Developing a methodology to identify personalities in farmed red deer

Abstract

Understanding personalities has been promoted as an opportunity to increase farm livestock productivity within pastoral landscapes through the better alignment of individuals to farming systems. However, standardised methodologies do not exist to achieve this for farmed red deer. This research explores the use of wearable technology and statistical analysis techniques to capture data that can be used to define behaviours to identify personality traits for farmed red deer ( Cervus elaphus ). Sixty-eight custom built wearable collars, fitted to red deer, were used to capture data over a 7-day period to identify a range of behaviours. Statistical methodologies were compared to test behavioural consistency and stability which are fundamental metrics for personality traits. Behavioural consistency is the degree in which individuals maintain their relative differences of behavioural expression to others within the herd whereas behavioural stability is the measure of absolute change, or not, in individual behavioural expression over time and across contexts. Kendall’s coefficient of concordance and Intra-class correlation coefficient derived from linear mixed-models were employed to investigate the consistency of behavioural expression. Individual stability score, and coefficient of relative plasticity, were used to investigate behavioural stability/plasticity. Consistency of behavioural expression within the population varied depending on the measured behaviour and demonstrated moderate to strong consistency in ranking within the population. Kendall’s coefficient was the most informative methodology for behavioural consistency in this instance as it is a measure of relative ranking consistency rather than absolute consistency. Behavioural stability varied across the population, with both methodologies used being informative. This research demonstrates that wearable technologies used in conjunction with the statistical methodologies employed can quantify behaviours and assess behavioural consistency and stability in farm deer which supports inferences about individual personality