Thread: Lewis Pass for deer. What's missing ?

I went up from the pass a short way southwards along the tops a couple of weeks ago.

We saw very little deer sign.

Here's the area. This is the Maruia valley looking downstream; the road runs down the True Left.


We descended this scree to the road. Cannibal gorge is in the bottom right of the picture. The patch of scrub in the lower part of the scree is neck deep broadleaf and tutu.


In the beech forest, there were a lot of healthy looking broadleaf (Griselinia littoralis) at waist height. In every other part of New Zealand all you can find is <15 cm seedlings or mature trees with no leaves below 2m above ground (and fallen branches stripped of all leaves).



There was also prolific stinkwood (Coprosma foetidissima) which is said to be highly palatable to deer. (I have actually seen a bit around in some places, particularly where it's mostly sika deer. ) However, its' presence is usually a sign you're walking along a well used tramping track.


Is there some reason deer just don't live in this area ?