Estimating Carrying Capacity of a White-Tailed Deer Wintering Area in Quebec
- 1 April 1983
- journal article
- research article
- Published by JSTOR in The Journal of Wildlife Management
- Vol. 47 (2) , 463-475
- https://doi.org/10.2307/3808519
Abstract
The carrying capacity of a white-tailed deer (O. virginianus) wintering area was determined based on food availability and biological characteristics of the animals. The basic information used was measurement of the surface area used by deer, a descrption of the cover types, an estimate of the accessibility of the browse (integrating biomass available, snow depth and energy cost of walking), and an assessment of the nutritive requirements of deer based on published results. A model developed to simulate the effect of changes in the original values showed that the estimated carrying capacity could vary between 0 and 18 deer/km2 depending on sinking depth of deer in a severe winter. Because of the variability of winter conditions, mainly snow depth and length of confinement period, the deer manager should refer to a desirable stocking rate for average climatic conditions. Based on this principle, the desirable population in the area studied should be maintained between 15 and 28 deer/km2. The sensitivity of the model to variations in the original values was tested and the possible strategies for deer and the deer manager are discussed.This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit:
- The Introduction, Increase, and Crash of Reindeer on St. Matthew IslandThe Journal of Wildlife Management, 1968