GPS

Sika deer (Cervus nippon) have attained high densities within their introduced range in the central North Island, New Zealand. They are an important big-game species for recreational hunters in New Zealand, but they can have unwanted impacts on native plants, such as reducing seedling growth rates. Management of sika deer requires detailed knowledge about which resources are important to them and how resource selection changes temporally.

GPS and satellite technology for studies on wildlife have improved substantially over the past decade. It is now possible to collect fine-scale location data from migratory animals, animals that have previously been too small to deploy GPS devices on, and other difficult-to-study species. Often researchers and managers have formatted well-defined ecological or conservation questions prior to deploying GPS on animals, whereas other times it is arguably done simply because the technology is now available to do so.