Abstract Differential resource use allows for diverse species to specialize in ecological niches and thus coexist in a particular area. In the Japanese archipelago, increasing sika deer (Cervus nippon, Temminck 1836) densities have excluded the Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus, Temminck 1836), but in places where deer population densities are low, the two species coexist. We wanted to better understand their habitats and how these two ungulates manage to coexist. We evaluated the role of habitat use in the coexistence of these two sympatric ungulates on Mt. Asama, central Japan. Deer frequently used the dwarf bamboo-rich communities in autumn and winter, and their habitat use was not associated with topography. Serows frequently used deciduous broadleaf shrub-rich communities and steep slopes throughout the year. Consequently, their habitat use was significantly different in terms of vegetation and topography. Niche breadth suggests that deer tend to be generalists, whereas serows tend to be specialists. Niche differentiation in habitat use between deer and serows may make the coexistence of these similarly sized ungulates possible in Japanese mountainous zones. Therefore, the fine-grained habitat mosaic of different vegetation and topography areas might be the underlying feature that allows the coexistence of these two species.

中文翻译：

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栖息地利用以及梅花鹿和日本塞罗的共存，来自山的同域有蹄类动物。日本中部浅间

摘要 差异化资源利用允许不同物种专注于生态位，从而在特定区域共存。在日本列岛，梅花鹿（Cervus nippon，Temminck 1836）密度的增加已经排除了日本梅花鹿（Capricornis creamus，Temminck 1836），但在鹿种群密度较低的地方，这两个物种共存。我们想更好地了解它们的栖息地以及这两种有蹄类动物如何共存。我们评估了栖息地利用在这两种同域有蹄类动物在山上共存中的作用。日本中部浅间市。鹿在秋冬季节频繁利用矮竹群落，其栖息地利用与地形无关。Serows全年经常使用落叶阔叶灌木丰富的群落和陡坡。最后，它们的栖息地利用在植被和地形方面有显着差异。利基广度表明鹿往往是通才，而雄鹿往往是专家。鹿和羚羊栖息地利用的利基差异可能使这些类似大小的有蹄类动物在日本山区共存成为可能。因此，不同植被和地形区域的细粒度栖息地镶嵌可能是允许这两种物种共存的潜在特征。