Deer and Cattle Diets on Heavily Grazed Pine-Bluestem Range

Abstract

We studied dietary overlap between captive white-tailed deer (n = 3) (Odocotleus tir@nlanus) and cattle (n = 4) for 3 years on 2 rotationally burned, 54-ha longleaf pine (Pinus paZustris)-bluestem (Andropogon spp.) pastures in central Louisiana. A third of each pasture was burned each year in late February. One pasture was grazed heavily (61-77% herbage use) yearlong; the other was grazed heavily (SO-67% use) from mid-April to 1 November. Deer diets were dominated yearlong by a mixture of browse (49.3~83.2%) and forbs (11.2-47.1%). Cattle consumed mostly grasses during spring and summer and 60 and 40% browse and herbage, during fall and winter, respectively. Cattle consumed more herbage on first-year burns. Dietary overlap under heavy yearlong grazing averaged 25.8, 11.8, 26.0, and 30.7% during spring, summer, fall, and winter, respectively. Overlap under heavy seasonal grazing averaged 18.5, 7.4, and 22.6% during spring, summer, and fall, respectively. Diets of both animals were diverse and overlap generally resulted from sharing small amounts of many plant taxa. Except on recent burns during summer, dietary overlap under heavy yearlong grazing was comparable to that observed under moderate yearlong grazing at half the cattle stocking rate. Moderate grazing (40-50% herbage removal) of similar range from late spring through early fall should have little negative impact on deer forage availability. Grazing during late fall and winter reduces an already limited supply of deer forage by reducing availability of evergreen browse and herbaceous winter rosettes. J. WILDL. MANAGE. 53(3):540-548 1 1 1 p Within wmdy and nonwoody categories, taxa with highest seasonal totals across both grazing treatments are ranked first. b SP = 31 Mar-6 Jun, SU = 23 Jun-13 Aug. FA = 22 Sep-21 Nov, WI = 5 Jan-4 Mar. No winter data for seasonal grazing treatment. ' c Panicum grasses that produce basal rosettes during winter. 4 Bearded skeletongrass (C. ambfguup) and slim skeletongrass (C. bnwf~ol~us).

Effects of Prescribed Burning and Cattle Grazing on Deer Diets in Louisiana

“…The earlier findings for longleaf pine-bluestem sites (Thill and Martin 1989) revealed substantial dietary overlap between deer and cattle from late fall through early spring, but largely complementary diets the remainder of the year, with deer using mostly browse and forbs and cattle using mostly grasses. From late fall through early spring, deer and cattle both sought diets high in evergreen and tardily deciduous browse and herbaceous winter rosettes.…”

“…Current-year browse production averaged >400 kg/ha on both pastures during phase 1 (Thill and Martin 1989) and was estimated at or slightly above this level during phase 2. Herbage production and use varied with years since last burn (table 1).…”

“…In phase 2, cattle stocking on the MY pasture was doubled to obtain heavy yearlong grazing (HY), and the UG pasture was subjected to heavy seasonal grazing (HS) from mid-April through October. Deer and cattle dietary overlap for phase 2 was summarized by Thill and Martin (1989). In this report, the effects of burning and heavy yearlong and heavy seasonal cattle grazing on deer nutrition and foraging behavior are summarized and compared with the results of phase 1 data.…”

The Effect of Cattle Grazing on Native Ungulates: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

“…For example, Thill and Martin 22 showed that diet overlap between white-tailed deer and cattle on pastures in central Louisiana was greatest in the winter (30.7%). However, the intensity of cattle grazing did not have a major impact on the diet overlap.…”

Differences in Vegetation and Native Ungulate use between Exclosures and Cattle Grazed Plots in Sheep River Provincial Park, Alberta

“…Early summer grazing minimally reduced foraging efficiency of mule deer and elk [25]. Alternatively, Thill and Martin [26] showed that cattle grazing during late fall decreased availability of deer forage, whereas moderate summer grazing did not have this effect. A study of interactions between African cattle and wild ungulates indicated that ungulates competed for food with cattle during the dry season, but improved the cattle's diet quality during the rainy season (Odadi et al 2011).…”