Three Decades of Research on Iberian Wild Ungulates: Key Insights and Promising Research Avenues

Abstract

The Iberian Peninsula is witnessing ever-faster environmental changes, and new challenges for wild ungulates are continuously emerging as they become more abundant and widespread. We conducted a systematic review to analyse the knowledge on wild ungulates inhabiting the Iberian Peninsula. We used Web of Science and Scopus search engines, complemented by searches in nonindexed journals, to examine peer-reviewed articles published between January 1990 and July 2023. The annual average growth rate in the number of publications was 17%. Most studies focussed on diseases and pathogens (36%), physiology, endocrinology and reproduction (19%), and behaviour, population and community ecology (17%). Red deer and wild boar are the most targeted species in scientific literature, followed by the Iberian wild goat, roe deer, fallow deer, Southern chamois, mouflon and aoudad. We identify key knowledge gaps that deserve further attention such as the ecological and social impacts of (re)introductions, the effects of increasing ungulate densities on ecosystem integrity and the impact of different hunting and management techniques (some unique to the Iberian Peninsula) on population dynamics. We also highlight the need to stimulate Iberian collaboration and extend the discussion to a wider range of stakeholders to integrate different perspectives on the research agenda for Iberian wild ungulates.