The impact of deer browsing on Allegheny hardwood regeneration

Abstract

To evaluate the impact of deer browsing on Allegheny hardwood regeneration, surveys were made of vegetation inside and outside deer exclosures in 13 stands that had been clearcut 5 to 16 years earlier. The surveys showed that browsing by white-tailed deer has resulted in regeneration failures in 25 to 40 percent of the areas studied. Pin cherry and sugar maple were the species most severely reduced by browsing, while beech, birch, and striped maple sometimes increased in proportion to other species in areas subjected to deer. The surveys also showed that successful regeneration was obtained in spite of deer browsing in over half of the clearcuts studied. Although not demonstrated here, other research has shown that the areas most likely to regenerate satisfactorily are those that contain abundant advance regeneration. Data from this study, although limited, suggest that regeneration in 4- to 5-year-old clearcuts can be judged satisfactory if at least 60 percent of the 6-foot-radius plots examined are stocked with at least 2 desirable stems over 3 feet tall, or at least 100 desirable stems of any size.

Citation

Marquis, David A. 1974. The impact of deer browsing on Allegheny hardwood regeneration. Res. Pap. NE-308. Upper Darby, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station. 8p.