Effects of partial cutting in winter on white-tailed deer

We documented how commercial logging influenced the spatial behavior and nu tritional ecology of northern white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). U sing periodic browse surveys, we estimated the additional biomass of twigs available from felled trees to deer in the Pohonogamook wintering area (25 km(2)) at 55 kg/ha in a 43-ha cut conducted in 1995-1996 that aimed to favo r conifers by removing overtopping deciduous trees. Over the entire winter, deer used 54% of the browse made available by the felling residues. The us e of the cutover, estimated by pellet group census, was five times greater than the average recorded over the entire wintering area. Felled trees prov ided approximately 35% of the food intake of the animals that have used the cutover. Of 30 deer fitted with radio collars, the cutover attracted only those whose range neighbored the logging area (< 2 km). In preference tests carried out in the winter of 1996-1997, deer showed no preference for twig s from newly cut trees over those from trees cut earlier in the winter, nor for twigs from treetops (browse made accessible during the logging operati on) over twigs from saplings (browse usually accessible in winter). If comm ercial logging is conducted in winter as a means of providing emergency foo d during snowy winters to enhance deer survival, our results suggest that p artial cutting may be ineffective because felling residues were used only b y deer found near the cutover and because of the difficulties of logging in deep snow.