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DEER MEETING FEEDS FRUSTRATION
If you missed the public meeting last Monday night to discuss the deer problem in and around Princeton, one single point came out of the sometimes heated dialogue: residents have to work together to educate each other on how to make Princeton appear less attractive to deer.
The meeting, organized by Joyce Fraser and a handful of other concerned citizens, was the fourth such meeting held in five years. It was also promoted as a chance to develop a 'made for Princeton' solution, which didn't happen for a variety of reasons.
Residents in attendance, close to fifty, shared stories of their encounters and expressed a high level of frustration in what the deer have done.
Stories covered everything from attacks on people and small animals to aggressive and destructive behaviour.
Fraser started the meeting, moderated by Frank Armitage, with a short outline on what has transpired over the time frame of the previous meetings. She stated there has been no talk or action taken in downsizing the deer herd that has continued to grow at a rapid rate.
She pointed a finger at elected officials and wildlife experts to come up with a solution.
"Someone is going to be badly injured and then who will be accountable?"
She even suggested developing a Reserve on Crown Land near the community for the deer to be relocated to.
Comments from the audience were many and varied including:
- "They are a problem, they eat my garden."
- "I don't plant a garden to feed the deer, I plant a garden to feed my family."
- "They're not afraid of anything."
- "We are living in a wilderness area."
- "The animals have been domesticated. They are finding food to feed themselves and their family."
- "The migration route is so close to Princeton, I don't know how you're going to get rid of them."
- "We don't have wild deer. We have urban deer they never leave town."
- "One of these days we will have someone here with Lyme Disease, if we haven't already."
- "You've got deer born here each year and they know this as their home. The only way to get rid of them, I'm afraid to say is destroy them."
Yale-Lilooet MLA Harry Lali spoke to the issue stating the problem was not really about those in attendance.
"The folks who are playing by the rules, who are not feeding the deer, are here tonight."
Lali said the deer feel safe in the area so that's why there come into town.
Deputy Mayor Jim Manion went straight to the point.
"The deer didn't create this problem, we did."
He also admitted the solution is long-term.
"Education. I know a lot of people don't want to hear that, as it's not an instant solution. It takes time."
Conservation Officer Al Lay echoed the same message.
"We live in a rural area and there's a lot of animals out there we have to be careful of." He said the deer problem started well over thirty years ago when new people moving to the community from urban settings started feeding deer to get them near their homes.
"We need to work on educating the public. To me wildlife is wild life."
Wildlife Biologist Brian Harris pointed to the Wildlife Act that has guidelines on how to handle problem animals, but only after landowners have done their part.
He said there is a possibility of changing the Limited Entry Hunting Regulations to address the situation, but the targeted hunt would still have to be outside Town Limits.
"The long term solution is that we need to make Princeton less attractive to deer."
He suggested implementing the planting of plants that are supposed to deter deer, but some gardeners in the room indicated their experience showed the deer developed a liking to anything planted. Sprays were also suggested and met with the same response.
Two hours after the meeting started, it was obvious nothing concrete was going to come out of it and many people left during a short break.
The News Leader spoke the following morning with Harris about the targeted Limited Entry Hunt of does and according to his statistics, the averages from 2002-2004 as are as follows:
Antlerless Deer
MU8-4 5 per year
MU8-5 16 per year
MU8-6 10 per year
MU8-7 5 per year
"Likely most deer are taken in the bush and so this harvest probably does not provide much relief for the Princeton town residents experiencing garden damage," Harris explains.
As for the notion that Keremeos does not have a deer problem, as was suggested at the meeting, Harris offers these observations.
"It could be a number of things, or more likely a combination. From the people side: Keremeos is much smaller, much less densely settled with more open ground around the houses and less forest near the town. Some orchards are fenced and as a more rural community may be more accepting of deer. Commercial growers may tolerate more damage than a home gardener. On the deer side: generally mule deer prefer slopes over flat valley bottoms, so Princeton is deer range, where Keremeos is less so. Keremeos also has less snow, so the deer can stay higher on the hills."
So how will Princeton solve the deer problem in and around our community? There are a few options, but really no quick solution.
A Limited Entry Hunt targeted at antlerless deer in combination with a massive education program on what to do to make your yard and garden less attractive to deer, and stiffer fines enforced on those residents who are blatantly feeding the deer is a start.
