browse in clearcuts. This supports the findings of Stone (1977) that 

 production of all classes of vegetation (herbaceous, raspberries, hardwood and 

 softwood browse) was higher in clearcuts than in uncut habitats. The amount 

 and quality of this vegetation are sometimes affected by the age of the 

 clearcut. Burgason (1977) found that lands cut 20 to 25 years before were 

 used more than those cut only 6 to 10 years before. He attributed this to a 

 better combination of food and cover in the prior cut lands. 



Deer populations usually respond favorably also to increases in herbaceous and 

 woody vegetation following clearcutting. However, in the area studied by 

 Schoultz (1978) access to cuts was limited during the winter by deep snow. 

 Deer were forced into areas with dense softwood cover where snowfall is 

 intercepted by the canopy. Only those areas of the cutover lands directly 

 adjacent to softwood patches could be utilized for food in winter. 



Thus, while populations of species that require mature forests may be reduced 

 significantly in areas subject to clearcutting, other species will find ideal 

 conditions in the successional stages following cutting. To minimize the 

 effects of logging on mammals it is perhaps best to leave a mosaic of cut and 

 uncut areas, which provides a diversity of habitats. 



Another aspect of logging that affects mammals is reforestation. In the 

 characterization area this includes the planting of seedlings and the use of 

 herbicides. The aim of reforestation efforts by the commercial paper industry 

 is to establish coniferous regeneration as rapidly as possible (see chapter 

 19, "Commercially Important Forest Types"). Herbaceous and hardwood 

 regeneration may compete successfully with the seedlings of desirable species 

 and may dominate a site for many years. Herbicides are sometimes used to kill 

 the competing hardwood and herbaceous vegetation. Unfortunately these "weed" 

 species, as they are called by foresters, are also the most beneficial species 

 for wildlife in terms of food production. Eliminating them from large tracts 

 of regenerating forest land will obviously affect mammal populations as well, 

 although these effects have not been measured. 



An important cause of habitat alteration, albeit unintentional, is fire. The 

 extent to which the habitat is changed depends on the severity of the fire. 

 Cool fires remove dead vegetation and accumulated litter, release nutrients, 

 and often result in enhanced production of herbaceous and woody vegetation 

 within a few weeks. Severe fires, on the other hand, destroy not only litter 

 but also the organic matter in the soil. All vegetation may be killed and 

 excessive soil erosion often results because there is no vegetation to hold 

 the soil. In such cases it may be years before the site is suitable for 

 wildlife . 



Direct mortality . In addition to affecting mammal habitat people also 

 kill mammals. Some of this is intentional, such as hunting and trapping, and 

 is controlled so as not to reduce populations excessively. Other forms are 

 either unintentional (e.g., roadkills) or are hard to control (e.g., illegal 

 hunting and dogs) . 



Ten species of mammals are hunted for sport in Maine: deer, bear, snowshoe 

 hare, squirrel, fox, coyote, bobcat, raccoon, woodchuck, and New England 

 cottontail. Each deer and bear legally harvested must be tagged and recorded 

 at an official State check station. This provides accurate harvest data for 



17-23 



10-80 



