engleski

Plant preference by mouflon (Ovis ammon musimon Pal.) and axis deer (Axis axis Erx.) in the forest community of holm oak and manna ash (Fraxino orni – Quercetum ilicis H-ić/1956/1958)

The paper presents the results of analysis on mouflon (Ovis ammon musimon) and (Axis axis [Cervus axis]) browsing in the forest community of holm oak and manna ash (Fraxino orni-Quercetum ilicis H-ić/1956/1958) in Croatia. In 1999, three damaga assessments were conducted in the different sample plots each at the beginning of May, the beginning of July and in mid- October. At the citied density od 8 heads of big game per 100 ha in the hunting ground (mouflon and axis deer together), the game did not cause any considerable economic damage. With respect to game – forest interaction, it was found that cleaning was the main determinant for the increase in browse for game, because this treatment raises the browsing feeding capacities for the game manifoldly. The cleaning procedure may yield up to 52 000 plants of palatabile species per hectare by the beginning of summer. Game was found to display seasonal preference for plant species and to favour plants from stumps ove those from seeds. Similarly, the vertical growth of plants increases the probability of their being damaged by game. The summer-autumn season was the period in which forest stands were at most risk by game, because drought induced game to consume juicy shoots of woody plants. Of woody plants, game avoided the common myrtle (Myrtus communis) and the mastic tree (Pistacia lentiscus), but also the seedlings of all woody species.

mouflon; axis deer; preferability; Eu-Mediterranean; damage; preference ratio index; Fraxino orni-Quercetum ilicis H-ić/1956/1958; caryng capacity

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