Camouflage patterns are highly heritable but predictability varies among three populations of white-tailed deer

Abstract

If ungulate neonate cryptic coloration provides a survival advantage, it should be heritable and adapted to their prevailing environment. However, recent changes in land use and predation pressure may have created a mismatch between previously adapted camouflage and the current environment. In Mississippi, USA, row-crop agriculture has altered some landscapes while recovery of native predators and establishment of novel predators may apply new directional pressures. We assessed whether spotting characteristics of neonate white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) were heritable and whether they accurately predicted region of origin, indicating adaptation to specific environmental characteristics. Spotting characteristics were moderately (total number of spotting clusters) to highly (number of single spots) heri-table, suggesting specific characteristics may provide an adaptive advantage. Camouflage patterns were moderately distinctive for neonates with lineages originating in the Lower Coastal Plain (LCP) and Thin Loess regions (≥67% of neonates accurately classified into their respective region) supporting previous selection for specific patterns at the regional level. However, camouflage patterns failed to predict region of origin for neonates originating from the Delta region (0%), suggesting a disruption of previous adapta-tion. Of the three regions, the Delta is the most heavily converted from forested habitats, with over 70% in agriculture, while the LCP and Thin Loess are <40% and 21%, respectively. Given that camouflage patterns display high heritability and neonates displaying successful camouflage patterns should display increased survival, the lack of a predictable pattern within the dynamic Delta landscape suggests that major land-use changes and new predatory pressures may have disrupted the neonate cryptic coloration best suited to this population’s current environment.