© 1969 by Institute of Chartered Foresters
A successful case-history reconciling Forestry and Red Deer Management
Nature Conservancy Edinburgh and Mautern, Steiermark, Austria
This paper describes how red deer are managed in extensive plantations in Steiermark in Austria. This is an area of steep hillsides covered with conifer woodland up to 4,000 feet, and dissected with narrow tributary valleys where there are small meadows. Several of these tributary valleys with their meadows support wintering populations of deer which are hefted to them. In spring to autumn the deer move widely throughout the forests and on the high mountain plateaux but return each year to their own wintering grounds. Here they are caught and enclosed in fenced areas each containing about one deer to one acre. When they are in the enclosures, the deer are fed about five to six pounds good hay, one pound maize, plus two pounds potatoes or silage per deer per day and salt licks are constantly provided. In addition, a smaller number of deer are wintered on high pastures which are not enclosed and these are fed half rations. The total cost per deer per annum is about £17 for each deer in the enclosures and about £8 for the deer fed on the high plateaux. This is expensive, but this system has almost completely eliminated damage to trees which was formerly a very expensive item in the management of the whole complex. Details are given of the financial returns from this method of deer management; it is claimed that the heavy winter feeding has paid off not only in eliminating tree damage but also in an improved calving rate, and better antlered stags.