‘We Have More Deer than Our Forests Can Support’: Norwich Walk Highlights Browse Damage
Foresters said deer eat 7 to 10 pounds of food a day and heavy browsing is slowing sapling growth and forest regeneration.
- On Aug. 31, about 30 people gathered at Brookmead Conservation Area in Norwich, Vermont, for an Upper Valley Land Trust event examining how overabundant deer threaten forest regeneration and ecosystems.
- Warmer winters and increased suburbanization have driven a surge in deer populations over recent decades, according to New Hampshire Fish and Game Department deer project leader Becky Fuda.
- Naturalist Holly Henderson noted that Brookmead "has been hit extremely hard by deer," which consume around 7 to 10 pounds of vegetation daily—roughly filling a 5-gallon bucket.
- Vermont county forester Dan Healey explained that creating large, open clearings deters deer, while exclosures protect saplings and native plants from browse damage.
- New Vermont regulations allow hunters to fill antlerless tags with rifles, though wildlife biologist Nick Fortin noted managing deer density effectively requires more landowners to permit hunting on private properties.
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‘We have more deer than our forests can support’: Norwich walk highlights browse damage - The Mexico Ledger
Dan Healey, center, a Vermont county forester based in the White River Junction office, at an event organized by the Upper Valley Land Trust at Brookmead Conservation Area in Norwich, Vt., on Monday, Aug. 31, 2026. Photo by Alex Driehaus/Valley News This story by Alex Driehaus was first published in the Valley News on Sept. 14, 2026. NORWICH — About 30 people walked through the woods at Brookmead Conservation Area recently clad in hiking gear a…
‘We have more deer than our forests can support’: Norwich walk highlights browse damage - Seward Independent
Dan Healey, center, a Vermont county forester based in the White River Junction office, at an event organized by the Upper Valley Land Trust at Brookmead Conservation Area in Norwich, Vt., on Monday, Aug. 31, 2026. Photo by Alex Driehaus/Valley News This story by Alex Driehaus was first published in the Valley News on Sept. 14, 2026. NORWICH — About 30 people walked through the woods at Brookmead Conservation Area recently clad in hiking gear a…
‘We have more deer than our forests can support’: Norwich walk highlights browse damage
Saplings with torn leaves and chewed stems are telltale signs of deer browse. Read the story on VTDigger here: ‘We have more deer than our forests can support’: Norwich walk highlights browse damage.
‘We have more deer than our forests can support’: Norwich walk highlights browse damage - Stateline Publications
Dan Healey, center, a Vermont county forester based in the White River Junction office, at an event organized by the Upper Valley Land Trust at Brookmead Conservation Area in Norwich, Vt., on Monday, Aug. 31, 2026. Photo by Alex Driehaus/Valley News This story by Alex Driehaus was first published in the Valley News on Sept. 14, 2026. NORWICH — About 30 people walked through the woods at Brookmead Conservation Area recently clad in hiking gear a…
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