BY ANITA MANNING
USA TODAY
Ah, summer. Time to get out of the house and into nature. And time to start watching for the tiny deer ticks that carry Lyme disease, says medical entomologist Richard Falco of Fordham University.
June and July are the peak season for Lyme disease because ticks are in their nymphal stage and are most active. Reporter Anita Manning interviews Falco and other experts who offer basic information on Lyme disease, a potentially dangerous illness:
Q: How do people get the disease?
A: The bacterium is transmitted by the bite of infected blacklegged ticks, also called deer ticks. It is not known to pass from one person to another, from a pet to a person, through blood transfusion or by eating infected deer or squirrels.
Q: Is the disease a concern only in the summer?
A: Lyme disease is reported year-round, but the majority of cases occur in the summer. The disease has been reported in nearly every state. About 20,000 cases are reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention each year, a national average of nearly seven cases per 100,000. But in the 12 states where it is most common, the average was just over 27 per 100,000.
Q: What should I do to protect myself and my family?
A: If possible, avoid woods and tall grass. If not, the CDC advises using bug repellent containing DEET and doing frequent body checks. The nymphal ticks are tiny, about the size of a poppy seed, so it's important to look carefully, particularly on legs, arms and groin.
About 70 percent of Lyme disease infections are acquired around the home. "If you live in an urban area and go to the park once a month, you're likely be more diligent," Falco says. "But if you live in an area where there are ticks and there's risk just walking to the mailbox, it's difficult to take these precautions day in and day out."
Q: What can I can do around the house and yard to get rid of ticks?
A: Ticks need high humidity to survive, so remove leaf litter, keep grass short and cut back underbrush. In regions of high infestation, such as the Northeast, "chemical control is probably the least difficult and most effective way to control ticks in the suburban environment," Falco says. Spraying an insecticide in early June and again in the fall is "optimal."
Q: What are the symptoms, and how is the disease treated?
A: Symptoms vary, but about 70 percent of people develop a circular rash at the site of the bite after three to 30 days. The rash expands over days to as large as a foot in diameter, developing a bull's-eye appearance. Patients also have chills, fever, headache, fatigue, muscle and joint aches and swollen lymph nodes. Prompt treatment with antibiotics resolves most cases, but some people continue to have symptoms for months or years. Untreated, it can lead to chronic illnesses, including arthritis and neurological problems.
Q: Can my pets get it?
A: Dogs are very susceptible and can pick up ticks easily because they're low to the ground and love to roll around in grasses. Ticks apparently aren't as attracted to cats, so they're less vulnerable, says veterinarian Richard Ford of the College of Veterinary Medicine at North Carolina State University.
A dog carrying ticks poses a threat not only to itself but also to humans in the house. "The dog moved out of the doghouse a long time ago. People are sleeping with their pets," Ford says. Pet owners should apply topical tick repellent every month, and in areas where Lyme disease is common, dogs should be vaccinated each year.
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
SASKATCHEWAN NEWS: 11,193 deer-vehicle accidents in 2005
Regina and Saskatoon drivers need to slow down and save a buck.
Darrell Crabbe, executive director of the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation (SWF), said the highest number of vehicle-deer collisions occur near the two cities. "You can probably draw a circle 40 miles around both of those centres and that will be your highest collision area," Crabbe said Tuesday.
This is due to a combination of increased traffic and a high deer population in the two areas. Crabbe said the deer have climatized to the region and, combined with very little hunting pressure on the animals, that has resulted in an increased deer population.
Although the SWF is concerned with saving the animals from danger, the Slow Down and Save a Buck campaign is aimed at saving human lives.
"It is the human life and human injury that we are trying to eliminate," said Crabbe.
Last year three people lost their lives in collisions with deer and another 205 were injured. There was a reported 11,193 vehicle collisions with deer in 2005, up from 8,055 in 2000. SGI paid out more than $28 million in claims last year alone.
Darrell Crabbe, executive director of the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation (SWF), said the highest number of vehicle-deer collisions occur near the two cities. "You can probably draw a circle 40 miles around both of those centres and that will be your highest collision area," Crabbe said Tuesday.
This is due to a combination of increased traffic and a high deer population in the two areas. Crabbe said the deer have climatized to the region and, combined with very little hunting pressure on the animals, that has resulted in an increased deer population.
Although the SWF is concerned with saving the animals from danger, the Slow Down and Save a Buck campaign is aimed at saving human lives.
"It is the human life and human injury that we are trying to eliminate," said Crabbe.
Last year three people lost their lives in collisions with deer and another 205 were injured. There was a reported 11,193 vehicle collisions with deer in 2005, up from 8,055 in 2000. SGI paid out more than $28 million in claims last year alone.
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
IOWA NEWS: Too many deer in Ames
DES MOINES, Iowa -- Ames homeowners said they want the City Council to allow deer hunting within the city limits. An aerial count earlier this year found large numbers of deer in residential areas. Homeowners said they are getting tired of watching the animals destroy their back yards.
Debbie Gitchell said she watched deer eat away all the shrubs and plants in her back yard. Now, she fills her flowerbeds with plants that deer won't find tempting to eat.
"One in particular is bleeding heart. It's a native woodland plant in Iowa and it's poison to the deer, so I just keep planting bleeding heart," Gitchell said.
Gitchell said deer generally find plenty to eat in a nearby park during the summer and don't venture into her neighborhood. Deer can still be spotted early in the morning or late evening hours and especially in the winter.
"I think when you first see these specimens of wildlife in your yard it's, 'Oh, is that wonderful,' but they do bring with them some definite negatives," Gitchell said.
Gitchell and other residents are recommending a bow-hunting season within the city to bring the deep population down.
She said the population has grown so large it's becoming dangerous to people in the community. "We have a few deer that had … entered into homes when they were spooked or startled and broke into deck windows, so again, that's a human health and safety issue," Lavender said.
The Ames City Council is not expected to take any action on this issue Tuesday night.
Several other Iowa communities have similar bow-hunting seasons and that's helped get the population under control.
Debbie Gitchell said she watched deer eat away all the shrubs and plants in her back yard. Now, she fills her flowerbeds with plants that deer won't find tempting to eat.
"One in particular is bleeding heart. It's a native woodland plant in Iowa and it's poison to the deer, so I just keep planting bleeding heart," Gitchell said.
Gitchell said deer generally find plenty to eat in a nearby park during the summer and don't venture into her neighborhood. Deer can still be spotted early in the morning or late evening hours and especially in the winter.
"I think when you first see these specimens of wildlife in your yard it's, 'Oh, is that wonderful,' but they do bring with them some definite negatives," Gitchell said.
Gitchell and other residents are recommending a bow-hunting season within the city to bring the deep population down.
She said the population has grown so large it's becoming dangerous to people in the community. "We have a few deer that had … entered into homes when they were spooked or startled and broke into deck windows, so again, that's a human health and safety issue," Lavender said.
The Ames City Council is not expected to take any action on this issue Tuesday night.
Several other Iowa communities have similar bow-hunting seasons and that's helped get the population under control.
Friday, June 16, 2006
MICHIGAN OPINION: Sometimes Aggressive Deer Management Necessary
Bruce Bischoff, Outdoor Columnist for the Record-Eagle (northern LP) writes:
It took exactly one night last week for the deer to discover my dad's tomato seedlings and nip them in the bud.
He didn't have his electric fence up because last year he didn't have any trouble with deer, and because local folklore insisted that there weren't any deer in our area any more after years of liberal doe permits and other DNR mismanagement.
Based on personal observations and conversations with adjoining landowners, I wasn't so sure. And sure enough, after last hunting season, the deer slowly began to come out of the woodwork — not as many, perhaps, as there were 20 years ago, but enough to continue the species.
But another species came out in even more force than whitetails over the winter: hunterrus irateus. Petitions demanding that the DNR do something to build the deer herd back up sprouted in nearly every convenience store. Sportsmen's club meetings got heated. "We want our deer back," was the angry refrain.
It's true that deer populations and harvests have been down in the northern Lower Peninsula for the last couple of years. It's a management campaign that was undertaken for several reasons — to severely cull the herd in the bovine TB-infested areas, to bring the herd more into line with the carrying capacity of the range, and to attempt to modify the extremely lopsided buck-doe ratio of years past. Others might say it was a reaction to political pressure from agricultural interests and auto insurers. Or it might be all of the above.
