esheato
August 10, 2005, 05:35 AM
Sharpshooters may cull 550 deer from city park
Link (http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050809/NEWS01/508090351/1056)
The Cincinnati Park Board wants to hire police sharpshooters to kill 550 deer in Mount Airy Forest next year in an effort to curb the exploding deer population there.
The program, a first for the city, could be expanded to California Woods in an effort to reduce the deer population citywide.
The Ohio Division of Wildlife says the deer population in the 1,469-acre forest should be no more than 32. That's the number needed to ensure there are about 15 deer per square mile, enough to sustain a deer population without destroying a forest. The forest is about 2.2 square miles.
The Park Board estimated about 600 deer present last winter - a count it obtains through infrared photography from a helicopter at night.
By next winter, the number could go to 900. If nothing is done, deer population could theoretically reach more than 10,000 by 2011. By killing about 500 a year, they hope to gradually decrease the population to a sustainable level.
The overpopulation has sent deer into the surrounding neighborhoods in search of food - gnawing at underbrush, rampaging gardens and destroying new trees.
"They are nocturnal animals, but they aren't anymore. You can go through Mount Airy Forest in the middle of the day and they'll walk right up to cars, because people are feeding them," said Cindee R. Walsh, who lives near the park and is vice president of the Mount Airy Town Council.
"The fact of the matter is they'll eat anything if they're hungry enough. And they're hungry enough."
Park officials and neighbors say the overpopulation is beginning to take its toll:
With 714 deer-vehicle accidents, Hamilton County ranked second in the state last year, after Muskingum County. The previous two years Hamilton County led the state, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol. The highest numbers were in October and November.
The forest is slowly dying because new trees don't have the chance to mature before deer destroy them, said city arborist Paula Miller. Wildflowers are also disappearing, and the lack of underbrush means that songbirds have nowhere to nest.
The lack of landscaping in Mount Airy may be contributing to flooding problems downhill.
Park officials say the overpopulation makes the forest ripe for poachers, and they've discovered deer stands and deer carcasses - evidence of illegal hunting, park officials said.
The culling program would start in Mount Airy Forest, which is the largest park in the city. California Woods on the East Side would be next. That would also reduce the number of deer roaming adjoining parks like Laboiteaux Woods in College Hill and Ault Park in Mount Lookout.
City Council quietly approved the plan without a voice vote last week - and without discussion - though it has not appropriated the $170,000 necessary to implement it. The Park Board hopes to get formal approval this fall after meeting with neighborhood councils in California, College Hill, Mount Airy, Mount Washington and Northside.
Park officials worry openly about the "Bambi" factor, as parks director Willie F. Carden Jr. called it in his report to the Park Board in June.
"There is a potential public relations issue since some people see the deer in an idealized way (like the 'Bambi' film) and may not want to see culling occur," he wrote.
And Walsh said a council member - who she did not name - told her he didn't want to be labeled a "Bambi-killer" in an election year.
Animal rights activists agree that overpopulation is a problem, but disagree on the tactics.
"It's going to become a perpetual and vicious kill cycle, which isn't a long-term solution to the abundant deer population there," said Stephanie Boyles, a wildlife biologist for the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. "The fishbowl these animals are living in is getting smaller and smaller. It's not necessarily that there are more deer. It's that the number of deer that have always existed here have to live on a smaller piece of land. It's not their fault."
PETA advocates the use of dart-administered contraceptives. Cincinnati Park officials said that solution requires precise timing and tracking of the animals to be effective - something that won't be feasible until the park first gets the population under control.
Indian Hill, Spring Grove Cemetery and the Hyde Park Country Club already have smaller culling programs. But the city's program would be modeled after a system that the Hamilton County Park District has had in place since 2003.
The county uses its own park rangers, who follow strict safety protocols. The culling happens only in the winter months, when visibility is better and people are less likely to be in the parks. The rangers clear the area and shoot at a downward angle only, from tree stands or trucks, toward the interior of the park. They use salt licks and other bait to attract the animals.
In three years, the county has culled 1,727 deer. The meat is donated to the FreeStore/FoodBank, and the park district estimates it has provided 227,000 venison dinners to the needy.
It's not cheap. The proposed $170,000 budget includes $45,000 for salaries and overtime for police and parks staff, $34,000 to process the carcasses, $30,000 for a public relations campaign and $20,000 for helicopter flights over the forest to count deer.
The use of .223-caliber rifles with silencers also requires special approval from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
To save money, the Hamilton County Park District will experiment with allowing qualified archers hunt deer in county parks during bow hunting season starting this year. But the county park district will also have to use the sharpshooters for the foreseeable future.
"It was a difficult step for us to make, but it was the point where we needed to do something," said Jim Rahtz, visitor services director for the county parks. "We've done it safely for three years. We feel we are making a difference with the health of the parks."
E-mail gkorte@enquirer.com
-------------------------------------------------------------
170k for a job that many of us would gladly do just to fill our freezer.
