500 A NATIONAL PLAN FOR AMERICAN FORESTRY 



standpoint of forage requirements of both deer and livestock, be in- 

 creased to approximately 150,000 without interference with livestock 

 or timber production if additional winter range were made available 

 outside the national forests. Similar increases of double the present 

 numbers of deer and development of the wild-life resource are possible 

 on other national forest areas. 



Use of forest lands by wild life involves not alone the relationship 

 between wild animals and domestic stock, but concerns also the proper 

 balance between and interrelation of various classes of wild life. 

 Experience in many places has amply demonstrated that the satis- 

 factory status of the natural wild-life population may be disturbed by 

 changes in food and coyer conditions that favor one or more species 

 over others, or by special measures provided for the protection of 

 certain species from natural enemies or man. Here again the ulti- 

 mate goal of land use is not the correction of what may be a temporary 

 condition, but rather the application on a broad scale of principles that 

 will result continuously in a smoothly flowing, properly balanced 

 use for production of timber or other products and uses of forest land 

 and of the various wild-life species which should be included in the 

 objectives of wild life management on the area. 



Competition between wild-life species may at times be a vital factor. 

 In the southwestern part of the Sacramento Mountains in New 

 Mexico, on the Lincoln National Forest, wild turkeys are very scarce. 

 They have in fact nearly disappeared from that part of the moun- 

 tains. On this particular range deer have increased on private 

 holdings and adjacent national forest land to a point where they, 

 together with domestic stock, have destroyed much of the more 

 palatable shrubs and must turn to mast, i.e., acorns and juniper 

 berries which they eat practically as soon as these fall from the trees. 

 The use of the acorns and juniper berries by deer, together with 

 reduction of other turkey feed through overgrazing, destroys the 

 winter forage supply for turkey. In the north end of the Sacramento 

 Mountains deer are not so plentiful and there are great numbers of 

 turkeys. 



An instance of competition between elk and deer has been noted on 

 the Sitgreaves National Forest in Arizona, where a deer refuge is 

 located within the elk range. Each winter the elk as they increase 

 in number demand more of the forage along the south exposures of 

 the canyons. In the winter of 1931 elk concentrated on one area r 

 defoliating junipers to a height of about 8 or 9 feet and eating up other 

 forage plants in proportion. Of the mule deer wintering on this range, 

 16 head were observed this spring (1932) in such poor condition that 

 bones stood out all over their bodies. In the winter of 1931 and 

 1932 elk took practically all of the juniper within reach on several 

 other areas within this refuge. If this herd of elk is allowed to con- 

 tinue to increase, it will be only a matter of time until it will extermi- 

 nate the deer as the elk can reach higher and, therefore, can get food 

 after none is left within reach of the deer. 



Adequate discussion of the influence of predators in relation to a 

 proper balance in nature by their repressive effect upon excess popu- 

 lation of the smaller herbivores, such as mice, rabbits, and squirrels, 

 which feed on forest vegetation, or to dwell on the effect of bird life 

 in limiting destructive insects would require extended treatment. 

 Briefly the relationship in the aggregate is of far-reaching importance 

 in the fundamental management of forest lands. 



