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Road and Rail Side Vegetation Management Implications of Habitat Use by Moose Relative to Brush Cutting Season

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Abstract

Plants cut at different times produce resprouts that vary in their nutritional value relative to when they are cut. To determine how vegetation management in transportation (road and rail) corridors at different times of the year could influence browse quality in the years following cutting, and how this could potentially influence encounters between herbivores and vehicles, we undertook a 3-year study. In 2001, at a wildlife viewing area near Prince George, British Columbia, Canada, we established a control area and treatment areas where shrubs and trees that are used as food by moose (Alces alces) were cut at the beginning of June, July, August, September, and October. In the fall, moose were most often observed browsing the resprouts of plants cut in August (years 1 and 2 post-treatment) and September (year 3). Cumulative winter track counts were highest in the uncut control area in the years following cutting. Spring pellet counts revealed that most pellets were deposited in the uncut (years 1 and 2) and August-cut (year 3) areas during winter. With the exception of the first year after cutting, browse removal by moose was highest for plants cut later in the growing season. Overall, our findings suggest that following cutting, plants cut later in the year are selected more often by moose relative to those cut earlier. To reduce browse use of corridor vegetation in areas where concerns for moose-vehicle collisions exist, we recommend that vegetation maintenance activities be conducted in the early summer months of June and July.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank K. Litwinow and the many research assistants and student volunteers who worked tirelessly to collect field data. Major funding for this project was provided by the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority, British Columbia Rail and the University of Northern British Columbia. Brownridge and Company Insurance Services, Sussex Insurance Agency and Nauroth & Associates Insurance Brokers also provided financial support. O. Hjeljord, G. Hesse and four anonymous reviewers provided constructive and welcomed feedback on an earlier draft of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Natural Resources and Environmental Studies Institute, University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, BC, V2N 4Z9, Canada

    Roy V. Rea

  2. Engineering Environmental Services, British Columbia Hydro & Power Authority, Prince George, BC, V2N 2K4, Canada

    Kenneth N. Child

  3. Corporate Environmental Services, British Columbia Rail Ltd., Prince George, BC, V2N 2K8, Canada

    David P. Spata

  4. Public Affairs and Road Safety, Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, Prince George, BC, V2L 5B8, Canada

    Douglas MacDonald

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  1. Roy V. Rea
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  2. Kenneth N. Child
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  4. Douglas MacDonald
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Correspondence to Roy V. Rea.

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Rea, R.V., Child, K.N., Spata, D.P. et al. Road and Rail Side Vegetation Management Implications of Habitat Use by Moose Relative to Brush Cutting Season. Environmental Management 46, 101–109 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-010-9502-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-010-9502-6

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