A recent study aimed to explore the diversity of plant species eaten by sambar deer in the Alpine National Park by performing DNA testing on faecal samples.

The study occurred on the Bogong High Plains within the Alpine National Park and featured two study areas less than 10km apart. Collections were sampled from three different vegetation types: snow patch herb fields, grasslands, and wetlands and were collected monthly from January to March.

During the main flowering period in the alpine environment, sambar tended to exhibit an intermediate feeder diet of mostly forbs and shrubs. This is suggested to reflect an opportunistic feeding behaviour due to the shortened growing season and the sambar eating what is abundant and has a high nutritional quality, particularly the forbs (acaena).

The most frequently consumed plants were the Acaena novae-zelandiae and the Eucalyptus pauciflora, with the Acaena being a forb and the Eucalyptus being a woody growth form.

None of the plants detected and considered over-represented in the deer’s diet are threatened on the Bogong High Plains. The observed differences in the plant species of the faecal pellets between the two study areas, Mt Nelse, and Basalt Hill, suggest that the deer were unlikely to be moving between these two areas despite being within the home range estimates of sambar.

Whilst some rare wetland species, such as the Broad-leaf Flower rush (Carphabnivicola), Alpine Marsh-marigold (Psychrophila introloba), and the Silky Snow-daisy (Celmisiabsericophylla) were observed in a small number of samples, it appears that sambar are not selectively targeting them.

However, routine monitoring of the abundance and distribution of such plants should be undertaken.

The study can be found here.