The DNR's first step to address bovine TB — eliminating baiting — raised a firestorm of protest from hunters and retailers throughout the north, and under heavy political pressure was scaled back to the point of being almost irrelevant.
If there's one thing I've learned from a lifetime of hunting in northern Michigan, it's that pretty much anybody with a blaze orange hat considers himself a game manager of far greater skill and insight than your average professional wildlife biologist. If there's a problem, real or perceived, they have the answer, and they're certain about it. Very certain.
I'll admit I was a bit leery of the changes several years ago, but as they took hold my hunting actually got better. I didn't see as many deer, but I saw more bucks and actually harvested a couple of decent ones. So I hunted patiently and didn't complain.
But apparently a lot of hunters are in a complaining mood now. To address the issue, the DNR is holding meetings with hunters like one scheduled at West Branch this Saturday to outline proposed reductions in doe permits.
Now, I'll admit that doe permits have gotten out of hand at times. Nobody really needs one tag per day.
But I'm not to keen on going back to the days when I would see a dozen or 15 deer every day of the season and never a single set of horns. There were simply so many does available that the bucks didn't need to move around to find them.
There's no question that does need to be managed along with bucks to maintain a healthy herd. The problem is coming to a consensus that everyone can live with.
If it were my choice, the major change I'd make to deer regulations would be the elimination of the second buck license. Hunters who know they only have one shot are going to think twice before taking a small buck. I think a lot of spikes and forks would survive the season and have a chance to grow into decent bucks in the second year.
Or how about a two-tag license, one buck and one doe, where appropriate? Or even a license like a scratch-off lottery ticket, where you might get either a buck tag or a doe tag? Indulge me; I've got a blaze orange hat, too.
For many years I thought of the balance of nature as kind of a finely tuned gyroscope just humming along with no need or intervention or correction from us puny humans. But in recent years I've become convinced that it's a lot more like a teeter-totter, with the weight of species frequently sliding from one end to the other, and we may have to apply a light, judicious hand now and then.
It took exactly one night last week for the deer to discover my dad's tomato seedlings and nip them in the bud.
He didn't have his electric fence up because last year he didn't have any trouble with deer, and because local folklore insisted that there weren't any deer in our area any more after years of liberal doe permits and other DNR mismanagement.
Based on personal observations and conversations with adjoining landowners, I wasn't so sure. And sure enough, after last hunting season, the deer slowly began to come out of the woodwork — not as many, perhaps, as there were 20 years ago, but enough to continue the species.
But another species came out in even more force than whitetails over the winter: hunterrus irateus. Petitions demanding that the DNR do something to build the deer herd back up sprouted in nearly every convenience store. Sportsmen's club meetings got heated. "We want our deer back," was the angry refrain.
It's true that deer populations and harvests have been down in the northern Lower Peninsula for the last couple of years. It's a management campaign that was undertaken for several reasons — to severely cull the herd in the bovine TB-infested areas, to bring the herd more into line with the carrying capacity of the range, and to attempt to modify the extremely lopsided buck-doe ratio of years past. Others might say it was a reaction to political pressure from agricultural interests and auto insurers. Or it might be all of the above.
The DNR's first step to address bovine TB — eliminating baiting — raised a firestorm of protest from hunters and retailers throughout the north, and under heavy political pressure was scaled back to the point of being almost irrelevant.
If there's one thing I've learned from a lifetime of hunting in northern Michigan, it's that pretty much anybody with a blaze orange hat considers himself a game manager of far greater skill and insight than your average professional wildlife biologist. If there's a problem, real or perceived, they have the answer, and they're certain about it. Very certain.
I'll admit I was a bit leery of the changes several years ago, but as they took hold my hunting actually got better. I didn't see as many deer, but I saw more bucks and actually harvested a couple of decent ones. So I hunted patiently and didn't complain.
But apparently a lot of hunters are in a complaining mood now. To address the issue, the DNR is holding meetings with hunters like one scheduled at West Branch this Saturday to outline proposed reductions in doe permits.
Now, I'll admit that doe permits have gotten out of hand at times. Nobody really needs one tag per day.
But I'm not to keen on going back to the days when I would see a dozen or 15 deer every day of the season and never a single set of horns. There were simply so many does available that the bucks didn't need to move around to find them.
There's no question that does need to be managed along with bucks to maintain a healthy herd. The problem is coming to a consensus that everyone can live with.
If it were my choice, the major change I'd make to deer regulations would be the elimination of the second buck license. Hunters who know they only have one shot are going to think twice before taking a small buck. I think a lot of spikes and forks would survive the season and have a chance to grow into decent bucks in the second year.
Or how about a two-tag license, one buck and one doe, where appropriate? Or even a license like a scratch-off lottery ticket, where you might get either a buck tag or a doe tag? Indulge me; I've got a blaze orange hat, too.
For many years I thought of the balance of nature as kind of a finely tuned gyroscope just humming along with no need or intervention or correction from us puny humans. But in recent years I've become convinced that it's a lot more like a teeter-totter, with the weight of species frequently sliding from one end to the other, and we may have to apply a light, judicious hand now and then.
Thursday, June 15, 2006
ARKANSAS NEWS; Community votes in favor of cull
Randy Kemp recently writes in The Sun Times:
It was something over a year ago that we used this space to encourage the Heber Springs city council members to consider a supervised bow hunt inside the city limits to thin the burgeoning deer population. The suggestion came after hearing lots of anecdotal stories - many of them - about the increasing nuisance: sides of cars dented in (dents that look like they should cost $100 that end up costing $2300); flowers and shrubbery eaten; fences bent and damaged...
The broken bones and totaled motorcycle which Yours Truly suffered when an errant buck collided with the motorcycle on Hwy 5 didn’t even figure into it, since that happened on a state highway six or seven miles south of town.
Obviously we at the newspaper weren’t the only ones hearing - or experiencing firsthand - these stories. The idea found favor at the coffee shops, and in water fountain conversations at local businesses, and front porch conversations around town, and equally important, down at city hall.
The mayor and council, recognizing this as a controversial subject, decided to put it to a vote, after discussing it and gathering real data from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and other sources over the period of many months. They wisely took long to debate the merits, remaining sensitive to those citizens who love to watch the local deer slipping through their back yards at dusk and again at dawn, often with spotted fawns in tow during the season for baby deer.
And those citizens, those who will still cringe at the seeming viciousness of a bow hunt this fall, had good representation on the city council. That much was evidenced during the several votes the council took as the idea advanced. Even last Thursday night, three of the eight aldermen voted against the first readings of an ordinance that would prohibit feeding of deer in the city limits. At the final reading, one changed his vote to a yes, but it was still a quarter of the council that voted their own consciences and those of a good number of their constituents with their “No” votes.
But in the end, a public vote among all the citizens of Heber Springs confirmed what we suspected and started kicking around well over a year ago - the deer represent a bigger problem than the quaintness of their presence, and pose a problem that needs to be dealt with.
The council continues to ease into the limited deer hunt with discretion, agreeing to let the Game and Fish Commission run the hunt. Those folks will do a good job overseeing the hunt, both from fairness in awarding permits, certifying safety standards for hunters, and making sure the whole thing is carried out safely.
We know of no one who takes pleasure in injuring or maiming any deer. But the statistics for such supervised bow hunts are fairly impressive. We believed, and continue to trust, that this is a partial answer to a big problem for our growing but still very rural community, where the woods grow right into many of the neighborhoods. We also applaud the city council for its decision Thursday to prohibit their feeding. Hopefully that will send some of them back to the woods and out of local flower beds and gardens and roadways.
It was something over a year ago that we used this space to encourage the Heber Springs city council members to consider a supervised bow hunt inside the city limits to thin the burgeoning deer population. The suggestion came after hearing lots of anecdotal stories - many of them - about the increasing nuisance: sides of cars dented in (dents that look like they should cost $100 that end up costing $2300); flowers and shrubbery eaten; fences bent and damaged...
The broken bones and totaled motorcycle which Yours Truly suffered when an errant buck collided with the motorcycle on Hwy 5 didn’t even figure into it, since that happened on a state highway six or seven miles south of town.
Obviously we at the newspaper weren’t the only ones hearing - or experiencing firsthand - these stories. The idea found favor at the coffee shops, and in water fountain conversations at local businesses, and front porch conversations around town, and equally important, down at city hall.
