Abstract
Forest ecosystems change as the population of sika deer increases along with expanding habitat range. The trajectory of the change is of interest to ecologists and forest managers. Here I present the results of a natural experiment in a warm-temperate forest, with the aim of showing how vegetation and soil properties of forests change according to the increase in the population of sika deer (Cervus nippon). At our study site, ground vegetation rapidly decreased as the deer population density increased, whereas vegetative species richness showed a hump-shaped pattern. The damage to vegetation seemed to have accumulated belowground and resulted in further decreases of ground vegetation and soil compaction, as evidenced in a follow-up study 11 years later. The recovery of vegetation was minor, even in areas where deer density had decreased. These pronounced and long-lasting impacts of sika deer on forest vegetation are partly attributable to the high herbivory pressure caused by this species, but the low productivity of the dark forest floor also seems to play a role.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Akashi N (2009) Simulation of the effects of deer browsing on forest dynamics. Ecol Res 24:247–255. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11284-008-0504-2
Asada M (2014) Bayesian population estimation for sika deer for FY 2012 in chiba prefecture, Japan. Rep Chiba Biodivers Cent 8:1–13
Augustine DJ, McNaughton SJ (1998) Ungulate effects on the functional species composition of plant communities: herbivore selectivity and plant tolerance. J Wildl Manag 62:1165–1183. https://doi.org/10.2307/3801981
Carline K, Jones H, Bardgett R (2005) Large herbivores affect the stoichiometry of nutrients in a regenerating woodland ecosystem. Oikos 110:453–460. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0030-1299.2005.13550.x
Chiba Prefecture (2004) Science report on the management of sika deer on Boso Peninsula. Chiba Prefecture, Chiba. (in Japanese)
Cingolani A, Noy-Meir I, Diaz S (2005) Grazing effects on rangeland diversity: a synthesis of contemporary models. Ecol Appl 15:757–773. https://doi.org/10.1890/03-5272
Connell JH (1978) Diversity in tropical rain forests and coral reefs—high diversity of trees and corals is maintained only in a non-equilibrium state. Science 199:1302–1310. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.199.4335.1302
Côté SD, Rooney TP, Tremblay JP, Dussault C, Waller DM (2004) Ecological impacts of deer overabundance. Annu Rev Ecol Evol Syst 35:113–147. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.35.021103.105725
Fukushima K, Sakaguchi S, Inoue M, Fujiki D, Tokuchi N, Nishioka Y, Hasegawa A, Fujii H, Yamasaki M, Takayanagi A (2013) Deer overgrazing affects soil nitrogen dynamics and nitrate leaching in a cool-temperate forest ecosystem. J Jpn Soc Reveget Technol 39:360–367
Furusawa H, Araki M, Hino T (2001) Effects of sika deer and sasa on water potential in surface soil—a case study at Ohdaigahara. Appl For Sci 10:31–36. https://doi.org/10.20660/applfor.10.1_31
Gass T, Binkley D (2011) Soil nutrient losses in an altered ecosystem are associated with native ungulate grazing. J Appl Ecol 48:952–960. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2664.2011.01996.x
Gill RMA (1992) A review of damage by mammals in north temperate forests:3. Impact on trees and forests. Forestry 65:363–388. https://doi.org/10.1093/forestry/65.4.363-a
Harada K, Ann J, Suzuki M (2020) Legacy effects of sika deer overpopulation on ground vegetation and soil physical properties. For Ecol Manage 474. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2020.118346
Heckel C, Bourg N, McShea W, Kalisz S (2010) Nonconsumptive effects of a generalist ungulate herbivore drive decline of unpalatable forest herbs. Ecology 91:319–326. https://doi.org/10.1890/09-0628.1
Horsley SB, Stout SL, DeCalesta DS (2003) White-tailed deer impact on the vegetation dynamics of a northern hardwood forest. Ecol Appl 13:98–118. https://doi.org/10.1890/1051-0761(2003)013[0098:wtdiot]2.0.co;2
Huston M (1979) General hypothesis of species-diversity. Am Nat 113:81–101. https://doi.org/10.1086/283366
Ito S, Nakagawa M, Buckley GP, Nogami K (2003) Species richness in sugi (Cryptomeria japonica D. DON) plantations in southeastern Kyushu, Japan: the effects of stand type and age on understory trees and shrubs. J For Res 8:49–57
Kaji K, Saitoh T, Uno H, Matsuda H, Yamamura K (2010) Adaptive management of sika deer populations in Hokkaido, Japan: theory and practice. Popul Ecol 52:373–387. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10144-010-0219-4
Kardol P, Dickie I, St John M, Husheer S, Bonner K, Bellingham P, Wardle D (2014) Soil-mediated effects of invasive ungulates on native tree seedlings. J Ecol 102:622–631. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12234
Maruyama N, Nakama S (1983) Block count method for estimating serow populations. Japanese J Ecol 33:243–251
Milchunas DG, Sala OE, Lauenroth WK (1988) A generalized-model of the effects of grazing by large herbivores on grassland community structure. Am Nat 132:87–106. https://doi.org/10.1086/284839
Niwa S, Mariani L, Kaneko N, Okada H, Sakamoto K (2011) Early-stage impacts of sika deer on structure and function of the soil microbial food webs in a temperate forest: a large-scale experiment. For Ecol Manage 261:391–399. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2010.10.024|10.1016/j.foreco.2010.10.024
Nuttle T, Ristau T, Royo A (2014) Long-term biological legacies of herbivore density in a landscape-scale experiment: forest understoreys reflect past deer density treatments for at least 20 years. J Ecol 102:221–228. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12175
