Fraxinus excelsior damaged by deer

Two planted ash trees, Fraxinus exclesior, photographed in 2013 on the Morvern peninsula, Western Scotland. The original saplings were planted inside a tubular tree guard in 2006. The tree guards ( offwhite ) are made of plastic and perforated, so that as the girth of the tree expands over time, the guard splits open. The top of each 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 trees have made no significant growth above the top of the guard, and have little prospect of becoming established as full-grown specimens.