UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- White-tailed deer management can be one of the most contentious public policy issues in Pennsylvania, and wildlife managers have only themselves -- or their predecessors -- to blame, according to a wildlife scientist in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.

At the turn of the century, biologists had to convince hunters and the general public not to kill does to allow the deer population to increase. They did their job a little too well, contends Gary San Julian, professor of wildlife resources. "What they said was true then, but today in many parts of the deer's range -- and particularly in Pennsylvania -- deer populations have exceeded the cultural carrying capacity. In other words, there are more deer than people want in many places."

Harvesting does through hunting is the primary tool at the disposal of deer managers to control population size, but there is a lingering reluctance by some Keystone State hunters to kill does. To persuade them to harvest adequate numbers of does to control deer populations, San Julian says wildlife managers have had to overcome decades of education by their predecessors, generations of woodland lore and hundreds of book chapters and magazine stories.

"For many years, does could not be harvested legally," explains San Julian. "When they became legal, they were consolation prizes for hunters who could not get a buck and had to settle for a doe to put venison on the table. To many hunters, taking a doe was not thought of as 'manly' -- egos got involved."

Convincing hunters that they should harvest does has been a hard sell for agencies such as the Pennsylvania Game Commission, contends San Julian, but he says hunter attitudes are changing. "Even when people see large numbers of deer and hear about deer problems, it is hard to overcome 100 years of tradition," he says.

"Today, we know that to improve the quality of our deer herds, it often is necessary to reduce populations. Hunters are helping us work on this problem. This is evidenced by how hunters have purchased antlerless hunting licenses this year. It looks like all Pennsylvania counties that offer them will sell their entire allocation.

"One buck can breed with numerous does, therefore we must harvest antlerless deer to make a substantial difference in our deer herds. Our goal should be to maintain populations at sustainable levels and to have the herd and habitat in good condition."

In many areas of the East, according to San Julian, deer numbers and densities have risen to such levels that deer have significantly altered their habitat. The understories of many hardwood forests are filled with ferns, few wildflowers and very little valuable and necessary hardwood regeneration. "These woods produce little wildlife food or the seedlings needed to restock the forests for the next generation," he says.

Game commission officials see hunter attitudes changing, according to spokesman Jerry Feaser. He points to harvest numbers of antlerless deer as proof. "For several years now we have seen hunters kill more does than bucks. Hunters are doing what we need them to do to control the deer population."

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EDITORS: Contact Gary San Julian at 814-863-0401 or e-mail gsjulian@psu.edu.

Contact: Jeff Mulhollem jjm29@psu.edu 814-863-2719 814-863-9877 fax #253