 Deer Management News This Week Utah cougar harvest quotas increased as wildlife officials seek to combat deer decline January 17, 2020 KSL ... In response to a decline in deer populations in some pockets of the state due, in part, to adverse weather conditions and the animals falling prey to cougars in recent years, state wildlife officials issued an “emergency” increase of 117 cougar harvest objectives in 11 areas across Utah .., [Graph from Utah DWR]  Granite Shoals bans automatic deer feeders within city limits January 17, 2020 Texas, Marble Falls ... City Manager Jeff Looney emphasized that officials aren’t telling residents they can’t feed the deer. “They want people to still feed the deer by hand in spreading of the feed for them,” he said. “You can do that. They want to discontinue the automatic feeders.” ... Final deer season count is 285,483 January 17, 2020 columbiamissourian.com ... preliminary report showing 285,483 deer were killed. Of the deer, 133,914 were antlered bucks, 27,931 were button bucks, and 123,638 were does... Hunters took 290,224 deer during the 2018-2019 overall deer hunting season ... Deer Test Positive for CWD January 17, 2020 North Dakota, NDGF News ... Eight deer taken during the 2019 North Dakota deer gun season tested positive for chronic wasting disease ... All were antlered deer taken from areas previously known to have CWD – six from unit 3F2 and two from 3A1 .., Three Counties Have CWD Status Changed January 16, 2020 Tennessee, TWRA News ... Haywood and Chester counties have be reclassified from high risk counties to CWD-positive counties after deer tested positive in the respective counties. Lauderdale County has been added as a high-risk county after a deer tested positive in Tipton County within 10 miles of the Lauderdale County border... Judge rejects challenge to Colorado wildlife officials' plan to kill black bears and mountain lions January 15, 2020 Aspen Times ... A Denver District Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit opposing Colorado wildlife officials’ plan to kill black bears and mountain lions as a way of boosting mule deer populations on the West Slope....California “Deer Factory” on the decline January 15, 2020 The Willits News ... the term “Deer Factory” is a by-gone term for the northern remote mountains of California, called the B-Zones. Fifty years ago it was normal on a walk through the woods to see 40-50 deer in a day ... Today, few bucks are seen and the greater numbers of deer we once saw regularly, have vanished largely in northwestern California... North Fork deer herds are threatened January 15, 2020 Wyoming, Cody Enterprise ... decline of the mule deer and white-tailed deer herds on the North Fork of the Shoshone River... attributed to, the harsh winters of 2016-17, and very healthy wolf, grizzly bear and mountain lion populations... The wolves more than any other predator follow the deer to the Central Plateau ... Five deer taken in Morgan County during buck season test positive for Chronic Wasting Disease January 15, 2020 West Virginia, Morgan Messenger ... the total Eastern Panhandle count for Chronic Wasting Disease for the 2019-2020 hunting season is 22 hunter-harvested deer out of 716 samples ... Added to figures from June 2019, the total number of confirmed CWD cases in deer in the Eastern Panhandle is 398 ... Violent threats made against DWR officer who shot domestic deer January 14, 2020 Utah, fox13now.com ... Law enforcement in two southern Utah counties are investigating threats towards a conservation officer who shot a domesticated deer ... which [the family] had rescued at its birth ....The DWR tells FOX 13 they are still reviewing the incident and are working with the family to come to a resolution and to make sure something like this doesn’t happen again... 'They've overstepped their bounds'; Sheriffs battle with DWR over abuse of authority following doe shooting January 13, 2020 Utah, St George News ... The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources met with multiple sheriffs following an incident in which a conservation officer went on private property to euthanize a deer ... “(The DWR) thinks they can do whatever they want, and they’ve overstepped their bounds here,” ... Local group starts wildlife survey, concerned about predators January 14, 2020 Washington, Eastern Washington Statesmen Examiner ... ungulate herds appear to be declining at a rate that should be making state officials nervous. Instead, he claims that biologists with Fish and Wildlife seem to be underreporting the number of predators and over-reporting deer, elk and moose populations to make the situation look better than it is... The Northeast Washington Wildlife Group is asking local residents and hunters