Biologists support Ann Arbor deer cull

January 15, 2016

A University of Michigan evolutionary biologist says he and many of his U-M colleagues support the city of Ann Arbor's plans to kill up to 100 deer this winter, calling the cull "a positive step toward ecological sustainability."

Christopher Dick is an associate professor in the U-M Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and director of the university's 1,300-acre E.S. George Reserve northwest of Ann Arbor. Dick explains his position on the proposed Ann Arbor deer cull in a guest commentary today in Bridge Magazine, which is published by The Center for Michigan.

According to the city of Ann Arbor's website, the goal of the deer management program is to decrease the city's deer population "in order to reduce deer-human negative interactions and support biological diversity in natural areas."

For evidence that deer culls help to restore ecological balance and biodiversity, you need to look no further than the E.S. George Reserve near Pinckney, according to Dick.

In 1928, four does and two bucks were released there, and the population rose from six deer to more than 160 deer in six years. Browsing by deer damaged trees and shrubs and suppressed plant succession, Dick wrote.

Since 1942, E.S. George Reserve stewards have periodically culled the deer herd, leading to a steady recovery of oak, hickory, maple and other native plant species, according to Dick.

"The Ann Arbor deer cull may not reverse decades of ecological degradation or prevent all diseases," he wrote. "But with around 150 tons of buds, leaves and flowers that will be spared this year alone, it is a positive step toward ecological sustainability."

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Leighton Moss nature reserve: RSPB locks horns with deer lovers over cull

Bird charity blames the animals for damage at Site of Special Scientific Interest

HELEN CARTER

Friday 06 February 2015

The two sides have squared up like a pair of rutting stags. In one corner is the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, which runs Leighton Moss nature reserve in Lancashire, where it wants to shoot some of the local red deer. In the other, local nature campaigners vehemently opposed to the idea of a “horrible” cull.

Leighton Moss is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a Special Protection Area and home to between 60 and 90 deer, which also roam into the surrounding Silverdale area.

The reserve boasts the largest reed bed in the North-West of England, which attracts breeding bitterns, bearded tits, marsh harriers and otters, and has featured in the BBC’s flagship nature programme Autumnwatch.

Continued ...

Sharpshooters to renew deer cull in heart of Washington D.C.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Sharpshooters will renew culling the white-tailed deer population, growing fast in the heart of the U.S. capital, as early as Thursday night, the National Park Service said.

The nighttime hunts by Department of Agriculture shooters in Washington's Rock Creek Park will continue until March 31, or until 106 deer have been killed, said Nick Bartolomeo, the park's chief of resources management.

The general public should remain out of harm's way because joggers and cyclists are generally barred from the park after dark, according to the park service.

Continued

Stalkers right to shoot orphan deer

Young deer should also be killed when their mothers are shot, according to scientists.

Research carried out on the Isle of Rum in Scotland showed that orphaned deer were much less likely to survive than those with their mother's care.

Young males that were orphaned in their first year were slow to grow antlers, indicating a potential lifelong impact.

The results support best practice guidelines in Scotland where deer are culled to control populations.

The study was supported by the UK Natural Environment Research Council, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).

Continued

Scottish Wildlife Trust calls for a deer cull to protect biodiversity

Deer management decision welcomed by the Scottish Wildlife Trust

September 2013. Leading conservation charity, the Scottish Wildlife Trust, has welcomed the decision taken by the Scottish Parliament's Rural Affairs Committee to scrutinize how deer management agreements, which help control deer numbers across Scotland, are impacting on biodiversity, habitats and ultimately climate change. 

Too many deer

The Scottish Wildlife Trust believes that in some parts of Scotland deer numbers are too high and this puts pressure on Scotland's wildlife and ecosystems because of the damage caused by overgrazing and trampling.

Head of Policy for the Scottish Wildlife Trust, Dr. Maggie Keegan, said:" The Scottish Wildlife Trust heartedly backs the Rural Affairs Committee decision to investigate the impacts of deer on Scotland's biodiversity and climate change targets.

"The Scottish Wildlife Trust believes a crucial step in determining how many deer to cull in any given area must be to assess the impacts on habitats of the current local deer population - this requires habitat monitoring.

"The Scottish Wildlife Trust knows from site condition monitoring of our nationally and internationally protected sites that nearly a quarter have been damaged because of overgrazing and trampling pressure.

"It is difficult to see how Scotland will achieve its 2020 biodiversity target - or its commitment to increasing woodland cover as part of mitigating and adapting to climate change - without getting deer numbers under control."

DEER NUMBERS IN SCOTLAND

According to the Scottish Wildlife Trust, there are more than 750, 000 deer in Scotland (c: 400,000 red; 350,000 roe; 25,000 Sika and 8,000 fallow deer.

Red deer have increased three fold in the last 50 years (roe deer have only been counted from 2005 and they have increased by 5,000 over that period). Unfortunately culling of red deer has not kept pace with population expansion - if anything there has been a decrease in numbers culled over the last 10 years.

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/deer-cull-scotland.html