Plumstead, like many communities in Central Bucks, is worried about a deer problem.
On Wednesday, the township's environmental advisory council heard two approaches to addressing the high number of whitetails, which are blamed for traffic accidents, slow reforestation, Lyme disease and crop damage.
Sen. Chuck McIlhinney, a Bucks Republican, touted a state law he helped pass last year that makes it easier for farmers and other property owners to cull deer from their properties year-round.
A Bedminster animal control group pushed a bow hunting program they successfully instituted in Upper Makefield this fall.
The overall message was one that has been heard in many local communities as deer populations have soared amid declining hunting and increasing land preservation.
“We're dealing with a major problem, an epidemic really,” said Tom Lurz, a member of the environmental board.
Before this year, the state allowed farmers to shoot deer throughout the year in order to keep down crop damage on their properties.
Now, farmers and other property owners in the region will be able to appoint two designees who can also bag deer on the land.
McIlhinney, the chairman of the Senate Games and Fisheries Committee, said the new rules recognize the high degree of property damage that is being delivered by deer in Bucks and Montgomery counties. Allowing a designee frees up property owners who may not have the time to address a widespread problem, he said.
Only property owners that can demonstrate deer damage to the state are allowed to participate.
The designees must have hunting licenses and be without game code violations, but they are allowed to shoot seven days a week, can bait and also use rifles, McIlhinney said.
The law change won praise from committee members, as did the archery program offered by Eccologix, which charged Upper Makefield $48,000 to coordinate bow hunting on properties in that township during the sport season.
Jody Maddock, Eccologix's wildlife management director, said the archers were able to bag at least 450 deer on 70 properties. Police, meanwhile, have tallied a 60 percent drop in the number of road-kill reports, he said.
EAC members said a next step for Plumstead may be to query large landowners to see if there is interest for a similar program in the township.
Source: http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/113-02072008-1484034.html
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
NEW JERSEY NEWS: South Mountain Cull Already Eliminates 37 Deer Per Square Mile
The Essex County-sponsored deer hunt at South Mountain Reservation today yielded 17 deer, bringing the total number of deer removed to 119, according to Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo.
The take includes six deer -- four males and two females -- from the morning session and 11 more -- four males and seven females -- from the afternoon, DiVincenzo added.
The 119 deer have been culled from the 2,047-acre reservation since the hunt began Jan. 29. (Rooney notes: 119 deer removed from 2047 acres translates to a 37 deer per square mile reduction). Volunteer sharpshooters working from tree blinds have killed a total of 54 males and 65 female deer on the three days the hunt has been allowed.
The reservation stretches across Millburn, Maplewood, West Orange and South Orange, and the hunt is scheduled to take place on most Tuesdays and Thursdays until Feb. 28. DiVincenzo said the hunt would be suspended Tuesday because of Lincoln's birthday, and the park will be open.
Source: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/02/119_deer_killed_so_far_in_esse.html
The take includes six deer -- four males and two females -- from the morning session and 11 more -- four males and seven females -- from the afternoon, DiVincenzo added.
The 119 deer have been culled from the 2,047-acre reservation since the hunt began Jan. 29. (Rooney notes: 119 deer removed from 2047 acres translates to a 37 deer per square mile reduction). Volunteer sharpshooters working from tree blinds have killed a total of 54 males and 65 female deer on the three days the hunt has been allowed.
The reservation stretches across Millburn, Maplewood, West Orange and South Orange, and the hunt is scheduled to take place on most Tuesdays and Thursdays until Feb. 28. DiVincenzo said the hunt would be suspended Tuesday because of Lincoln's birthday, and the park will be open.
Source: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/02/119_deer_killed_so_far_in_esse.html
WISCONSIN NEWS: Cull in Portage Underway
The total take in Portage's deer-kill program stands at 59, and there are plenty more of the animals still in the area, City Parks, Recreation and Forestry Director Tim Raimer said Tuesday.
Ten deer were killed Friday night, Raimer said, putting the total at 59 since hunters from Spring Green-based Wildlife Specialists started in late December.
Raimer said when hunters arrived at one of the sites Friday, there were a dozen deer standing near a bait pile. Last Friday was the first time hunters had been out since Jan. 11.
The program aims to control an overabundant deer population within city limits. Raimer said the program is having its intended results.
"The people that are against it are mad because there are less deer around. The people who are for it are happy because there are less deer around. The bottom line is, there are less deer around," he said.
The city is more than halfway to the 100 deer it has budgeted to kill. Wildlife Specialists charges $85 per kill at five baiting sites around the city.
When requested by the city, the company sends sharpshooters armed with high-powered rifles, silencers and night-vision equipment to sites in the city, including bait piles near the Parks and Recreation office at 806 Silver Lake Drive, near the Portage airport, and at Collipp-Worden and Woodridge parks.
Gunderson hill near the Rolling Hills Country Estates on the city's northeast side no longer is being hunted.
Raimer said he will discuss the program at tonight's Municipal Services & Utilities Committee meeting. It is not on the agenda, but Raimer gives a department update during the session. The meeting is at 6:30 p.m. at the municipal building.
Common Council member Rick Dodd, chairman of the committee, said he has received almost entirely positive feedback on the program because people notice a difference, especially in the areas near Woodridge and Collipp-Worden parks and the park and rec office.
He said he supported the program because that's what feedback from residents dictated.
"I don't take any personal stock in it right now because they're not bothering my property and I haven't hit any" in my car, he said.
The program restarted in the city after citizens complained that deer were aggressively moving inward into the city limits on private property, destroying vegetation. They also argued that it was a public safety issue for drivers as well as a public-health issue because deer tend to help propagate Lyme disease.
A similar program ran in the city from 1999 to 2002.
Source: http://www.wiscnews.com/pdr/news/271142
Ten deer were killed Friday night, Raimer said, putting the total at 59 since hunters from Spring Green-based Wildlife Specialists started in late December.
Raimer said when hunters arrived at one of the sites Friday, there were a dozen deer standing near a bait pile. Last Friday was the first time hunters had been out since Jan. 11.
The program aims to control an overabundant deer population within city limits. Raimer said the program is having its intended results.
"The people that are against it are mad because there are less deer around. The people who are for it are happy because there are less deer around. The bottom line is, there are less deer around," he said.
The city is more than halfway to the 100 deer it has budgeted to kill. Wildlife Specialists charges $85 per kill at five baiting sites around the city.
When requested by the city, the company sends sharpshooters armed with high-powered rifles, silencers and night-vision equipment to sites in the city, including bait piles near the Parks and Recreation office at 806 Silver Lake Drive, near the Portage airport, and at Collipp-Worden and Woodridge parks.
Gunderson hill near the Rolling Hills Country Estates on the city's northeast side no longer is being hunted.
Raimer said he will discuss the program at tonight's Municipal Services & Utilities Committee meeting. It is not on the agenda, but Raimer gives a department update during the session. The meeting is at 6:30 p.m. at the municipal building.
Common Council member Rick Dodd, chairman of the committee, said he has received almost entirely positive feedback on the program because people notice a difference, especially in the areas near Woodridge and Collipp-Worden parks and the park and rec office.
He said he supported the program because that's what feedback from residents dictated.
"I don't take any personal stock in it right now because they're not bothering my property and I haven't hit any" in my car, he said.
The program restarted in the city after citizens complained that deer were aggressively moving inward into the city limits on private property, destroying vegetation. They also argued that it was a public safety issue for drivers as well as a public-health issue because deer tend to help propagate Lyme disease.
A similar program ran in the city from 1999 to 2002.
Source: http://www.wiscnews.com/pdr/news/271142
OHIO NEWS: Gahanna Culling Operation Enters 15th Year
Gahanna residents harvested 29 deer in Gahanna parks from Sept. 29, 2007, to Feb. 3 and 26 deer on private property as part of the city's Urban Deer Hunting program.
"This is our 15th year," police Chief Dennis Murphy said. "This is the first year that we used private property."
For the first time, the Gahanna Police Department opened the program to private landowners, hoping to help reduce the deer population. Murphy said six property owners participated in this year's program. Twelve landowners volunteered, he said.
Murphy said the police department meets each hunter interested in participating in the program. Every hunter must attend at least one orientation meeting with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the city's animal warden and parks and recreation representatives to be allowed to participate in the program, he said.
