The influence of forest cover on mule deer habitat selection, diet, and nutrition during winter in a deep-snow ecosystem Export

@article{citeulike:2961431, abstract = {Recent research in western North America suggests that open forage areas are a greater limiting factor to mule deer abundance than closed conifer forests. However, much of this work was conducted in ecosystems prone to fire and low snow depths compared to the limits of mule deer range such as the Columbia Mountains, British Columbia, where snow is deep and fires are rare. We used snow track surveys as a measure of habitat use and fecal nitrogen as an index of dietary quality to compare the relative value to mule deer of open deciduous canopies to closed coniferous canopies in a wet ecosystem with deep snow and few fires. Deciduous canopies contain higher levels of understory forage compared to dense coniferous canopies, which are better at intercepting snow. We also evaluated food habits across landscapes with contrasting forest canopies. Results corroborated previous work in that foraging areas such as deciduous stands were strongly selected by deer, despite deeper snow relative to closed coniferous stands. Deer consumed fewer understory shrubs in coniferous-dominated stands, suggesting lower nutritional intake in these stands. Finally, deer appeared to derive a nutritional benefit in landscapes that had a higher proportion of open deciduous canopies, as indexed by fecal nitrogen. However, not all open canopy stands were of equal value to deer - deciduous-dominated stands were selected, whereas clearcuts were avoided. Similarly, not all closed coniferous stands were equally selected: cedar-hemlock stands were avoided whereas Douglas-fir stands were selected and indeed contained the highest proportion of deer tracks. We suggest that winter foraging areas have been underrepresented in management policy in British Columbia, but that snow-interception cover provided by coniferous stands still plays a role in winter deer ecology in deep-snow ecosystems.}, author = {Serrouya, Robert and D'Eon, Robert G.}, booktitle = {Impacts of forest ecosystem management on greenhouse gas budgets}, citeulike-article-id = {2961431}, citeulike-linkout-0 = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2008.04.048}, citeulike-linkout-1 = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6T6X-4SPSPJ7-3/1/8f06936594848288fcc672871c10ec65}, day = {30}, doi = {10.1016/j.foreco.2008.04.048}, journal = {Forest Ecology and Management}, keywords = {canada, deer, forest, forest-management, habitat, snow, spatial}, month = {July}, number = {3}, pages = {452--461}, posted-at = {2008-07-03 22:54:14}, priority = {2}, title = {The influence of forest cover on mule deer habitat selection, diet, and nutrition during winter in a deep-snow ecosystem}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2008.04.048}, volume = {256}, year = {2008} }

TY - JOUR ID - citeulike:2961431 L3 - citeulike-article-id:2961431 N2 - Recent research in western North America suggests that open forage areas are a greater limiting factor to mule deer abundance than closed conifer forests. However, much of this work was conducted in ecosystems prone to fire and low snow depths compared to the limits of mule deer range such as the Columbia Mountains, British Columbia, where snow is deep and fires are rare. We used snow track surveys as a measure of habitat use and fecal nitrogen as an index of dietary quality to compare the relative value to mule deer of open deciduous canopies to closed coniferous canopies in a wet ecosystem with deep snow and few fires. Deciduous canopies contain higher levels of understory forage compared to dense coniferous canopies, which are better at intercepting snow. We also evaluated food habits across landscapes with contrasting forest canopies. Results corroborated previous work in that foraging areas such as deciduous stands were strongly selected by deer, despite deeper snow relative to closed coniferous stands. Deer consumed fewer understory shrubs in coniferous-dominated stands, suggesting lower nutritional intake in these stands. Finally, deer appeared to derive a nutritional benefit in landscapes that had a higher proportion of open deciduous canopies, as indexed by fecal nitrogen. However, not all open canopy stands were of equal value to deer - deciduous-dominated stands were selected, whereas clearcuts were avoided. Similarly, not all closed coniferous stands were equally selected: cedar-hemlock stands were avoided whereas Douglas-fir stands were selected and indeed contained the highest proportion of deer tracks. We suggest that winter foraging areas have been underrepresented in management policy in British Columbia, but that snow-interception cover provided by coniferous stands still plays a role in winter deer ecology in deep-snow ecosystems. IS - 3 JF - Forest Ecology and Management EP - 461 TI - The influence of forest cover on mule deer habitat selection, diet, and nutrition during winter in a deep-snow ecosystem VL - 256 T2 - Impacts of forest ecosystem management on greenhouse gas budgets SP - 452 KW - canada KW - deer KW - forest KW - forest-management KW - habitat KW - snow KW - spatial AU - Serrouya, Robert AU - D'Eon, Robert PY - 2008/07/30/ UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2008.04.048 ER -