New mtDNA Haplotypes of the Sika Deer (Cervus nippon) Found in Hokkaido, Japan Suggest Human-Mediated Immigration

The sika deer (Cervus nippon Temminck, 1838) is widely distributed throughout eastern and northeastern Asia, from the Ussuri region of Siberia to northern Vietnam, Taiwan, and Japan (Ohtaishi 1986; Whitehead 1993), with the range extending from subarctic to tropical zones. Because of their high hunting value (e.g., beauty and taste), they have been introduced into at least 18 countries: Australia, Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Estonia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Lithuania, Moldova, Morocco, New Zealand, the Philippines, Poland, Switzerland, and the United States (Pitra et al. 2005; Bartos 2009; Ohdachi et al. 2009). Although they have been highly valued as hunting animals, sika deer have also caused ecological problems in some introduced regions, including serious damage to the forests of British islands (Bartos 2009; Swanson and Putman 2009) and hybridization with native red deer (Cervus elaphus Linnaeus, 1758) in Europe (Whitehead 1972; Bartos 2009; Senn and Pemberton 2009).