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Vegetation - Invertebrates - Songbirds

What we learned in a nutshell
Deer were introduced to Haida Gwaii between 1878 and 1925.
In the absence of harsh winters and predators, deer, which are good swimmers, colonized most of the archipelago and saw their population surge from the initial 39 to an estimate of 110,000 to 255,000 individuals.

Islands with different histories of deer presence occur side by side within the archipelago and provide a "natural laboratory" for the study of the effects that uncontrolled deer populations have on forest ecosystems.

In addition, islands with and without introduced red squirrel provide a quasi experimental situation to look at the additional effects the presence of squirrels has on songbird reproduction as we know that squirrel prey upon songbird nests.
deer spreading
Deer in a cabin  In particular we investigated:
  • the impact of deer on the vegetation
  • the impact of deer on invertebrates
  • the impact of deer and squirrel on songbirds
The links listed at top of page lead to summaries of the lessons drawn from these islands. Details are given in the Research section.
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