This year, Murphy arranged a meeting between the hunters and the private property owners to ensure a good match for the program.
"There were no problems this year," he said.
Property owners interested in participating may have been rejected for a variety of reasons, Murphy said, adding that the city couldn't accept property in the middle of a neighborhood. Those property owners helped identify areas of concern, though.
Murphy said the number of deer-auto collisions and property-damage reports were indicative of a deer-population problem.
One area the police department was unable to access was Columbus Academy property. Murphy said deer often flee from nearby city parks and take refuge there. Numerous accidents have occurred on Cherry Bottom, Morse and Hamilton roads because of deer, he said.
Murphy said although Columbus Academy officials have expressed safety concerns, safety need not be a concern. Hunters use arrows that are shot a short distance to thin the herds, he said.
Columbus Academy headmaster John Mackenzie said the school can't allow hunting because no one is permitted to have weapons on campus.
"We have students here every day of the year - even Saturday and Sunday," he said. "Parents would be concerned if they saw hunting going on, on campus."
Mandy Frint, who heads up the city's Urban Deer Hunting program, said numerous safety precautions are taken, especially for private property. She said 200 people had expressed interest in hunting, but only 50 actually participated.
Murphy said hunters are required to follow hunting rules established by ODNR. Hunting may occur from a half hour before sunrise to a half hour after sunset.
Private landowners supported the idea of having hunters on private property, but they wanted more deer harvested, Murphy said.
"We were very successful this year - our first year," Frint said.
Frint said that by opening the property to private land, the number of deer taken has doubled. She said hunters were a lot more eager to participate in the program, too.
Gahanna landowner Mike Murray participated in the program this year. He, a brother and a nephew are all hunters.
Murray said he was tired of watching deer destroy his apple and peach trees and his blackberries, raspberries and strawberries.
"The deer go in and tear things up," he said. "I would like to see more deer taken. For me they are long legged rats."
Murphy said officials realized last year that a change needed to be made in the program when numbers weren't as high as hoped.
Frint said the city in 2007 had 69 auto accidents caused by deer; most were non-injury to the driver or passenger. In 2006, 79 deer-car collisions were reported, and bow hunters killed only 19 deer.
Although city leaders are looking for large parcels of privately owned land for the hunting program, three contiguous neighbors may volunteer for the program.
"We don't want one neighbor adamant against it," Murphy said.
Murphy said the program also serves as a crime deterrent, Murphy said. Sometimes hunters observe a crime in progress and contact the police department.
An informational meeting will be held on the last Wednesday in August. Interested hunters and landowners should check the city's Web site at www.gahanna.gov for more information.
Source: http://www.thisweeknews.com/?sec=home&story=sites/twn/content/pool/exclusives/2008/february/020508-GHN-News-Deer.html&tab=tab1
"This is our 15th year," police Chief Dennis Murphy said. "This is the first year that we used private property."
For the first time, the Gahanna Police Department opened the program to private landowners, hoping to help reduce the deer population. Murphy said six property owners participated in this year's program. Twelve landowners volunteered, he said.
Murphy said the police department meets each hunter interested in participating in the program. Every hunter must attend at least one orientation meeting with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the city's animal warden and parks and recreation representatives to be allowed to participate in the program, he said.
This year, Murphy arranged a meeting between the hunters and the private property owners to ensure a good match for the program.
"There were no problems this year," he said.
Property owners interested in participating may have been rejected for a variety of reasons, Murphy said, adding that the city couldn't accept property in the middle of a neighborhood. Those property owners helped identify areas of concern, though.
Murphy said the number of deer-auto collisions and property-damage reports were indicative of a deer-population problem.
One area the police department was unable to access was Columbus Academy property. Murphy said deer often flee from nearby city parks and take refuge there. Numerous accidents have occurred on Cherry Bottom, Morse and Hamilton roads because of deer, he said.
Murphy said although Columbus Academy officials have expressed safety concerns, safety need not be a concern. Hunters use arrows that are shot a short distance to thin the herds, he said.
Columbus Academy headmaster John Mackenzie said the school can't allow hunting because no one is permitted to have weapons on campus.
"We have students here every day of the year - even Saturday and Sunday," he said. "Parents would be concerned if they saw hunting going on, on campus."
Mandy Frint, who heads up the city's Urban Deer Hunting program, said numerous safety precautions are taken, especially for private property. She said 200 people had expressed interest in hunting, but only 50 actually participated.
Murphy said hunters are required to follow hunting rules established by ODNR. Hunting may occur from a half hour before sunrise to a half hour after sunset.
Private landowners supported the idea of having hunters on private property, but they wanted more deer harvested, Murphy said.
"We were very successful this year - our first year," Frint said.
Frint said that by opening the property to private land, the number of deer taken has doubled. She said hunters were a lot more eager to participate in the program, too.
Gahanna landowner Mike Murray participated in the program this year. He, a brother and a nephew are all hunters.
Murray said he was tired of watching deer destroy his apple and peach trees and his blackberries, raspberries and strawberries.
"The deer go in and tear things up," he said. "I would like to see more deer taken. For me they are long legged rats."
Murphy said officials realized last year that a change needed to be made in the program when numbers weren't as high as hoped.
Frint said the city in 2007 had 69 auto accidents caused by deer; most were non-injury to the driver or passenger. In 2006, 79 deer-car collisions were reported, and bow hunters killed only 19 deer.
Although city leaders are looking for large parcels of privately owned land for the hunting program, three contiguous neighbors may volunteer for the program.
"We don't want one neighbor adamant against it," Murphy said.
Murphy said the program also serves as a crime deterrent, Murphy said. Sometimes hunters observe a crime in progress and contact the police department.
An informational meeting will be held on the last Wednesday in August. Interested hunters and landowners should check the city's Web site at www.gahanna.gov for more information.
Source: http://www.thisweeknews.com/?sec=home&story=sites/twn/content/pool/exclusives/2008/february/020508-GHN-News-Deer.html&tab=tab1
UTAH NEWS: Severe Weather Leads to State-Sponsored Deer Feeding
Utah wildlife officials are making sure the state's deer get enough to eat.
Throughout northern Utah, animals are starving because of heavy snows this winter. For the first time in several years, the state has activated an emergency feeding program for deer.
Some say the state waited to long to step in and help the deer. Officials waited about a month after the first reports came in to mobilize. Despite the feeding effort, experts predict heavy losses to the population, especially this year's crop of young fawns.
The state is getting help executing the program from concerned groups of hunters. The feeding is expected to go on daily for several weeks.
Source: http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_8164291
Throughout northern Utah, animals are starving because of heavy snows this winter. For the first time in several years, the state has activated an emergency feeding program for deer.
Some say the state waited to long to step in and help the deer. Officials waited about a month after the first reports came in to mobilize. Despite the feeding effort, experts predict heavy losses to the population, especially this year's crop of young fawns.
The state is getting help executing the program from concerned groups of hunters. The feeding is expected to go on daily for several weeks.
Source: http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_8164291
MINNESOTA NEWS: Sharpshooters Hired to Cull Deer in TB Zone
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources will use sharpshooters to reduce the deer population in a part of northwestern Minnesota that's seen high rates of bovine tuberculosis.
DNR helicopter surveys in January showed about 800 deer in the 140-square mile area that is managed for bovine TB. The DNR employed sharpshooters in the same area last year, but say numbers didn't significantly decline.
DNR official Michelle Carstensen says sharpshooters are a necessity, even though the overall prevalence of bovine TB in wild deer remains low and is restricted to a small geographic region.
The DNR has also liberalized hunting regulations in the bovine TB zone.
source: http://www.kxmc.com/News/205961.asp
DNR helicopter surveys in January showed about 800 deer in the 140-square mile area that is managed for bovine TB. The DNR employed sharpshooters in the same area last year, but say numbers didn't significantly decline.
DNR official Michelle Carstensen says sharpshooters are a necessity, even though the overall prevalence of bovine TB in wild deer remains low and is restricted to a small geographic region.
The DNR has also liberalized hunting regulations in the bovine TB zone.
source: http://www.kxmc.com/News/205961.asp
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
WISCONSIN NEWS: DeForest Cull Enters Third Season
For the third straight year, DeForest will hire sharpshooters to kill about 50 deer in an effort to control the encroaching population.
