Assessing the influence of selective and shelter-wood cuttings on the faecal count and habitat use strategy of two ungulates in Pyeongchang, South Korea

Abstract To sustainably manage forests, we must understand the effects of forestry practices on wildlife using a reliable index of their abundance. Here, we assessed the short-term responses of roe deer ( Capreolus pygargus ) and water deer ( Hydropotes inermis ) to two forestry practices – selective cutting and shelter-wood cutting – in a temperate deciduous forest in Pyeongchang, South Korea. From May to September 2016, we conducted repeated pellet-group surveys and recorded herbivory signs across one selective-cut stand, one shelter-wood stand, and one uncut control stand to compare deer relative abundance, habitat use, and feeding-site selection among treatments. To obtain reliable estimates of relative abundance, we evaluated the ability of zero-inflated models to account for faecal pellet disappearance and applied zero-inflated negative binomial models for further analysis. Relative abundance of the deer was consistent across the stands, whereas habitat use increased with overstory coverage. Feeding-site selection differed markedly among treatments, with the probability of feeding-site occurrence increasing from 6.6% in the control stand to 20.1% in the selective-cut stand and 36.6% in the shelter-wood stand. These findings demonstrate how short-term structural changes following harvesting affect deer abundance, habitat use, and feeding behaviour. Coupling pellet-group surveys with zero-inflated models provides a practical approach for accounting for pellet disappearance and improving inferences about herbivore responses to forestry practices.