‘Out of control’ deer may take over without ‘drastic action’

DEER have the potential to colonise most of the Australian continent and rival cane toads as an environmental pest unless drastic action is taken now, an issues paper prepared by the Victorian National Parks Association has warned.

In happier climes: A Sambar deer at Horton Plains, Sri Lanka.

DEER have the potential to colonise most of the Australian continent and rival cane toads as an environmental pest unless drastic action is taken now, an issues paper prepared by the Victorian National Parks Association has warned.

Association spokesman Philip Ingamells said deer were out of control and current deer management policies had failed. Drastic action was needed quickly to avoid widespread environmental and potentially agricultural damage in the future, he claimed.

Mr Ingamells said Victoria’s deer population was expanding by up to 300,000 beasts annually despite hunters taking more than 100,000 last year. New populations were being established across the state, with the Otways, the Murray River corridor and Wilsons Promontory recently conquered. They are becoming an increasing concern for peri-urban areas and are also now common around some outer Melbourne suburbs.

A 2016 CSIRO study found the six current species of deer in Australia had the potential to occupy most of the continent, including parts of the arid interior, if not controlled.

“Sambar deer, for example, occupy vastly different areas across India and Asia, so it’s not surprising they can flourish in many different environments across Australia,” Mr Ingamells said.

“We need serious investment in effective control programs, involving both professional shooters and accredited amateurs. And we need investment for research into other control options, such as a targeted bait for deer.

Mr Ingamells said past deer management strategies had relied too heavily on recreational hunters, but a much broader approach, including getting all the states and the federal government involved, was required.

Among the research strategies that should be funded and considered by the states and federal governments were:

BIOLOGICAL controls

GENETIC controls

TARGETED baiting

PHEROMONES and even the reintroduction of native predators.

Deer should be declared a feral pest, red tape should be lifted to allow land managers to better control deer, professional hunters and aerial culling needed to be used more and bag limits for recreational hunters could also be lifted as part of a national strategy to control deer numbers, he said.

“This is not just a matter for the Victorian government, it warrants strong support from all Australian states and the federal government in much the same way as the response to the red fire ant invasion has been conducted in Queensland, he said.”