"I think it 's been successful because we 've been able to lessen the density of deer out there, " said Patrick Vander Sanden, the village 's public works director. "It 's been a concern for the village in terms of safety and traveling. "
No date for the deer harvest has been set, but Vander Sanden said he hopes it will happen within the next two weeks.
Last year, sharpshooters using silenced weapons and firing from baited tree stands killed 45 deer. Hunters this year will focus on the same area along River and Windsor roads in the southwest corner of the village.
Vander Sanden said an unscientific count showed more than 100 deer in the area.
"We 've seen deer even coming into the northern part of the village, " he said.
New developments on what used to be cropland are limiting food sources for the deer, forcing them closer to homes where residents have reported deer damage to their yards, Vander Sanden said.
Another problem is the number of car-deer crashes in the village. Last year the village had 16 crashes, down from 19 in 2006 and 19 in 2005. There has been one car-deer crash this year.
"I would expect us to have to keep doing this for a little while longer, " Vander Sanden said of the harvest.
The sharpshooters charge $85 for each deer, and the village expects to spend $3,000 to $4,000 on the program.
Other area communities have relied on paid sharpshooters to clear areas overrun by deer. Sharpshooters in Portage killed 59 deer in December and January. Portage ran a similar program from 1999 to 2002, said Tim Raimer, manager of the city 's parks, recreation and forestry department.
Madison also has committed to a sharpshooting program at Cherokee Marsh this winter, said Jake Fries, wildlife biologist for the state Department of Natural Resources.
A similar program last year killed 75 deer, said Dick Grasmick, interim superintendent of Madison parks.
Tami Ryan, southeast region wildlife supervisor for the DNR, said more communities in the state are looking at some form of lethal deer removal.
"It 's a tool that 's kind of grown to be more and more applicable ... as urban communities are dealing with overabundant deer populations, " she said.
Source: http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/local/270877
"I think it 's been successful because we 've been able to lessen the density of deer out there, " said Patrick Vander Sanden, the village 's public works director. "It 's been a concern for the village in terms of safety and traveling. "
No date for the deer harvest has been set, but Vander Sanden said he hopes it will happen within the next two weeks.
Last year, sharpshooters using silenced weapons and firing from baited tree stands killed 45 deer. Hunters this year will focus on the same area along River and Windsor roads in the southwest corner of the village.
Vander Sanden said an unscientific count showed more than 100 deer in the area.
"We 've seen deer even coming into the northern part of the village, " he said.
New developments on what used to be cropland are limiting food sources for the deer, forcing them closer to homes where residents have reported deer damage to their yards, Vander Sanden said.
Another problem is the number of car-deer crashes in the village. Last year the village had 16 crashes, down from 19 in 2006 and 19 in 2005. There has been one car-deer crash this year.
"I would expect us to have to keep doing this for a little while longer, " Vander Sanden said of the harvest.
The sharpshooters charge $85 for each deer, and the village expects to spend $3,000 to $4,000 on the program.
Other area communities have relied on paid sharpshooters to clear areas overrun by deer. Sharpshooters in Portage killed 59 deer in December and January. Portage ran a similar program from 1999 to 2002, said Tim Raimer, manager of the city 's parks, recreation and forestry department.
Madison also has committed to a sharpshooting program at Cherokee Marsh this winter, said Jake Fries, wildlife biologist for the state Department of Natural Resources.
A similar program last year killed 75 deer, said Dick Grasmick, interim superintendent of Madison parks.
Tami Ryan, southeast region wildlife supervisor for the DNR, said more communities in the state are looking at some form of lethal deer removal.
"It 's a tool that 's kind of grown to be more and more applicable ... as urban communities are dealing with overabundant deer populations, " she said.
Source: http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/local/270877
Monday, February 04, 2008
PENNSYLVANIA NEWS: Upper Makefield Cull Deemed Success
Anne Toohey has seen fewer deer with “ribs showing through.” Adrienne Minassian said fewer deer are munching on her flower and vegetable garden. Police have reported a 65 percent drop in deer/vehicle collisions in 2007 as compared to 2006.
By all accounts, Upper Makefield's season-long controlled deer hunt was a success. About 70 property owners allowed roughly two dozen bow-hunters to thin herds on their land during the harvest, which spanned September to January. The township last year hired Bedminster-based wildlife management company Eccologix to screen and select hunters and to oversee the hunt.
Although officials still are tallying totals, Jody Maddock, Eccologix Wildlife Management director, said, “We're over the 450 mark.” Of the deer killed, Maddock said, roughly 70 percent were female.
“The goal was a triple of last year's harvest. Last year's harvest was 118,” Maddock said. “A triple would be 354.”
At the outset, officials had said about 3,500 deer — or approximately 166 deer per square mile — called the 22-square-mile township home. Seven deer per square mile was identified as a more manageable number in terms of environmental and human safety, Eccologix officials had said.
Getting to that point will take many more years of hunting, officials said.
“I had expected that it was going to be multi-year in order to have some effect,” supervisor Chairman Dan Worden said. “We'll get a report. Based upon that report, we'll decide what we're going to do going forward.”
Maddock said he expects to make a presentation at the March 19 supervisors meeting. He also is readying a survey for participating property owners to complete.
Serge and Adrienne Minassian beat him to the punch. The Eagle Road homeowners of 30 years sent a letter to township officials expressing their approval with the hunt.
Two hunters were assigned to the couple's 6.3-acre property, Adrienne Minassian said, adding that “you don't even know they're there.”
“They're very discreet, very professional,” she said. “We never saw a dead deer.”
What she has seen are fewer herds feasting on her garden and “sauntering across” her lane.
“The deer used to come up to the front steps,” Minassian said. “They would not even be afraid of you.”
Resident Anne Toohey said she wished the hunting season could be extended to continue reducing the population. Maddock said hunters killed about 20 deer on her 5-acre property.
“There's just too many deer. There's a huge problem nationally with the amount of deer,” Toohey said. “We need to be responsible about the deer population.”
To do so, Maddock said, more landowners would have to grant hunters access. With the same properties, he predicts 30 to 40 percent fewer deer would be killed during the upcoming season.
“They've now been to school,” Maddock said of deer. “Where we are there will be less.”
Besides one resident who urged officials to use birth control instead of hunting, the Upper Makefield hunt has received little resistance. A recent sharpshooting in Solebury sparked considerable controversy, and some in Lower Makefield have spoken out against the township's plan for a controlled hunt.
Source: http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/111-02032008-1481758.html
By all accounts, Upper Makefield's season-long controlled deer hunt was a success. About 70 property owners allowed roughly two dozen bow-hunters to thin herds on their land during the harvest, which spanned September to January. The township last year hired Bedminster-based wildlife management company Eccologix to screen and select hunters and to oversee the hunt.
Although officials still are tallying totals, Jody Maddock, Eccologix Wildlife Management director, said, “We're over the 450 mark.” Of the deer killed, Maddock said, roughly 70 percent were female.
“The goal was a triple of last year's harvest. Last year's harvest was 118,” Maddock said. “A triple would be 354.”
At the outset, officials had said about 3,500 deer — or approximately 166 deer per square mile — called the 22-square-mile township home. Seven deer per square mile was identified as a more manageable number in terms of environmental and human safety, Eccologix officials had said.
Getting to that point will take many more years of hunting, officials said.
“I had expected that it was going to be multi-year in order to have some effect,” supervisor Chairman Dan Worden said. “We'll get a report. Based upon that report, we'll decide what we're going to do going forward.”
Maddock said he expects to make a presentation at the March 19 supervisors meeting. He also is readying a survey for participating property owners to complete.
Serge and Adrienne Minassian beat him to the punch. The Eagle Road homeowners of 30 years sent a letter to township officials expressing their approval with the hunt.
Two hunters were assigned to the couple's 6.3-acre property, Adrienne Minassian said, adding that “you don't even know they're there.”
“They're very discreet, very professional,” she said. “We never saw a dead deer.”
What she has seen are fewer herds feasting on her garden and “sauntering across” her lane.
“The deer used to come up to the front steps,” Minassian said. “They would not even be afraid of you.”
Resident Anne Toohey said she wished the hunting season could be extended to continue reducing the population. Maddock said hunters killed about 20 deer on her 5-acre property.
