Photo By Scott Sturkol | Whitetail deer try to blend in with the snowy landscape on the cantonment area during...... read more read more
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Whitetail deer and other animals call Fort McCoy's more than 60,000 acres of public land home.
Deer, for example, are one of the many species of wildlife around the installation that are looked after for a variety of reasons -- especially after winter.
Winter is often the toughest season on Fort McCoy's deer herd, so monitoring how the herd is dealing with winter conditions is crucial to the herd's survivability, said Wildlife Biologist David Beckmann with the Natural Resources Branch of the Directorate of Public Works Environmental Division.
"Our over-winter deer population goal is to have 20 to 25 deer per square mile of winter habitat, which includes approximately 73 square miles of forested habitat at Fort McCoy," Beckmann said. "We use the winter population goal because winter conditions have the biggest impact on deer survival and reproduction. Populations over winter can deplete food and cover and impact forest regeneration and production, which could affect other wildlife species. Higher populations also can be more susceptible to disease if there is an outbreak."
The health of the deer population after the winter also determines how many deer tags will be available for hunters later in the year, Beckmann said.
Natural Resources Branch personnel also oversee management for endangered species of many varieties of wildlife, manage the post's fish populations, and more.
Learn more about Fort McCoy online at www.mccoy.army.mil, on Facebook by searching "ftmccoy," and on Twitter by searching "usagmccoy."
| Date Taken: | 04.04.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 04.04.2018 11:19 |
| Story ID: | 271724 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WI, US |
| Web Views: | 51 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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