Our L/i (Ht; Resources — Mammals 



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all 13 states to describe deer abundance during 

 1983-92, as well as data from selected states to 

 describe relations between deer harvests and 

 population size. 



Biologists in the northeastern states also pro- 

 vided information on trends in reported con- 

 flicts between deer and land use and other nat- 

 ural resources. We detemiined the proportion of 

 states that expressed conflicts for particular cat- 

 egories such as deer and agriculture, deer and 

 forestry, or deer and other resources. 



Population Estimates and 

 Management Implications 



White-tailed deer populations have 

 increased in all 13 northeastern states during 

 1983-92, based on either population estimates 

 or number of antlered deer harvested. 

 Population estimates for nine states indicated an 

 increase from less than 1 .5 million in the early 

 I980"s to 1.8 million in the early 1990's (Fig. 

 I ). Deer density in the deer range of these states 



Even though states are responsible for 

 managing deer within their boundaries, 

 they do not control all land areas. The level 

 of management for a state may be an eco- 

 logical or political unit. However, states usu- 

 ally lack data on deer and their habitats for 

 small units such as municipalities, parks, 

 refuges, or military facilities, and they are 

 not directly responsible for management of 

 these special areas. Presented here are exam- 

 ples of two state parks, two national parks 

 and a national historic site, and three nation- 

 al wildlife refuges. 



Parks 



Ridley Creek and Tyler state parks in 

 Pennsylvania provide two examples of 

 where attempts have been made to manage 

 high deer densities in and around urban 

 areas. Such high densities pose significant 

 problems because of deer feeding on orna- 

 mental plants and deer-vehicle collisions. At 

 Ridley Creek State Park, a 1,052-ha (2,600- 

 acre) area near Philadelphia, hunters har- 

 vested 97-344 deer per year during eight 

 controlled hunts held between 1983 and 

 1992. From 160 to 491 deer were observed 

 during annual counts made from helicopters 

 (no count was made in 1990). A count of 491 

 in 1983 indicated that the deer density was 

 in excess of 46. 7 deer/km- (121 deer/mi-) in 

 the park. Hunter harvests resulted in a sig- 

 nificant herd reduction, as 160 deer were 

 counted in 1992 compared to 491 in 1983. 



Controlled hunts were conducted during 

 4 years— 1987, 1988, 1989, and 1991— at 

 Tyler State Park in eastern Pennsylvania. 

 The hunts in December 1987 and January 

 1988 yielded a kill of 487 deer; this number 

 equates to 70.3 deer hai-vested per km- ( 182 

 deer/mi-) on the 692-ha (1,710-acre) park. 

 During 1987, 455 deer were counted during 

 aerial surveys compared to 49 during 1992, 

 indicating that controlled hunts resulted in a 

 significant reduction in deer abundance at 

 Tyler State Park. 



National Parks 



The 2,335-ha (5,770-acre) Catoctin 

 Mountain National Park, administered by 

 the National Park Service in Maryland, has 



Deer Management at 

 Parks and Refuges 



been noticeably affected by deer since at 

 least 1 98 1 . Estimates of deer density indicat- 

 ed an increase from 9.6 to 23.5 deer/kni- (25 

 to 61 deer/mi-) between 1986 and 1989. The 

 presence of deer at this density has led to 

 concern over the effect of deer on native 

 plants, including rare species. The National 

 Park Service is preparing an environmental 

 assessment to review various management 

 alternatives and to select a strategy to man- 

 age deer at Catoctin Mountain Park. Unlike 

 in state parks, harvest of deer from National 

 Park Service lands is difficult, if not illegal, 

 to implement; hence, management options 

 are more limited. 



Estimates of deer abundance at 

 Gettysburg National Military Park and 

 Eisenhower National Historic Site from 

 1987 through 1992 indicated an increase 

 from 721 to l.OlSdeeron a 2,862-ha (7,072- 

 acre) area near Gettysburg in Adams County, 

 Pennsylvania (Storm et al. 1992; Tzilkowski 

 and Storm 1993). The 1992 populafion 

 equates to a density of 35.5 deer/km- (92 

 deer/mi-), which is 10 times higher than that 

 prescribed by the Pennsylvania Game 

 Commission for Adams County. The deer 

 herd at Gettysburg has been associated with 

 high levels of damage to farm crops and for- 

 est plant communities, as well as deer-vehi- 

 cle collisions. An environmental impact 

 statement is being prepared to develop a 

 strategy for managing the Gettysburg deer 

 population. 



Refuges 



The number of deer harvested by hunters 

 increased twofold between 1983 and 1992 at 

 each of the three national wildlife refuges 

 examined. During 1992, the number of deer 

 taken by hunters was 165 (17.8/km- 

 [46/mi-]) for Eastern Neck, 210 (7.7/km- 

 [20/mi-]) for Great Swamp, and 109 

 (4.2/km- [1 1/mi-]) at Montezuma. Although 



we did not obtain estimates of prehunt pop- 

 ulations at these three refuges, if we assume 

 that 35% of the population was killed, the 

 prehunt herd size at the Great Swamp 

 Refuge was 600 deer, which equates to 22 

 deer/km- (57 deer/mi-). 



Harvests by hunters appear to control 

 deer at national wildlife refuges, despite the 

 fact that each refuge manager has a unique 

 set of cultural and biological attributes to 

 consider in deer management. Although 

 hunting is a viable deer management alter- 

 native for most refuges, there is still a need 

 to monitor the size of deer herds, determine 

 the most suitable technique to survey deer at 

 each refuge and the most useful demograph- 

 ic data, and monitor plant communities to 

 assess the effect of feeding by deer on plant 

 resources. 



White-tailed deer fawn. 



References 



Storm, G.L.. D.F. Cottam. R.H. Yatiner. and J.D. 

 Nichols. 1992. A comparison of two techniques 

 for estimating deer density. Wildlife Society 

 Bull. 20:197-203. 



Tzilkowski, W.M., and G.L. Storm. 1993. 

 Detecting change using repeated measures 

 analysis: white-tailed deer abundance at 

 Gettysburg National Military Park. Wildlife 

 Society Bull. 21:411-414. 



