Hunting over bait is a debated issue across the country. Baiting deer has a negative effect on deer populations as well as other non-target species and habitats. The potential for disease transmission between species is far more prevalent in areas where baiting practices are administered than those that are not. These diseases are not only harmful to deer and other species, they can be fatal. Not only is there potential to spread disease, there are certain behavioral, social, and ecological impacts as well.
According to Robert Inslerman, the chairman of the Wildlife Society, baiting is the act of intentionally placing food attractants to manipulate the behavior of wild species for the purpose of: Attracting wildlife to a specific location to enhance hunter harvest; Capturing and treating animals for control of infectious and noninfectious diseases; Reducing or controlling overabundant native or exotic wildlife populations, invasive species, or problem wildlife that pose a threat to human health or safety, domestic animals, or private property; Capturing wildlife for relocation or population augmentation and restoration and; Capturing wildlife for execution of research and management programs (Inslerman 3).
Baiting escalates the threat of disease transmission by increasing the extent of direct contact deer have between each other. Bait sites entice deer to a specific area and hold them to that area. As more deer visit the site, the more interaction there is between them. The transmission of infectious diseases is not only caused by direct physical contact, but also from the bodily excretions the deer produce.
Biologists believe that the maintenance of bovine tuberculosis (TB) is directly related to supplemental feeding/baiting a...
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...he deers natural activity patterns. According to the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natrual Resources, Alabama deer hunters have a higher success rate per hunter than in the adjoining states where baiting is not prohibited. In South Carolina, baiting is legal in the lower part of the state and prohibited in the northern part. The hunters success rate in the lower part of the state is less successful than those in the northern part where no bait is used. In multiple studies conducted, 90% of mature bucks use the bait sights during nighttime hours, when it is illegal to hunt them. Deer that use bait sights became more and more nocturnal as the season progressed (Alabama Department of Conservation and Natrual Resources 5-6). A Republican Primary poll conducted in Alabama showed that 89% of people supported no baiting while only 19% supported hunting over bait.
There are too many deer in the Wesselman Woods. The deer have eaten all the flowers and other flora. There have also been 8 car crashes involving deer, this imposes a dangerous threat to the civilians of Evansville. The deer have been invading people’s yards and eating their gardens. The deer are causing many problems that can’t be solved until the deer population is reduced.
When people talk about deer, they are commonly talking about the North American Whitetail. That is because they are so prevalent in this country. They can be found in every state in the US. The only place where you will not find any whitetails is in parts of Arizona and California. In most states the whitetail is very prevalent, especially in the northeast. They are one of the most hunted animals in this area, particularly in Pennsylvania and Michigan. Despite the amount they are hunted, both in and out of season, you can not drive more than a few miles out of the towns without seeing one that was hit by a car. The deer population in this area just keeps growing. It is unclear what should be done to stop the over population of this beautiful creature. Perhaps different hunting seasons or longer seasons are the answer. Possibly we should focus more on the development of birth control for the female deer, or maybe repopulating wolves into the areas where the deer population is too great. Something has to be done.
White-tailed deer, along with the rest of the Cervidae family, are facing a possible epidemic. Although the disease has not spread over the entire range CWD is efficiently transmitted between individuals. CWD is to the best of our knowledge 100% fetal and incubation can take a few years allowing for many possible transmissions. There also at this time is no form of vaccine or treatment for infected cervids. Despite efforts being put forth to control CWD, being a free-range family of animals proves control to be extremely difficult.
White tailed deer are the largest game animal in North America. This is due to their over abundance and annoyance to farmers. An average of 300000 deer are hunted down each year. A tragedy has been another 3000 are hit by cars every year. Many human efforts have been made to prevent these accidents, such as fencing and deer repellents near freeways, but many seem to think that hunting and controlling the population is the best way.
The Web. 18 Jan. 2014. Levy, Sharon. A Plague of Deer. BioScience 56.9 (2006): 714–21.
...who have hunted in CWD endemic areas to have their deer or elk tested before they consume the meat in order to prevent ingestion of contaminated meat (Chronic Wasting Disease Alliance).
