Adirondacks logging good or bad for deer ?

[Hunter007]

Just saw this article from 2011

One  guy from DEC says leaving the forest alone for ever wild  is good for deer  populations in long run , and others  say logging it is much better for deer  populations. 

Anyone who hunts or lives up there want to comment on  who is been proven wrong and who is right on this topic since then ? 

Ed Reed, a DEC wildlife biologist, believes that old-growth forests are more hospitable to deer than previously thought—a consequence of “forest decadence.”

“The pre-colonial forest was not an unbroken stand of huge trees,” he said. “It was a very diverse mixture of young and old trees, with openings created by fire, wind, and dying old trees.”

These openings would have produced browse for deer. He sees the same natural forces at work in the maturing Forest Preserve. “The forest of today is starting to become old enough that many trees are dying of old age and falling over, which creates small openings in the canopy where sunlight can reach the ground and stimulate new growth,” he said.

“This new growth of forbs [broad-leaved plants] and young hardwoods provides perfect deer food.”

Reed also said the evergreen stands that were logged before their acquisition by the state have matured enough to provide shelter for deer in winter.

As a result of improved habitat, Reed expects the population to continue to climb. “I don’t expect a sudden explosion in the deer population,” he said, “more like a slow increase, with ups and downs due to winter conditions—perhaps 20 to 30 percent higher over the next twenty years.”

 

https://www.adirondackexplorer.org/stories/debate-over-deer

 

[Jafo]

All I can say is, I see more deer after my property has been logged.  The old timer there who oversees the business thinks it's all the tops the deer are attracted to.

[Single_shot]

Logging sure does make it better. Less canopy, more browse. I have seen long term how much good it does both for animal and habitat. The tops provide short term browse whereas the maple stumps will shoot sprouts that the deer love for a few years normally. Now consider all the grasses/weeds etc. that too will grow now that the soil receives sunlight.

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