White-tailed Deer Population Dilemma

Deer management in Pennsylvania is a controversial topic.  It has been difficult to make all happy, from the hunter to the forester to the vehicle driver to those simply wanting to avoid ticks while out recreating.  I have always been a big proponent of managing habitat when it comes to deer.  As they say, if you build it they will come.  In fact, I wrote about this in a previous post in reference to an article that appeared in Outdoor Life magazine, June 2013 (Is Habitat Quality a Reason for Fewer Deer In Pennsylvania?)  

Note the obvious browse line along the woods edge.  Browse
lines are evidence of high deer impact.

When I talk to landowners I refer to deer management as a two pronged approach: 1.) Population management through the harvest of antlerless deer, and 2.) Habitat management through the manipulation of vegetation to create natural food sources and cover.  Because of our over-abundance of mature forests and lack of young forests and early successional habitat even a moderately high deer population can have a significant impact on the forests ability to produce seedlings and sprouts, often referred to as forest regeneration.  Foresters often become the bad guys in this dilemma since we tend to want fewer deer so the forest can regenerate successfully following a harvest.  Deer hunters must understand that forest regeneration equals good deer habitat since it provides food and cover for deer. 

If the forest you hunt does not contain an abundance of understory seedlings there could be a number of reasons for that but, most often it is because there are simply too many deer for the available habitat to support.  To reduce the deer impact hunters and land managers must work together to do two things: 1.) Reduce the number of deer to a stable number more in line with what the current habitat is able to support, and 2.) Improve the habitat so the number of deer the land can support is increased.  Once this is accomplished deer numbers can be allowed to increase somewhat.  This is not easy to accomplish.

Hunters have shown, when given the opportunity, they can successfully reduce deer populations.  Although there is often reluctance to harvest antlerless deer we know it can be done successfully and deer numbers can be reduced.  The non-concurrent season in some management units does reduce our opportunities a bit but it can still be accomplished with help from programs like the Deer Management Assistance Program or DMAP. 

Old abandoned agricultural fields provide excellent deer habitat.

But what about habitat?  Often we think we just need to plant more food plots.  Are food plots really the answer?  Well, anything we can do to enhance the habitat and provide additional food will help but it certainly takes more than simply planting a few acres of clover.  It takes natural habitat management as well. That is, managing the current vegetation on your property or property you hunt through cutting trees, disking old fields, and selectively using herbicides to treat undesirable vegetation and invasive plants.  All of these practices are used to set back succession to an earlier stage of growth.  Early successional habitat or young forests provide ideal deer habitat; habitat with tons of forage available and cover for escaping predators.

To read more about these practices the University of Missouri Extension Service provides a number of excellent fact sheets of topics ranging from Enhancing White-tailed Deer Habitats on Your Property: Early Successional Vegetation to Estimating Deer populations on Your Property: Observational Data.  There are a total of 17 facts sheets in all.  All are well written, easy to understand and applicable to Pennsylvania.  To access the full listing of publications click here.

Learn to Identify Oriental Bittersweet



Oriental bittersweet can cause severe tree damage.  It is
easily identified in the fall by its yellow foliage.

Oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus) is an invasive exotic vine that is often used in holiday decorations and wreaths this time of year.  It also causes severe damage to our woodlands as it climbs trees and shrubs strangling and shading them out.  It can cause severe tree damage.  I have experienced this vine first-hand at the Ag Progress Days woodlot in central PA.  I found one severe infestation of the vine in an old patch clearcut from 15 years ago and now I have been finding the vine everywhere.
 

Oriental bittersweet is often used
for making wreaths this time of year

It is extremely difficult to control.  I have been trying to rid the woodlot of the vine since I discovered it a few years ago and I just keep finding more.  I have also found that not only does the vine climb trees but it also root sucker and send up sprouts.  Theses new sprouts are extremely difficult to find and control.  I have spent hours searching through areas with a backpack sprayer treating new sprouts.  When spraying I use a mixture of glyphosate and triclopyr mixed 2:1 respectively.  This mix is also good for other invasive plants you may encounter and want to treat at the same time.

It is important that you learn to identify Oriental bittersweet as we also have a native American bittersweet (Celastrus scandens).  The two are often confused and unfortunately, they are know to hybridize.  The University of Minnesota Extension has put together and excellent YouTube Video on how to easily identify the invasive exotic vine and differentiate it from the American vine.  Now is a great time to watch for it and avoid spreading the seeds. Minnesota's new Extension fact sheet will also help you differentiate between native American bittersweet and its noxious invasive cousin.

Oriental bittersweet has yellow seed capsules and the fruits are located
all along the stem in the axils of the leaf

The primary ways to differentiate between the two are as follows:
American Bittersweet
Flowers and fruits are at the ends of the branches
Seed capsules are orange

Oriental Bittersweet
Flowers and fruits are in the axils of the leaves all along the vine
Seed capsules are yellow

Here is the link to the PA DCNR Invasive Plants of Pennsylvania fact sheet on Oriental Bittersweet.