The mayor and council, recognizing this as a controversial subject, decided to put it to a vote, after discussing it and gathering real data from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and other sources over the period of many months. They wisely took long to debate the merits, remaining sensitive to those citizens who love to watch the local deer slipping through their back yards at dusk and again at dawn, often with spotted fawns in tow during the season for baby deer.
And those citizens, those who will still cringe at the seeming viciousness of a bow hunt this fall, had good representation on the city council. That much was evidenced during the several votes the council took as the idea advanced. Even last Thursday night, three of the eight aldermen voted against the first readings of an ordinance that would prohibit feeding of deer in the city limits. At the final reading, one changed his vote to a yes, but it was still a quarter of the council that voted their own consciences and those of a good number of their constituents with their “No” votes.
But in the end, a public vote among all the citizens of Heber Springs confirmed what we suspected and started kicking around well over a year ago - the deer represent a bigger problem than the quaintness of their presence, and pose a problem that needs to be dealt with.
The council continues to ease into the limited deer hunt with discretion, agreeing to let the Game and Fish Commission run the hunt. Those folks will do a good job overseeing the hunt, both from fairness in awarding permits, certifying safety standards for hunters, and making sure the whole thing is carried out safely.
We know of no one who takes pleasure in injuring or maiming any deer. But the statistics for such supervised bow hunts are fairly impressive. We believed, and continue to trust, that this is a partial answer to a big problem for our growing but still very rural community, where the woods grow right into many of the neighborhoods. We also applaud the city council for its decision Thursday to prohibit their feeding. Hopefully that will send some of them back to the woods and out of local flower beds and gardens and roadways.
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
MARYLAND NEWS: Battling Lyme in the 'Burbs
The Segal family of North Potomac once considered their expansive backyard, with its swimming pool and wooden playhouse, as a bit of paradise.
But after both Dan and Mimi Segal and three of their four children fell seriously ill due to Lyme disease caused by deer tick bites, it seems more like enemy territory.
‘‘We used to think of our backyard as another room in our house but we don’t go out there much anymore,” said Mimi Segal.
Not since 2000, when the disease known as the ‘‘great masquerader” because it mimics other disorders, began to put the family through a nightmare of symptoms.
‘‘My son Sam is 17 and should be having fun selecting the college of his choice, but he’s had to pick one based on the distance to his Lyme disease doctor,” Mimi Segal said. ‘‘Who knew sitting in your backyard could be a high risk activity?”
That’s why Mimi Segal has talked about the problem at area PTAs and civic associations since last fall. And now she and her husband are kicking off their newly named effort, ‘‘Montgomery County Tick Reduction Program,” in their own neighborhood of 18 years, Potomac Chase Estates.
Working with their HOA, they plan to install deer feeding stations filled with corn throughout the heavily wooded community of 70 homes on about 160 acres.
As deer poke their heads into the boxes to feed, rollers apply a tick-killing pesticide called ‘‘permithrin” to their necks.
‘‘It’s a very low dose, but it goes directly to the tick-infested neck and head and kills adult [tick] females,” she said.
They also want to place ‘‘tick tubes,” biodegradable toilet paper-like tubes filled with permithrin-soaked cotton, around the neighborhood. The tubes attract mice, the disease carriers responsible for infecting ticks with the bacteria.
Statewide reporting of confirmed cases showed a 39 percent increase from 2004 to 2005, according to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
The Segals believe their neighborhood is ‘‘hot spot” for the disease due to the herds of deer roaming their wooded streets.
But they agree with Rob Gibson, natural resource manager for Montgomery County, that killing off deer herds is not the answer.
‘‘Deer are probably responsible for spreading the disease into new areas, but once it’s there, the ticks can live on a variety of other hosts,” Gibson said.
But after both Dan and Mimi Segal and three of their four children fell seriously ill due to Lyme disease caused by deer tick bites, it seems more like enemy territory.
‘‘We used to think of our backyard as another room in our house but we don’t go out there much anymore,” said Mimi Segal.
Not since 2000, when the disease known as the ‘‘great masquerader” because it mimics other disorders, began to put the family through a nightmare of symptoms.
‘‘My son Sam is 17 and should be having fun selecting the college of his choice, but he’s had to pick one based on the distance to his Lyme disease doctor,” Mimi Segal said. ‘‘Who knew sitting in your backyard could be a high risk activity?”
That’s why Mimi Segal has talked about the problem at area PTAs and civic associations since last fall. And now she and her husband are kicking off their newly named effort, ‘‘Montgomery County Tick Reduction Program,” in their own neighborhood of 18 years, Potomac Chase Estates.
Working with their HOA, they plan to install deer feeding stations filled with corn throughout the heavily wooded community of 70 homes on about 160 acres.
As deer poke their heads into the boxes to feed, rollers apply a tick-killing pesticide called ‘‘permithrin” to their necks.
‘‘It’s a very low dose, but it goes directly to the tick-infested neck and head and kills adult [tick] females,” she said.
They also want to place ‘‘tick tubes,” biodegradable toilet paper-like tubes filled with permithrin-soaked cotton, around the neighborhood. The tubes attract mice, the disease carriers responsible for infecting ticks with the bacteria.
Statewide reporting of confirmed cases showed a 39 percent increase from 2004 to 2005, according to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
The Segals believe their neighborhood is ‘‘hot spot” for the disease due to the herds of deer roaming their wooded streets.
But they agree with Rob Gibson, natural resource manager for Montgomery County, that killing off deer herds is not the answer.
‘‘Deer are probably responsible for spreading the disease into new areas, but once it’s there, the ticks can live on a variety of other hosts,” Gibson said.
Thursday, June 01, 2006
PENNSYLVANIA NEWS: Urban deer management plan unveiled
from PR Newswire: In achieving another objective in its deer management plan, the Pennsylvania Game Commission has finalized its urban/suburban deer management plan to more effectively manage deer in developed areas of the state. This new plan has been posted on the agency's website (http://www.pgc.state.pa.us), and can be viewed by clicking on "Deer Program" in the "Quick Clicks" box in the upper right-hand corner of the homepage and then selecting "Urban/Suburban Deer Management Plan."
"Human-deer conflicts are a real, not just a perceived, problem," said Carl G. Roe, Game Commission executive director. "Pennsylvania primarily manages deer through hunting, but hunter success, especially in developed areas, is influenced by hunter access to land open to hunting and safety zone issues.
"The use of traditional hunting methods are always the most economical way to manage deer, and this plan employs traditional deer management techniques. However, it also offers non-traditional deer management approaches, as well as an educational program that incorporates current practices and possible solutions into an integrated, comprehensive approach to resolve urban/suburban deer problems."
Roe noted that, due to the agency's limited financial resources, it would take time to implement all the strategies in the plan.
Although white-tailed deer provide many Pennsylvanians countless hours of recreational opportunities and enjoyment, are important to the state's economy, and are officially recognized as the Commonwealth's "state animal," Roe noted that they can wear out their welcome quickly when they begin stripping vegetation in yards and become obstacles on city and suburban streets.
The plan outlines four main goals: reduce deer impacts in developed areas using hunting options; reduce deer-human conflicts using non-hunting options where hunting options are shown to not be feasible or sufficient; inform urban leadership, residents, and hunters about deer management options and opportunities in developed areas; and encourage positive relationships between hunters and communities in developed areas.
"Human-deer conflicts are a real, not just a perceived, problem," said Carl G. Roe, Game Commission executive director. "Pennsylvania primarily manages deer through hunting, but hunter success, especially in developed areas, is influenced by hunter access to land open to hunting and safety zone issues.
"The use of traditional hunting methods are always the most economical way to manage deer, and this plan employs traditional deer management techniques. However, it also offers non-traditional deer management approaches, as well as an educational program that incorporates current practices and possible solutions into an integrated, comprehensive approach to resolve urban/suburban deer problems."
Roe noted that, due to the agency's limited financial resources, it would take time to implement all the strategies in the plan.
Although white-tailed deer provide many Pennsylvanians countless hours of recreational opportunities and enjoyment, are important to the state's economy, and are officially recognized as the Commonwealth's "state animal," Roe noted that they can wear out their welcome quickly when they begin stripping vegetation in yards and become obstacles on city and suburban streets.
The plan outlines four main goals: reduce deer impacts in developed areas using hunting options; reduce deer-human conflicts using non-hunting options where hunting options are shown to not be feasible or sufficient; inform urban leadership, residents, and hunters about deer management options and opportunities in developed areas; and encourage positive relationships between hunters and communities in developed areas.