MANAGING NUISANCE DEER IN URBAN SETTINGS
Introduction
The Okanagan Region is a roughly triangular shape extending from the USA border between Manning Park and Christina Lake north to Mara Lake. The dry and mild climate is attractive to people to live and work and supports significant agriculture ventures. There is also a wide diversity of wildlife including two species of deer (mule and white-tailed).
The normal pattern for mule deer is to spend the spring, summer and fall dispersed throughout the mountains, while white-tailed deer may remain closer to the valley bottoms. However, when the deep snow of winter arrives, deer move to lower elevations to find food, shelter and safety. Typical deer winter range is low elevation, south facing slopes and those are often the same slopes where humans choose to live. Deer have followed this pattern for thousands of years. What has changed recently, though, is that the winter range is no longer covered with fir trees, Saskatoon bushes and native grasses. The deer now encounter highways and houses and back yards with fruit trees, rose bushes and other ornamental and agricultural plants. When spring arrives, the natural behavior is for the deer to return to the high country. However, some deer have become accustomed to the feed associated with humans and are now year round residents in urban and semi-rural areas.
Small numbers of deer are normally tolerated by people, but as the local deer numbers increase, so do crop damage and concerns and requests for action. Deer remain in residential settings because they feel protected from predators and there is an abundance of food. At some point, the level of deer damage becomes unacceptable. There are limited steps that the Ministry of Environment can take, but the long term solution is for residents to make their community less attractive to deer.
HUMAN HEALTH AND SAFETY CONCERNS
Human Health Issues
Deer carry ticks and other parasites, but according to Dr. Helen Schwantje, the Provincial Wildlife Veterinarian, deer are not currently considered a significant source of infectious diseases that can be transmitted to humans or domestic animals.Human Safety Issues
Deer are not recognized as dangerous wildlife, but they must be given respect and space. Deer normally react defensively and most often flee from perceived threats. However they are intelligent animals and can learn that humans or even smaller dogs are not threats. Deer are wild animals and does can be aggressively protective of their fawns. Any physical contact from an aggressive deer should be reported to the Conservation Officer Service (1-800-663-9453) for appropriate action.Attracting Predators
Although cougars do attack humans, such events are rare because cougars are wary and normally avoid human activity. Cougars prey on deer and thus may be attracted into towns where there are deer. It is likely, though that domestic stock and pets are the attractive prey, thus cougars could be encountered in a town regardless of the presence of deer. A cougar in a town should be reported to the Conservation Officer Service hotline (1-800-663-9453).PROTECTING CROPS AND LANDSCAPING
Policy
The Problem Wildlife Management Policy (4-7-04.01) states that Ministry of Environment will: "control wildlife which threatens or causes significant damage or harm to man or his property; but wildlife will generally not be controlled before acceptable husbandry, food or waste storage practices, or agricultural operations, are instituted to prevent problems from occurring."So it is incumbent upon the landowner to make reasonable efforts to protect his property from deer damage prior to action by Ministry staff.
Fencing
For fencing details and designs, see http://wdfw.wa.gov/wlm/living/deer.htm. Woven wire fencing is the most effective protection from browsing deer. To be effective, though, the fence must be a minimum 2.5m high. Electric fencing can be a barrier to deer, but must be maintained. To be effective, 8 strands of electrified wire should be spaced over 1.5m height. Cages or mini fences can be installed around specific shrubs that the landowner wants protected. Netting that is normally sold to protect berries and fruit from birds can be an effective temporary barrier to browsing deer.Repellents
Chemical mixtures sprayed onto plants give a taste or odor that is disagreeable to deer. A recipe for a homemade deer repellent can be found at http://wdfw.wa.gov/wlm /living/deer.htm. Commercial repellents such as Plantskydd are available at major garden supply centres (Art Knapp, Rona, and Canadian Tire) which claim to provide protection for months. CanRepel (www.canrepel.com) sells a monthly deer repellent service to homeowners in the Okanagan. There are motion sensor devices attached to a water sprinkler (one brand is called Scarecrow which the company claims is effective at scaring deer from a yard).Deer Resistant Plants
A list of these plants can be found at the following website:http://wdfw.wa.gov/wlm/living/deer.htm#landscaping
DEER CONTROL OPTIONS
Trapping and Moving Deer
The Ministry of Environment manages wildlife resources at the population level, not normally at the individual animal or local level unless there is a threat to human health or safety or crops. There are many technical difficulties with trapping deer including stress to the animals, as well as the potential for spreading disease and parasites to the release site. The critical issue, however, is that as long as there is a source of high quality food located on their winter range, wild deer will continue to be attracted to town and the Ministry would be into a perennial trapping program. Deer/human interactions in suburban areas have become so widespread in the province that the Ministry resources would be overwhelmed by such requests.In addition there are well-meaning people in most communities purposely feeding deer, which would largely nullify translocation efforts.
