Fraxinus excelsior damaged by deer

A young ash tree, Fraxinus exclesior, photographed in 2013 on the Morvern peninsula, Western Scotland. The original sapling was planted inside a tubular tree guard in 2006. The tree guard ( greenish hue) is made of plastic and perforated (to left ), so that as the girth of the tree expands over time, the guard splits open. The top of the guard is about 1.2m above ground level. Western Scotland has a large population of wild red deer ( Cervus elaphus ), which are a threat to newly planted trees due to their grazing of young shoots. The picture illustrates the result of continuous damage caused by deer over a period of seven years. Each season, new shoots that emerge from the top of the guard have been eaten by deer.The tree has made only small amount of growth above the top of the guard, and has little prospect of establishing itself as a full-grown specimen.