Months and seasons
An important variable that affects the behavior and mobility of wild
animals is the months and seasons. The highest number of wild animal
observations in the region has made in autumn with 1200 observations and
second in spring with 1007 observations. In summer and winter seasons,
748 and 775 determinations were made, respectively. According to the
months, respectly 484 records were made in October, 393 in March, 365 in
November and 351 in September. January was the month with the least
number of registrations with 188 observations (Figure 6).
Figure 6. The number of determined species depending on the months.
A similar rate is observed in the incidence of all detected species
depending on the seasons and months. On the other hand, an increase in
grey wolf observations is observed only in July. The number of boars,
which was 161 on average in autumn, has limited to an average of 41
individuals in winter, spring and summer. For the same periods, the
incidence of red deer has decreased from 31 to 14. The decline in boar
and red deer, especially during the summer months, may be associated
with the separation of these species from the herd to give birth and
care for young during this period. In addition, the increase in human
activities and forestry practices in their habitats in this period
reduces the incidence of the species. Almost all of the species in the
region reduce their activities in order to use their limited nutrients
in the best way and to spend less energy during the winter months.
However, from the beginning of spring, the activities increase, and in
autumn, the activities of the species reach the highest level for the
purpose of winter nutrition. Seasonal variability also varies between
carnivores and herbivores, depending on the prey-predator connection.
This situation is more conspicuous among European hares and Eurasian
lynxes. In parallel with the increase in European hare density in March,
April, May and June, the frequency of Eurasian lynxes increased in the
same period.
Seasons and months are also very important because of affecting the
habitat characteristics of wild animals. For example, stands with water
sources are preferred more in summer and winter periods. Similarly, it
is striking that the height distribution of the species detected in the
area also changes according to the season. While many species prefer
lower altitude habitats during the winter months, they have been
preferred more highter altitude in the spring, summer and autumn.
Many wild animals seasonally prefer high-altitude stands more in hot
weather and less in cold weather. Although the seasonal and daily
activities of wild animals change little with temperature increases in
winter, significant decreases in activity occur with temperature
increases in summer. During the winter, the activity of the species is
minimal when temperatures are at their coldest, while an increase in
activity is observed on warmer winter days. In summer, it is seen that
the activity increases at low temperatures, and this activity decreases
relatively with the increase in temperature..