Authors
Mike R Saunders, Klaus J Puettmann
Publication date
1999/6/1
Journal
Northern Journal of Applied Forestry
Volume
16
Issue
2
Pages
96-102
Publisher
Society of American Foresters
Description
Browsing of seedlings by white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) can make natural and artificial forest regeneration difficult. Few mathematical models predict deer browsing within and between sites, giving managers only landscape-level characteristics, such as deer population levels and yearly snowfall measurements, to determine where deer-protective measures should be installed. This study described browsing patterns and assessed influence of vegetational characteristics on browsing. Predictive models were developed using overstory and understory measurements, and browsing reconstructions of individual seedlings within eight eastern white pine (Pinus strobus) plantations in northern Minnesota. Results indicated that deer concentrate browsing on terminal leaders in shorter seedlings, shifting to laterals as seedlings approach browsing height limits (140 cm).Damage models were site-specific …
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