Abstract
Young rowan ( Sorbus aucuparia) are damaged by stem breakage in areas occupied by mountain spruce stands in the Beskydy Mountains, Czech Republic. Red deer break trees with stem diameter of 8.8±2.1 mm at a height of 148±19 cm above the ground. Breakages occur during the first half of the summer, and are clearly intended to permit access to the leaves on the treetop. This behaviour by red deer has appeared recently, with the mean annual proportion of broken rowan stems increasing from 1 to 25% during the last 6 years. Of those rowan specimens that have reached a height of 2–2.5 m, 50% have experienced a broken stem. If stem breakage continues at its current rate, rowan stands will not grow out of reach of deer and their capacity of regeneration is predicted to decrease. Also the stability and seral development of mountain spruce stands in the study region would be disturbed.
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