Knowledge of the impacts of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus; hereafter deer) as dominant herbivores throughout the Southeastern United States of America is lacking. To address this, three paired experimental units of exclosures and controls were constructed in 2000 on three Wildlife Management Areas across Mississippi within the ecoregions of the Upper Coastal Plain, Lower Coastal Plain, and the Mississippi Alluvial Valley. Vegetation was sampled in the summers of 2000, 2005, and 2021 including vegetation structure, canopy coverage, basal area, and species composition. Additionally, in 2005 and 2021, biomass was sampled to determine potential impacts on nutritional carrying capacity. Among the three study sites, vegetation metrics followed successional trends and were not influenced by herbivory or lack thereof. Additionally, regional differences in nutritional carrying capacity seemed to be of greater importance than herbivory. This research illustrates the difference in effects of deer by region and forest type.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:MSSTATE/oai:scholarsjunction.msstate.edu:td-6690 |
| Date | 09 December 2022 |
| Creators | Ripa, Gabrielle Nicole |
| Publisher | Scholars Junction |
| Source Sets | Mississippi State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Theses and Dissertations |
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