“There's just too many deer. There's a huge problem nationally with the amount of deer,” Toohey said. “We need to be responsible about the deer population.”
To do so, Maddock said, more landowners would have to grant hunters access. With the same properties, he predicts 30 to 40 percent fewer deer would be killed during the upcoming season.
“They've now been to school,” Maddock said of deer. “Where we are there will be less.”
Besides one resident who urged officials to use birth control instead of hunting, the Upper Makefield hunt has received little resistance. A recent sharpshooting in Solebury sparked considerable controversy, and some in Lower Makefield have spoken out against the township's plan for a controlled hunt.
Source: http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/111-02032008-1481758.html
MONTANA NEWS: Helena Cull Delayed
HELENA, Mont. (AP) - City officials have suggested waiting until the fall of this year to kill 50 mule deer inside the Helena city limits.
The city and state wildlife officials are still working out a plan that calls for city police officers to trap and shoot the deer.
Earlier plans called for the program to start this spring.
The city's draft plan calls for police to use clover traps baited with corn, apples, grain and hay to capture the deer; and then shoot adult bucks and does with .22-caliber firearms or bolt guns.
After the animals are cleaned, they would be taken to a meat processor, then picked up by Helena Food Share for distribution to needy families.
The state Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission will have to approve any new time frame. The city has suggested September 15 through October 15th.
Information from: Independent Record, http://www.helenair.com
Source: http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/Global/story.asp?S=7815703&nav=menu227_2
The city and state wildlife officials are still working out a plan that calls for city police officers to trap and shoot the deer.
Earlier plans called for the program to start this spring.
The city's draft plan calls for police to use clover traps baited with corn, apples, grain and hay to capture the deer; and then shoot adult bucks and does with .22-caliber firearms or bolt guns.
After the animals are cleaned, they would be taken to a meat processor, then picked up by Helena Food Share for distribution to needy families.
The state Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission will have to approve any new time frame. The city has suggested September 15 through October 15th.
Information from: Independent Record, http://www.helenair.com
Source: http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/Global/story.asp?S=7815703&nav=menu227_2
PENNSYLVANIA NEWS: Possible Changes for Next Season
The Pennsylvania Game Commission may change the look of the firearms deer season, based on the promise of a study that it hasn't started and isn't sure how it's paying for it.
Commissioners gathered in Harrisburg this past week to give preliminary approval to seasons and bag limits for the 2008-09 hunting seasons. Before taking votes, they heard detailed staff reports each lasting as long as 30 minutes on elk, bears, bobcats, fishers, turkeys, and grouse.
When it came to white-tailed deer, though -- the animal that generates by far the most controversy in the state -- commissioners instituted potentially sweeping changes after a 5-10 minute report from a backup biologist.
Commissioners agreed, by a 4-3 vote, to limit hunting to buck only on the first five days of the firearms deer season in wildlife management units 2D, 2G, 3C and 4B. Buck and doe hunting would be then allowed concurrently from the first Saturday of the season until the last Saturday.
Deer season would remain the same as it has been -- two weeks of concurrent buck and doe hunting -- across the rest of the state.
The changes are preliminary. Commissioners have to give them final approval in April to put them into effect.
The commission's deer biologists didn't recommend the changes. They wanted to maintain two weeks of concurrent hunting statewide and shape the size of the deer herd using doe license allocations, said Bret Wallingford, a member of the agency's deer team, who spoke in place of its ill leader, Chris Rosenberry.
But the commission's "senior management team" directed them to prepare an alternative, executive director Carl Roe said.
He did that, according to information he shared previously with others inside the agency, in an attempt to appease state lawmakers who have been holding up the agency's long-sought license fee increase. It may not be enough. Some of those same lawmakers said before the meeting that nothing short of a return to two weeks of buck hunting followed by three days of doe statewide would convince them to give money to the commission.
Yet commissioners made the change anyway.
The change is to be tied to hunter surveys and a study examining the impact of the newly-shaped season on hunter success rates. But that study exists only in theory right now.
The commission needs to collar and track 100 deer each in management units 2D, 2G, 3C and 4B for any study, Wallingford said. The commission already had plans to collar bucks in units 2G and 4B this winter in cooperation with Penn State University.
But there is no staff in place to capture deer in the other units, despite the fact that such work is usually carried out at this time of year, and no partner like Penn State to help the cash-strapped agency pay for it, Roe said. He said only that the agency will have to find the money "somewhere."
Five commissioners added a footnote to their support for the study. They voted in favor of a resolution that no further changes be made to deer seasons over the course of the next four years while the study is being carried out.
That appears to be meaningless, however. Commissioner Tom Boop of Northumberland County -- an opponent of the deer program who will still be on the board when some of its most ardent supporters are gone -- said commissioners can't legally dictate what future boards can or can't do.
That's true, said commissioner Russ Schleiden of Centre County, but the footnote at least gets the board's "intent" on the record.
Game on
Here's a look at the 2008-09 deer hunting seasons given preliminary approval by Game Commissioners this past week. All need final approval in April:
• Deer, archery, antlerless only: WMUs 2B, 5C and 5D, Sept. 20 to Oct. 3, Nov. 17 to 29 and Dec. 15 to 23.
• Deer, archery, statewide: Oct. 4 to Nov. 15 and Dec. 26 to Jan. 10.
• Deer, antlered and antlerless, WMUs 2D, 2G, 3C and 4B: Dec. 1 to 5.
• Deer, antlered and antlerless, 2D, 2G, 3C and 4B: Dec. 6 to 13.
• Deer, antlered and antlerless, the remainder of the state: Dec. 1 to 13.
• Deer, antlerless, juniors and seniors: Oct. 23 to 25.
• Deer, antlerless, muzzleloader statewide: Oct. 18 to 25.
• Deer, antlered or antlerless, flintlock statewide: Dec. 26 to Jan. 10.
• Deer, antlerless, WMUs 2B, 5C, 5D: Dec. 15 to 23 and Dec. 26 to Jan. 24.
Source: http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/s_550409.html
Commissioners gathered in Harrisburg this past week to give preliminary approval to seasons and bag limits for the 2008-09 hunting seasons. Before taking votes, they heard detailed staff reports each lasting as long as 30 minutes on elk, bears, bobcats, fishers, turkeys, and grouse.
When it came to white-tailed deer, though -- the animal that generates by far the most controversy in the state -- commissioners instituted potentially sweeping changes after a 5-10 minute report from a backup biologist.
Commissioners agreed, by a 4-3 vote, to limit hunting to buck only on the first five days of the firearms deer season in wildlife management units 2D, 2G, 3C and 4B. Buck and doe hunting would be then allowed concurrently from the first Saturday of the season until the last Saturday.
Deer season would remain the same as it has been -- two weeks of concurrent buck and doe hunting -- across the rest of the state.
The changes are preliminary. Commissioners have to give them final approval in April to put them into effect.
The commission's deer biologists didn't recommend the changes. They wanted to maintain two weeks of concurrent hunting statewide and shape the size of the deer herd using doe license allocations, said Bret Wallingford, a member of the agency's deer team, who spoke in place of its ill leader, Chris Rosenberry.
But the commission's "senior management team" directed them to prepare an alternative, executive director Carl Roe said.
He did that, according to information he shared previously with others inside the agency, in an attempt to appease state lawmakers who have been holding up the agency's long-sought license fee increase. It may not be enough. Some of those same lawmakers said before the meeting that nothing short of a return to two weeks of buck hunting followed by three days of doe statewide would convince them to give money to the commission.
Yet commissioners made the change anyway.
The change is to be tied to hunter surveys and a study examining the impact of the newly-shaped season on hunter success rates. But that study exists only in theory right now.
The commission needs to collar and track 100 deer each in management units 2D, 2G, 3C and 4B for any study, Wallingford said. The commission already had plans to collar bucks in units 2G and 4B this winter in cooperation with Penn State University.
But there is no staff in place to capture deer in the other units, despite the fact that such work is usually carried out at this time of year, and no partner like Penn State to help the cash-strapped agency pay for it, Roe said. He said only that the agency will have to find the money "somewhere."
Five commissioners added a footnote to their support for the study. They voted in favor of a resolution that no further changes be made to deer seasons over the course of the next four years while the study is being carried out.
