individual differences in personality and herd structure should be considered when selecting individuals for virtual fencing.

This study investigates the possibility of utilising a drone equipped with a thermal camera to monitor the spatial distribution of red deer (Cervus elaphus) and to determine their behavioural patterns, as well as preferences for vegetation types in a moor in Denmark. The spatial distribution of red deer was mapped according to time of day and vegetation types. Reed deer were separated manually from fallow deer (Dama dama) due to varying footage quality. Automated object detection from thermal camera footage was used to identification of two behaviours, “Eating” and “Lying”, enabling insights into the behavioural patterns of red deer in different vegetation types. The results showed a migration of red deer from the moors to agricultural fields during the night. The higher proportion of time spent eating in agricultural grass fields compared to two natural vegetation types, “Grey dune” and “Decalcified fixed dune”, indicates that fields are important foraging habitats for red deer. The red deer populations were observed significantly later on grass fields compared to the natural vegetation types. This may be due to human disturbance or lack of randomisation of the flight time with the drone. Further studies are suggested across different seasons as well as the time of day for a better understanding of the annual and diurnal foraging patterns of red deer.

Anthropogenic activities increase turbidity in coastal marine environments globally, and turbidity is particularly caused by eutrophication. Turbidity is a measurement of the scattering and absorption of light by suspended matter in water. An increase in turbidity influences visual predators and affects community structures and whole ecosystems. The three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) is a widespread species in the northern hemispheric Pacific and Atlantic oceans. It is a visual predator and, therefore, a very well-suited species for studying the effects of increasing turbidity on foraging behaviour and activity. Sticklebacks used for this study were from an aquarium in the North Sea Oceanarium. They have been in the aquarium for around two months and were originally collected in a highly eutrophicated marine fjord system. They were individually placed in an observation aquarium, fed with krill, given 10 min to forage, and observed by video cameras. The video films were analysed to study stickleback predation behaviour. Experiments were repeated with four different turbidity treatments, ranging from a mean of 0.034 up to 10 NTU (nephelometric turbidity unit). Bentonite clay was used as a turbidity-increasing substance. A statistically significant difference in foraging behaviour and activity between the turbidity treatments was observed. The test subjects were found to lunge less for prey and had a higher feeding latency with increasing turbidity. Additionally, they were less active with increasing turbidity. The behavioural instability estimated as a variation in feeding latency increased with increasing turbidity but decreased at the highest turbidity value. Our study indicates an effect of turbidity-increasing events on the behaviour of the three-spined stickleback and potentially also other similar visual predators.