Northeast Deer Research Partnership in Second Year
J. D.
Irving, Limited, along with seven other partners, have begun their second year
of study with the Northeast Deer Research Partnership in the forests of New
Brunswick and Maine.
The focus is understanding how deer are using the forests and what factors
impact their populations. Some of the factors the study will attempt to
understand are the availability of food, the impact of winter severity and the
impact of predators on deer populations. Advanced technologies such as GPS
collars and the detailed inventory of the forest derived from using LiDAR
(light imaging detection and ranging) will give us a better understanding of
deer survival, movement and habitat use.
Over 100 deer in New Brunswick and Maine will be tracked and monitored in real
time with precise GPS collars to provide us with important location and
movement data in various seasons.
“We have technology these days that’s so detailed, it allows us to examine the
habitat in great detail. Which is allowing us to really understand what the
habitat preferences of the deer are, as well as the locations,” says Brian
Roth, Cooperative Forestry Research Unit, University of Maine.
The outcomes of this project will hopefully provide a greater understanding of
factors influencing the deer herd in New Brunswick and Maine and this
information will be used to refine existing guidelines and identify new
forestry and wildlife management practices.
Partners in the project include:
University of New Brunswick
University of Maine
New Brunswick Department of Energy and Resource Development
Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Cooperative Forestry Research Unit
Natural Resources Canada
University of New Hampshire
J.D. Irving, Limited