Real vs Artificial Christmas Trees

With the holiday season upon us I thought it would be appropriate to provide a post on the real vs. artificial Christmas tree debate.  Of course my person al preference is to support our local economy, our local growers who depend on selling Christmas trees to make a living, and select a real tree.  But, is that really the best choice for the environment?  I have seen many different opinions on the subject expressed.  I recently came across the below article from Dovetails Partners, Inc. and thought I would share it with my readers.  Dovetail Partners is a nonprofit corporation that provides authoritative information about the impacts and trade-offs of environmental decisions, including consumption choices, land use, and policy alternatives.

Interestingly enough, if you go to the American Christmas Tree Associations web site they say there is no debate.  They feel that consumers should "feel free to choose either type of tree, or better yet, choose one or more of each!"   They state that "recent Life Cycle Analysis studies concluded that neither tree has a significant negative impact on the environment." Well, for my money I am still going to go with a real tree.....the debate may never be settled!

Real Versus Artificial Christmas Trees - An Environmental Perspective (Dovetail Partners 11/18/2013)
Each year around the holiday season decision making swings into full gear as people begin decorating and buying gifts for loved ones. For those that celebrate Christmas, an important decision regarding trees is often over-looked - should you buy a real or artificial Christmas tree, and how does your decision impact the environment? Cost, convenience, and personal preference are all important considerations, but so too is the environmental impact of each option.

Research has shown that locally-sourced natural trees have less environmental impact than artificial ones. An independent Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) study released by the Montreal firm Elliposos (February 2009) determined that real trees have less overall impact in terms of distribution, disposal, and average carbon emissions than their artificial counterparts. The LCA method allows for evaluation of potential environmental impacts of a product (or service) over its entire life cycle and takes raw material processing, manufacturing, transportation, distribution, use, reuse, recycling and disposal impacts into consideration.

When it comes to artificial trees, the key to achieving environmental gains lies in the amount of time they're kept and reused. Average households replace an artificial tree about every six years.  Evidence shows that, in general, artificial trees need to be reused for at least 20 years if they are to compare favorably with natural trees.

To read the rest of the story click here.

Acorns and Bears

Black bears in white oak tree.

With the bear hunting season currently underway in Pennsylvania for the next few days I felt it would be appropriate to share this information with my readers.  The below article was written for Virginia but Pennsylvania is experiencing the same shortage of acorns statewide as well. 

After the bumper crop of acorns Pennsylvania had in 2012 we are experiencing a severe acorn shortage this fall.  Many wildlife species rely upon acorns to fatten up before winter sets in.  In fact, in a news release from the PA Game Commission chief forester Dave Gustafson indicated, "This year has produced a spotty acorn crop statewide.  A late spring frost affected white oaks and chestnut oaks. And a cold wet spring in 2012 affected red oaks, which take two years to produce.  Those conditions have combined to limit acorn availability in many areas.  That's not to say there aren't acorns to be found.  In some cases, though, it can take some work to find them."

Bumper crop of red oak acorns.

Points of interest:
1. During acorn shortages a bears range may double or even quadruple
2. Bears may go into hibernation earlier during shortages
3. In years of mast failures bear cub survival declines
4. A bears lifetime is typically 12-15 years
5. In years of mast failures bears turn to alternative food sources, including human provided sources
6. A bears lifetime can be cut in half if it has access to human-style foods

Acorn shortage may have bears changing patterns
(The News Advance, Lynchburg, VA, November 20, 2013)

Acorns are scarce, and that means black bears may behave differently, Virginia’s forest and game experts said. Most of the oak trees that produce acorns are taking the year off in Virginia and neighboring states, forestry officials have said on their websites.

Bears depend heavily on acorns for food since red and white oak trees that produce those nuts dominate mountain forests. Bears and other wildlife can turn to alternate foods, or mast, such as berries and hickory nuts, which grew abundantly this year. Also, frequently, they turn to bird feeders, trash cans, dumpsters — dog food too, if it’s left where they can sniff it, even in urban areas. Police routinely confirm reports of bears venturing into human habitats, such as a family that included cubs, which roamed Lee’s Trailer Park in Madison Heights in September. Another bear was seen crossing the road onto Lynchburg College’s campus two weeks later. Humans actually harm bears if food or garbage is left where bears can reach them, wildlife experts say. A bear’s lifetime, typically 12 to 15 years, can be cut in half if it has access to human-style foods, according to the National Forest Service. It also is against the law to feed bears in Virginia.

Acorns typically provide about half the forage consumed by bear, deer, and turkey. As a result of the acorn shortage, the roaming range of bears can double or even quadruple, according to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. Also, bears may go into hibernation earlier. Bear cub survival tends to decline in years with mast failures, said Gary Norman, of Virginia’s Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

There’s no single explanation for the lack of acorns this year, said Jerre Creighton, of the Virginia Department of Forestry. Possibilities include a natural cycle in which oak trees may be resting after producing a bumper crop of acorns in 2012, he said. Also, many of the oaks’ flower buds died before they could be pollinated last spring, he said — possibly due to late-spring freezes or high humidity from abundant spring rains. “We experienced both of these over much of Virginia,” Creighton said in a news release.

To read the full release click here.