Teacher Resources: White-Tailed Deer Lesson Plans

Teaching Youth about White-tailed Deer and Forest Ecology

Below is a collection of five inquiry-based, hands-on lesson plans in which students explore white-tailed deer biology and forest ecology.  Each lesson builds upon the previous one, culminating in a final assignment for the students.  These lessons focus on the impact of deer on the forest ecosystem.  The activities are designed for youth grades 6-12.  The rationale for the lessons is the need for better education and understanding about the issues surrounding deer abundance.

By studying deer biology and deer interactions with their habitat, students will gain a better appreciation for the animal as well as the importance of deer population control.  Youth will understand that an over-abundance of deer can have significant negative impacts on forest ecosystems.

Audience:

Youth, Grades 6-12

Issue:  Deer Abundance

White-tailed deer directly affect many aspects of our lives.  Hunters, farmers, foresters, motorists, gardeners, and homeowners are all impacted by deer abundance levels.  This may be through car deer collisions, disease transmission, loss of desirable landscaping, crop damage, or over-browsed woodlands. 

Reducing the impact of deer on forest ecosystems is imperative to sustainable management of our forest resources.  Over-browsing by deer can change the composition of the forest.  The kind of young trees and their abundance is affected by deer.  For example, ecologically and economically important species like oaks are greatly reduced or eliminated from the understory.  If deer are too numerous, mature forests will have no or very few desirable tree seedlings to replace trees that are harvested or die of natural causes.  Research has shown that as many as 85% of forested sites in Pennsylvania that are harvested fail to regenerate a new forest of desirable tree species due to over-browsing by deer.  

Over-abundant deer populations also reduce the diversity of plants and other wildlife species found in the forest.  High levels of browsing by deer can completely remove the shrub and tree seedling layers in a forest.  Many native wildflower species are also preferred deer foods.  These plants are also reduced in abundance or completely eliminated when deer impact is high.  With the loss of the understory tree and shrub layer comes a loss in abundance of many other wildlife species.  Numerous species of birds which nest in the shrub layer or on the forest floor are reduced in abundance when deer populations rise beyond what the habitat can support. 

When deer populations are above the carrying capacity of the land for long periods of time they begin to degrade their habitat.  Under these conditions, forest understories become composed predominantly of plants that deer avoid or prefer not to eat.  Once this happens, the degraded environment supports only a fraction of the biodiversity it once did.

Goals:

The objectives of these lessons are to increase student awareness concerning how deer impact the forest ecosystem of Pennsylvania and to recognize that deer abundance affects many people besides just hunters.  Through participation in these lessons students will gain a better understanding of white-tailed deer biology, adaptations, habitat requirements, management, and impacts on forest sustainability.

Lesson 1: White-tailed Deer Biology and Adaptations: A General Overview
Lesson 2: White-tailed Deer: A Lesson in History
Lesson 3: The Deer Population Cycle
Lesson 4: Deer Habitat Suitability
Lesson 5: Estimating Deer Populations and Habitat Impact

Bibliography:

1. San Julian G. and Sanford Smith. 2001.  From the Woods: White-tailed Deer.  Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences.
2. Moyer, B., Bryon Shissler, and Roger Latham.  2006.  Deer, Communities & Quality of Life.  Ecosystem Management Project.
3. Project Wild Activity Guide, 1992. Oh Deer! activity.
4. Clancy, Gary and Larry R. Nelson.  1991.  The Hunting and Fishing Library: White-tailed Deer.
5. Penn State School of Forest Resources, Sustainable Forestry Teacher Resource Center.  Teacher Resources: From the Woods Series.
   http://sftrc.cas.psu.edu/FromWoods.html
6. Chuck Fergus Wildlife Notes – White-tailed Deer.  Bureau of Information and Education, the Pennsylvania Game Commission.
7. 4-H Wildlife Conservation Program, Unit 1 Members Guide.  Wildlife is All Around Us, Book 1. The Wildlife Detective.  Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, Cooperative Extension.
8. 4-H Wildlife Conservation Program, Unit 1 Member’s Guide.  Wildlife is All Around Us, Book 3. Summer.  Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, Cooperative Extension.
9. 4-H Wildlife Project – Intermediate Unit Book 1.  The Wildlife Ecologist.  Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, Cooperative Extension.
10. 4-H Wildlife Project – Intermediate Unit Book 2.  The Wildlife Manager.  Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, Cooperative Extension.
11. Van Etten, Robert C., and Lee Eberhardt.  1956.  Evaluation of the Pellet Group Count as a Deer census Method.  The Journal of Wildlife Management. 20(1):7074.