Harvard Forest Research

The Role of Moose and Deer Browsing in Regenerating Oak-Pine Forests of Southern New England

Principal Investigator: David Foster
Harvard Forest: Jan 01 2008 - Dec 30 2010:

Abstract:
In the past 20 years, moose have spread south from Vermont and New Hampshire and recolonized their pre-historical range limit in southern New England from which they had been extirpated almost 200 years earlier. Intensive moose browsing in the boreal forest has caused declines in forest density and shifts in species composition in some areas, generating considerable interest and concern among foresters, wildlife managers, and ecologists as to how moose along with white-tailed deer will impact forest development in this region. Harvard Forest in collaboration with researchers at the University of Massachusetts, has recently initiated a long-term study of the role of moose and deer in Massachusetts forests using experimental exclosures. The exclosures are located in three recently harvested conifer plantation cuts on the Prospect Hill Tract at Harvard Forest and are employed in a randomized block design with 3 factors -- full exclosure, partial exclosure, and open plot. A fourth block will be added at the Tom Swamp Tract in 2010. The design enables us to quantify forest composition and structure, ecosystem properties, and browsing selectivity and intensity in areas (1) exposed to moose and deer browsing, (2) protected from moose and deer browsing, and (3) exposed to deer browsing but protected from moose browsing. Two of the blocks were sampled for woody and herbaceous vegetation and browsing characteristics in 2008; the third will be sampled in 2009. :