to fill out a survey ... Deer cull by sharpshooters approved in Muskegon despite some citizen opposition January 15, 2020 Michigan, MLive ... a plan for sharpshooters to kill up to 30 white-tailed deer ... will cost about $20,000... pregnant does would be targeted... Chronic wasting disease found in deer at West Michigan farm January 15, 2020 Michigan, MLive ... Three white-tailed deer have tested positive for chronic wasting disease at a deer farm in Newaygo County... three 4-year-old deer ... Since 2008, the disease has been detected in four other privately-owned deer facilities from Kent, Mecosta and Montcalm counties .... EHD, ODFW IDs cause of NE Oregon 2,000-deer die-off January 13, 2020 Oregon, KTVZ ... Tests conducted by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife veterinarians have confirmed that Epizootic hemorrhagic disease is responsible for the die-off of an estimated 2,000 white-tailed deer in Eastern Oregon ... in late fall ... Border Wall Threatens National Wildlife Refuge That's Been 40 Years In The Making January 14, 2020 NPR ... "Forty years ago, there were no white-tailed deer anywhere near here ... the lower Texas-Mexico border ... Today, the white-tailed deer are all over the place. And so it's been a huge success." Fish and Wildlife told NPR that the border wall may impact 8,839 acres of native habitat on 30 separate tracts of its land... "... staff have worked on this issue for decades and decades. And it's being torn down in front of our eyes." ... To Combat CWD, State Wants Increased Deer Harvest Outside Libby January 13, 2020 Montana, MTPR ... Thirteen percent of the white-tailed deer in the town of Libby could be infected with chronic wasting disease (CWD), the highest prevalence rate in the state... FWP is already trapping deer within city limits to reduce population numbers ... Now the agency hopes to get permission from the state wildlife commission to sell an unlimited number of white-tailed deer tags... Wildlife group surveys public on cougar concerns January 13, 2020 Washington, Capital Press ... In recent years, the region's cougar populations have increased, impacting deer, elk and moose populations ... Magart expects the 2019 deer harvest to be the lowest on record ... With less prey, the cougars are moving closer to towns ... 'We have a very healthy elk population': Idaho Fish & Game responds to concerns about elk slaughter in Magic Valley January 13, 2020, Idaho, KTVB ... the elk were killed [206 elk] as part of a research project with a graduate student from the University of Idaho... The research was looking at ways to help keep elk off private property and prevent them from damaging crops. The research identified four different methods to see which was most effective. One of those methods was sharpshooting ... BLM's Carlsbad plan must balance oil and wildlife January 13, 2020 New Mexico, Albuquerque Journal ... The Bureau of Land Management is preparing to release a Resource Management Plan (RMP) for the Carlsbad area ... wants to make nearly 97% of the planning area available to oil and gas leasing... key habitat for pronghorn, deer and a variety of upland game birds, and that habitat has been increasingly stressed by energy development... Chronic Wasting Disease, DNR is right, but should grant leeway January 13, 2020 Minnesota, Grand Forks Herald ... Four years ago, Minnesota wild deer had no cases of chronic wasting disease ... by late 2019, there were 76 confirmed cases of CWD in Minnesota wild deer. Many wildlife biologists and hunters believe the quick rise can be attributed to Minnesota deer farms ... North is epicenter of infected deer; chronic wasting disease found in 13 Arkansas counties January 13, 2020 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette ... As of Dec. 3, the commission has confirmed 770 cases of the disease in Arkansas. Of those, 664, or 86%, are in Newton, Boone and Carroll counties... At least one case has been found in 13 of Arkansas' 75 counties, all in northern Arkansas...\ On migration corridors, governor attempts to strike balance between energy, environment January 12, 2020 Wyoming, Casper Star-Tribune Online ... Scientists have come to consider these ancient routes as critical habitat warranting state protection. With mule deer population numbers hovering near historic lows, the state has been debating how to avoid losing this animal ... Wyoming is home to roughly 400,000 mule deer and about half the world’s pronghorn population... DNR deer goal sessions among upcoming ways to get involved January 12, 2020 Minnesota, Brainerd Dispatch ... A series of workshops across northwest Minnesota beginning later this month present an opportunity for the many deer hunters in that part of the state to get