That appears to be meaningless, however. Commissioner Tom Boop of Northumberland County -- an opponent of the deer program who will still be on the board when some of its most ardent supporters are gone -- said commissioners can't legally dictate what future boards can or can't do.
That's true, said commissioner Russ Schleiden of Centre County, but the footnote at least gets the board's "intent" on the record.
Game on
Here's a look at the 2008-09 deer hunting seasons given preliminary approval by Game Commissioners this past week. All need final approval in April:
• Deer, archery, antlerless only: WMUs 2B, 5C and 5D, Sept. 20 to Oct. 3, Nov. 17 to 29 and Dec. 15 to 23.
• Deer, archery, statewide: Oct. 4 to Nov. 15 and Dec. 26 to Jan. 10.
• Deer, antlered and antlerless, WMUs 2D, 2G, 3C and 4B: Dec. 1 to 5.
• Deer, antlered and antlerless, 2D, 2G, 3C and 4B: Dec. 6 to 13.
• Deer, antlered and antlerless, the remainder of the state: Dec. 1 to 13.
• Deer, antlerless, juniors and seniors: Oct. 23 to 25.
• Deer, antlerless, muzzleloader statewide: Oct. 18 to 25.
• Deer, antlered or antlerless, flintlock statewide: Dec. 26 to Jan. 10.
• Deer, antlerless, WMUs 2B, 5C, 5D: Dec. 15 to 23 and Dec. 26 to Jan. 24.
Source: http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/s_550409.html
Thursday, January 31, 2008
WISCONSIN OPINION: Deer Management Undermined by CWD Panel's Petty Squabbles
by Pat Durkin
Last July, then-Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources secretary Scott Hassett appointed 17 citizens and an agency biologist to study Wisconsin's six-year battle with chronic wasting disease in white-tailed deer, then decide how to minimize its impact on the herd, woodland habitats, our economy and all who benefit from healthy deer.
Hassett also appointed a technical team to give the advisory group the latest science on CWD, and review and offer guidance as it developed recommendations. The team included a DNR sociologist, conservation warden and wildlife-disease veterinarian; and two CWD experts from the U.S. Geological Survey and University of Wisconsin.
The DNR presented everyone with a handbook that explained the project and encouraged teamwork. The booklet even included an inspiring quotation from famed anthropologist Margaret Mead: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
Well, forget that. Six months and eight meetings later, this small group went home Jan. 26 doubting their work would change anything in Wisconsin, let alone the world. The final report offers many insignificant suggestions, but no ultimate goal for managing CWD, and no step-by-step plan with verifiable benchmarks.
Tom Givnish, a University of Wisconsin botany professor who served on the committee, wrote this in his minority report: "The majority report must be judged an abject failure. … The majority (took) so many management tools off the table that it will be impossible to achieve substantial herd reduction or substantially slow the spread of CWD."
The plan merely tweaks hunting regulations that, if approved, would more likely confuse hunters than thwart disease. For instance, the group recommended a statewide ban on recreational deer feeding, but endorsed current deer-baiting laws for hunters, which allow 2 gallons of bait during deer season.
Ed Harvey, chairman of the Wisconsin Conservation Congress, rejected most of the recommendations in a letter on Jan. 23. "Perhaps most importantly, we want to be very clear that (we) do not support the baiting or feeding of deer," he wrote.
When considering the atmosphere surrounding the group, maybe it's noteworthy they crafted anything. For instance, they voted 9-6 at their Jan. 12 meeting to silence the technical team, directing they not speak unless spoken to. This prompted Dr. Julie Langenberg, the DNR's wildlife veterinarian, to walk out.
That wasn't the first sign of trouble. Dr. Daniel Griffiths, a Lomira veterinarian representing the Wisconsin Veterinary Medical Association, attended the group's meetings in July and August, missed the next two for other commitments and never returned.
He said angry e-mails from group members dissuaded him. "E-mails were flying back and forth that if people missed meetings, their voices shouldn't be heard," Griffiths said Sunday. "There was nothing I could tell them that they wanted to hear. Some of them had set agendas. They were hostile to the scientists giving presentations at the first two meetings and treated them with disrespect. We had no common ground to work from at that point."
Givnish had similar thoughts. "There was too much going on behind the scenes," he said after the Jan. 26 meeting. "There were ugly blogs on the Internet associated with this committee. Some people have a creepy idea of what public service involves. We're supposed to resolve our differences through rational argument and common sense, not fisticuffs or worse. It's sad that happens, but I wasn't surprised."
Alan Crossley, the DNR's CWD project leader, represented the agency on the committee. He said he tried to create a collaborative spirit within the group, and felt terrible that animosity often resulted instead.
"If anyone is to blame, it's me," Crossley said. "I never should have allowed that vote (to silence the technical team), but I never thought it would pass. Maybe I'm too accustomed to the emotions surrounding deer. People who don't work in this environment were probably more shocked than I was."
Whew. Big ol' sigh.
As disgracefully as the advisory group sometimes behaved, and as noble as it might be for Crossley to take the hit, the true fault lies with the DNR's hierarchy, our governor and Legislature and all state institutions involved in CWD policy-making.
Wisconsin has yet to specify a long-term goal and comprehensive plan for managing CWD, and no leader has championed one. Expecting 17 citizens and one DNR employee to go beyond the chieftains' audits, indifference and second-guessing proved foolish.
Meanwhile, deer continue paying for our apathy.
Source: http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080131/GPG0204/801310553/1233/GPGsports
Last July, then-Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources secretary Scott Hassett appointed 17 citizens and an agency biologist to study Wisconsin's six-year battle with chronic wasting disease in white-tailed deer, then decide how to minimize its impact on the herd, woodland habitats, our economy and all who benefit from healthy deer.
Hassett also appointed a technical team to give the advisory group the latest science on CWD, and review and offer guidance as it developed recommendations. The team included a DNR sociologist, conservation warden and wildlife-disease veterinarian; and two CWD experts from the U.S. Geological Survey and University of Wisconsin.
The DNR presented everyone with a handbook that explained the project and encouraged teamwork. The booklet even included an inspiring quotation from famed anthropologist Margaret Mead: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
Well, forget that. Six months and eight meetings later, this small group went home Jan. 26 doubting their work would change anything in Wisconsin, let alone the world. The final report offers many insignificant suggestions, but no ultimate goal for managing CWD, and no step-by-step plan with verifiable benchmarks.
Tom Givnish, a University of Wisconsin botany professor who served on the committee, wrote this in his minority report: "The majority report must be judged an abject failure. … The majority (took) so many management tools off the table that it will be impossible to achieve substantial herd reduction or substantially slow the spread of CWD."
The plan merely tweaks hunting regulations that, if approved, would more likely confuse hunters than thwart disease. For instance, the group recommended a statewide ban on recreational deer feeding, but endorsed current deer-baiting laws for hunters, which allow 2 gallons of bait during deer season.
Ed Harvey, chairman of the Wisconsin Conservation Congress, rejected most of the recommendations in a letter on Jan. 23. "Perhaps most importantly, we want to be very clear that (we) do not support the baiting or feeding of deer," he wrote.
When considering the atmosphere surrounding the group, maybe it's noteworthy they crafted anything. For instance, they voted 9-6 at their Jan. 12 meeting to silence the technical team, directing they not speak unless spoken to. This prompted Dr. Julie Langenberg, the DNR's wildlife veterinarian, to walk out.
That wasn't the first sign of trouble. Dr. Daniel Griffiths, a Lomira veterinarian representing the Wisconsin Veterinary Medical Association, attended the group's meetings in July and August, missed the next two for other commitments and never returned.
He said angry e-mails from group members dissuaded him. "E-mails were flying back and forth that if people missed meetings, their voices shouldn't be heard," Griffiths said Sunday. "There was nothing I could tell them that they wanted to hear. Some of them had set agendas. They were hostile to the scientists giving presentations at the first two meetings and treated them with disrespect. We had no common ground to work from at that point."
Givnish had similar thoughts. "There was too much going on behind the scenes," he said after the Jan. 26 meeting. "There were ugly blogs on the Internet associated with this committee. Some people have a creepy idea of what public service involves. We're supposed to resolve our differences through rational argument and common sense, not fisticuffs or worse. It's sad that happens, but I wasn't surprised."
