Island Whitetail Management, Inc.
Are deer destroying your garden and landscaping?
Are deer spreading ticks and Lyme disease on your property?
01
Deer Overbrowsing
Whitetail deer populations are exploding in many Long Island communities. Increased car-deer collisions, deer tick infestations, as well as property damage through overbrowsing are the result. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's biologists have proven that
overpopulation of whitetail deer herds are unhealthy for local ecosystem since deer numbers far exceed the carry capacity of available land. Overbrowsing has a dramatic affect on local fauna and flora. Plantlife, insects and especially bird populations are adversely affected when deer simply eat too much, upsetting the delicate balance of the local ecosystem. The deer themselves are most affected by overbrowsing and overpopulation. In a healthy herd, starvation and disease are the common causes of death with a high mortality rate for fawns. In grossly overpopulated herds such as some of the communities of Long Island, these casualty rates are much higher and the propensity for disease among the herd is much greater.
02
Disease
The greatest threat of disease for Long Island deer populations is CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease). In 2005, CWD was found in wild whitetail deer populations in New York. CWD originated in farm raised deer populations, and easily spread in this environment due to the close proximity of the deer. With no natural predators of whitetail deer on Long Island, the population of deer continues to explode and large herds of deer live in close proximity to each other increasing the threat of disease. It is crucial that CWD does not make it to Long Island. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is working aggressively to prevent the spread of CWD throughout New York. Since there are no natural predators on Long Island to keep deer populations in check, deer herds explode with undesirable consequences. The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation uses hunting as a species management tool to keep deer herd numbers at levels the environment can carry - this number is called the carrying capacity of a given parcel of land. There are many areas of Long Island where the deer numbers far exceed the carrying capacity desired by the NYSDEC.
03
Population Management
Because deer have a high reproductive potential and few natural predators, deer populations have the potential to increase rapidly. In the absence of significant mortality, deer populations can double in size in two years. High deer populations can significantly alter forested habitats reducing plant diversity and habitat suitability for other wildlife species. In addition, deer can impact flower and vegetable gardens, landscape plantings, and pose a threat to motorists on Long Island roadways.