NY needs more deer hunting, not less, to save our forests (Your Letters)

To the Editor:
In response to John Rybinski’s Nov. 10, 2024, letter, “Cancel deer hunting during Christmas break,” this valid extension of deer season is likely part of the New York state Department of Environmental Conservation’s response to the extreme overpopulation of white-tail deer in New York as well as most of the Northeastern U.S. To its credit, the DEC in recent years has turned its focus to prioritizing the health of New York’s forests over the wishes of hunting groups when it comes to control of the deer herd.
All of the effects of the overpopulation of deer that ever gets any mention in the media has to do with vehicle-deer collisions, eating suburbanite’s flowers and shrubs, as well as the spread of tick-borne diseases. But, there is much more to this story than is getting told. Deer are a devastating problem for forest regeneration.
By far and away the biggest problem that the overpopulation of deer creates is the destruction of the hardwood forests of New York and the Northeast. Deer browse on all of the desirable and valuable hardwood species such as maple, oak, cherry, beech and ash. While deer do not eat mature trees, it is their indiscriminate, over-browsing of seedlings and saplings that kill the trees before they can get a start in life. Trees that may survive are often damaged by browsing, and have no commercial value, except for pulp. In the place of valuable hardwoods, invasive species take over that have no predation to limit their spread, have no commercial value, and often have the effect of limiting desirable wild native species, both plant and animal.
Before World War II, deer were not nearly as abundant as they are today. During the 18th century in the absence of game laws, and the presence of market hunting, white-tail deer were nearly hunted to extinction. The turn of the 20th century saw the decline of many game species, including deer, and many new state and federal laws were enacted to rightfully limit hunting and ensure their survival. I recall my father saying that it was rare to see a deer around the farm in rural Jamesville before World War II. Nowadays, it is common to see high fences around gardens to keep the deer out.
However, post World War II, with pressure from hunters, the state conservation department began a program to restore the population of the white-tail deer. The program worked too well and as a result, today we have an overpopulation of deer that has effectively set the course for the extinction of hardwood forest wherever deer are plentiful.
Their destruction of valuable hardwoods is a proven fact. Cornell University’s Arnot Forest is a case in point. Experiments in recent years with various types of high fencing around large, multi acre tracts that serve to exclude deer have decisively demonstrated the successful regeneration of desirable tree species as well as increased bird diversity and other desirable native plants, and animal life.
While white-tail deer are a very popular game animal, it is now widely recognized that recreational deer hunting alone can not control the growth of herds. For the short term, until broader, more effective means of control can be instituted, hunting pressure with extended seasons, increased take per hunter, and the use of professional hunters around large, populated areas must be employed to try to keep the deer population from exploding to even greater numbers than we presently see. Unfortunately, in the East there are no longer any large predators such as wolves and lions to naturally control the deer population. It is left up to us. Market hunting, once legal, should be made legal once again, with its benefit of a lean meat as opposed to the usual beef, chicken or pork. Still further, and more likely, this issue will need the full recognition of, and solutions at the federal level, since deer do not recognize state boundaries.
The great hardwood forests of the Northeast are a historic, traditional and extremely valuable resource, not just for timber production, but for the health of our entire environment. They are very much in danger of being lost permanently to the overpopulation of deer in a few more generations. All methods of controlling deer must be on the table for serious consideration, including extended hunting seasons, increased take of animals, market hunting, and a comprehensive federal plan to ensure the future of our hardwood forests.
Gary Brown
Liverpool
The writer is a member of the New York Forest Owners Association (www.nyfoa.org).