News Release 8-8-2002 |
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COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE GUS R. DOUGLASS URGES HUNTERS TO HELP WITH DEER POPULATION Commissioner of Agriculture Gus R. Douglass is urging hunters to bag as many does this year as they can, following news reports of recent widespread foraging by deer in Charleston lawns and gardens. “Northern Panhandle residents have been reporting problems with deer overpopulation for a couple of years, and now we are seeing an identical problem cropping up in Charleston’s neighborhoods. There is an overabundance of deer roaming the state’s fields and forests, and many of those deer are moving to urban areas to feed,” said Commissioner Douglass. “The experts say that to control the whitetail population and create the conditions needed for big bucks, more does must be harvested, but hunters simply haven’t done that.” The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has liberalized its regulations on taking does, increasing the number of antlerless deer hunters can kill throughout the state. However, hunters last year checked only two-thirds of the does that DNR anticipated. “Most deer hunters in West Virginia would rather ‘trophy hunt’ than shoot does, however that strategy is likely to backfire,” said Commissioner Douglass. “If does are not harvested, the health of the entire herd will suffer as disease and malnutrition take their toll. If only older, larger bucks are taken, then younger bucks with unproven genetics will be fathering more and more offspring.” |
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