Re: Animal activist refuses to let bow-hunter retrieve deer

I agree with the conclusion of the article, since the hunter didn't have to tag his kill, he'll just go kill another. Meanwhile the predator animals that may not have killed this particular deer get a free meal in this guy's yard...they'll be back for more!

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Lynn Gorfinkle
If someone's going to eat that deer, I want it to be natural predators, not some hunter,

???

Humans are not natural predators or so it seems.

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Old Dude

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mrcondron
Humans are not natural predators or so it seems.

Could have fooled the predatees.

Jim

Apparently the deer went missing. Seems really complicated. Apparently the deer was technically the property of the landowners unless they allowed the hunter to retrieve it. I'm not sure why they wouldn't be required to have a tag. The landowners insist that a human must have taken it, but local law enforcement believe that no human would want a 2 week old decomposing carcass. They believe that coyotes likely dismembered it and took it away in pieces.

http://www.connpost.com/ci_13781007

I'm sort of torn on this. I'm not a big hunting proponent but not anti-hunting by a long shot. I live in an area with lots and lots of deer. They're a danger because of Lyme disease, vehicle interactions, and the occasional goring/kicking. I remember one buck was a little bit aggressive in Contra Costa County and was eventually shot by animal control. The ones I've seen mostly are not. I'm not sure what the long-term solution might be. People aren't too keen on reintroducing wolves or mountain lions. I guess there might be the occasional coyote, but not enough. There isn't much hunting in our county. Their food sources are far from natural given that there are a landscaped gardens/bushes which provide ample food sources.

What is interesting about the urban deer situation is that it is not so much do to "lack of habitat" for deer, in my opinion. Many towns have habituated deer but the towns are in the midst of huge tracts of land that is traditional deer habitat. Apparently there has been a selection pressure favoring deer in urban areas (those in cities live to reproduce) and it seems that the situation will only change when an urban existence becomes hazardous or unfavorable to the animals.
There are many options as suggested in the following study:

http://fwp.mt.gov/content/getItem.aspx?id=40155

We have created a protected utopia for deer (some city dwellers actually intentionaly feed deer) due to the hunting restrictions and the available food sources (landscape plants, bird feeders, compost piles, etc) Although an effective method for reducing deer numbers involves a baited trap and boltgun (similar to the device used to kill cattle for slaughter), it probably will not result in a long term solution to urban deer influx because essentially the program eliminates from the gene pool those deer that like apples and grain. Ideally, one would like to encourage the reproduction of deer that are wary of humans and wary of life in an urban setting.

It may be similar to the bear behavior in Yosemite. I suspect that there is considerable "training" of deer young by successful urban adult deer. In other words, until there are widely effective predators or harassment in an urban setting ( making urban habitat more unpleasant to deer than rural) it seems to me unlikely that urban deer populations will be reduced in the long term.

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The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan

Recently it was revealed that 14% of all vehicle accidents in North Carolina are deer strikes, primarily during the October through December rutting season. My work requires driving all around a three county area and I see new deer carcasses beside the road daily. I live in an outer suburb area of Raleigh which is over-run with white tailed deer. It is not uncommon to see herds of deer in our back yard and at least 1-2 every day. There is frequent talk amoungst our residents regarding how to reduce the population but as soon as any suggestions about culling the herd are aired there follows an outcry from folks who demand a less "cruel" way to deal with the problem. Hence, nothing gets done. Our deer so far eat just about everything in site except oak leaves and asparagus!

Jim

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tomdisco
Our deer so far eat just about everything in site except oak leaves and asparagus!
Jim

No "Stalking the Wild Asparagus" there?

Perhaps you could get them to eat their veggies if you would offer them in a nice crepe:
http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Asparagus-Chicken-Crepes



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/17/2009 11:28AM by szalkowski.

Sounds like one area of Pennsylvania has a deer problem worse than North Carolina, California, Montana, or Connecticut:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hzuwxaMVTUhZqegRiFvtPOjtXqAQD9C191OO0
Rotting deer carcasses in Pa. yard raise stink

(AP) – 8 hours ago

KITTANNING, Pa. — Hundreds of rotting deer carcasses in a southwestern Pennsylvania yard are causing a stink among the neighbors.

Randy Good of North Buffalo Township has a contract with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to remove the animal carcasses from roads in five counties....

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The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan

A contract is nice but you are not supposed to bring your work home with you.