In the half-light of dusk, Martin Edwards surveys the ancient woodland from a high seat and waits. He watches with his thermal camera. Then, the bang of his rifle pierces the stillness. He's killed a buck, one of many wild deer roaming this forest in Hampshire, southern England. Edwards advocates for humane deer management: the culling of deer to control their numbers and ensure they don't overrun forests and farmland in a country where they no longer have natural predators. For these advocates, shooting deer a necessity because England's deer population has gotten out of control. There are now more deer in England than at any other time in the last 1,000 years, according to the Forestry Commission, per the AP.
That has had a devastating impact on the environment, officials say. Excessive deer foraging damages large areas of woodland, including young trees, as well as the habitats of certain birds like robins. Some landowners have lost huge amounts of crops to deer, and overpopulation means that the mammals are more likely to suffer from starvation and disease. "They will produce more young every year. We've got to a point where farmers and foresters are definitely seeing that impact," says Edwards. "If there's too many deer, you will see that they've literally eaten all the vegetation up to a certain height." Forestry experts and businesses argue that culling the deer—and supplying the venison to consumers—is a double win: It helps rebalance the ecosystem and provides a low-fat, sustainable protein.
An estimated 2 million deer now roam England's forests. The government says native wild deer play a role in healthy forest ecosystems, but acknowledges their population needs managing. It provides some funding for solutions such as building deer fences. Shooting deer is legal but strictly regulated: hunters must have a license, use certain kinds of firearms, and observe open seasons. They also need a valid reason, such as when a landowner authorizes them to kill the deer when their land is damaged. Making venison more widely available in supermarkets and beyond will motivate more stalkers to cull the deer and ensure the meat doesn't go to waste, Edwards says. The approach appears to have been well received, though it has attracted some criticism from PETA. More here.
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