Olff H, Ritchie ME (1998) Effects of herbivores on grassland plant diversity. Trends Ecol Evol 13:261–265. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0169-5347(98)01364-0
Oono A, Kamiyama C, Saito O (2020) Causes and consequences of reduced human intervention in formerly managed forests in Japan and other countries. Sustain Sci 15:1511–1529. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-020-00845-3
Pastor J, Dewey B, Naiman RJ, Mcinnes PF, Cohen Y (1993) Moose browsing and soil fertility in the boreal forests of Isle Royale national park. Ecology 74:467–480. https://doi.org/10.2307/1939308
Putman R (1996) Ungulates in temperate forest ecosystems: perspectives and recommendations for future research. For Ecol Manage 88:205–214. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-1127(96)03878-9
Royo A, Carson W (2006) On the formation of dense understory layers in forests worldwide: consequences and implications for forest dynamics, biodiversity, and succession. Can J For Res 36:1345–1362
Sankaran M, Augustine D (2004) Large herbivores suppress decomposer abundance in a semiarid grazing ecosystem. Ecology 85:1052–1061. https://doi.org/10.1890/03-0354
Singer FJ, Schoenecker KA (2003) Do ungulates accelerate or decelerate nitrogen cycling? For Ecol Manage 181:189–204. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0378-1127(03)00133-6
Stark S, Mannisto M, Smolander A (2010) Multiple effects of reindeer grazing on the soil processes in nutrient-poor northern boreal forests. Soil Biol Biochem 42:2068–2077. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2010.08.001
Stromayer K, Warren R (1997) Are overabundant deer herds in the eastern United States creating alternate stable states in forest plant communities? Wildl Soc Bull 25:227–234
Suzuki M, Miyashita T, Kabaya H, Ochiai K, Asada M, Tange T (2008) Deer density affects ground-layer vegetation differently in conifer plantations and hardwood forests on the Boso Peninsula, Japan. Ecol Res 23:151–158. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11284-007-0348-1
Suzuki M, Miyashita T, Kabaya H, Ochiai K, Asada M, Kikvidze Z (2013) Deer herbivory as an important driver of divergence of ground vegetation communities in temperate forests. Oikos 122:104–110. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2012.20431.x
Takahashi H, Kaji K (2001) Fallen leaves and unpalatable plants as alternative foods for sika deer under food limitation. Ecol Res 16:257–262. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1440-1703.2001.00391.x
Takatsuki S (2009) Effects of sika deer on vegetation in Japan: a review. Biol Conserv 142:1922–1929. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2009.02.011
Taki H, Okochi I, Okabe K, Inoue T, Goto H, Matsumura T, Makino S (2013) Succession influences wild bees in a temperate forest landscape: the value of early successional stages in naturally regenerated and planted forests. PLoS One 8. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0056678
Tanentzap A, Burrows L, Lee W, Nugent G, Maxwell J, Coomes D (2009) Landscape-level vegetation recovery from herbivory: progress after four decades of invasive red deer control. J Appl Ecol 46:1064–1072. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2664.2009.01683.x
Tsujino R, Yumoto T (2004) Effects of sika deer on tree seedlings in a warm temperate forest on Yakushima Island, Japan. Ecol Res 19:291–300. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1440-1703.2004.00638.x
Wardle DA, Barker GM, Yeates GW, Bonner KI, Ghani A (2001) Introduced browsing mammals in New Zealand natural forests: aboveground and belowground consequences. Ecol Monogr 71:587–614. https://doi.org/10.1890/0012-9615(2001)071[0587:ibminz]2.0.co;2
White M (2012) Long-term effects of deer browsing: composition, structure and productivity in a northeastern Minnesota old-growth forest. For Ecol Manage 269:222–228. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2011.12.043
Yamaura Y, Oka H, Taki H, Ozaki K, Tanaka H (2012) Sustainable management of planted landscapes: lessons from Japan. Biodivers Conserv 21:3107–3129. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-012-0357-4
Yanagi Y, Takada M, Miyashita T (2008) Changes in the physical properties of forest soils in the Boso Peninsula due to sika deer revealed by surveys and a field experiment. Japanese J Conserv Biol 13:65–74
Young TP, Chase JM, Huddleston RT (2001) Community succession and assembly: comparing, contrasting and combining paradigms in the context of ecological restoration. Ecol Restor 19:5–18
Acknowledgments
The author thanks T. Miyashita, K. Harada, M. Asada, K. Ochiai, T. Tange, H. Kabaya, J. Ang, and Z. Kikvidze, who collaborated in the research summarized here. The data from the deer density census was provided by the Chiba Prefecture Office. The field survey was supported by the University of Tokyo Chiba Forest Office. The author is also grateful for the financial support given by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI Program (Grant No. JP15K07471) and the Environmental Technology Development Fund, Ministry for the Environment, Japan.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Suzuki, M. (2022). Responses of Ground-Layer Vegetation and Soil Properties to Increased Population Density of Sika Deer and Environmental Conditions. In: Kaji, K., Uno, H., Iijima, H. (eds) Sika Deer: Life History Plasticity and Management. Ecological Research Monographs. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-9554-4_24
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-9554-4_24
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-16-9553-7
Online ISBN: 978-981-16-9554-4
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)