DOI: 10.5061/dryad.ghx3ffbzs
title: Helicopter parenting: Local-scale environment determines hiding and supervision in neonatal ungulates

description: Ungulate species are classified as ‘hiders’ rather than ‘followers’ when
 neonates tend to remain separated from their mother and hidden within
 vegetation during the early postpartum period. Among species, hiding is
 associated with the availability of cover habitat; however, our
 understanding of these behaviours often has been limited to relatively
 coarse and infrequent observations. We leveraged modern technologies,
 including GPS collars affixed to neonates, LiDAR, fine-scaled encounter
 risk with predators, accelerometers and multiscale temperature readings,
 to complement these observations in evaluating how predation risk,
 thermoregulation and nutritional attributes of habitat contribute to
 hiding behaviour and its consequences for survival in mule deer,
 Odocoileus hemionus. Hiding decisions by mule deer were nuanced and
 counter to prevailing notions that suggest hiding is associated with
 increasing availability of cover. In support of the risk hypothesis, mule
 deer were most likely to hide in areas where vegetation height was low and
 encounter risk with predators was high, and behavioural shifts were
 prominent relative to variation in time of day, with hiding behaviour
 increasing at night during periods of predator activity. Nutrition and
 thermoregulatory hypotheses were supported in that hiding was more likely
 and neonate and mother were in closer proximity in areas with greater
 resource availability, and neonates adjusted hiding behaviour to minimize
 thermoregulatory costs. Variation in hiding indicated the importance of
 activity and interaction with the mother for neonate survival. Broad-scale
 habitat patterns have proven useful for defining hiding behaviour across
 species and may play an important role in setting the bounds that define
 individual variation; however, we encourage considering local conditions
 as drivers of hiding and following behaviour in ungulates. Together,
 patterns across multiple scales are more likely to describe the nature of
 neonate behaviour, relative to considerations at one scale alone.
description: # Helicopter parenting: Local-scale environment determines hiding and
 supervision in neonatal ungulates --- Data prepared by: Mitchell J.
 Brunet, Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources, Wyoming
 Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Department of Zoology and
 Physiology, University of Wyoming, 804 E. Fremont St., Laramie, Wyoming,
 82072, USA Email:
 [mitch.j.brunet@gmail.com](mailto:mitch.j.brunet@gmail.com) Associated
 manuscript: Brunet, M. J., K. S. Huggler, P. W. Burke, K. L. Monteith.
 2024. Helicopter parenting: local-scale environment determines hiding and
 supervision in neonatal ungulates. Animal Behaviour. --- Contains data
 assessed at locations from neonatal mule deer to evaluate hiding behaviour
 and survival in response to risk, habitat, temperature, age, sex, etc.
 NOTE: It is not recommended to open CSV files in Excel. Large files extend
 beyond the allowable number of rows and are clipped. Consider loading
 files directly into Program R or elsewhere. --- ## Description of the Data
 and file structure ### Probability of hiding File: Dryad_Hid.csv
 Variables: * hidden = was the fawn hiding? (TRUE = yes, FALSE = no) * id =
 fawn identification number * fawn.speedt1 = fawn speed prior to location
 of interest (m/h) * dam.speedt1 = mothers speed prior to location of
 interest (m/h) * fawn.speedt2 = fawn speed after location of interest
 (m/h) * dam.speedt2 = mothers speed after location of interest (m/h) *
 ndvi = Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (plant greenness index) *
 enc_risk = probability of encountering a coyote * veg_height = vegetation
 height (m) * collar_temp = collar temperature (celsius) * ambient_temp =
 daily max temperature (celsius) * age = fawn age (days) * time = hour of
 the day (0-24) * sex = fawn sex ### Distance during hiding File:
 Dryad_DistHid.csv Variables: * dist = distance between mother and fawn (m)
 * id = fawn identification number * fawn.speedt1 = fawn speed prior to
 location of interest (m/h) * dam.speedt1 = mothers speed prior to location
 of interest (m/h) * fawn.speedt2 = fawn speed after location of interest
 (m/h) * dam.speedt2 = mothers speed after location of interest (m/h) *
 ndvi = Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (plant greenness index) *
 enc_risk = probability of encountering a coyote * veg_height = vegetation
 height (m) * age = fawn age (days) * time = hour of the day (0-24) * sex =
 fawn sex ### Survival File: Dryad_Survival.csv Variables: * day.start =
 day at start of observation * day.stop = day at end of observation *
 status = had the event (death) occurred? (TRUE = yes, FALSE = no) *
 res_hid = residual from the hiding model * res_hid.dist = residual from
 the distance during hiding model * sex = fawn sex * veg_height =
 vegetation height (m) * ndvi = Normalized Difference Vegetation Index
 (plant greenness index) * enc_risk = probability of encountering a coyote
 * sib_aliv = does the fawn have a survivng sibling? (TRUE = yes, FALSE =
 no) * id = fawn identification number