involved in the Department of Natural Resources’ process for setting deer population goals... Mississippi: Up to 40 deer tested had deadly brain disease January 12, 2020 Wichita Eagle ... Chronic wasting disease, or CWD ... Nearly all the infected and suspected deer were in north Mississippi, including 25 killed or found in Benton County and 10 in adjacent Marshall County ... Utah cities and counties looking to restrict hunting January 11, 2020 Salt Lake Tribune ... Hunters are increasingly stalking deer and elk near homes and recreation areas, such as Park City’s Round Valley and Huntsville’s Cemetery Point, that didn’t exist a generation ago. Yet those cities have zero authority to ban or even regulate hunting on these lands, and some locally elected leaders want to change that to protect the public... CWD-infected Douglas County deer traced to Pine County farm January 11, 2020 Minnesota, TwinCities.com ... Both deer that were living on the Douglas County farm were killed earlier to stop the spread of the fatal brain disease. Both farms must fence off their deer pens to keep wild deer out and keep biohazard signs posted around them for five years... White-tailed deer in southwest Montana tests positive for CWD January 10, Explore Big Sky ... A white-tailed deer harvested during the general hunting season by a hunter in the Ruby Valley in southwest Montana has tested positive for chronic wasting disease. The Ruby Valley deer was harvested on private land about a mile west of Sheridan ... Muskegon, Sharpshooters would cull deer herds under plan before Muskegon commission January 10, 2020 Michigan, MLive ... A deer cull plan involving bait piles and sharpshooters ... would involve the “harvest” of up to 30 deer ... total cost is estimated at around $20,000... Elk found dead from eating corn in northern Wisconsin January 10, 2020 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ... An elk was found dead Jan. 2 in northern Wisconsin after it ate corn put out by a landowner in a misguided attempt to help wildlife, according to the Department of Natural Resources. The animal died from rumen acidosis ... Amendments to wildlife regulations proposed January 9, 2020 Kentucky, Morehead News ... The proposed regulation would only allow deboned meat, antlers, antlers attached to clean skull, a clean skull, clean upper canine teeth, hides and finished taxidermy products to be brought into Kentucky. The second proposed change would require double fencing on all new and expansions of existing captive cervid facilities ... Lakeway pursues permit to trap, transport deer January 9, 2020 Texas, Austin American-Statesmen ... the first step toward a state permit application to trap, transport and transplant ... white-tailed deer ... an applicant must trap and euthanize 15 deer within the trap site, testing them for chronic wasting disease ... Parks and Wildlife requires the test results before it will issue a permit... State white-tailed deer management plan calls for research, hunter opportunities January 9, 2020 Idaho, Coeur d'Alene/Post Falls Press ... Some hunters, according to the latest survey, were dissatisfied with hunter congestion in some areas, caused primarily by out-of-state deer and elk hunters, and with the low percentage of large — more than 5-point — whitetails... The sport adds around $30 million annually to the state’s economy, according to IDFG ... Minnesota deer farmer locks horns with DNR over transport ban January 8, 2020 TwinCities.com ... A northwest Minnesota deer farmer and former Kittson County sheriff says he’ll show his trophy bucks at a St. Paul sportsmen’s show ... despite an emergency rule the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources issued last month that temporarily prohibits the movement of all white-tailed deer within the state... after chronic wasting disease was discovered in a farmed white-tailed deer in Douglas County... Wildlife group questioning city's deer management plan January 8, 2020 Iowa, kwwl.com ... Iowa City Deer Friends showed counselors pictures Tuesday of deer carcasses found at Terry Trueblood Recreation Area in early December, claiming they had been shot during the city program and left to rot... "We can't imagine a scenario other than that these were deer killed by White Buffalo," ... In a first, researchers find CWD prions in deer semen January 8, 2020 Wisconsin, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ... For the first time, researchers have documented chronic wasting disease prions in semen from white-tailed deer at U.S. deer farms, according to a recently-published paper... Essex County, Deer Cull Will Return To Essex County For 2020: Dates, Locations January 8, 2020 New Jersey, Patch ... Hunters will be stationed at South Mountain and Hilltop reservations. Over the past 12 years, more than 2,600 deer have been killed... Ohio releases number of deer killed during muzzleloader season January 8, 2020 Dayton Daily News ... Ohio’s hunters killed 10,615 deer during the muzzleloader season ... During the 2019 season, 14,168 deer were taken ... Approximately 370,000 people have hunted deer in Ohio this year ... Vermont deer hunters had another good year in 2019 January 8, 2020 CT Post ... preliminary fall deer hunt numbers... 