IOWA NEWS: Confirmed cougar kill of deer
DES MOINES, Iowa A mountain lion is back in Iowa.
State biologists have confirmed a mountain lion killed a deer in Marshall County. It's the first sign of a big cat in Iowa since October 2004.
The deer was found on Tuesday near Bangor. Rick Trine of the Iowa Department of Natural Resource says the deer had claw marks on its hind quarters and neck, and puncture wounds to the neck and head.
Trine says the deer only had three legs -- from an old injury -- and it was probably easy prey.
According to the DNR, there have been two mountain lions shot, one killed on the road, one photographed in the same general area as the Marshall County cat, and six confirmed tracks.
State biologists have confirmed a mountain lion killed a deer in Marshall County. It's the first sign of a big cat in Iowa since October 2004.
The deer was found on Tuesday near Bangor. Rick Trine of the Iowa Department of Natural Resource says the deer had claw marks on its hind quarters and neck, and puncture wounds to the neck and head.
Trine says the deer only had three legs -- from an old injury -- and it was probably easy prey.
According to the DNR, there have been two mountain lions shot, one killed on the road, one photographed in the same general area as the Marshall County cat, and six confirmed tracks.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
IOWA NEWS: 2005 Season A Record Harvest
State wildlife officials said Tuesday that hunters have made a record dent in Iowa's deer population.
A recently compiled deer hunting survey estimates 17,000 more whitetail deer — 210,000 — were killed during the fall and winter deer hunting seasons of 2005-2006 than in the previous season.
"This is one of those times that what we planned to accomplish and what happened were the same thing," said deer biologist Willie Suchy with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
In the last few years, pressure from Iowa legislators prompted natural resources officials to increase the number of antlerless-only deer hunting licenses, targeted mostly at female deer, available. Legislators were responding to complaints from the state's insurance industry and the public because of increased vehicle-deer accidents, and from farmers who said deer were destroying their crops.
State biologists have estimated Iowa's deer kill is up from approximately 193,000 the previous hunting season. As a result, there will be fewer antlerless deer licenses offered for the 2006-2007 seasons.
"The proposal that goes to the Natural Resources Commission next week will reduce antlerless deer quotas in north-central and northwest Iowa," Suchy said. "In southern Iowa, it looks like the harvest started to bring deer numbers down and began to level them off. If we can do that for a couple of years, we will see deer numbers reduced enough in southern Iowa."
Northeast Iowa still has a higher-than-wanted population in some areas, officials said.
A recently compiled deer hunting survey estimates 17,000 more whitetail deer — 210,000 — were killed during the fall and winter deer hunting seasons of 2005-2006 than in the previous season.
"This is one of those times that what we planned to accomplish and what happened were the same thing," said deer biologist Willie Suchy with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
In the last few years, pressure from Iowa legislators prompted natural resources officials to increase the number of antlerless-only deer hunting licenses, targeted mostly at female deer, available. Legislators were responding to complaints from the state's insurance industry and the public because of increased vehicle-deer accidents, and from farmers who said deer were destroying their crops.
State biologists have estimated Iowa's deer kill is up from approximately 193,000 the previous hunting season. As a result, there will be fewer antlerless deer licenses offered for the 2006-2007 seasons.
"The proposal that goes to the Natural Resources Commission next week will reduce antlerless deer quotas in north-central and northwest Iowa," Suchy said. "In southern Iowa, it looks like the harvest started to bring deer numbers down and began to level them off. If we can do that for a couple of years, we will see deer numbers reduced enough in southern Iowa."
Northeast Iowa still has a higher-than-wanted population in some areas, officials said.
Uninvited Guests
Tis the season...
CHARLEVOIX, MI - A wayward deer caused damage to a Charlevoix business Friday. Charlevoix deputy police chief Scott Hankins said he was called to the Auto Value store, located at 108 West Carpenter St., at about 5:29 p.m. to a report that a deer had just crashed through a front window at the business and was still running around inside the building. Hankins said the business was open and about four employees were inside at the time of the incident.
GRANITE CITY, MO - Imagine waking up to a 150 pound deer, crashing through your living room window. A Granite City husband and wife wish that would have been a bad dream. Instead, it was part of a frightening reality. The Pulliam family still can't believe what woke them up Saturday morning. It was the sound of glass shattering, and a deer jumping through the front window. The unexpected breakfast guest showed up almost 7:30 in the morning. All 150 pounds of the deer came crashing through the living room.
NORMAL, IL - As officials at Southern Illinois University deal with an angry doe who's been attacking students and staff, authorities in central Illinois are having problems of their own. At a retirement residence in Normal, a woman in her 80s found an uninvited -- and bleeding -- guest in her apartment. A doe had crashed through her bedroom window and bumbled around her apartment, breaking a lamp and an air-conditioning unit. It ended up in her bathtub. Though officials tried to save the deer, it was eventually euthanized. The woman was not injured.
CHARLEVOIX, MI - A wayward deer caused damage to a Charlevoix business Friday. Charlevoix deputy police chief Scott Hankins said he was called to the Auto Value store, located at 108 West Carpenter St., at about 5:29 p.m. to a report that a deer had just crashed through a front window at the business and was still running around inside the building. Hankins said the business was open and about four employees were inside at the time of the incident.
GRANITE CITY, MO - Imagine waking up to a 150 pound deer, crashing through your living room window. A Granite City husband and wife wish that would have been a bad dream. Instead, it was part of a frightening reality. The Pulliam family still can't believe what woke them up Saturday morning. It was the sound of glass shattering, and a deer jumping through the front window. The unexpected breakfast guest showed up almost 7:30 in the morning. All 150 pounds of the deer came crashing through the living room.
NORMAL, IL - As officials at Southern Illinois University deal with an angry doe who's been attacking students and staff, authorities in central Illinois are having problems of their own. At a retirement residence in Normal, a woman in her 80s found an uninvited -- and bleeding -- guest in her apartment. A doe had crashed through her bedroom window and bumbled around her apartment, breaking a lamp and an air-conditioning unit. It ended up in her bathtub. Though officials tried to save the deer, it was eventually euthanized. The woman was not injured.
Monday, May 22, 2006
NEW YORK NEWS: Deer impacts task force formed
A new task force has been formed to deal with issues caused by the burgeoning population of white-tail deer in Westchester, County Parks Commissioner Joseph A. Stout has announced.
The organization, called the Westchester County Forest Regeneration Citizens’ Task Force will be headed by Greenburgh resident William S. Greenawalt. The group will study current research on deer population, including deer counts and other data, to develop a strategy that county parks staff, municipal officials and private property owners can use in the management of deer-related problems. While hunting has always been prohibited in county parks, carefully regulated and monitored deer culling will be discussed as a possible means of reducing the number and size of deer herds.
The task force comprises representatives from a wide range of organizations including The Nature Conservancy, the Humane Society, Audubon New York, Teatown Lake Reservation, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Mianus River Gorge, Pace University Environmental Center and Federated Conservationists of Westchester County.
“If you live in Westchester chances are you’ve been affected by white-tail deer in some way, whether they’ve chewed on your shrubs, or darted out in front of your car at night, or even if you’ve just enjoyed watching them grazing at the edge of a forest,” Stout said. “They’re beautiful to look at but conservation advocates have strongly advised us that deer over-population has a significant negative impact on the health of our forests.”
Stout said that the idea to form a task force on the white-tailed deer was conceived during the Park’s Department’s annual “Conversations on Conservation” conference, a program that brings together public and private conservation advocates and experts, municipal planners and private citizens to discuss and develop solutions to challenging environmental issues. He said the conference made it clear that the white-tail deer today is fairly universally considered nuisance wildlife and that a regional strategy was needed. The conference organizers approached County Executive Andy Spano who endorsed the formation of the task force but at the same time charged the county’s Parks and Planning departments to develop a deer-management program and plan of action to be used in the county parks, to be completed within half a year.
The organization, called the Westchester County Forest Regeneration Citizens’ Task Force will be headed by Greenburgh resident William S. Greenawalt. The group will study current research on deer population, including deer counts and other data, to develop a strategy that county parks staff, municipal officials and private property owners can use in the management of deer-related problems. While hunting has always been prohibited in county parks, carefully regulated and monitored deer culling will be discussed as a possible means of reducing the number and size of deer herds.
