Management of indigenous North American deer at the end of the 20th century in relation to large predators and primary production

Five deer species occupy North America: caribou (3.6 x 10(6) individuals), moose (1.1 x 10(6)), white-tailed deer (28.5 x 10(6)), mule deer (5.0 x 10( 6)) and wapiti (1.1 x 106). Caribou characterise the north of the boreal fo rest and the tundra, whereas moose dominate in coniferous and mixed forests growing further south. White-tailed deer are typical of the deciduous fore sts of the east while mule deer replace them in the mountainous terrain of the west. Wapiti possess the smallest range, mostly adjacent to the prairie s to the west. The two large obligate carnivores preying on deer show a red uced distribution: wolves are almost restricted to Canada, and cougar to th e mule deer range. We determined the current status of each species with th e help of a questionnaire mailed to all jurisdictions harbouring deer. Most reports of threatened populations concerned caribou whereas many jurisdict ions declared overabundance of white-tailed deer and wapiti. Hunting was al lowed for all species when they abounded in a jurisdiction. Hunters harvest ed annually 7.0 x 10(6) deer on the continent, 87% being white-tailed deer. The two species that caused most conflicts with humans had the highest har vest rate: 16-17%. In terms of biomass, white-tailed deer and wapiti yielde d the highest harvests, with 55 and 39 kg x km(-2) of range, respectively. The average standing biomass of deer in winter ranged between 28 kg x km(-2 ) in Nevada to 901 kg x km(-2) in Indiana. The lowest standing biomasses oc curred in the boreal forest (predators), in the prairies (agriculture) and in the south-west (aridity), and the highest ones in the south-east, where only white-tailed deer is present. The current abundance of deer in North A merica parallels, in general, the primary production of the landscape (r(2) = 0.38; P < 0.0001), but predators and human activity modify this pattern.