Effects of browsing on shoots and roots of naturally regenerated sessile oak seedlings

Abstract

Comparison of 145 6- to 7-year-old seedlings of sessile oak (Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl.) sampled from adjacent fenced and non-fenced plots in an area of a natural regeneration showed only small but significant differences in plant form allometry between plants damaged by browsing and unbrowsed plants. Browsing reduced plant size and changed biomass distribution. Browsed plants had more branches and greater leaf biomass than unbrowsed plants and allocated a higher proportion of biomass to the root system, particularly to coarse and tap roots, while the stem biomass was not affected. The results suggest that the young tree may survive moderate animal browsing (10 roe-deer per 100 ha, 68% of browsed plants with a mean of 4 shoots damaged), although it reduces height growth and thus development towards a tree canopy height.