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Ash > Trunk > Bark chewed or removed

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  • Image: Rabbit feeding, bark off tree base
    Credit: Michelle Grabowski
  • Image: Rabbit feeding, rabbit scat

    Credit: Michelle Grabowski

  • - CLICK PHOTOS TO ENLARGE -

green arrowRabbit feeding

  • Bark is completely removed from the main trunk
  • Regular scraping the size of a spoon tip can be seen in the wood
  • Small twigs are cleanly cut off with a sharp edge, at a 45 degree angle
  • Damage can occur from ground level to several feet up the trunk
  • Deep snow can allow rabbits to reach higher up the trunk
  • Damage occurs in winter
  • More information on Rabbit Feeding...
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  • Image: Deer feeding, bark shredded 1
    Credit: Mooter, Bugwood.org
  • Image: Deer feeding, bark shredded 2

    Credit: O'Brien, Bugwood.org

  • Image: Deer feeding, branches cut roughly

    Credit: Michelle Grabowski

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green arrowDeer feeding / Antler rubbing

  • Long lines of shredded or peeled off bark along main trunk up to 3 feet off the ground from antler rubbing. Wood may appear shiny or "polished"
  • Leaves and small branches (>1 inch in diameter) cut off with a rough or ragged edge (Not a clean cut!)
  • Feeding occurs from the ground up to 6 feet or slightly higher. Ragged edges, same as above, also if the bark is removed by a deer there will be no sign of teeth marks
  • More information on Deer Feeding/Antler Rubbing...
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  • Image: Woodpeckers, bark removed
    Credit: Art Wagner, Bugwood.org
  • Image: Woodpeckers, bark up close

    Credit: Steve Katovich, Bugwood.org

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green arrowWoodpeckers

  • Holes are roundish and range in size from 1/4 to 1/2 inch
  • Larger holes, 1 1/2 or more inches may be nesting holes and suggest softer heartwood inside the tree
  • Bark often removed around holes
  • Woodpecker probing may indicate presence of wood boring insects under bark
  • Repetitive tapping or drumming heard
  • Birds of varying black and white patterns, often with some red, seen tapping on trees
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  • Image: Vole feeding, plant trunk up close 1
    Credit: J. Albers, Bugwood.org
  • Image: Vole feeding, plant trunk up close 2

    Credit: M. Ostry, Bugwood.org

  • Image: Voles in dark

    Credit: M. Ostry, Bugwood.org

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green arrowVole feeding

  • Bark is completely removed from the main trunk in irregular patches
  • Scraping the size of a fork tine can be seen in exposed wood
  • Damage occurs during winter from the ground level up to winter snow depth
  • More information on Vole Feeding...

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