The task force comprises representatives from a wide range of organizations including The Nature Conservancy, the Humane Society, Audubon New York, Teatown Lake Reservation, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Mianus River Gorge, Pace University Environmental Center and Federated Conservationists of Westchester County.
“If you live in Westchester chances are you’ve been affected by white-tail deer in some way, whether they’ve chewed on your shrubs, or darted out in front of your car at night, or even if you’ve just enjoyed watching them grazing at the edge of a forest,” Stout said. “They’re beautiful to look at but conservation advocates have strongly advised us that deer over-population has a significant negative impact on the health of our forests.”
Stout said that the idea to form a task force on the white-tailed deer was conceived during the Park’s Department’s annual “Conversations on Conservation” conference, a program that brings together public and private conservation advocates and experts, municipal planners and private citizens to discuss and develop solutions to challenging environmental issues. He said the conference made it clear that the white-tail deer today is fairly universally considered nuisance wildlife and that a regional strategy was needed. The conference organizers approached County Executive Andy Spano who endorsed the formation of the task force but at the same time charged the county’s Parks and Planning departments to develop a deer-management program and plan of action to be used in the county parks, to be completed within half a year.
Friday, May 19, 2006
TENNESSEE NEWS: Deer Attacks Kindergarten
Kindergarten students at Robert E. Lillard Design Center School in Bordeaux had an unexpected visitor to their language arts class Thursday morning when a deer crashed through the room's first-floor window and landed at the foot of the teacher's desk.
At first, teacher Linda Fletcher was shocked and bewildered, but then her instincts kicked in. As the injured deer crawled away from her desk and behind the coat closet, she acted.
"All I could think about was getting away from the hooves and getting the children out," Fletcher said.
Two students suffered minor cuts from flying glass and one complained of chest pain — but the rest of the class was OK after the incident, school officials said.
Five-year-old Marcel Fogg was sitting at a table far away from the deer, which he and his other classmates have named Rudolph, but said he was frightened when the animal broke through the glass and flew over the heads of two classmates sitting beneath the window. "I thought Rudolph was gonna bite me," Marcel said.
Metro Animal Control Services and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency were called to the scene, where they tranquilized the deer and then euthanized it, said Steve Patrick, a TWRA regional manager. The deer had broken and severed its hind legs and probably would have gone into shock if it were not put down, he said. Animal Control officials will run tests to make sure that the animal was not diseased or that there could have been any other cause for its behavior, he said.
But such incidents are not altogether uncommon in Middle Tennessee, Patrick said. It happens once or twice a year — often because of the large deer population that lives in wooded cover so close to urban areas, he said. Sometimes deer get confused and wander into populated areas. Male deer are especially territorial and have been known to charge their own reflections.
At first, teacher Linda Fletcher was shocked and bewildered, but then her instincts kicked in. As the injured deer crawled away from her desk and behind the coat closet, she acted.
"All I could think about was getting away from the hooves and getting the children out," Fletcher said.
Two students suffered minor cuts from flying glass and one complained of chest pain — but the rest of the class was OK after the incident, school officials said.
Five-year-old Marcel Fogg was sitting at a table far away from the deer, which he and his other classmates have named Rudolph, but said he was frightened when the animal broke through the glass and flew over the heads of two classmates sitting beneath the window. "I thought Rudolph was gonna bite me," Marcel said.
Metro Animal Control Services and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency were called to the scene, where they tranquilized the deer and then euthanized it, said Steve Patrick, a TWRA regional manager. The deer had broken and severed its hind legs and probably would have gone into shock if it were not put down, he said. Animal Control officials will run tests to make sure that the animal was not diseased or that there could have been any other cause for its behavior, he said.
But such incidents are not altogether uncommon in Middle Tennessee, Patrick said. It happens once or twice a year — often because of the large deer population that lives in wooded cover so close to urban areas, he said. Sometimes deer get confused and wander into populated areas. Male deer are especially territorial and have been known to charge their own reflections.
ILLINOIS NEWS: When Deer Attack
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Tammy Emery used to think of deer as sweet and adorable, like Bambi. An encounter with a hard-charging doe changed that. The 31-year-old secretary was among at least seven people threatened or injured by female deer last year on Southern Illinois University's campus - attacks that have prompted the school to wage a safety campaign during this spring's fawning season.
The attacks in the woods at the 20,000-student university have been attributed to a combination of protective motherly instinct, squeezed habitat and, in some cases, a little too much human curiosity.
The message now: Keep your eyes peeled for deer, don't approach them, and if a wild-eyed deer starts bounding your way, run.
"Before last year, no one really had heard of this sort of thing," says Clay Nielsen, a wildlife ecologist at the university.
Nielsen believes different deer were responsible for the three attacks that sent Emery and at least three others to the hospital, mostly with minor injuries.
"It wasn't like it was one crazy animal," Nielsen says. But some of the attacks may have been avoided, he thinks, if the victims hadn't committed an absolute no-no: moving in on a fawn to pet it.
Now, with fawning season soon to peak - last year's attacks happened June 7-15 - Nielsen and other campus officials are using signs, radio spots, e-mails and fliers about the deer in Thompson Woods. Later this month, Nielsen will lead a seminar titled "Avoiding Deer-Human Encounters of the Third Kind on Campus."
The effort also includes a two-year study by Nielsen and other researchers to count the deer, pinpoint how the animals affect the campus' ecosystem and gauge what locals think of them. Nielsen says the study will offer no recommendations on what to do about the deer, leaving that difficult issue for administrators.
All of this comes too late for Emery, a secretary in the political science department who still winces when she recounts what happened to her on the June afternoon she took a shortcut through Thompson Woods.
Emery heard a rustling and saw "this deer was headed right toward me, full charge." Emery never saw any fawn, only the adult deer with eyes wide.
"I could tell it was angry, but I wasn't sure what about," she says. "I know by the time I was in the area she was really mad and going to take it all out on me. I couldn't have run if I tried."
In an instant, the deer knocked the woman to the ground and delivered a flurry of kicks. Emery, screaming, curled defensively into a ball as the snorting animal rained blows on her, slicing open one of her ears and leaving her with huge bruises and a hoofprint on her hand.
"I thought, `This is crazy, this can't be real. I'm being attacked by a deer,'" she recalls.
The deer was scared off by passers-by. Emery has not been back in that stretch of the woods since.
While taking a shortcut through the woods this week, Stephanie Eastwood, a biochemistry major, wondered what all the fuss was about, saying deer were the least of her worries.
"Deer are docile creatures - they don't just attack," said Eastwood, 26. "I find it amusing to see the animals in the park, but all I've seen here is squirrels and snakes, and snakes bother me more."
Nielsen suspects various factors conspired in last year's attacks, including an increase in the deer population and the clearing of trees and windbreaks around the campus' edge. That shrinking habitat has forced the animals into Thompson Woods, which is 20 or so acres with hundreds of yards of paved trails.
"It's the result of having a beautiful campus that we have to deal with wildlife," Nielsen says.
Emery says she thinks differently deer these days: "When they're mad, they're vicious. They're not the pretty creatures they were to me before."
The attacks in the woods at the 20,000-student university have been attributed to a combination of protective motherly instinct, squeezed habitat and, in some cases, a little too much human curiosity.
The message now: Keep your eyes peeled for deer, don't approach them, and if a wild-eyed deer starts bounding your way, run.
"Before last year, no one really had heard of this sort of thing," says Clay Nielsen, a wildlife ecologist at the university.
Nielsen believes different deer were responsible for the three attacks that sent Emery and at least three others to the hospital, mostly with minor injuries.
"It wasn't like it was one crazy animal," Nielsen says. But some of the attacks may have been avoided, he thinks, if the victims hadn't committed an absolute no-no: moving in on a fawn to pet it.
Now, with fawning season soon to peak - last year's attacks happened June 7-15 - Nielsen and other campus officials are using signs, radio spots, e-mails and fliers about the deer in Thompson Woods. Later this month, Nielsen will lead a seminar titled "Avoiding Deer-Human Encounters of the Third Kind on Campus."
The effort also includes a two-year study by Nielsen and other researchers to count the deer, pinpoint how the animals affect the campus' ecosystem and gauge what locals think of them. Nielsen says the study will offer no recommendations on what to do about the deer, leaving that difficult issue for administrators.
