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Yacucci FINAL 04-26-2023 with cert.pdf (1.69 MB)

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Natives falter as exotics prosper: effects of chronic differences in white-tailed deer density on canopy gap regeneration

Yacucci, Anthony C.
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu168252761164269

Abstract Details

2023, Master of Science in Biological Sciences, Youngstown State University, Department of Biological Sciences and Chemistry.
Forest canopy gaps are integral for regenerating most plants and maintaining regional diversity. However, native diversity in gaps is often compromised by exotic plant dominance and in the eastern United States, chronic overbrowsing by white-tailed deer (deer; Odocoileus virginianus). Notably, decades-long, near ubiquitous deer overabundance limits opportunity to study the dynamics of communities lacking persistent overbrowsing. Here, we ask how does spring and fall herbaceous and woody composition differ between areas with ≥50 years of low (~7 deer/km²) and high deer density (≥20 deer/km²). This was done in 2-14-year-old canopy gaps, ranging in size from 83-522m² (median: 230m²), in both mesic and drier temperate forest. Paired deer exclosure vs. control plots in two-year-old harvest gaps were also followed for three growing seasons to assess exclusion effects in low deer density areas only. Composition of browsable native and exotic plants (≤2m in height) did not differ between exclosure and control plots, indicating gap regeneration dynamics were unaffected by low deer density after three growing seasons. For spring flora, exotic relative cover increased with gap age, but native and exotic diversity did not differ across gap size, deer density, and habitats. However, for fall flora, exotic cover increased with gap age when deer were abundant, where communities averaged 380% higher non-native coverage. Fewer deer were associated with 75% higher native richness, 50% higher native diversity, and 60% more native cover across gap ages and habitats. Additionally, sapling height and stem density of red (Quercus rubra) and pin oak (Quercus palustris) were five- to twenty-fold higher with fewer deer. We find that managing white-tailed deer at roughly twice their historic abundance for 67-years facilitates all measured aspects of fall-flowering native understories, including early recruitment of four important canopy species, and reduces exotic plant abundance. Coupling this with our novel theory on short- and long-term carrying capacity suggests a sustained density of < 8 deer/km² is sufficient to maintain their forage base and that selective harvests under such conditions are self-replacing. Lastly, persistently high deer densities will continue to lower native and increase exotic plant abundance, fundamentally alter gap successional trajectories, and lower deer carrying capacities in the process.
Ian J. Renne, PhD (Advisor)
Thomas P. Diggins, PhD (Committee Member)
Walter P. Carson, PhD (Committee Member)
52 p.
Animals; Botany; Ecology; Forestry; Natural Resource Management; Wildlife Management
White-tailed deer; Forest regeneration; Canopy gap dynamics; Carrying capacity; Indicator species

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Yacucci, A. C. (2023). Natives falter as exotics prosper: effects of chronic differences in white-tailed deer density on canopy gap regeneration [Master's thesis, Youngstown State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu168252761164269

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Yacucci, Anthony. Natives falter as exotics prosper: effects of chronic differences in white-tailed deer density on canopy gap regeneration. 2023. Youngstown State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu168252761164269.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Yacucci, Anthony. "Natives falter as exotics prosper: effects of chronic differences in white-tailed deer density on canopy gap regeneration." Master's thesis, Youngstown State University, 2023. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu168252761164269

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ysu168252761164269
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© 2023, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Youngstown State University and OhioLINK.