White-Tailed Deer Alter Diversity of Songbirds and Thier Habitat in Northwestern Pennsylvania

White-tailed Deer were nearly extirpated from Pennsylvania at the turn of the century. Since then, protection, reintroduction, and habitat improvement resulted in the deer population increasing from presettlement densities of 10 to 15 deer per square mile to more than 50 deer per square mile in the four-county area that surrounds the Allegheny NationalForest (Fig. 1). As a result, deer populations have significantly altered the vegetation of Allegheny hardwood forests for nearly 80 years (Hough 1965; Whitney1984; Tilghman 1989). Currently, average population density across the Allegheny Plateau is 30 deer per square mile. This article was written by Barbara McGuinness and David deCalesta for Pennsylvania Birds, 1996.

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