Study; Deer Mowing Down Northern Forests

Global climate change, floods, droughts, forest fires.  All impactful on the forests of Wisconsin.  But none of those appear to have the impact that whitetail deer do.  That’s the conclusion of a just-released study done at the UW Madison that found 40 percent of species changes in the forests of northern Wisconsin and Michigan over the past 60 years are related to the eating habits of white-tailed deer.  In many cases, the study found, deer have eliminated whole species of trees shrubs with their incessant nibbling.  The study suggests the state’s DNR should, if anything, be increasing the number of deer hunters can harvest every year.