Habitat Impact Assessments

An important part of any deer management plan and woodland wildlife management plan is the habitat impact assessment. The next few weeks are the ideal time to conduct these as the spring flush commences.

The Deer Initiative and Forestry Commission provide a couple of techniques and by using other resources, a detailed habitat impact survey will provide a good basis for plans for the forthcoming year. By understanding the Woodland Management plan/Land management plan, habitat impact assessments can be tailored to understand what impact deer and other wildlife are having. With regard to deer, the plans should be able to ascertain the impact that each species of deer is having on the flora and what areas are being impacted the most, if any. The assessment should also throw up any species of flora which are under particular pressure. We also look to understand if any of the other mammalian species are causing an impact, for example grey squirrels, rabbits and voles.

Depending on the findings the deer management cull figures can be adjusted accordingly for each of the species to ensure the resident population is maintaining a sustainable impact. Where areas of particular damage are being seen then these should become focused areas for stalking to maintain pressure and push the deer away from that area, or fenced if funds allow. Where a particular species of flora is suffering, than an alternative higher value item might be worth planting. All these considerations are delivered from the information contained in the habitat impact assessments, which is why we put a lot of time and energy into delivering the highest level of detail we can in the report.