Classification of Vegetation Types in the Habitat of White-Tailed Deer in a Location of the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Biosphere Reserve, Mexico

Abstract

This paper classifies the vegetation types that comprise the habitat of the white-tailed deer Odocoileus virginianus at a location within the Tehuacan-Cuicatlan Biosphere Reserve (TCBR) in Mexico. The vegetation was sampled, identified, and mapped at 308 points distributed along 28 transects (each of 500 m in length). To determine the effect of the classified and mapped vegetation types on the white-tailed deer, we estimated population density using the PELLET procedure based on the pellet-group count method. The principal vegetation types at the study site are tropical dry forest (TDF, 63% of the area) dominated by tetecho ( Neobuxbaumia tetezo), uña de gato ( Mimosa spp.) and mulato ( Bursera spp.), and crassicaule scrub dominated by mantecoso ( Parkinsonia praecox). The TDF can be sub-classified into four spatially different clusters (vegetation types) depending on the dominance of these species. The white-tailed deer population density varied significantly depending on vegetation type. Our results contribute to the ecological knowledge of the white-tailed deer in tropical habitats and are of value for the implementation of effective conservation and management.