16,479 deer taken during the fall deer hunting seasons ... More deer testing positive for CWD on Wisconsin farms January 8, 2020 WQOW TV News 18 ... nearly 1/4 of the cases of CWD at Wisconsin deer farms were reported in just the last year. According to the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection, 405 cases of CWD have been reported at deer farms in the last decade... Deer Warts, Monstrous growths on white-tailed deer are turning stomachs in Alabama January 8, 2020 Miami Herald ... The growths are a type of virus known as “deer warts,” ... humans and farm animals can’t get the virus from deer and the condition is known to clear up, if given enough time...Overall Deer Numbers Are Stable in Iowa January 7, 2020 Iowa, raccoonvalleyradio.com ... the harvest numbers have been averaging 100,000 deer... “So that tells you that the deer herd is staying really stable, it’s right where the DNR (Department of Natural Resources) wants it. Compared to 2005 when we had our peak deer harvest of over 200,000 deer. We’re harvesting just half the number of deer we did 15 years ago, so it’s probably safe to assume the deer herd itself is half the size that it was 15 years ago.” [Iowa increase hunting pressure around 2005 to reduce the deer herd] .., Helena suspends deer culling due to budget cuts January 7, 2020 Montana, Independent Record ... The city began culling deer in 2008 by trapping them in pens ... This is the first fall and winter the city has not culled since then... the city plans to survey the deer population this fall, which is required by FWP in order to cull ... Scott's deer harvest is stunningly low January 7, 2020 Tennessee, Independent Herald ... As the statewide firearms hunting season closed Sunday evening, there had been a total of 438 deer harvested in Scott County during the 2019-2020 deer hunts ... down more than 25 percent from last year’s harvest of 587. It wasn’t quite as bad as 2017’s harvest of 390 deer — the year the EHD outbreak occurred .., In Vitro detection of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) prions in semen and reproductive tissues of white tailed deer bucks (Odocoileus virginianus). C Kramm, R Gomez-Gutierrez, C Soto, G Telling… - PloS one, 2019 ... we described the detection of CWD prions in semen and sexual tissues of WTD [white-tailed deer] bucks ... Our findings reveal the presence of CWD prions in semen and sexual tissues of prion infected WTD bucks. Future studies will be necessary to determine whether sexual contact and/or artificial inseminations are plausible means of CWD transmission in susceptible animal species... Ann Arbor, Protesters rally against deer cull in Ann Arbor January 7, 2020 Michigan, MLive ... “City Council is still voting to spend almost a million dollars to kill deer for really no tangible reason,” said Terry Abrams ... “They talk about deer car collisions and deer browsing plants, but there really hasn’t been an increase in either of those.” ... St. Louis County Council approves bill allowing controlled deer hunts in parks January 6, 2020 Missouri, KMOV ... allow archery hunts in the parks to help reduce the deer overpopulation... their biggest concern is public safety. They had 57 accidents involving deer in 2019 ... Ohio has thousands of auto accidents caused by deer January 5, 2020 Sandusky Register ... Tonkovich said he doesn’t have an estimate for the statewide deer population, but said in general, Ohio’s deer population seems to have increased for the last five years. He cautioned that local reports differ and some areas may see higher populations than others. Ohio hunters harvested 167,000 deer in 2019 at last report, and the final number will likely be about 190,000 for 2019 ... The cost of management: TPWD proposes fee to underwrite MLDP program cost January 5, 2019 Texas, Tyler Morning Telegraph ... Managed Lands Deer Permit... the program has grown to more than 12,000 properties covering almost 28.5 million acres... it allows the harvest of deer without using a license tag within an individual property’s quota and it offers an extended season... Based on current participation, the fee would generate about $1.8 million... Deer disease 'relatively rare' in Missouri, but Arkansas approaching 800 