State Wildlife Department Reaches Out to Communities With Deer Problems

Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s Wildlife Division has undertaken several long-term deer studies in residential communities to research and evaluate the effectiveness of deer population control methods in urban-suburban landscapes. Summaries and technical assistance on deer control options are available to communities interested in managing deer in highly developed areas by e-mailing the Deer Program or calling 860-642-7239.

In areas with an overabundance of deer, landowners will be encouraged to use hunting (where possible) as a management tool to stabilize the population. The booklets, Managing Urban Deer in Connecticut and An Evaluation of Deer Management Options, can assist communities in developing effective deer management programs.

Town governments have taken a more active role in initiating local deer management programs in recent years. Eighteen of 23 Fairfield County towns have joined the Fairfield County Municipal Deer Management Alliance, which assists towns in establishing deer committees, shares knowledge and experience with other towns, provides input on urban deer problems so as to influence wildlife policy decision makers, increases public awareness and provides input for developing long-term solutions. Residents of the Town of Redding developed a website to facilitate a process whereby willing landowners are matched up with hunters that are committed to removing deer from private land at no cost to the landowner. The goal is to reduce tick-related diseases, deer-vehicle accidents, and impacts to the forest understory. Redding and the Wildlife Division recently initiated a research project to develop a town-wide management plan.

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