Response of an Indicator Species, Dryopteris crassirhizoma, to Temporal and Spatial Variations in Sika Deer Density.

Hiroyuki Uno,Yoshihiro Inatomi,Mayumi Ueno,Yuichi Osa,Hino Takafumi

doi:10.3390/biology11020302

Hiroyuki Uno, Yoshihiro Inatomi + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/biology11020302

Copy DOI

Abstract

Simple SummaryDeer can affect forest ecosystems through foraging behavior. Using indicator species that are sensitive to temporal and spatial variations in deer density has the advantage of managing deer effectively and practically. We examined the response of Dryopteris crassirhizoma to the variations in sika deer density in Hokkaido, Japan. We showed that the grazing intensity of D. crassirhizoma was sensitive to short-term decreases in deer density and positively related to spatial variation in deer density within regions. Dryopteris crassirhizoma can be a useful indicator species and using grazing intensity could help managers rapidly determine their management direction and decide where to focus their efforts.Identifying appropriate indicator species for the impact of deer on forest vegetation is crucial for forest management in deer habitats and is required to be sensitive to temporal and spatial variations in deer density. Dryopteris crassirhizoma was selected as a new indicator to evaluate the response to these variations. We examined the population-level characteristics, morphological characteristics at the individual level, and grazing intensity of D. crassirhizoma at temporally different deer density sites in Hokkaido, Japan. The response of D. crassirhizoma to spatial variation in deer density was also examined within and between two regions in Hokkaido, Japan. Although the population-level characteristics and morphological characteristics did not significantly respond to short-term decreases in deer density, grazing intensity significantly decreased with decreasing deer density. The grazing intensity was also positively related to the spatial variation of deer density within both regions, but the estimated coefficient of the grazing intensity differed between regions. We concluded that D. crassirhizoma can be a useful indicator species of the impact of deer on forest vegetation. The grazing intensity of the indicator species was sensitive to temporal and spatial variations in deer density within the region.

Highlights

Deer can modify the structure and composition of forest plant communities through their foraging behavior [1]
The size structure of trees was significantly different between wildlife protection area (WPA) and neighboring unprotected area (NUA) (p < 0.001, χ2 test), and there were fewer small trees (≤20 cm diameter at breast height (DBH)) in WPA than in NUA (Figure 4)
The height of S. nipponica was lower at WPA than at NUA in both 2012 and 2013, but the difference was not significant (Figure 6)

Summary

Introduction

Deer can modify the structure and composition of forest plant communities through their foraging behavior [1]. Deer overabundance has various impacts on forest ecosystems, such as declining understory vegetation [2,3], tree debarking [4,5], seedling browsing [6,7,8], declining seed banks of palatable species [9], and soil disturbance [10]. Monitoring these effects as well as deer density is important in developing a deer management plan to reduce these impacts. Compared with intolerant species, few studies have used a grazing-tolerant species as an indicator of the impact of deer on forest vegetation

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion