Addressing regional relationships between white-tailed deer densities and land classes

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Wildlife Management
• Environmental Science

Background:

• White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) populations have rebounded in the U.S.
• Significant changes in land cover have occurred concurrently with deer population recovery.
• Understanding the relationship between deer density and current land cover is crucial for management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To model deer densities in relation to land cover at regional scales.
• To identify key land cover variables influencing deer distribution.
• To differentiate habitat preferences at varying deer density thresholds.

Main Methods:

• Applied random forests and extreme gradient boosting classifiers.
• Modeled low and high deer density classes using two thresholds (5.8 and 11.6 deer/km²).
• Analyzed land cover data for three U.S. regions around 2003.

Main Results:

• Deciduous broadleaf forest positively influenced deer density in central regions; crops/pasture negatively influenced it in the southeast (at 5.8 deer/km²).
• Deer density increased with forests, wetlands, and shrubland, decreasing with crops and developed areas across all regions.
• At higher densities (11.6 deer/km²), woody wetlands, mixed/deciduous forests, and herbaceous vegetation showed strongest relationships depending on the region.

Conclusions:

• Regional deer densities are higher in forests and woody wetlands and lower in agricultural and residential areas.
• Deer habitat selection patterns are consistent across regions, favoring forest and wetland ecosystems.
• Deer can impact forest regeneration, but also provide ecological services by managing tree biomass.