cases January 5, 2020 Joplin Globe ... The Missouri Department of Conservation said recently that it had confirmed 24 new cases of CWD in Missouri, out of about 27,000 tissue samples collected this season. That brings the state's total to 140 confirmed cases out of the 130,000 deer that Missouri has tested in the last decade. CWD was first confirmed in Missouri in 2012.... Kansas official sells trophy deer antlers in closed auction January 4, 2020 Kansas, CT Post ... Kansas officials have sold a set of trophy antlers from an illegally shot buck for $16,001 at a closed and unannounced auction in a state senator's office... TWRA to build deer carcass incinerator in Fayette County January 4, 2020 Tennessee, Columbia Daily Herald ... will build an incinerator to burn deer carcasses in Fayette County. The TFWC approved the $1 million investment ... the large-scale incinerator will be available to processors and hunters to dispose of deer from the CWD-positive and high-risk counties of southwest Tennessee. The incinerator will reach temperatures above 1,800 degrees and killing the disease... Poachers killed an elk and dumped it in Tulsa; wardens are asking for help with clues January 4, 2020 Oklahoma, Tulsa World ... A dead elk found outside the old Sears store ... Elk are not known to roam near Tulsa, so the poachers likely killed the cow elk, estimated to weigh about 200 pounds, many miles from where it ended up ... DNA fingerprinting of Southern Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus fuliginatus) in North San Diego County, California (2018-19) A Mitelberg, JG Smith, AG Vandergast - 2019 Clifornia ... Because it is the only large herbivorous mammal in San Diego, connectivity among mule deer groups is an important indicator of functional connectivity throughout San Diego County urban preserves and has therefore been monitored within central and eastern San Diego County using DNA fingerprinting since 2005. To continue this effort and to assess genetic connectivity in north San Diego County (herein “North County”), we genotyped scat samples from preserves in the area and tissue samples from Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton ... analyses support the presence of two genetic clusters for mule deer in San Diego County—the “Coastal” and “Inland/Mountain” clusters... Utah BLM, DNR announce new 5-year agreement supporting Watershed Restoration Initiative January 3, 2019 Utah, St George News ... Miles Moretti, president and CEO of the Mule Deer Foundation, said Utah’s WRI is improving habitat for mule deer and all wildlife at a “landscape scale not seen anywhere in the Western United States.” ... Watershed Restoration Initiative projects ...Wolf reintroduction to Colorado a mistake says former wildlife commissioner Rick Enstrom January 3, 2019 Complete Colorado ... “You only have to look at what happened to the Wyoming elk population,” Enstrom said. “Their herds have been knocked back to 10 percent of what it was.” ... The proposed initiative calls for wolf management and predation compensation to be paid out of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) wildlife cash fund ... Ancient West Virginia forests once a mosaic of landscapes January 3, 2020, West Virginia Explorer ... Historians once assumed West Virginia had been shaded by a vast unbroken forest ... Records from the 1700s and archaeological evidence uncovered more recently indicate that vast areas had been burned to create grasslands to make hunting and farming easier ... Only about one percent of forest fires were started by lightning strikes, and the rest were manmade... Minnesota DNR will talk with critics on wildlife area logging January 3, 2020 Duluth News Tribune ... Duluth area wildlife managers wrote in the letter to the commissioner, saying they had proposed reserving selected stands of older forest for fisher and marten habitat and winter habitat for deer and moose. If the DNR plan goes through, WMAs in the Duluth region “will no longer support adequate habitat for many species,'' .... CPW Responds To Second Deer Caught In Netting In One Week In Colorado Springs January 3, 2020 Colorado, CBS Boston ... Officials with Colorado Parks and Wildlife are asking homeowners to take down anything that could snag wildlife wandering through their property... CPW suggests homeowners take hammocks, rope ladders and swings inside when they are not in use... WDFW to use helicopters to capture mule deer January 3, 2020 Washington, wa.gov ... Starting in early January, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) will conduct mule deer captures from helicopters in three study areas along the east slope of the Cascades in Okanogan, Chelan, and Kittitas counties. The Department will use contracted