Hunting Deer
It is the mandate of the Ministry of Environment to provide hunting recreation and a sustainable harvest of game. This is achieved primarily by manipulating the hunting seasons. While the hunting regulations apply to all game animals deer management options in the Okanagan Region have been hampered by private land, No Hunting restrictions and local Government firearm bylaws. Hunters typically avoid hunting near residences, so even increasing the hunting season in adjacent areas would not likely provide relief from nuisance deer.It is possible to have a Limited Entry Hunt for deer, directed at specific private properties and adjacent Crown Land (usually within 400 metres). In this way, the number of hunters can be controlled and the hunting effort directed at problem areas. The Ministry can administer the hunt, but the local government Council must:
- identify the areas or properties where this hunt could be carried out,
- waive or modify firearm or hunting restrictions to allow a hunt
- ensure that there is general community for such a hunt Educating Homeowners
It is important that homeowners understand the consequences of attracting deer into town. Feeding can increase the dependence of deer on people, lead to aggressive behavior and facilitate disease transmission. In response to these concerns, several communities in Canada and the USA (including Princeton) have instituted deer-feeding bans.
In Summary
This is not an easy situation to resolve. Deer are long-term residents of both remote and semi rural areas, and like the deer, humans will have to adapt to co-exist with wildlife using the same piece of land. From the humans perspective, successful co-existence could involve:- selecting landscaping plants that are unpalatable to deer.
- educating adults and children on how to react to wildlife.
- building suitable fences for worry-free play areas and enclosing gardens.
- making deer unwelcome near your residence.
- acquiring as assertive dog (but keeping it under control).
- using scare devices or repellents
- never feeding deer and educating neighbors who do.
- making hunters feel welcome to hunt legally close to town.
WORK BEGINS ON TOWN WEBSITE
The Town of Princeton's 2006 budget includes funds for a civic website and a tourism website. Councillor Jim Manion reports that Council wants to move ahead rapidly with development of the tourism site. Studies show that the vast majority of people today plan their vacation on the internet. If you don't have a website, it's like you don't exist.Councillor Jim Manion manages a local resort, has the tourism and Chamber portfolio, and is a member of the Similkameen Valley Tourism Advisory Committee. He knows how much competition there is to attract people to a tourism destination.
"That's why Council wants a website that is unique. One that captures your attention the second you look at it. We have awarded the website contract to a local company with an excellent reputation and we told them we want something that makes people want to look closer."
In his former position with Invermere, town Administrator Patrick Robins led the development of Invermere's website. Together with Manion, Robins will lead Princeton's tourism website project.
"We are going to include local business associations, organizations and individual businesses that are major players in the tourism industry. We want input into how to show Princeton to the world."
EDO Michael McLaughlin was asked by the Town to lead the marketing and content development parts of the project. McLaughlin has played this role in the development of other municipal tourism sites. He believes that we need to take a fresh look at our 'brand' (the image we give to the potential visitor).
"The trick in creating a marketing image is to find one that communicates the values and unique selling points of the Princeton area as we know them, but in a way that appeals to people who have never even heard of Princeton. It's like you have to turn yourself inside out."
Following formal approval of the website project (expected June 5), the Town will invite input from organizations and businesses.
One idea under consideration is a half-day workshop. Robins says this would be to gather creative input for the 'look and feel' of the website and for its page structure.
Enquiries and suggests pertaining to the tourism website should be sent to EDO McLaughlin at 295-7260 or edo@similkameen.org.
