Contractors, volunteers and the Julia Butler Hansen Refuge to the rescue

The Julia Butler Hansen Refuge is home to the Columbian White-tailed Deer. Its 6,000 acres of woodlots, swamps, marshes, pastures and brushy woodlots provide shelter and food for them. Deer need a variety of habitats because they feed on both pasture plants and the leaves and twigs of deciduous trees. Forested areas also offer security for does and their fawns from their natural predators such as coyotes. The fawns can be easily hidden from view in these brushy woodlots.

Over the years the Refuge has planted native trees including alder, willow, spruce, red-osier dogwood, and native poplar in various areas that are adjacent to pasture and/or grasslands where there is both cover and food in close proximity in an effort to enhance the chances for the survival of the Columbian White-tailed deer.

It takes about five years for the planted trees to reach a point where they can be utilized by the deer. During this time the woodlots are fenced and the trees are fitted with blue plastic tree protectors. This allows the woodlot to develop without hindrance from the elk, which can trample the new shoots and young saplings with ease, and other mammals that like to chew on tender shoots and the bark of trees.

Over the past year the forested areas have been made available to the deer. The fences have come down and the blue plastic tree protectors have been removed. The deer love it! They can be seen feeding on the edges and moving into the trees for protection when necessary.

The fences have come down through a combination of contracted labor such as the Northwest Youth Corps and volunteers. Bravo to those who give of their time to help the Columbian White-tailed deer. For more information about how you can be a volunteer for the Refuge or participate in Refuge activities go to http://www.fws.gov/refuge/jbh .