professional crews to capture approximately 50 adult female mule deer in each area.., City of Big Rapids to Vote on Deer Cull January 3, 2020 Michigan, 9&10 News ... the city is proposing a deer cull for the 20th year to remove deer from the area by killing them... the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) would come in and shoot the deer... Ann Arbor, Sharpshooters Take To Ann Arbor Parks To Cull 150 Deer January 2, 2020 Michigan, WWJ Radio Detroit ... "I don't like the deer running through my yard and eating all of my plants... Near one of the parks, the Foxfire West Nature Area, resident Lewis Verela is concerned about kids in the area... Sioux Falls authorities to kill 70 deer within city limits before winter's end January 2, 2020 South Dakota, Argus Leader ... The South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Department has issued a special permit to the Sioux Falls Police Department to remove 70 deer from the population in 2020, the highest number permitted since the city began its annual herd culling program in 2015... Low buck harvest no cause for alarm, DNR says January 2, 2020 West Virginia, Huntington Herald Dispatch ... “This year’s archery kill, unofficially, appears to be on pace to equal last year’s [26,636], which would indicate our deer herd has not suffered any significant decline. Yes, the buck harvest was lower than we thought it would be, but that’s not a sign that the world’s coming to an end.” ... Chronic Wasting Disease: First confirmed case in a moose in Montana January 2, 2020 Pink ... less than half a mile to the west of the existing Libby CWD Management Zone... CWD was first detected in white-tailed deer in the Libby area earlier this year, leading to the creation of the Libby CWD Management Zone. To date, there have been 30 positive detections in deer... Shed-antler restrictions January 1, 2020 Colorado, KKCO-TV ... Collecting shed antlers on all public lands west of I-25 is not allowed until the end of April... Officials say they want to make sure people don't go near them because animals may run, causing them to burn energy that they need the most during this time of year... Public has chance to provide input on local deer-population goals January 1, 2020 Minnesota, Echo Press ... Based on feedback from hunters and others, the DNR is using a new workshop format to facilitate small group discussions to both scope issues and create recommendations. The workshops replace the citizen advisory committees and public meetings that were used during the last round of deer goal setting... Wildlife highway crossings, fences installed in Utah in 2019 to help prevent collisions January 1, 2020 Utah, Southern Utah Independent ... Utah made history when it completed the first wildlife overpass in the U.S. in 1975 on I-15 near Beaver. Since then, around 50 wildlife crossings have been installed throughout the state... Around 6,300 deer and elk were confirmed to be killed in vehicle collisions in 2019 ... “Deer typically follow the same migration routes every year,” ... Suspect captured in illegal killing of Tennessee elk which was part of research study December 31, 2019 Tennessee, WTVC ... identified by members of the public after a $2,000 reward was offered leading to the capture and conviction of the person responsible for killing the elk on December 23. The elk was part of a 3-year research study by the University of Tennessee's Department of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries.... City resumes year four of deer vasectomies to cut population December 31, 2019 New York, SILive ... After the first phase of the $4.1 million three-year program ended, the city decided to award White Buffalo another $2.5 million contract for five more years of vasectomies... Pronghorn Routes Improved December 30, 2019 Wyoming, KSGT ... Pronghorn and deer in Western Wyoming will soon be able to cross fences along their winter migration routes more easily thanks to improved fencing along Wyoming Highway 28... Deer harvest is down again. There's more going on than just bad weather December 30, 2019 Maryland, DelmarvaNow ... a decline of 14 percent [from 2018]... three years in a row of declining kills when the DNR blamed the abundance or scarcity of acorns ... most hunters in our region are already talking about the lack of deer ... Fayetteville, City calls on residents to obey state's law, stop feeding deer December 30, 2019 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette ... a state law passed this year prohibiting the baiting and feeding of deer. The law is intended to prevent the spread of chronic wasting disease. Baiting or feeding deer causes the animals to unnaturally congregate ... |
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