Ed
Link (http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050809/NEWS01/508090351/1056)
The Cincinnati Park Board wants to hire police sharpshooters to kill 550 deer in Mount Airy Forest next year in an effort to curb the exploding deer population there.
The program, a first for the city, could be expanded to California Woods in an effort to reduce the deer population citywide.
The Ohio Division of Wildlife says the deer population in the 1,469-acre forest should be no more than 32. That's the number needed to ensure there are about 15 deer per square mile, enough to sustain a deer population without destroying a forest. The forest is about 2.2 square miles.
The Park Board estimated about 600 deer present last winter - a count it obtains through infrared photography from a helicopter at night.
By next winter, the number could go to 900. If nothing is done, deer population could theoretically reach more than 10,000 by 2011. By killing about 500 a year, they hope to gradually decrease the population to a sustainable level.
The overpopulation has sent deer into the surrounding neighborhoods in search of food - gnawing at underbrush, rampaging gardens and destroying new trees.
"They are nocturnal animals, but they aren't anymore. You can go through Mount Airy Forest in the middle of the day and they'll walk right up to cars, because people are feeding them," said Cindee R. Walsh, who lives near the park and is vice president of the Mount Airy Town Council.
"The fact of the matter is they'll eat anything if they're hungry enough. And they're hungry enough."
Park officials and neighbors say the overpopulation is beginning to take its toll:
With 714 deer-vehicle accidents, Hamilton County ranked second in the state last year, after Muskingum County. The previous two years Hamilton County led the state, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol. The highest numbers were in October and November.
The forest is slowly dying because new trees don't have the chance to mature before deer destroy them, said city arborist Paula Miller. Wildflowers are also disappearing, and the lack of underbrush means that songbirds have nowhere to nest.
The lack of landscaping in Mount Airy may be contributing to flooding problems downhill.
Park officials say the overpopulation makes the forest ripe for poachers, and they've discovered deer stands and deer carcasses - evidence of illegal hunting, park officials said.
The culling program would start in Mount Airy Forest, which is the largest park in the city. California Woods on the East Side would be next. That would also reduce the number of deer roaming adjoining parks like Laboiteaux Woods in College Hill and Ault Park in Mount Lookout.
City Council quietly approved the plan without a voice vote last week - and without discussion - though it has not appropriated the $170,000 necessary to implement it. The Park Board hopes to get formal approval this fall after meeting with neighborhood councils in California, College Hill, Mount Airy, Mount Washington and Northside.
Park officials worry openly about the "Bambi" factor, as parks director Willie F. Carden Jr. called it in his report to the Park Board in June.
"There is a potential public relations issue since some people see the deer in an idealized way (like the 'Bambi' film) and may not want to see culling occur," he wrote.
And Walsh said a council member - who she did not name - told her he didn't want to be labeled a "Bambi-killer" in an election year.
Animal rights activists agree that overpopulation is a problem, but disagree on the tactics.
"It's going to become a perpetual and vicious kill cycle, which isn't a long-term solution to the abundant deer population there," said Stephanie Boyles, a wildlife biologist for the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. "The fishbowl these animals are living in is getting smaller and smaller. It's not necessarily that there are more deer. It's that the number of deer that have always existed here have to live on a smaller piece of land. It's not their fault."
PETA advocates the use of dart-administered contraceptives. Cincinnati Park officials said that solution requires precise timing and tracking of the animals to be effective - something that won't be feasible until the park first gets the population under control.
Indian Hill, Spring Grove Cemetery and the Hyde Park Country Club already have smaller culling programs. But the city's program would be modeled after a system that the Hamilton County Park District has had in place since 2003.
The county uses its own park rangers, who follow strict safety protocols. The culling happens only in the winter months, when visibility is better and people are less likely to be in the parks. The rangers clear the area and shoot at a downward angle only, from tree stands or trucks, toward the interior of the park. They use salt licks and other bait to attract the animals.
In three years, the county has culled 1,727 deer. The meat is donated to the FreeStore/FoodBank, and the park district estimates it has provided 227,000 venison dinners to the needy.
It's not cheap. The proposed $170,000 budget includes $45,000 for salaries and overtime for police and parks staff, $34,000 to process the carcasses, $30,000 for a public relations campaign and $20,000 for helicopter flights over the forest to count deer.
The use of .223-caliber rifles with silencers also requires special approval from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
To save money, the Hamilton County Park District will experiment with allowing qualified archers hunt deer in county parks during bow hunting season starting this year. But the county park district will also have to use the sharpshooters for the foreseeable future.
"It was a difficult step for us to make, but it was the point where we needed to do something," said Jim Rahtz, visitor services director for the county parks. "We've done it safely for three years. We feel we are making a difference with the health of the parks."
E-mail gkorte@enquirer.com
-------------------------------------------------------------
170k for a job that many of us would gladly do just to fill our freezer.
Ed