Tuesday, November 09, 2010

BRITISH COLUMBIA NEWS: Sidney Island Deer Cull to Expand

There are currently 1100-1200 fallow deer on this 1000 ha island, or 11-12 times as many as the island can support over the long term.

[The] Sallas [Forest Strata Corporation], a group of private landowners with property on the opposite side of the island from the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve, completed their second fallow deer cull last month, using a mobile meat processor and specially designed dark rooms to keep the deer calm.

Now Parks Canada, which has already provided staff and in-kind support for the cull, is hoping to expand the corral and cull system to the park area.

The population of Mediterranean fallow deer was introduced in the 1920s and, despite 30 years of trying to check the population through First Nations hunting, commercial hunting and shipments to deer farms, the animals have continued to ravage underbrush and eat newly planted trees.

Source: Vancouver Sun