This study was conducted in two private properties in the municipality of Piraí do Sul (Paraná state, southern Brazil). Sixteen monthly visits were made each one lasting three days between February 2001 and May 2002. The study aimed at the observation of pampas deer biology (Ozotoceros bezoarticus Linnaeus, 1758), and the evaluation of main impacts to this population. We computed 1,065 observations of estimated 71.45 individuals. The average size of the groups was 2.29 (SD ± 0.55) animals, and the sexual ratio was 0.83. Isolated deer accounted for 40% of the observations, whereas the largest group comprised 10 individuals. It was recorded a peack period of births between September and November, although births were observed along all the studied period. Thirty-four deaths were recorded corresponding to a 47.6% death rate. The main causes of death were predatory actions by cougar Puma concolor (Linnaeus, 1771), hunting and individuals being run over by motor vehicles. The studied population is seriously endangered and it will not escape extinction unless certain policies to guarantee its conservation are adopted. These policies should include correct management of the areas and control of pressure vectors.
Pampas deer; sexual ratio; conservation; population threats