Alan Crossley, the DNR's CWD project leader, represented the agency on the committee. He said he tried to create a collaborative spirit within the group, and felt terrible that animosity often resulted instead.
"If anyone is to blame, it's me," Crossley said. "I never should have allowed that vote (to silence the technical team), but I never thought it would pass. Maybe I'm too accustomed to the emotions surrounding deer. People who don't work in this environment were probably more shocked than I was."
Whew. Big ol' sigh.
As disgracefully as the advisory group sometimes behaved, and as noble as it might be for Crossley to take the hit, the true fault lies with the DNR's hierarchy, our governor and Legislature and all state institutions involved in CWD policy-making.
Wisconsin has yet to specify a long-term goal and comprehensive plan for managing CWD, and no leader has championed one. Expecting 17 citizens and one DNR employee to go beyond the chieftains' audits, indifference and second-guessing proved foolish.
Meanwhile, deer continue paying for our apathy.
Source: http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080131/GPG0204/801310553/1233/GPGsports
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
PAKISTAN NEWS: Poachers Killing Endangered Deer
Foreign guests belonging to Gulf States have been found involved in killing protected animals with the connivance of local influentials. While the Sindh Wildlife Department remains silent over the matter, The News has learnt that the illegal hunting of animals including deer [Ed. note - hog deer, Axis porcinus?] — on the list of protected animals according to SWD Act 1972 — is going on unchecked. Most influential people along with their foreign guests have reportedly killed 38 deer in Thar Desert, near Umarkot.
The wide desert area, including Achhro Thar (White Desert), near Pakistan-India border, is a natural habitat of this endangered species. Locals explain that deer cross the border into Pakistan territory in winter and monsoon seasons every year. “The animal usually comes to the other side early morning and poachers kill the animal at its entrance site,” Amar Leghari, a local environmentalist from Sanghar, told The News.
“It is a natural grazing field for the deer in Thar linking Umerkot, Sanghar, Nawabshah and Khairpur districts. Only local people know the habitats, who lead the poachers after taking big amounts from them,” he said.
Reports add that the Sindh Wildlife Department officials deputed there, after possessing skins and other evidence arrested some poachers but later released them after the high-ranking people approached higher authorities.
Only the workers of these influential people were arrested, while those with direct links to the corridors of power were excluded from the report registered by the officials. Later, the SWD local officials were hushed up over the issue of challenging the most powerful people, activists said.
Local people explain that the influential poachers pay attractive sums to traditional foot-trackers to kill these wild animals.
On contracts, local activists explain, “it is routine crime. These people hailing from Gulf States set up camps in these areas for some time in the winter and kill endangered species, including deer and houbara bustard along with the local influential people. According to the activist, this time around the media has taken notice of the situation because political rivals have raised the issue against a candidate, who was the host of these foreign and local guests and arranged the hunting.
The SWD department issues licenses to poachers after receiving prescribed fees for hunting birds from November to March 15 every year. But they are not allowed to kill the endangered species in their habitats.
In case of violation of the rules, the poachers can be fined amounts ranging from Rs100,000 to Rs500,000, depending on the nature of destruction.
When The News approached the Sindh Wildlife Conservator, his subordinates said he was unavailable, while the other officials claim that they are unaware of the crime.
Source: http://www.thenews.com.pk/print1.asp?id=93689
The wide desert area, including Achhro Thar (White Desert), near Pakistan-India border, is a natural habitat of this endangered species. Locals explain that deer cross the border into Pakistan territory in winter and monsoon seasons every year. “The animal usually comes to the other side early morning and poachers kill the animal at its entrance site,” Amar Leghari, a local environmentalist from Sanghar, told The News.
“It is a natural grazing field for the deer in Thar linking Umerkot, Sanghar, Nawabshah and Khairpur districts. Only local people know the habitats, who lead the poachers after taking big amounts from them,” he said.
Reports add that the Sindh Wildlife Department officials deputed there, after possessing skins and other evidence arrested some poachers but later released them after the high-ranking people approached higher authorities.
Only the workers of these influential people were arrested, while those with direct links to the corridors of power were excluded from the report registered by the officials. Later, the SWD local officials were hushed up over the issue of challenging the most powerful people, activists said.
Local people explain that the influential poachers pay attractive sums to traditional foot-trackers to kill these wild animals.
On contracts, local activists explain, “it is routine crime. These people hailing from Gulf States set up camps in these areas for some time in the winter and kill endangered species, including deer and houbara bustard along with the local influential people. According to the activist, this time around the media has taken notice of the situation because political rivals have raised the issue against a candidate, who was the host of these foreign and local guests and arranged the hunting.
The SWD department issues licenses to poachers after receiving prescribed fees for hunting birds from November to March 15 every year. But they are not allowed to kill the endangered species in their habitats.
In case of violation of the rules, the poachers can be fined amounts ranging from Rs100,000 to Rs500,000, depending on the nature of destruction.
When The News approached the Sindh Wildlife Conservator, his subordinates said he was unavailable, while the other officials claim that they are unaware of the crime.
Source: http://www.thenews.com.pk/print1.asp?id=93689
WISCONSIN OPINION: Deer Baiting Ban Misguided
Rooney notes: I am not sure if agree with the entire argument made here, but parts are well-reasonsed and worth considering.
Dear Editor: Tim Eisele's condemnation of the Department of Natural Resources stakeholders advisory group on chronic wasting disease, of which I was a member, needs a response. This is my personal view.
He fails to tell his readers that baiting has been banned in the CWD zone for five years; has it stopped CWD from spreading? He fails to inform readers that research shows the prion involved with CWD binds tightly to soil and fails to inform us that healthy animals put in a pen 16 years after CWD-infected animals were removed caught the disease. This indicates an environmental reservoir (soil?) exists for years.
In areas of Wisconsin where CWD is not present, no amount of saliva exchange can transmit CWD.
The advisory group got it right, i.e., they recognized the difference between baiting and feeding -- one used to kill deer, the other to protect deer -- something the DNR and some state organizations seem unable or unwilling to recognize.
Eisele fails to tell readers that hunting over bait is the safest hunting method; no hunter has been wounded or killed by another hunter hunting over bait. The same can't be said about deer drives, which are the most dangerous hunting method. Yet we don't hear a safety-conscious DNR or any outdoor writer wanting to get rid of deer drives, just baiting.
But maybe we all have it backward. In the CWD zone where we want to reduce the deer population, maybe we should allow baiting, like DNR sharpshooters did, since an environmental prion reservoir exists, and ban baiting in the rest of Wisconsin where it's not found.
One concern I have is that we allow tens of thousands of gallons of doe urine from deer farms to be spread across our landscape as "buck lure" when a synthetic alternative exists.
I believe the most significant recommendation of the CWD advisory group was to enact regulations restricting movement of whole deer carcasses out of the CWD zone. That, I predict, would do more to prevent the spread of CWD than any baiting ban.
Ken Anderson
Eagle River
Source: http://www.madison.com/tct/opinion/letters/269838
Dear Editor: Tim Eisele's condemnation of the Department of Natural Resources stakeholders advisory group on chronic wasting disease, of which I was a member, needs a response. This is my personal view.
He fails to tell his readers that baiting has been banned in the CWD zone for five years; has it stopped CWD from spreading? He fails to inform readers that research shows the prion involved with CWD binds tightly to soil and fails to inform us that healthy animals put in a pen 16 years after CWD-infected animals were removed caught the disease. This indicates an environmental reservoir (soil?) exists for years.
In areas of Wisconsin where CWD is not present, no amount of saliva exchange can transmit CWD.
The advisory group got it right, i.e., they recognized the difference between baiting and feeding -- one used to kill deer, the other to protect deer -- something the DNR and some state organizations seem unable or unwilling to recognize.
Eisele fails to tell readers that hunting over bait is the safest hunting method; no hunter has been wounded or killed by another hunter hunting over bait. The same can't be said about deer drives, which are the most dangerous hunting method. Yet we don't hear a safety-conscious DNR or any outdoor writer wanting to get rid of deer drives, just baiting.
But maybe we all have it backward. In the CWD zone where we want to reduce the deer population, maybe we should allow baiting, like DNR sharpshooters did, since an environmental prion reservoir exists, and ban baiting in the rest of Wisconsin where it's not found.
