Courtesy Photo by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources An elk is seen standing in a field in the Pigeon River Country. Michigan's elk herd lives in Michigan's northeast Lower Peninsula, where the DNR manages forests to provide appropriate habitat.

According to a Department of Natural Resources (DNR) press release, clearcutting of aspen trees will occur over the next year or two as the DNR speeds up harvests in a 30-square-mile area. The DNR states that the change to their forest management harvest planning will benefit both elk and deer as they enjoy eating young aspen.

Aspen is a resilient tree that regenerates naturally from underground shoots without the need for replanting, according to the release. Elk and deer browse on young aspen throughout the year, but primarily during the fall and winter when other food sources become scarce.

“We are finding that some of our aspen stands within this core elk range are not regenerating to meet our minimum standards,” Matt Foster, manager of the DNR Forest Resources Division’s Atlanta Unit, said in the release.

The release states that cutting will take place in the Atlanta unit as well as the neighboring Pigeon River Country.

“Regenerating aspen is nearly 100 percent successful in most cases, but browse pressure can have a negative impact on that,” Foster said in the release.

According to the DNR, the accelerated cutting schedule will take place in nine compartments, or subunits, within the two state forest management units in Montmorency and Otsego counties. The DNR plans to group clearcuts originally planned over the next 10 years into a shorter time frame to better support forest regeneration and elk habitat.

“Aspen is a critical food source for elk,” Shelby Adams, DNR wildlife biologist for the Pigeon River Country, said in the release. “This area is the heart of elk range, and we want to find ways for both the elk and forest to thrive.”

The DNR states that the idea is to give elk more areas of fresh growth to browse, reducing pressure on any single site and improving regeneration.