ENEMIES TO WOODLANDS AND NURSERIES. 



returning to the woods from feeding, and is most frequent 

 during rainy weather, when the bark has become softened 

 by moisture. The damage heals most quickly in oak 

 and ash among broad-leaved trees, and in silver-fir, larch, 

 and Weymouth pine am.ong conifers ; maple, sycamore, and 

 spruce seem to possess the lowest recuperative powers as 

 regards this class of wounds. Even when they heal over 

 completely, which is seldom the case, the lower portion of 

 the bole is usually rendered almost totally unfit for the 

 higher technical uses as timber. 



AVhilst rubbing the velvet from their antlers during July 

 and August, and again from sheer v/antcnness during the 

 rutting season towards the beginning of autumn, stags often 

 •do a good deal of damage by using young saplings and poles 

 as fraying-stocks.'' The fraying usually occurs at night, and 

 the species of trees most liable to be injured are those having 

 •soft bark, like lime, aspen, maple, horse-chestnut, willow) 

 larch, silver fir, and Weymouth pine. These species are 

 more especially exposed to danger when they occur scattered 

 individually amongst woods formed of other kinds of trees. 



Besides doing a great deal of damage through grazing on 

 the young seedlings and transplants in nurseries into which 

 they have effected an entrance, deer also commit serious 

 injury by treading down the young growth with their sharp 

 cutting, horny hoofs. 



To endeavour to estimate, either as to the amount of raw 

 produce or of its exchange value, the damage done during 

 the night-time by deer to meadows and farm-crops would 

 be entirely beyond the scope of this chapter. That, however, 

 in conjunction with what is done by other kinds of game, 

 it helps to swell the total damage annually inflicted to an 

 amount that really is of national importance can admit 

 of no doubt. 



In orchards, too, considerable havoc is done during the 

 night-time by deer when the apples and pears are beginning to 



