Forest
Stewardship News Release
February
24, 2004 - For Immediate Release
Contact: Rance
Harmon, Phone: 814-863-0401 E-mail: rsh144@psu.edu
Healthy Habitat, Healthy Deer Herd
Five years ago, Dr. Tim Pierson, a forester with the Penn State Cooperative Extension, developed a workshop to train landowners and hunters how to estimate the number of deer on their woodlots and favorite hunting grounds. “At no time during this workshop do we ever say there are too many deer. We show sportsmen and others how to estimate the number of deer, then at the end of the day, they make their own decisions,” Pierson says. The upcoming Deer Density and Carrying Capacity Workshops, which will be held in four locations around the state this spring, emphasize deer density and deer biology.
“Carrying capacity” refers to the number of deer that the land can support, or “carry,” and still yield a healthy habitat for forest regeneration and biodiversity. The healthier the habitat, the healthier the white-tailed deer population. In the wintertime, when snow blankets the grasses, nuts and tree shoots that they prefer to eat, deer may get desperate. Robert Ackerman, a landowner in Westmoreland County, says “A couple years ago the deer ate all the leaves off our holly bushes and I don’t think that’s very tasty. Those sharp spikes wouldn’t go down too well.” Ackerman believes deer were responsible for destroying almost all of the 5,000 trees he planted in an effort to reforest his property. He estimates that the deer population on his property has far exceeded what the habitat can support.
According to Gerry Feaser, press secretary of the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC), much of the private forestland in the north central region of the state may suffer from heavy deer browsing. “If you can see a browse line that’s six feet high and hundreds of yards—that’s bad habitat. People see green forest canopies and they think that’s sufficient for deer. But the deer won’t eat what they can’t reach.” The PGC’s Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP) authorizes one antlerless deer permit for every fifty acres of forestland. Landowners who have a deer management plan may be eligible for additional antlerless deer permits. The habitat impact survey, one of the tools used to help create a deer management plan, will be covered in the deer density and carrying capacity workshops.
Without a doubt, deer prefer to spend time in areas where there’s plenty to eat. But what do deer eat? And how much do they need to eat in order to survive? According to Pierson, knowledge of food preferences is crucial to a hunter’s success. In addition to food preferences, workshop participants will learn about deer biology, reproduction, antler development, and population. At the end of the day, Pierson says, “I’ve never had a sportsman say anything other than—wow, I can’t believe how much I’ve learned.” The workshops are provided by the Penn State Cooperative Extension, the DCNR Bureau of Forestry, and local partnering organizations.
Deer Density & Carrying Capacity Workshops:
- Saturday,
March 27:
Two Mile Run Country Park Nature Lodge
(Venango County).
9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Snow date, May 15.)
Contact Harry Blanchet at 814-755-3544 or
- Saturday,
April 3:
Western Clinton Sportsman’s Association’s Nature-Environmental Center, Hyner
(Clinton County).
9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Contact Dave Jackson, Centre County Cooperative Extension, at 814-355-4897.
- Saturday
April 3: Gallitzin State Forest
(Somerset County).
9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Pre-registration required.
Contact Mike Wolf at 814-472-7986.
- Thursday,
April 8:
Bradford Ranger District Office near Marshburg in the Kinzua Quality Deer Cooperative
(McKean County).
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Contact, Tim Pierson, McKean County Cooperative Extension, at 814-887-5613.
The Pennsylvania Forest Stewardship Program provides publications on a variety of topics related to woodland management for private landowners. For a list of free publications, call 1-800-235-WISE (toll-free), send e-mail to RNRext@psu.edu, or write to: Forest Stewardship Program, Forest Resources Extension, The Pennsylvania State University, 320 Forest Resources Building, University Park, PA 16802. The Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry and USDA Forest Service, in partnership with the Penn State's Forest Resources Extension, sponsor the Forest Stewardship Program in Pennsylvania.
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