This weekend, more than 600,000 people will take to the woods for the opening of Wisconsin’s annual deer gun hunting season, which is one of the largest in the nation.
Most hunters view deer season as a chance to enjoy the outdoors and put some food on the table. The attitudes of the rest of society range anywhere from bemusement to indifference to disgust. But the upcoming hunting season provides a chance to look at deer hunting and increasing deer populations as part of a broader discussion on environmental and economic issues.
The key underlying fact in this discussion is that the current whitetail deer population in Wisconsin is estimated at an all-time high of 1.8 million. This isn't just the most deer we've had in "modern," post-settlement times, it's the most deer we've ever had, period. It's not obvious at first why this might be a problem — in fact, it sounds rather like good news. With all this talk about climate change, oil spills and endangered species, at least we're doing something right — after all, more deer mean more nature, right?
Wrong. The current deer population is unnaturally high, mostly due to humans. Deer density increased dramatically with the decline of natural predators, including wolves, which were hunted to extinction in Wisconsin and have only recently returned in small numbers. In southern Wisconsin, urban sprawl and fragmented farmland and forests have increased deer populations. In the north, the logging of mature forests is doing the same thing, mostly because the stands of Aspen that pop up after logging provide ideal habitats for deer. These problems have been compounded with a recent string of mild winters, undoubtedly caused by climate change.
This is having a real impact on Wisconsin's natural environment. In many forests, trees are effectively not reproducing because deer gobble up seedlings before they can get established. In other places deer have put many wildflower species in danger of local extinction. The Ridges Wildlife Sanctuary in Door County has resorted to building metal cages around some of their rare varieties of orchids to prevent deer from wiping them out completely. Deer also have a more indirect effect on their surroundings. UW botany professor Don Waller points out that too many deer may have a cascading effect by tipping the balance in favor of some invasive plants which often have further detrimental effects on the environment.
An unnaturally high population isn't good for deer, either. It puts them at an increased risk of disease and also carries a potential for starvation.
Many people don't realize how serious of a problem this is. The increasing whitetail deer population might not inspire the same kind of feelings as climate change or the Charter Street Coal Plant, but it is really an environmental issue at heart. That's not to say there aren't economic impacts as well. According to the Wisconsin Insurance Alliance, collisions with deer cost Wisconsin motorists more than $160 million every year. The state spends more than $1.5 million each year reimbursing farmers for crop damage caused by deer, and most experts estimate actual damages go far beyond that.
In the long run, getting deer populations under control and at a healthy level will require continued efforts to encourage natural predators, as well as some fundamental changes in the way humans interact with the land. But in the short term, hunting is the most practical way of keeping deer populations in check and a way to reduce our impact on nature. In that way, hunting isn't all that different from recycling or driving a hybrid.
Like most other individual actions people can take to help the environment, hunting isn't done nearly enough. Wisconsin hunters harvest more than 500,000 deer each year, but the population is still about 50 percent higher than the goal set by the Department of Natural Resources. Part of the responsibility lies with hunters; many grumble about taking female deer, which is essential to controlling the population.
But current non-hunters can get involved by supporting hunting or even taking it up themselves. If the prospect of shooting deer with a high-powered rifle sounds a little intense, consider hunting with a bow and arrow. Anyone can bow hunt from September through November every year, often on public land. Even vegetarian environmentalists can get into the act thanks to recent and innovative programs like Hunt for the Hungry, which allow hunters to donate deer toward feeding low-income families and shelter residents.
Overpopulation and its impacts may not be the first issue that comes to mind when thinking about ways to help the environment. No one has ever won an Oscar or a Nobel Peace Prize for bringing attention to the issue. But it is an environmental issue nonetheless, and people shouldn't be afraid to do their part to fix it.
Nathan Braun ([email protected]) is a junior majoring in economics.