Many of these diseases originate from animal populations. Humans’ interaction with the environment, and animals contribute to the rate and prevalence of disease. All three areas are interconnected. One Health is a concept that views human, animal, and environmental health as one area of health. The three entities, when separated can hinder each other and delay progress. The opposite is also true. When public health officials recognize the correlation between human, animal, and environmental health, advancements and innovation can occur. Other public health issues are present in relation to spread of infectious disease between humans and animals. People must know how to cook animal products in order to kill pathogens. Many diseases are also transferred when humans disrupt ecosystems. These are areas where public health has the opportunity to make progress. The issues that infectious diseases cause occur across the globe. In addition, One Health concepts can be applied to populations all over the
In the last decade, from the Rockies to New England and the Deep South, rural and suburban areas have been beset by white-tailed deer gnawing shrubbery and crops, spreading disease and causing hundreds of thousands of auto wrecks. But the deer problem has proved even more profound, biologists say. Fast-multiplying herds are altering the ecology of forests, stripping them of native vegetation and eliminating niches for other wildlife. ' 'I don 't want to paint deer as Eastern devils, ' ' said Dr. McShea, a wildlife biologist associated with the National Zoo in Washington, ' 'but this is indicative of what happens when an ecosystem is out of whack. ' ' The damage is worse than anyone expected, he and other scientists say. Higher deer densities have affected growth, survival, and reproduction of many plant species which have aesthetic, economic or ecological value. In some cases, many species of trees have also been shown to have reduced growth as a result of high deer density (Environmental Benefits of Hunting, 1). Deer prefer certain plant species over others and frequently feed on economically valuable tree species. For example, they prefer oak and sugar maple seedlings, as well as acorns, over less palatable species like American Beech and striped maple. Thus, less marketable species are more likely to survive to maturity,
Deer overpopulation is a controversial topic. Some believe that deer overpopulation is not a real problem. Some may also believe the high numbers that studies show, is a scheme to give hunters an excuse to hunt without reason. The truth is that deer overpopulation is a true issue. Deer, especially the eastern whitetail deer population in these modern times, is out of control. “There are an estimated 30 million whitetail deer in the United States today. Under optimal conditions, whitetail deer populations will double every two years”(Rooney). As the numbers of whitetail deer rise, the land for them to live on decreases. This may lead to deer walking on roads and causing accidents.
In July of 2015, national treasure of Zimbabwe, Cecil the Lion was maliciously killed by dentist Walter Palmer. The hunt caused an uproar from many animal activists. The media covered the hunt and the aftermath for many weeks. This heartless act has many questioning why big game hunting is legal. Multiple African countries allow big game hunting, but it is harming the ecosystem. Many innocent, endangered animals are killed. Big game hunting should be banned because it lowers populations, causes further problems, and animal populations are already dropping.
The author provides information describing the deer population in parts of New Jersey; yet, he does not include any data regarding the population in the rest of the United States, nor does he include any sources of where this information was obtained. A reader may be more
Like ticks, however, disease serves an important purpose. Disease helps to control wildlife populations while weeding out the weaker animals, preventing them from passing on potentially flawed traits. Nature is all about survival of the fittest, and disease helps determine which animals are, in fact, the fittest. Ticks carry Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and tularemia, all of which have a big influence on the health of animal populations within an ecosystem. Without these diseases and the ticks that spread them, an area could find itself overrun with deer, rabbits, mice and other animals who otherwise would have become ill and
Thesis: The population of white-tail deer in Alabama has drastically increased over the past century causing significant damage to property and homeowners, caused by hunters being less active.
Badgers are a highly vulnerable species and are implicated within the spread of TB. Their ecology makes them an easy mammalian vector species for the transmission of disease, e.g. Bovine tuberculosis. Considering that a national TB eradication program was first initiated in 1954 and remains a problem today shows that removal or culling methods have yet to be proven successful. Many studies conclude that widespread badger removal is not a viable strategy for a long-term control of tuberculosis in Irish cattle population, and trials for vaccinating badgers should be investigated further (Griffin, J. M., et al., 2005).The culls in Ireland have removed over 50% of the badger population since 2004, and data shows that the cull has decreased TB in cattle and therefore has proven successful. Badger culls in areas like New Zealand have focused on invasive species like possums which have a different ecology in comparison to badgers which are native to Britain and Ireland. It can be argued that Britain and Ireland have a moral obligation to protect the reservoirs in Badgers. Ther...
Overhunting: is the practice or the act of killing animals (wild animals) as game or sport.