Fifteen Years of Urban Deer Management: The Fontenelle Forest Experience

Fontenelle Forest (FF) is a 16.5-km2 serene natural area surrounded by a developed landscape, including Omaha and Bellevue, Nebraska, USA. An overabundant population of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) degraded the local forest. In January 1995, we estimated the density of deer at 27 deer/km2 in FF and the adjacent Gifford Point Wildlife Management Area (GP) and Bellevue residential (BR) area. We engaged in a public process to establish a deer management program in this developed landscape and learned from 15 years of experience. Formation of the Bellevue Deer Task Force led to implementation of controlled deer-hunting seasons from 1996 to present. Total annual harvest of whitetailed deer by archery and muzzleloader hunters at FF ranged from 28 in 1996 to 140 in 2006. Mean success rates of archery (52%) and muzzleloader hunters (93%) at FF were high compared to other areas. Densities of white-tailed deer in the study area declined from 27 deer/km2 in 1995 to 15 deer/km2 in 2006, though harvest and deer were not evenly distributed across the landscape. By 2006, densities of deer were near overwinter goals in the hunted FF lowlands, FF uplands, and GP lowlands (7 deer/km2, 5 deer/km2, and 13 deer/km2, respectively), but they remained relatively high in the adjacent unhunted BR area (30 deer/ km2). Native plant communities were severely overbrowsed in the study area through 1995, influencing their structure and composition, but signs of recovery were apparent in areas where controlled hunting reduced densities of deer to \u3c6 deer/km2. Controlled hunts at FF have reduced densities of deer in the immediate area to tolerable levels and have been accepted by area residents, with relatively little media coverage and public scrutiny. Total costs of controlled (US$120/deer) and depredation hunts (US$70/deer, 2010 prices) were low compared to other areas and methods. Common themes of the 15-year management program included cooperation, communication, leadership, research-based management, adaptive management, persistence, and resources

Effects of Seasons and Hunting on Space Use by Female White-Tailed Deer in a Developed Landscape in Southeastern Nebraska

White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) were extirpated from a 1,800-ha natural area along the Missouri River near Omaha, Nebraska, USA shortly after settlement in the mid-1800s, but they recolonized the area in the early 1960s. In absence of hunting and predators, the population of deer became overabundant in the 1980s and 1990s. Deer impacted plant communities at Fontenelle Forest (FF) and Gifford Point (GP) and a 200–300% increase in deer–vehicle collisions was observed in the area. We radiocollared female white-tailed deer in this region during February 1995–March 1996 to determine the effects of phenological seasons and archery and muzzleloader hunting on space use. Mean size of annual home ranges of 50 radiocollared female deer was 275 ha (range = 18–4,265 ha, SE = 88). Forty-one of 50 deer (82%) maintained high fidelity to their small annual home ranges (x̅ = 115 ha, SE = 13) and made short seasonal movements (\u3c1.0 km). Seven deer dispersed and exhibited large seasonal shifts in centers of home ranges (x̅ = 3.2 km, range ¼ 1–7 km) and 2 deer exhibited migratory behavior. We observed no spatial patterns associated with seasonal dispersal or migration that would subject deer in unhunted areas to harvest in hunted areas. Controlled deer hunts were implemented in the upland areas adjacent to Bellevue residential area and the lowlands of FF and GP. Effects of archery hunting on deer use areas were minimal. Deer subjected to muzzleloader hunting increased the size of use areas by 88–97% and shifted centers of use areas a mean of 666 m (SE = 211, range = 121–1,932 m), but they did not leave the lowland areas of FF or GP. Controlled hunts enabled the removal of resident deer from populations adjacent to the Bellevue residential area. Where practical, we suggest that regulated hunting be used as part of an overall plan to manage densities of deer and associated impacts in developed landscapes

Deer Impact on Vegetation in Natural Areas in Southeastern Nebraska

We studied the effect of browsing by white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus Zimmerman) on vegetation at three sites with high densities of deer and six sites with low densities of deer along the Missouri and Platte Rivers in southeastern Nebraska in 1995-1996. Vegetation volume from 0-1 m high was similar between sites with high and low deer densities (P \u3e 0.05). From 1-2 m high, vegetation volume was less at sites with more deer in both years (P \u3c 0.05). Densities for eight of 11 small woody plant categories (\u3c 3 cm dbh) were less common at sites with high densities of deer (P \u3c 0.05). Overall densities of small trees (3-15 cm dbh) were similar between sites with high and low densities of deer. However, small hackberry trees (Celtis occidentalis L.) were more common (P = 0.03), while all other small trees were less common (P = 0.038), at sites with more deer. Frequencies of ground cover plants were not randomly distributed (χ2 = 588.2, P \u3c 0.001, df = 12). Shrubs were less common and grasses more common than expected at sites with more deer. Forests at sites with high densities of deer are in the process of succeeding to a state dominated by hackberry in the overstory with reduced woody vegetation and increased grasses in the understory due to intensive browsing by deer