Grazing cattle improve wildlife habitat

Biologists seek ways to improve deer population

By CRAIG REED

For the Capital Press

ROSEBURG, Ore. -- Cattle are being put to work to improve the habitat of the Columbian whitetail deer.

All the cows have to do is graze.

The Bureau of Land Management is using 11 of rancher George Sandberg's cows in an experiment to improve forage for the once endangered whitetails in the 6,500-acre North Bank Habitat Management Area between Roseburg and Glide, Ore.

For this project, 58 acres were singled out and surrounded with electric fence. The Angus cows were turned onto that ground in mid-December, and their job is to eat the taller, brown grass, making it easier for other animals to reach the new green growth.

"There's a lot of overburden in there," said Sandberg. "Grazing that off will allow the subclover and new grass to come in. That (is what) deer like to browse on. The key for deer is that the protein and nutrition level of the new growth is really high and when it comes to fawning, that's important."

Larry Cooper, area director for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife's Southwest Region office, said cattle have been used to improve habitat for wildlife in some Eastern Oregon areas with no negative results.

Sandberg and other ranchers in the Roseburg area have said the whitetail deer have done well co-existing with cattle on private land.

But cattle haven't grazed what used to be the Dunning Ranch since 1994, when BLM acquired the property and turned it into a wildlife and recreation area with the intent of increasing the whitetail population and removing that species from the endangered species list. The deer was delisted in 2003, but now officials don't believe the area is being used to its fullest potential by the deer.

"I think we've seen some fluctuations in their population there," Cooper said. "One of the things we believe is lacking is adequate forage for them. Cattle are very good at conditioning forage for any kind of ungulate out there. If you use cattle appropriately -- high intensity, low duration grazing -- it results in good forage that is more sought after by blacktail and whitetail deer and elk."

"Data indicate a possible decline (in deer) from when we acquired the ranch," said Chris Foster, BLM's wildlife biologist for the project. "We believe the potential is there for a healthier deer population if we can improve the forage quality and availability."

The BLM, which partners with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the ODFW in managing the mostly hilly habitat area, has mowed and burned some acreage in the area and will continue with those management tools.

"Using mowing and burning, we're not able to manage as much land as we would like," said Allie Barner, a soil specialist in the Roseburg BLM office.

Sandberg said he was approached about participating in the project after the BLM noted how well whitetail were doing on nearby ranches.

"We showed them the ag practices we do on these ranches that creates habitat for the whitetail deer," Sandberg said. "If you look around to see where the deer population is, it's most dense on the ranches."

"Getting the whitetail off the endangered species list is a phenomenal success, and now we have to keep it off the list," he added.

Barner will monitor the grass growth on the 58 acres, visiting about 12 sites every two weeks to observe both grazing of old grass and growth of new grass. She'll take pictures of the habitat to make comparisons as time passes.

"I'm hoping using the cattle becomes a sustainable way to manage the ranch and provide good forage for the deer," Barner said.

The cows will be removed from the experimental acreage and the electric fence taken down by April just prior to fawning in May. If the project is deemed a success, cattle would be returned to the area later in the year.