One concern I have is that we allow tens of thousands of gallons of doe urine from deer farms to be spread across our landscape as "buck lure" when a synthetic alternative exists.
I believe the most significant recommendation of the CWD advisory group was to enact regulations restricting movement of whole deer carcasses out of the CWD zone. That, I predict, would do more to prevent the spread of CWD than any baiting ban.
Ken Anderson
Eagle River
Source: http://www.madison.com/tct/opinion/letters/269838
TENNESSEE NEWS: 2007 Deer Harvest Down 11% vs. 2006
With the close of last weekends youth deer hunt, the 2007-2008 deer season is in the books. And as expected, the take was below last year’s total of 182,023. As of Wednesday, the unofficial harvest figure for this year is 162,582. There are several excuses bandied about by the wildlife pundits.
In September as the archery deer season was beginning, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency predicted a harvest that could be as much as 30 percent lower than usual, due to a much heavier than normal die-off of deer caused by Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease. EHD occurs every year in Tennessee and many other states, caused by a virus spread by a small biting gnat or midge. Tennessee had outbreaks in about 50 counties with a few reporting casualties of 30 percent of the local herd.
The weather was another reason for the decline in deer harvest. The yearlong drought caused a double-digit deficit in rainfall for the year, and a record summer-long heat wave parched what hard and soft mast managed to grow.
Finally, the hot weather in September and October discouraged many bowhunters and muzzleloaders from even going out since the heat could quickly spoil their deer meat.
All things considered, this year’s harvest of 162,582 was only 11 percent below last year, so it could have been a lot worse.
Source: http://www.thedailytimes.com/article/20080120/SPORTS0107/336975729
In September as the archery deer season was beginning, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency predicted a harvest that could be as much as 30 percent lower than usual, due to a much heavier than normal die-off of deer caused by Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease. EHD occurs every year in Tennessee and many other states, caused by a virus spread by a small biting gnat or midge. Tennessee had outbreaks in about 50 counties with a few reporting casualties of 30 percent of the local herd.
The weather was another reason for the decline in deer harvest. The yearlong drought caused a double-digit deficit in rainfall for the year, and a record summer-long heat wave parched what hard and soft mast managed to grow.
Finally, the hot weather in September and October discouraged many bowhunters and muzzleloaders from even going out since the heat could quickly spoil their deer meat.
All things considered, this year’s harvest of 162,582 was only 11 percent below last year, so it could have been a lot worse.
Source: http://www.thedailytimes.com/article/20080120/SPORTS0107/336975729
VERMONT NEWS: 14,500 Deer Killed in 2007 Season
The Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife says 2007 was a good fall for the state's deer hunters.
Officials say that during Vermont's archery, rifle and muzzle loader seasons hunters bagged a total of 14,500 deer.
That's up almost 2,000 over 2006. And the deer are bigger than in previous years.
Biologist Shawn Haskell of the state's deer management team says favorable winter conditions and changes in deer hunting regulations contributed to the numbers.
The regulations prevent hunters from shooting spike horn deer. The regulations allow male deer to grow an extra year before they can be taken by hunters.
The largest buck taken in Vermont last fall weighed 225 pounds and was taken in Orleans.
source: http://www.vpr.net/news_detail/79114/
Officials say that during Vermont's archery, rifle and muzzle loader seasons hunters bagged a total of 14,500 deer.
That's up almost 2,000 over 2006. And the deer are bigger than in previous years.
Biologist Shawn Haskell of the state's deer management team says favorable winter conditions and changes in deer hunting regulations contributed to the numbers.
The regulations prevent hunters from shooting spike horn deer. The regulations allow male deer to grow an extra year before they can be taken by hunters.
The largest buck taken in Vermont last fall weighed 225 pounds and was taken in Orleans.
source: http://www.vpr.net/news_detail/79114/
Monday, January 28, 2008
MASSACHUSETTS NEWS: 2007 Is 10% Below 2002 Record Harvest
hile no records were set during the 2007 deer season, both archers and muzzle loaders came close to highs, according to the MassWildlife preliminary deer report
There were 11,132 total whitetails shot by archers, shotgunners and muzzle loaders, falling below the record in 2002, when 12,264 animals were recorded.
The all-time low was in 1967, when only 1,172 whitetails were harvested.
The record year was when a high number of antlerless permits were allotted in an attempt to put doe numbers in a healthy buck-doe relation.
There were 5,745 deer shot by shotgunners in 2007, as compared to the 8,131 taken by gunners in the record year of 1996.
Archers in 2006 took down a record 3,385 deer, as compared to 3,223 in 2007. There were 18 deer shot by bow in the state's first archery season in 1966. Last season's good weather had more bowmen spending more hours in the field than average.
Black powder hunters shot 2,157 deer in 2007. The high was 2,325 shot by primitive weapons in 2005.
There were seven animals shot during the first muzzleloader season in 1972.
The Western District, once the most popular area to hunt as well as the most prolific, was last in nearly every 2007 category,
The Southeast District, followed by the Central, once again led the state in most harvest categories.
Source: http://www.masslive.com/sousa/republican/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1201446752218690.xml&coll=1
There were 11,132 total whitetails shot by archers, shotgunners and muzzle loaders, falling below the record in 2002, when 12,264 animals were recorded.
The all-time low was in 1967, when only 1,172 whitetails were harvested.
The record year was when a high number of antlerless permits were allotted in an attempt to put doe numbers in a healthy buck-doe relation.
There were 5,745 deer shot by shotgunners in 2007, as compared to the 8,131 taken by gunners in the record year of 1996.
Archers in 2006 took down a record 3,385 deer, as compared to 3,223 in 2007. There were 18 deer shot by bow in the state's first archery season in 1966. Last season's good weather had more bowmen spending more hours in the field than average.
Black powder hunters shot 2,157 deer in 2007. The high was 2,325 shot by primitive weapons in 2005.
There were seven animals shot during the first muzzleloader season in 1972.
The Western District, once the most popular area to hunt as well as the most prolific, was last in nearly every 2007 category,
The Southeast District, followed by the Central, once again led the state in most harvest categories.
Source: http://www.masslive.com/sousa/republican/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1201446752218690.xml&coll=1
CALIFORNIA NEWS: Cull of Exotic Deer Resumes at Point Reyes
Hunters resumed shooting of nonnative deer in the Point Reyes National Seashore Friday, bringing new criticism from animal rights groups.
The National Park Service approved a plan a year ago to get rid of about 1,100 fallow and axis deer using a combination of contraception and high-powered rifles. A Connecticut company, White Buffalo Inc., killed about 400 of the deer in the summer and fall, prompting an outcry from residents who claimed carcasses were being left out to rot.
The hunters reportedly returned on Friday to a place called Muddy Hollow.
The Humane Society of the United States sent a letter that calls on Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., to end the "futile, destructive and inhumane" program. State Sen. Carole Migden, D-San Francisco; U.S. Rep. Lynn Woolsey, D-Petaluma; and Assemblyman Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, have called for a moratorium on the killing.
Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/01/26/BAGMTUMVIE.DTL
The National Park Service approved a plan a year ago to get rid of about 1,100 fallow and axis deer using a combination of contraception and high-powered rifles. A Connecticut company, White Buffalo Inc., killed about 400 of the deer in the summer and fall, prompting an outcry from residents who claimed carcasses were being left out to rot.
The hunters reportedly returned on Friday to a place called Muddy Hollow.
The Humane Society of the United States sent a letter that calls on Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., to end the "futile, destructive and inhumane" program. State Sen. Carole Migden, D-San Francisco; U.S. Rep. Lynn Woolsey, D-Petaluma; and Assemblyman Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, have called for a moratorium on the killing.
Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/01/26/BAGMTUMVIE.DTL
Friday, January 25, 2008
NEW JERSEY NEWS: Cull Underway in Essex Co. Reserve
Sharpshooters will take to the trees next Tuesday in the South Mountain Reservation in Essex County to deal with a problem that has become the scourge of many suburban communities: too many deer.
The 10-day hunt in the 2,000-acre reservation, a picturesque area of woodlands, streams and trails, is scheduled to start on Jan. 29 and continue every Tuesday and Thursday, 5:30 a.m. and 8 p.m., through Feb. 28.