All of this comes too late for Emery, a secretary in the political science department who still winces when she recounts what happened to her on the June afternoon she took a shortcut through Thompson Woods.
Emery heard a rustling and saw "this deer was headed right toward me, full charge." Emery never saw any fawn, only the adult deer with eyes wide.
"I could tell it was angry, but I wasn't sure what about," she says. "I know by the time I was in the area she was really mad and going to take it all out on me. I couldn't have run if I tried."
In an instant, the deer knocked the woman to the ground and delivered a flurry of kicks. Emery, screaming, curled defensively into a ball as the snorting animal rained blows on her, slicing open one of her ears and leaving her with huge bruises and a hoofprint on her hand.
"I thought, `This is crazy, this can't be real. I'm being attacked by a deer,'" she recalls.
The deer was scared off by passers-by. Emery has not been back in that stretch of the woods since.
While taking a shortcut through the woods this week, Stephanie Eastwood, a biochemistry major, wondered what all the fuss was about, saying deer were the least of her worries.
"Deer are docile creatures - they don't just attack," said Eastwood, 26. "I find it amusing to see the animals in the park, but all I've seen here is squirrels and snakes, and snakes bother me more."
Nielsen suspects various factors conspired in last year's attacks, including an increase in the deer population and the clearing of trees and windbreaks around the campus' edge. That shrinking habitat has forced the animals into Thompson Woods, which is 20 or so acres with hundreds of yards of paved trails.
"It's the result of having a beautiful campus that we have to deal with wildlife," Nielsen says.
Emery says she thinks differently deer these days: "When they're mad, they're vicious. They're not the pretty creatures they were to me before."
Thursday, May 18, 2006
ILLINOIS NEWS: Deer Culling in Chicago Extends Beyond O'Hare
The Chicago Park District plans to seek a permit to kill deer at a North Side nature preserve, and sharpshooters likely will begin thinning the herd this fall. Deer have overrun the North Park Village Nature Center at Pulaski and Peterson. Staff members said Wednesday there is no other choice than "managing" the white-tails' population.
Only one deer was seen there 10 years ago, but at last count, 20 of them now live at the 46-acre preserve. About half are pregnant does, due to give birth in the next few weeks. Deer usually bear twin fawns, "so the number could be doubling this year" -- to 40 -- said center director Claudia Regojo.
State wildlife experts say the acreage is large enough to support only one or two deer. But Regojo said that doesn't mean large numbers must be killed. Staffers will monitor plant loss -- the major reason the deer must go -- to determine how much to reduce the herd. She told center volunteers in a letter last week that "biological diversity" is the goal, "with each organism [plant or animal] carrying equal importance."
Rutting male deer "girdle" and kill trees by rubbing off bark with their antlers. Deer eat native wildflowers and make it hard to get new varieties started.
Public safety is another factor, Regojo said, noting that 12,000 schoolchildren visit in spring and fall. In fall -- mating season -- male deer can be aggressive. In spring, females nursing their young may endanger people who get too close.
A buck charged a man jogging along Bryn Mawr near the nature center last fall. The man wasn't injured. But last spring, two people were hospitalized out of seven who were attacked or threatened by does near the campus of Southern Illinois University in Carbondale.
The state issued 29 deer-culling permits in northern Illinois last winter and turned down none, said Marty Jones, urban deer project manager for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
There is no practical alternative to shooting the animals, Jones said. Relocation risks spreading the chronic wasting disease that deer carry. Newcomer animals must compete with established deer. And the mortality rate is high. "You can't catch enough to achieve your goals," he said.
As for contraception, "It's in its infancy, very experimental," he said.
But Steve Hindi of Geneva, president of SHARK (Showing Animals Respect and Kindness), said, "People who say contraception doesn't work [on deer] tend to be people who just want to shoot them."
For years, sharpshooters have been clearing O'Hare Airport of excess deer, which stray onto runways and taxiways. But using that method at the nature center would be the only other culling of deer ever done within the city limits, said Joel Greenberg, author of A Natural History of the Chicago Region.
Only one deer was seen there 10 years ago, but at last count, 20 of them now live at the 46-acre preserve. About half are pregnant does, due to give birth in the next few weeks. Deer usually bear twin fawns, "so the number could be doubling this year" -- to 40 -- said center director Claudia Regojo.
State wildlife experts say the acreage is large enough to support only one or two deer. But Regojo said that doesn't mean large numbers must be killed. Staffers will monitor plant loss -- the major reason the deer must go -- to determine how much to reduce the herd. She told center volunteers in a letter last week that "biological diversity" is the goal, "with each organism [plant or animal] carrying equal importance."
Rutting male deer "girdle" and kill trees by rubbing off bark with their antlers. Deer eat native wildflowers and make it hard to get new varieties started.
Public safety is another factor, Regojo said, noting that 12,000 schoolchildren visit in spring and fall. In fall -- mating season -- male deer can be aggressive. In spring, females nursing their young may endanger people who get too close.
A buck charged a man jogging along Bryn Mawr near the nature center last fall. The man wasn't injured. But last spring, two people were hospitalized out of seven who were attacked or threatened by does near the campus of Southern Illinois University in Carbondale.
The state issued 29 deer-culling permits in northern Illinois last winter and turned down none, said Marty Jones, urban deer project manager for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
There is no practical alternative to shooting the animals, Jones said. Relocation risks spreading the chronic wasting disease that deer carry. Newcomer animals must compete with established deer. And the mortality rate is high. "You can't catch enough to achieve your goals," he said.
As for contraception, "It's in its infancy, very experimental," he said.
But Steve Hindi of Geneva, president of SHARK (Showing Animals Respect and Kindness), said, "People who say contraception doesn't work [on deer] tend to be people who just want to shoot them."
For years, sharpshooters have been clearing O'Hare Airport of excess deer, which stray onto runways and taxiways. But using that method at the nature center would be the only other culling of deer ever done within the city limits, said Joel Greenberg, author of A Natural History of the Chicago Region.
Monday, May 15, 2006
NEW ZEALAND NEWS: Illegal Deer Introduction Threatens Park
The Department of Conservation says the re-introduction of deer into Egmont National Park is deliberate and could pollute local water supplies and damage forest regeneration.
Deer have been banned from the park since the turn of the century.
DOC's Stratford Area Manager Robert Bennett says it is believed about three deer were dropped into the park deliberately, perhaps by recreational hunters.
But he says the deer is a pest, like the possum, and anyone who is found to have released it could face prosecution.
Mr Bennett says a team of hunters looking for the deer will shoot them before they have a chance to become more widespread.
Deer have been banned from the park since the turn of the century.
DOC's Stratford Area Manager Robert Bennett says it is believed about three deer were dropped into the park deliberately, perhaps by recreational hunters.
But he says the deer is a pest, like the possum, and anyone who is found to have released it could face prosecution.
Mr Bennett says a team of hunters looking for the deer will shoot them before they have a chance to become more widespread.
Sunday, May 14, 2006
NEW YORK NEWS: Lyme Disease Fears Grow on Staten Island
Staten Island has traditionally had a low incidence of Lyme disease. But some worry that more Islanders will get the disease in their back yards due to the borough's growing deer population.
Lyme disease, which is transmitted by the bite of a deer tick, can cause arthritis, fatigue, memory problems, facial paralysis or, at its worst, abnormal heart rhythm and brain infection. It is treatable with antibiotics if caught early.
"Historically, we've had very few cases that have emanated from Staten Island," said Dr. Ernest B. Visconti, chief of infectious diseases at Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn. "It may be coming here in the future."
To raise awareness of the disease, the borough president's office will host a forum at the College of Staten Island on June 20 -- just in time for July 4, one of the busiest days for doctors specializing in Lyme disease.
Ever since deer showed up in the borough about 15 years ago, doctors and environmentalists have been on the lookout for a growth in the incidence of Lyme disease. They have not yet established that the disease is in the borough.
Meanwhile, the deer here have multiplied over the years.
Lyme disease, which is transmitted by the bite of a deer tick, can cause arthritis, fatigue, memory problems, facial paralysis or, at its worst, abnormal heart rhythm and brain infection. It is treatable with antibiotics if caught early.
"Historically, we've had very few cases that have emanated from Staten Island," said Dr. Ernest B. Visconti, chief of infectious diseases at Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn. "It may be coming here in the future."
