Forest management and hunting in areas adjacent to national parks: the example of the Magura National Park

Abstract

Abstract. the aim of the study was to evaluate arguments for hunting and its impact on forest management and conservation in national parks as well as areas directly adjacent to them. the issue was examined using the example of the Magura national Park (MnP) for which data on the number of deer and predatory mammals included in the statistical yearbooks for 2013-2014 were available. the quality and size of the food sources provided by this type of forest habitat were evaluated using data obtained from the literature. We also included data on the dietary habits of wolves and lynxes as well as their impact on the number of large ungulates in our analysis.the maximum carrying capacity of forest stands in the Magura national Park was determined to be 789 deer units (dear unit = 1 red deer or 0.3 elk or 5 roe deer), whereas in fact in 2014, the abundance of ungulates reached a total of 1230 deer units. our analysis evaluating the impact of wolf and lynx populations on ungulates in the area showed that these predators can kill up to 212 deer per year (140 individuals by wolves and 72 by lynxes). the growth in deer population, however, varies from 25.8% to 27.7%, which in the MnP amounts to 258-277 new born individuals per year, meaning that the wolf and lynx populations in the MnP are not able to prevent the number of deer from growing. the current population of ungulates (1230 deer units ) having reached a density of 6.6 deer units/km 2 exceeds the capacity of the MnP and thus poses a real threat to maintaining both, the nature of the park and the adjacent stands.this article shows that the natural maintenance of balance in the predator-prey relationship is unlikely under these conditions and failure to allow for anthropogenic interference to regulate the number of ungulates in protected areas may result in an increase in the density of their population. Potential destruction of other valuable assets such as forest habitats may consequently follow.the current population of ungulates (1,230 deer units) having reached a density of 6.6 deer units/km 2 exceeds the capacity of the MnP and thus poses a real threat to maintaining the nature of both the park and the adjacent stands.this article shows that the natural maintenance of balance in the predator-prey relationship is unlikely under these conditions and failure to allow for anthropogenic interference to regulate the number of ungulates in protected areas may result in an increase in the density of their population. Potential destruction of other valuable assets such as forest habitats may consequently follow.

Application of the tyraliera counting method to the large-scale inventory of red deer Cervus elaphus in the northern part of Western Pomerania, Poland

“…A new assessment of environmental capacity should be conducted, considering the biomass of the forest vegetation cover. In this manner, the admissible levels of cervid densities in forests may be more realistic (Wajdzik et al 2015). The described method of large-area inventory of cervids makes this task real by enabling verification of their density in forests with different food abundance.…”

Protection by culling: the crux of red deer management in National Parks

“…It should also be noted that culling was intensified in this park in the year the park was established, and it continued for many years at a higher level than before the park's creation (Hędrzak 2018). According to Wajdzik et al (2017), the population density of the ungulates in the park threatens biodiversity, and the large number of predators is not sufficient to limit the increase in deer numbers. The authors found that the deer migrating from the park could cause damage in a commercial forest as far away as 100 km from its borders, and assumed that the deer would move along the green corridors through the forests in hunting districts 233 and 234.…”

“…Our models for MNP show that reducing the number of deer in these hunting districts has no significance for regulating the numbers of deer in the park. However, since the increase in damage in the Gorlice and Łosie Forestry Districts mentioned by Wajdzik et al (2017) arises from the high density of deer in Magurski NP, limiting the damage could be achieved by increasing the culling of hinds in the districts situated east of the park, especially in district No. 197, which cuts into the area being protected (see map in Figure 1).…”