Scale-Dependent Effects of Coyote-Predation Risk on Patterns of White-Tailed Deer Browsing along Linear Forest Edges

Abstract Browsing by Odocoileus virginianus (White-tailed Deer) plays an important role in shaping forest structure in the northeastern US. Predation can influence patterns of browse through decreasing White-tailed Deer abundance and influencing patterns of habitat selection. Canis latrans (Coyote) is the dominant predator of White-tailed Deer in our focal region in northern New York. Optimal foraging theory suggests that White-tailed Deer browse in locations that maximize energy intake while minimizing predation risk. Linear forest edges provide abundant woody browse for White-tailed Deer, but are also used as travel-ways by Coyotes in our focal region. These locations therefore provide a venue for testing the extent to which predation risk influences patterns of White-tailed Deer browsing. We quantified White-tailed Deer browse use for edge and interior sites and the density of Coyote scats along seventeen 500-m transects to evaluate the scale at which White-tailed Deer herbivory was affected by Coyote ...