To raise awareness of the disease, the borough president's office will host a forum at the College of Staten Island on June 20 -- just in time for July 4, one of the busiest days for doctors specializing in Lyme disease.
Ever since deer showed up in the borough about 15 years ago, doctors and environmentalists have been on the lookout for a growth in the incidence of Lyme disease. They have not yet established that the disease is in the borough.
Meanwhile, the deer here have multiplied over the years.
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
PENNSYLVANIA NEWS: Statewide deer impact monitoring to begin
From Penn State's news service (edited for brevity)
A researcher in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences, working under contract with the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), this spring is unveiling a new rapid habitat-assessment tool for state officials to use in measuring the impact of deer browsing on public lands.
Gauging the effects of deer browsing is important because both DCNR and the Pennsylvania Game Commission have stated concern about the condition of the state's forests after decades of suspected overbrowsing by too many white-tailed deer. State officials say that desired tree species, such as red oaks, are not regenerating. The Game Commission is changing its deer-management strategy from simply estimating deer numbers to also assessing forest habitat conditions and deer-herd health.
"Measuring deer impacts on relatively small blocks of forestland is not a new concept, with scientists repeatedly making intensive measurements of tree regeneration," said Duane Diefenbach, adjunct associate professor of wildlife in Penn State's School of Forest Resources and assistant unit leader of the Pennsylvania Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. "But we are entering into uncharted territory here. The question is, can we develop an accurate, cost-effective technique for using these measures across a broad scale to help make management decisions for hundreds of square miles of forest? Except for the Kinzua Quality Deer Cooperative in northwestern Pennsylvania, I am not aware of any study collecting vegetation data directly relevant to deer browsing on such a large scale."
In the coming months, Diefenbach, his colleagues in the School of Forest Resources, and his most dependable students will be walking transects -- with the aid of geographic information system technology -- and counting plants. They will tally wildflowers that deer prefer, such as Canada mayflower, jack in the pulpit, Indian cucumber and trillium. They will count tree seedlings of every species under 3 feet in height, and they will count shrubs and saplings. "We are going to count plant species known to be preferred by deer," he said. "And we will be quantifying the presence of plants such as mountain laurel and ferns that interfere with the regeneration of trees.
"We have tried to choose simple, quantitative measures -- mostly counting plants or recording presence," Diefenbach added. "We will be entering the data on field computers that have built in error-checking routines. Over the course of this summer, we hope to collect data from 3,000 plots over an area of about 500 square miles. The idea is to make this a rapid assessment. We can't afford to take detailed measurements everywhere. We'd like to spend as little as 10 minutes at a site collecting data, and then move on the next site, ultimately covering as large an area as possible."
Merlin Benner, a DCNR wildlife biologist based in Wellsboro, believes the rapid habitat assessment tool being developed by Penn State is important for managing the 2.1 million acres of forestland in the state forest system. "We have all kinds of protocols for monitoring habitat, but they are pretty intensive and they are intended to look at stands of trees to make timber management decisions on plots from 30 to 100 acres," he says. "DMAP is on a larger scale, on the order of tens of thousands of acres. We need a habitat-assessment tool that is more applicable across a broader scale and takes less effort.
"The shortcoming of our other monitoring is that it only focuses on tree species," Benner added. "We (the state Bureau of Forestry) have begun our own browsing surveys and we have done it using the available literature, but we feel there is the potential for something better, and we hope that is provided by Diefenbach's work."
Diefenbach knows that deer management and habitat assessment are extremely controversial in Pennsylvania, with many hunters contending
that the Game Commission and DCNR have lowered deer numbers to unacceptably low levels on public lands. He also understands that angry sportsmen skeptical about valuing trees over deer are likely to second-guess his methods and doubt his data.
"I am not concerned about that -- good habitat is critical for good deer hunting," he said. "I picked the best students I could find, and our methodology is objective, transparent and reliable. I am confident about the quality of the data we are going to collect. We are using the best science available and incorporating measures that scientists have proposed as deer-browsing indicators.
A researcher in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences, working under contract with the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), this spring is unveiling a new rapid habitat-assessment tool for state officials to use in measuring the impact of deer browsing on public lands.
Gauging the effects of deer browsing is important because both DCNR and the Pennsylvania Game Commission have stated concern about the condition of the state's forests after decades of suspected overbrowsing by too many white-tailed deer. State officials say that desired tree species, such as red oaks, are not regenerating. The Game Commission is changing its deer-management strategy from simply estimating deer numbers to also assessing forest habitat conditions and deer-herd health.
"Measuring deer impacts on relatively small blocks of forestland is not a new concept, with scientists repeatedly making intensive measurements of tree regeneration," said Duane Diefenbach, adjunct associate professor of wildlife in Penn State's School of Forest Resources and assistant unit leader of the Pennsylvania Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. "But we are entering into uncharted territory here. The question is, can we develop an accurate, cost-effective technique for using these measures across a broad scale to help make management decisions for hundreds of square miles of forest? Except for the Kinzua Quality Deer Cooperative in northwestern Pennsylvania, I am not aware of any study collecting vegetation data directly relevant to deer browsing on such a large scale."
In the coming months, Diefenbach, his colleagues in the School of Forest Resources, and his most dependable students will be walking transects -- with the aid of geographic information system technology -- and counting plants. They will tally wildflowers that deer prefer, such as Canada mayflower, jack in the pulpit, Indian cucumber and trillium. They will count tree seedlings of every species under 3 feet in height, and they will count shrubs and saplings. "We are going to count plant species known to be preferred by deer," he said. "And we will be quantifying the presence of plants such as mountain laurel and ferns that interfere with the regeneration of trees.
"We have tried to choose simple, quantitative measures -- mostly counting plants or recording presence," Diefenbach added. "We will be entering the data on field computers that have built in error-checking routines. Over the course of this summer, we hope to collect data from 3,000 plots over an area of about 500 square miles. The idea is to make this a rapid assessment. We can't afford to take detailed measurements everywhere. We'd like to spend as little as 10 minutes at a site collecting data, and then move on the next site, ultimately covering as large an area as possible."
Merlin Benner, a DCNR wildlife biologist based in Wellsboro, believes the rapid habitat assessment tool being developed by Penn State is important for managing the 2.1 million acres of forestland in the state forest system. "We have all kinds of protocols for monitoring habitat, but they are pretty intensive and they are intended to look at stands of trees to make timber management decisions on plots from 30 to 100 acres," he says. "DMAP is on a larger scale, on the order of tens of thousands of acres. We need a habitat-assessment tool that is more applicable across a broader scale and takes less effort.
"The shortcoming of our other monitoring is that it only focuses on tree species," Benner added. "We (the state Bureau of Forestry) have begun our own browsing surveys and we have done it using the available literature, but we feel there is the potential for something better, and we hope that is provided by Diefenbach's work."
Diefenbach knows that deer management and habitat assessment are extremely controversial in Pennsylvania, with many hunters contending
that the Game Commission and DCNR have lowered deer numbers to unacceptably low levels on public lands. He also understands that angry sportsmen skeptical about valuing trees over deer are likely to second-guess his methods and doubt his data.
"I am not concerned about that -- good habitat is critical for good deer hunting," he said. "I picked the best students I could find, and our methodology is objective, transparent and reliable. I am confident about the quality of the data we are going to collect. We are using the best science available and incorporating measures that scientists have proposed as deer-browsing indicators.
Monday, May 08, 2006
VIRGINIA NEWS: Group Forms to Fight Declining Deer Population
Deer hunters concerned with a declining deer population on national forest land have created an alliance to increase the presence of the animals.
Myron Reedy, co-founder of the Shenandoah Sportsmen’s Alliance, said Rockingham County needs a group dedicated to improving the habitat for deer.
"It’s a shame to not have enough deer in the forest for hunting," he said. "Hopefully this group will be able to figure out some corrective changes."
For the last five years, the number of deer killed during hunting in Rockingham County has declined. According to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, 5,536 deer were killed in 2000, compared to 4,085 killed in 2005, a 26 percent decrease.
Rodney Mongold, another co-founder of the alliance, worries that future generations will become bored with the outdoors if there is nothing to hunt.
"This is about the children," he said. "I don’t want my kids out on the street or playing video games. But if they get bored being in the outdoors, that’s what they might do."
The concerns of the alliance stem specifically from a decreasing number of deer killed in the George Washington National Forest. According to the game department, 1,050 deer were killed on national forest land in 2000. Last year, 656 were killed, a 38 percent decrease.