Proponents of the hunt say it is necessary to thin the number of white-tailed deer because they are destroying the vegetation and becoming a hazard for motorists.
"I don't own a gun. I'm not a hunter. It's not something that I want to do, but it's something I have to do," said Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr., who pushed for the hunt.
The state Department of Environmental Protection and leaders of the four municipalities around the reservation have signed off on the hunt. But animal rights activists have criticized it; they prefer a nonlethal alternative such as contraceptives. And some residents worry the shooting will be too close to homes and businesses.
During the hunt, a team of 15 volunteer hunters who've gone through a special training course will be allowed to shoot deer from perches in trees, although only 12 will be allowed in the reservation at one time.
Notices warning residents about the hunt have already been mailed out, and DiVincenzo has been meeting with residents in the communities bordering the reservation -- Maplewood, Millburn, South Orange and West Orange -- to address safety concerns.
The last of those meetings is scheduled for noon Thursday in West Orange.
On hunt days, roads going in to the reservation will be closed off, and people won't be allowed to enter.
Source: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/01/sharpshooters_aim_to_thin_deer_1.html
The 10-day hunt in the 2,000-acre reservation, a picturesque area of woodlands, streams and trails, is scheduled to start on Jan. 29 and continue every Tuesday and Thursday, 5:30 a.m. and 8 p.m., through Feb. 28.
Proponents of the hunt say it is necessary to thin the number of white-tailed deer because they are destroying the vegetation and becoming a hazard for motorists.
"I don't own a gun. I'm not a hunter. It's not something that I want to do, but it's something I have to do," said Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr., who pushed for the hunt.
The state Department of Environmental Protection and leaders of the four municipalities around the reservation have signed off on the hunt. But animal rights activists have criticized it; they prefer a nonlethal alternative such as contraceptives. And some residents worry the shooting will be too close to homes and businesses.
During the hunt, a team of 15 volunteer hunters who've gone through a special training course will be allowed to shoot deer from perches in trees, although only 12 will be allowed in the reservation at one time.
Notices warning residents about the hunt have already been mailed out, and DiVincenzo has been meeting with residents in the communities bordering the reservation -- Maplewood, Millburn, South Orange and West Orange -- to address safety concerns.
The last of those meetings is scheduled for noon Thursday in West Orange.
On hunt days, roads going in to the reservation will be closed off, and people won't be allowed to enter.
Source: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/01/sharpshooters_aim_to_thin_deer_1.html
MICHIGAN NEWS: Possible Case of Bovine TB in Deer Outside "TB Zone"
A case of bovine tuberculosis may have turned up well outside the part of Michigan where the disease previously has been concentrated.
State officials say a deer recently killed in Shiawassee County is suspected of carrying bovine TB. They are awaiting final test results. A hunter killed the deer more than 100 miles south of the TB Zone in Michigan's northern Lower Peninsula, where authorities have tried to contain the outbreak since the late 1990s.
The Michigan Department of Agriculture plans to schedule cattle herds for testing within a 10-mile radius of where the deer was taken. Meanwhile, the state has declared two sections of Iosco County as "potential high-risk areas" after bovine TB was confirmed in a couple of deer there.
Source: http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/01/state_suspects_new_bovine_tb_c.html
State officials say a deer recently killed in Shiawassee County is suspected of carrying bovine TB. They are awaiting final test results. A hunter killed the deer more than 100 miles south of the TB Zone in Michigan's northern Lower Peninsula, where authorities have tried to contain the outbreak since the late 1990s.
The Michigan Department of Agriculture plans to schedule cattle herds for testing within a 10-mile radius of where the deer was taken. Meanwhile, the state has declared two sections of Iosco County as "potential high-risk areas" after bovine TB was confirmed in a couple of deer there.
Source: http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/01/state_suspects_new_bovine_tb_c.html
Thursday, January 24, 2008
SOUTH DAKOTA OPINION: Bill Would Give Landowners Extra Deer Tags
Two things are quite certain in the rural sections of South Dakota: The deer population is too high, and their constant depredation is tough on farmers, ranchers and landowners.
South Dakota’s landscape is crawling with deer. They’re everywhere — whether it’s along the roadsides at night or in a farmer’s stores of silage at sunup.
Anybody who has a new plan to cut the deer population should speak up. We’re listening.
State Sen. Julie Bartling, D-Burke, has done so.
Earlier this week, she told the Legislature about her plan to allow landowners and lease-holders an additional deer license to be used on their land. The extra tag can be used at the landowner/lessee’s discretion and given to resident or nonresident hunters. The tags would only be valid on the landowner/lessee’s land and can only be issued to those with at least 320 acres of agriculture, grazing or timber land.
Bartling’s plan is backed by the state’s two largest livestock organizations: the South Dakota Stockgrowers Association and the South Dakota Cattleman’s Association.
The state Department of Game, Fish and Parks is trying to cull the herd, and has been for several years now. The agency has increased the number of tags regularly in the past several years, and that has correlated to a much larger harvest. For instance, hunters killed 51,666 deer in South Dakota in 2000; in 2006, the number was 86,806 — an increase of 56 percent.
We need those kinds of harvest increases in South Dakota because the same conditions that have allowed our pheasant population to soar past 10 million have been equally kind to the wild, hooved quadrupeds of our state.
All of those foodplots, trees and switchgrass fields that have been planted to aid pheasants have, in some eyes, backfired when it comes to deer numbers. Several straight years of moderate winters haven’t helped, either.
And as we have said many times before: If you want proof of the state’s growing deer numbers, simply take a drive along a rural highway late at night. They’re everywhere, and they’re a danger to the lives of motorists.
The GF&P does not back Bartling’s second-license plan. The worry is that nonresident hunters would be able to compete more directly in seeking the limited pool of buck licenses during the East River season.
Would this program take a large bite out of the deer herd? Probably not, but we feel that anything to promote more deer hunting in South Dakota is a good idea.
For years, landowners have been dealing with depredation to their valuable crops and stored feed as the deer population grows. We don’t see why they shouldn’t be allowed a chance to harvest more of those troublesome pests.
Source: http://www.mitchellrepublic.com/articles/index.cfm?id=24044§ion=Opinion
South Dakota’s landscape is crawling with deer. They’re everywhere — whether it’s along the roadsides at night or in a farmer’s stores of silage at sunup.
Anybody who has a new plan to cut the deer population should speak up. We’re listening.
State Sen. Julie Bartling, D-Burke, has done so.
Earlier this week, she told the Legislature about her plan to allow landowners and lease-holders an additional deer license to be used on their land. The extra tag can be used at the landowner/lessee’s discretion and given to resident or nonresident hunters. The tags would only be valid on the landowner/lessee’s land and can only be issued to those with at least 320 acres of agriculture, grazing or timber land.
Bartling’s plan is backed by the state’s two largest livestock organizations: the South Dakota Stockgrowers Association and the South Dakota Cattleman’s Association.
The state Department of Game, Fish and Parks is trying to cull the herd, and has been for several years now. The agency has increased the number of tags regularly in the past several years, and that has correlated to a much larger harvest. For instance, hunters killed 51,666 deer in South Dakota in 2000; in 2006, the number was 86,806 — an increase of 56 percent.
We need those kinds of harvest increases in South Dakota because the same conditions that have allowed our pheasant population to soar past 10 million have been equally kind to the wild, hooved quadrupeds of our state.
All of those foodplots, trees and switchgrass fields that have been planted to aid pheasants have, in some eyes, backfired when it comes to deer numbers. Several straight years of moderate winters haven’t helped, either.
And as we have said many times before: If you want proof of the state’s growing deer numbers, simply take a drive along a rural highway late at night. They’re everywhere, and they’re a danger to the lives of motorists.
The GF&P does not back Bartling’s second-license plan. The worry is that nonresident hunters would be able to compete more directly in seeking the limited pool of buck licenses during the East River season.
Would this program take a large bite out of the deer herd? Probably not, but we feel that anything to promote more deer hunting in South Dakota is a good idea.
For years, landowners have been dealing with depredation to their valuable crops and stored feed as the deer population grows. We don’t see why they shouldn’t be allowed a chance to harvest more of those troublesome pests.
Source: http://www.mitchellrepublic.com/articles/index.cfm?id=24044§ion=Opinion
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