Becky Gillette – The population of deer inside of Eureka Springs has declined considerably recently, which a wildlife biologist who recently surveyed the deer population suspects is largely due to the city banning deer feeding about five years ago.
William Craker, president of the Bull Shoals Urban Bow Hunters Association, and other bow hunters came back in January to survey the local deer population to see if numbers warranted a bow hunt to remove excess deer that destroy people’s gardens and can cause vehicle accidents.
The survey indicates there are probably not enough deer to warrant a hunt.
“Based on what the deer population was estimated when they had the urban hunt, and the sheer lack of deer we saw after the holidays, our preliminary conclusion is there aren’t enough deer in Eureka Springs for an urban hunt,” said Craker, who has a master’s degree in wildlife biology. “We expected to see a lot more than we did. There weren’t very many. The numbers were nothing like the surveys for Lakeview and Bull Shoals.”
Neither city has an ordinance against feeding deer, and Lakeview and Bull Shoals have a number of tourist lodging establishments that feed deer and advertise with deer photographs.
“I think not feeding plays a big part in the decline in the number of deer in Eureka Springs,” Craker said. “It looks like Eureka Springs was smart in doing that. Seven other cities in Arkansas have active urban hunts every year. As far as I know, none of those cities has a feeding restriction on the deer. What Eureka Springs did was insightful, the single most effective thing they could have done.”
Craker said another reason for fewer deer is that Eureka Springs doesn’t have a large body of water nearby, which is a draw for whitetails.
Arkansas is ninth in the country for deer-vehicle collisions, up from 14th a year ago, according to State Farm Insurance. State Farm estimates the cost of 20,000 deer-related collisions in Arkansas at more than $60 million in claims.
Currently there is concern about the outbreak of Chronic Wasting Disease in deer in Arkansas. Arkansas Game & Fish has found 71 deer and elk in the Buffalo River area infected with CWD, a fatal disease that could drastically reduce the deer population. There have been no reports of deer in Carroll County with CWD, but testing of road killed or sick deer has been expanded to 20 counties surrounding where the outbreak was found.
“But it is going to change the face of deer hunting in Arkansas,” Craker said. “It is big news in the hunting community. Any time two hunters are standing next to each other, they talk about CWD. The future is uncertain how it is going to affect hunting. The most dedicated conservationists tend to be hunters, and they are hoping CWD hasn’t spread that far. Our biggest fear is the disease will spread from where it started in the Buffalo River Valley to the White River Valley, which would bring it to our part of the state.
“One of the best things hunters could do is get online and do a little research in states where CWD has been active a number of years. Physical attributes of CWD can be identified by hunters once they become familiar with what the disease does to the whitetail in later stages. Look at the procedures those hunters follow when they harvest. In some states inside an active CWD area, hunters still harvest deer, but are required to send the head in for testing before processing deer for eating.”
Craker said he is not concerned about eating venison.
CWD is believed to be spread from feces, urine and saliva, and by movement of live animals or infected carcasses. Some states that have CWD have outlawed deer feeding, but Arkansas allows feeding, or baiting. Craker said it isn’t known whether feeding or baiting deer helps or hurts the CWD problem in Arkansas. It may be more of a problem in northern states where food is scarce in the winter and deer congregate in larger herds than in the south.
AG&F is asking residents statewide to report any sick or dead deer, including road killed deer. Call (800) 482-9262 and report it.
“Someone will come and pick it up right away,” Craker said. “Game and Fish needs as many samples as they can get, from all over the state.”
Anyone with questions about urban hunts can contact Craker at (870) 321-1447.