"I don’t want to have to drive to Kentucky to get a nice white-tailed deer," Mongold said. "We’re losing tax dollars if no one comes to the state to hunt."
Myron Reedy, co-founder of the Shenandoah Sportsmen’s Alliance, said Rockingham County needs a group dedicated to improving the habitat for deer.
"It’s a shame to not have enough deer in the forest for hunting," he said. "Hopefully this group will be able to figure out some corrective changes."
For the last five years, the number of deer killed during hunting in Rockingham County has declined. According to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, 5,536 deer were killed in 2000, compared to 4,085 killed in 2005, a 26 percent decrease.
Rodney Mongold, another co-founder of the alliance, worries that future generations will become bored with the outdoors if there is nothing to hunt.
"This is about the children," he said. "I don’t want my kids out on the street or playing video games. But if they get bored being in the outdoors, that’s what they might do."
The concerns of the alliance stem specifically from a decreasing number of deer killed in the George Washington National Forest. According to the game department, 1,050 deer were killed on national forest land in 2000. Last year, 656 were killed, a 38 percent decrease.
"I don’t want to have to drive to Kentucky to get a nice white-tailed deer," Mongold said. "We’re losing tax dollars if no one comes to the state to hunt."
Sunday, May 07, 2006
MINNESOTA NEWS: Deer descimate state Scientific & Natural Area
The Department of Natural Resources is proposing a deer kill on an island in Pokegama Lake, where deer have been decimating a rare evergreen bush.
Canadian yew once covered vast areas of Minnesota's northern hardwood forests, but in recent years only a few scraggly stems of the shrubs are found spread across the region.
Logging and clearing for homes left yew shrubs in many area exposed to direct sunlight, which they can't tolerate. On top of that, deer consider yews a delicacy.
A dramatic increase in Minnesota's deer herd has resulted in a further decline in Canadian yew bushes.
In 1992, many yew were found on 28-acre Chisholm Point Island in Cohasset. Old-growth maples shaded the ground, and big yew - in some places as tall as a person - covered nearly half the island.
The state purchased the island and designated it as a state Scientific and Natural Area in 2002.
But deer discovered the yew two years later, when they began wading out to the island and crossing over ice for the first time in memory.
"Back in the 1980s, there were spots so thick with yew that you couldn't walk through it. It was like a rain forest," said Randy McCarty, who lives on the lake near the island. "Now, there are deer trails everywhere where there weren't any.... There are places where the yew is literally gone, wiped out."
Steve Wilson, Scientific and Natural Area specialist for the DNR in northern Minnesota, visited the island in January and discovered deer were decimating the remaining yew. He knew he needed to take action.
"It's amazing how fast it's happened. When I went back this winter, it was much worse than last summer," Wilson said. "If we don't do something right now, we're going to lose it all."
The DNR plans to build fencing around some remaining stands of yew this summer, and plans are in the works to allow bow hunters to kill deer on the island this fall.
The DNR holds a public hearing Tuesday on the deer-hunting plan.
If a public deer hunt doesn't trim herd numbers, the DNR may move to a more intensive special-permit hunt in 2007. The DNR also may allow hunters to shoot more deer in a broader area around Pokegama Lake.
As a last resort, sharpshooters may be called in to trim deer that are frequenting the island, especially during the winter.
Wilson said the effort to save the yew isn't just an ecological issue.
"Remember that it's the related (Pacific) yew that gave us Taxol," Wilson said of the now-famous chemotherapy drug. "We don't want to lose something and then discover what it might have given us."
"If we don't do something right now, we're going to lose it all."
Canadian yew once covered vast areas of Minnesota's northern hardwood forests, but in recent years only a few scraggly stems of the shrubs are found spread across the region.
Logging and clearing for homes left yew shrubs in many area exposed to direct sunlight, which they can't tolerate. On top of that, deer consider yews a delicacy.
A dramatic increase in Minnesota's deer herd has resulted in a further decline in Canadian yew bushes.
In 1992, many yew were found on 28-acre Chisholm Point Island in Cohasset. Old-growth maples shaded the ground, and big yew - in some places as tall as a person - covered nearly half the island.
The state purchased the island and designated it as a state Scientific and Natural Area in 2002.
But deer discovered the yew two years later, when they began wading out to the island and crossing over ice for the first time in memory.
"Back in the 1980s, there were spots so thick with yew that you couldn't walk through it. It was like a rain forest," said Randy McCarty, who lives on the lake near the island. "Now, there are deer trails everywhere where there weren't any.... There are places where the yew is literally gone, wiped out."
Steve Wilson, Scientific and Natural Area specialist for the DNR in northern Minnesota, visited the island in January and discovered deer were decimating the remaining yew. He knew he needed to take action.
"It's amazing how fast it's happened. When I went back this winter, it was much worse than last summer," Wilson said. "If we don't do something right now, we're going to lose it all."
The DNR plans to build fencing around some remaining stands of yew this summer, and plans are in the works to allow bow hunters to kill deer on the island this fall.
The DNR holds a public hearing Tuesday on the deer-hunting plan.
If a public deer hunt doesn't trim herd numbers, the DNR may move to a more intensive special-permit hunt in 2007. The DNR also may allow hunters to shoot more deer in a broader area around Pokegama Lake.
As a last resort, sharpshooters may be called in to trim deer that are frequenting the island, especially during the winter.
Wilson said the effort to save the yew isn't just an ecological issue.
"Remember that it's the related (Pacific) yew that gave us Taxol," Wilson said of the now-famous chemotherapy drug. "We don't want to lose something and then discover what it might have given us."
"If we don't do something right now, we're going to lose it all."
Friday, May 05, 2006
MARYLAND NEWS: Deer SWAT teams in suburban Washington DC
Excerpt from today's Washington Post
"It might sound strange to think of deer SWAT teams in the suburbs," said Norman, 50, a soft-spoken pastor with wire-rimmed glasses. "But if we don't do something pretty soon the deer will be stampeding down the streets."
Desperate to control exploding deer populations, some Washington area communities have turned in recent years to organized hunts -- often by recreational hunters -- to thin the herds. Now they are relying more and more on sharpshooters and police SWAT teams to hunt the animals even in some densely populated neighborhoods.
The District and Fairfax and Montgomery counties --not to mention private citizens -- have hired professional sharpshooters to kill the animals.
Even in an area where development often collides with nature, the rise of the suburban sharpshooter stands out as problematic. But deer control experts say the use of sharpshooters is often a safer or most efficient way to reduce the number of animals in densely populated residential areas.
Earl Hodnett, Fairfax County's wildlife biologist, said the county realized in 1998 that it had to take drastic steps when it found as many as 400 deer per square mile in some parks, more than 20 times the ecologically desirable level. Members of the police SWAT team have been assigned to hunt deer, shooting from the back of an olive drab pickup truck in parks near homes in such places as Great Falls and Clifton.
In Montgomery, which also uses police tactical officers as deer sharpshooters, the number of deer killed in organized hunts in county parks has skyrocketed from 19 in 1999, the year the program began, to 535 this year.
"It might sound strange to think of deer SWAT teams in the suburbs," said Norman, 50, a soft-spoken pastor with wire-rimmed glasses. "But if we don't do something pretty soon the deer will be stampeding down the streets."
Desperate to control exploding deer populations, some Washington area communities have turned in recent years to organized hunts -- often by recreational hunters -- to thin the herds. Now they are relying more and more on sharpshooters and police SWAT teams to hunt the animals even in some densely populated neighborhoods.
The District and Fairfax and Montgomery counties --not to mention private citizens -- have hired professional sharpshooters to kill the animals.
Even in an area where development often collides with nature, the rise of the suburban sharpshooter stands out as problematic. But deer control experts say the use of sharpshooters is often a safer or most efficient way to reduce the number of animals in densely populated residential areas.
Earl Hodnett, Fairfax County's wildlife biologist, said the county realized in 1998 that it had to take drastic steps when it found as many as 400 deer per square mile in some parks, more than 20 times the ecologically desirable level. Members of the police SWAT team have been assigned to hunt deer, shooting from the back of an olive drab pickup truck in parks near homes in such places as Great Falls and Clifton.
In Montgomery, which also uses police tactical officers as deer sharpshooters, the number of deer killed in organized hunts in county parks has skyrocketed from 19 in 1999, the year the program began, to 535 this year.
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