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Deer
Wintering Areas
Definition
White-tailed deer in
Vermont
live near the northern limit of their range in
eastern
North America
. To cope with
Vermont
's severe climatic conditions, deer have developed
a survival mechanism that relies upon the use,
access, and availability of winter habitat. These
habitat areas are known as deer wintering areas,
deer winter habitat or, more commonly, 'deer
yards.' Deer winter habitat is defined as areas of
mature or maturing softwood cover, with aspects
tending towards the south, southeast, southwest, or
even westerly and easterly facing slopes.
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Importance
Deer wintering areas vary in size from a few
acres to over a hundred acres and provide essential
relief to deer from winter conditions. These areas
of softwood cover provide protection from deep snow,
cold temperatures, and wind. They provide a dense
canopy of softwood trees, a favorable slope and
aspect (mentioned above), generally moderate
elevation, and low levels of human disturbance in
winter. The softwood species that compose these
areas are most commonly hemlock and white pine in
the southern part of the state, and white cedar,
spruce, and fir in the north. Energy loss by deer
inhabiting these sites is minimized, and survival is
favored in deer wintering areas. Wintering areas do
not change significantly between years and can be
used by generations of deer over many decades if
appropriate habitat conditions are maintained. Deer
annually migrate, often several miles, from fall
habitats to wintering areas. A single wintering area
often serves deer from large areas of a town and in
some cases from surrounding towns as well.
Residential, commercial, or industrial development
within or adjacent to a deer wintering area
decreases the amount of winter habitat available to
deer and has an effect on an area's deer
population, eventually reducing the number of deer
within the area. Without adequate winter habitat,
northern populations of deer would be subject to
extreme fluctuations due to heightened levels of
winter mortality during moderate and severe winters.
Additional information on the winter habitat
requirements of deer can be found in the publication
Wildlife
Habitat Management for
Vermont
Woodlands, a Landowner's Guide, which is available
from the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department.
In addition to benefits for deer, dense
softwood stands provide critical winter food
supplies for a variety of other wildlife species
including porcupines, snowshoe hare, fox, fisher,
coyotes, bobcats, crows, ravens, and red and
white-winged crossbills to name a few. Other
wintering birds routinely find shelter from winds in
these conifer stands. Logging can be either
detrimental or beneficial to the habitat depending
on the harvest method employed and the overall
sensitivity shown by the logger and landowner to
maintaining these areas of dense softwood cover.
Specific management recommendations are given in Management
Guide for Deer Wintering Areas in
Vermont
, which is available from the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department.
Conserving deer wintering areas is essential
to maintaining and managing white-tailed deer in
Vermont
. Deer wintering areas make up a relatively small
percentage of the land base of most towns. In fact,
only 8% of the forested landscape of
Vermont
has been mapped as deer winter habitat, so it is not
an abundant habitat across the state.
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Conservation
Goals
A town or other planning group might adopt
goals like these for the conservation of deer
wintering areas.
1.
Maintain and protect the functional integrity
of all deer wintering areas within the town or area
of interest.
2.
Increase the number of deer wintering area
acres that are either under long-term stewardship or
that are permanently conserved in the town or area
of interest.
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Obtaining
and Interpreting Information
Information
Sources
See Resources
for information on how to
contact or visit the websites of the agencies and
organizations mentioned below.
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Vermont
Fish and Wildlife Department:
The Department
maintains a GIS database of previously mapped deer
wintering areas. These are included on the
Department's significant habitat maps, which are
available from the VFWD and town and regional
planning commissions.
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Vermont
Center for Geographic Information The Center has a data layer
showing currently mapped deer wintering areas.
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Local hunters: People
who spend time in the woods are often one of the
best sources of up-to-date information on active
deer wintering areas
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Deer
Wintering Areas |
Deer
Wintering Areas |
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Interpreting
the Information
Most deer wintering areas were originally
identified in the 1960s and 1970s using aerial
observations, infrared aerial photos, and ground
confirmation prior to delineation on USGS 1:24,000
topographic maps. Additional areas are added to the
database as they are discovered. It is important to
keep in mind, however, that not all deer wintering
areas have been mapped. It is also important to
remember that some deer wintering areas mapped in
the 1960s, 70s, and 80s may no longer exist because
of changes in forest cover and changes in land use.
Therefore, if you suspect an area serves as deer
winter habitat, we recommend you
Contact Us.
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Conservation
Strategies
Once information has been gathered on deer
winter habitat, you can develop specific conservation
strategies to help achieve your goals.
Examples of strategies for each goal are presented
below.
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1. Goal:
Maintain
and protect the functional integrity of all deer
wintering areas within the town or area of interest.
Strategies:
a.
Adopt language in the town plan that protects deer wintering areas,
as recommended by the Vermont Fish and Wildlife
Department. Sample
Language: Deer wintering areas will be protected
from development and other uses that threaten the
ability of this habitat to support wintering deer.
Commercial, residential, and industrial development
should not occur within deer wintering areas.
Development may be permitted adjacent to a deer
wintering area if consultation with the
Vermont
Fish and Wildlife Department determines that the
integrity of the wintering area will be conserved.
b.
A town plan could reference the Vermont Fish and Wildlife
Department's 1999 Guidelines for the Review &
Mitigation of Impacts to White-tailed Deer Winter
Habitat in
Vermont
and require
consideration of the conservation principles
established in those guidelines. This could be done
in combination with the previous strategy. Free
copies of these guidelines are available from the
Department. Contact Us
c.
Locate existing deer winter habitat throughout the town using GIS,
paper maps, and other wildlife-use data. Trained
professionals can also help you evaluate the extent
to which unmapped deer winter habitat exists in the
town area of interest. Include deer winter areas in
an overlay district that restricts development in
and around deer yards.
d.
Allow for PUDs in town zoning and/or subdivision regulations as an
alternative to conventional subdivisions, and
require or provide incentives for PUD designs that
cluster development away from deer wintering areas.
Adopt language for zoning similar to the following
example. Sample
Language: Commercial, residential, and industrial
development will not be allowed within the bounds of
a deer wintering area as shown on the town's deer
wintering area map. Development within 300 feet of a
deer wintering area will be permitted only if, after
consultation with the Vermont Department Fish and
Wildlife, it is shown that the integrity of the deer
wintering area will be conserved. Note: 300 feet is
the minimum distance required to avoid disturbance
to wintering deer.
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2. Goal:
Increase
the number of acres of deer winter habitat that is
under long term stewardship or that is permanently
conserved in the town or area of interest.
Strategies:
a.
Target the largest, highest quality deer wintering areas,
particularly those that overlap with other natural
heritage elements, for land acquisition or
conservation easements. Incorporate wintering areas
in open space planning and land acquisition
programs, giving higher priority to those deer
wintering habitats that also contain other natural
heritage elements.
b.
Offer density bonuses to subdivision developments that protect and
properly manage deer wintering areas by means of
conservation easements (refer to riparian
strategies, 2d for example zoning regulation
language).
c.
Identify interested landowners in the town or area of interest who
own or control property that supports deer winter
habitat. Work with those landowners/ managers to
encourage and assist them in developing deer winter
habitat management and improvement plans. The
Vermont
Fish and Wildlife Department offers information and
advice for developing such plans.
Contact Us
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