Cape to appoint committee to look more closely at urban deer hunting

Cape Girardeau may still be a ways from adopting an urban deer hunting program -- if it does at all -- but city leaders Monday night asked for details and called for the creation of an ad hoc committee to more fully study the matter.

During the Cape Girardeau City Council study session, four representatives of the Missouri Department of Conservation told of how such a program could work in the city limits to reduce the number of deer that have been causing accidents and terrorizing lawns.

"In my 18 years of being a Cape and Jackson resident, I have seen the deer population grow exponentially," said Ken West, the department's protection regional supervisor. "The numbers just continue to increase."

The department gets dozens of phone calls every year, he said, about damage to lawns, gardens and shrubs. He said his hope is that the city's staff would work with the department to come up with a way to harvest the deer, which also lead to car collisions each year.

Also on hand was Joel Porath, a wildlife regional supervisor from St. Louis who has helped other Missouri communities establish similar programs. Porath has been involved with urban deer issues since 1998, he said, and has led the state's Urban Deer Task Force.

Adaptable animals

The problem, he said, is that deer are extremely adaptable. Many never thought that deer would have been a "urban/suburban" issue, he said. But a city's landscapes, parks, cemeteries and a lack of a natural predator means "they have everything they need," Porath said.

"That leaves you with an option to do something or to do nothing," he said. "If you do nothing, you're going to have the deer population continue to expand and cause problems. You probably need to be adaptable just like the deer have been."

Options include nonlethal measures such as using repellent, adding fences and implementing a no-feeding ordinance, which Cape Girardeau currently does not have, he said.

The other option, he said, is controlled archery hunting. How restrictive that would be, he said, is up to the city council.

"But keep in mind the more controls you put on could decrease the effectiveness of the program," Porath said. "You'll want controls and safety measures in place, but not so many that it's not effective."

The last thing the council should do is wait, he said. Town and Country, Mo., did nothing for years and now it's too late for urban deer hunting, he said. That wouldn't work quick enough to diminish the herd to safe levels in the community near St. Louis. Town and Country has had to hire a sharpshooter to take out the deer, which is expensive, he said.

"But you don't need to reinvent the wheel," Porath said. "You're not alone. It's not a process you have to jump into right away."

An urban deer hunting program could require bow hunter education program classes or other requirements, he said. It could be limited to private property or done on some city owned property.

But safety generally isn't a big problem, said Dee Dee Dockins, the department's outdoor skills specialist. Bow hunters already have an advanced skill set, she said. Unlike guns, arrows generally travel less than 20 yards and toward the ground because hunters generally use tree stands, she said.

Less than 1 percent per 100,000 participants are hurt in some kind of bow hunting accident and most of those were hunters falling out of tree stands, she said.

So the council directed city manager Scott Meyer to work with the department and create a committee to look at what an urban deer hunting program could look like. A few members of the public showed up to speak in support of the program, but not everyone liked the idea.

"I am very strongly opposed to urban deer hunting," Cape Girardeau physician Stephen Stigers said. "Deer have become domesticated. They wander across our property. They've become precious to us and precious to my 6-year-old little daughter. ... It seems to me it would be a much better reflection on our community to show some compassion for our animals rather than harm them."

smoyers@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

401 Independence St., Cape Girardeau, MO