2008 Woodie Awards
Point/Counterpoint: the deer debate
Andrew Madsen and Sara Dunn
Issue date: 10/27/05 Section: Opinion
- Page 1 of 1
Deer overpopulation is man's fault
Most students have probably seen the Disney movie "Bambi."
One of the scenes in the film shows a little deer and his mother running from hunters, which I'm sure has frightened many a little child.
I find it ironic that roughly 60 years after the film's release, the reason the deer population is out of control is because of humans.
After cutting down forests and building highways over the past 100 years, we have eliminated most of deer's natural predators - enabling them to breed on a massive scale and causing their population to explode.
Despite the protests of animal rights activists and some Cedar Rapids residents, the city's scheduled deer hunt is completely necessary and must go forward.
Anyone who has ever taken environmental science knows if you eliminate a species' predators you witness a large growth in population.
We could reintroduce some of those predators back into Iowa but we would have to deal with problems those animals could cause humans and livestock.
Why must humans kill all the fuzzy critters?
Thanks to us, the deer population has nothing to keep it in check. We got rid of their main predators and now its our problem.
Killing deer by car doesn't do the trick and it's deadly for everyone involved. Iowa suffered 15,000 deer-vehicle collisions last year and 10 people were killed in deer-related accidents in 2003. Many deer-related accidents happen in urban areas.
People shouldn't have to worry about a family of deer crossing the road while they are driving home or to work.
The deer hunt began Oct. 1 and will last until Dec. 2. It will resume on Dec. 19, the regular starting date for deer hunting, and last until Jan. 10.
Sharpshooters hired for the hunt use bows instead of guns, eliminating the chance of a glancing bullet hitting a passerby or a nearby house.
Using sharpshooters makes much more sense than calling on all Iowa hunters - they have families and jobs to take care of. Plus they'd have to buy a tag for every deer shot not to mention high gas costs.
Disease is also a concern. Weaker deer that aren't killed can develop the dreaded Chronic Wasting Disease.
Deer have also been known to completely strip whole areas of vegetation.
Simply put, Cedar Rapids has no choice but to use sharpshooters to trim and reduce the deer population.
- Andrew Madsen, staff writer
Wolves could naturally solve deer problem
Everyone in his or her life has seen a deer - cute little herbivores that typically do not harm other living things.
Their instinct is to survive. They are designed to run from predators who chase after them.
Now humans come into play. We have an unfair advantage against deer - weapons. People use weapons to take care of the deer overpopulation. Cedar Rapids is addressing this problem by bringing in sharpshooters to help "control" the growing deer population.
Allowing hunters, even if they are sharpshooters, in town is just bringing another hazard into the city. It just begs for children to stumble upon an arrow and injure themselves.
If it is so safe to use bows instead of other weapons to eliminate ricocheting bullets, why do people have to wear fluorescent orange to be seen? There is still the chance that they may be mistaken for a deer. This is the city and people walk places.
Also, by allowing these hunters, it eliminates nature's way for deciding what lives and what dies. Natural selection becomes obsolete because of man's mind set.
Most humans choose the bigger, more fit deer to slaughter. Man's pride drives him to kill the buck so that he can have a trophy on the mantle.
How is allowing sharpshooters into town to "control" the deer population going to make any difference?
In the rutting season (normally the fall to winter months), one buck can impregnate over 30 does. This number may vary if the size of this buck territory is larger or smaller. That is at least 30 more fawns, not including twins or triplets.
If one buck is killed, then the does in his area will migrate to an area where there is another buck. This opens up more does to impregnate. This means more fawns in another area.
If any of the deer are to be killed, then let it be the does. But the common person, even people hired to kill, does not see it this way. The guidelines for hired people allowed to hunt in town do not state that a certain number of does should be hunted either.
Also, what happens to all of the meat from these state mandated killings? Many hunters have to search for the deer they shot because it runs after it is hit. Their main reason is because they can only kill a certain number of deer, and if they lose one, there goes a tag. That means one less deer they can bring home in fear of legal prosecution.
These chosen hunters are not required to buy tags for the deer they kill. They are here to do just that, kill.
Another solution needs to be made, a simple solution to the growing problem.
What Cedar Rapids officials need to do is to reintroduce natural predators into the area to control the deer population instead of using humans. Wolves are one example of a natural predator of deer.
Natural predators will pick off the weakest members of another species. That would mean that more does would be killed because humans would not be hunting, especially for sport.
Some people may argue that this is allowing a worse hazard into our city. A creature that could maim and kill humans. In fact, it is not common that humans would be attacked by wolves.
The only exception to this is if the creature is starving or ill. With the amount of deer available, the likelihood of this happening is slim to none.
It is not necessary for sharpshooters to be brought into Cedar Rapids to control the deer population. There is always another solution to a problem. It just may need more thought and planning than telling someone to bring another hazard to the city.
- Sara Dunn, layout editor
Most students have probably seen the Disney movie "Bambi."
One of the scenes in the film shows a little deer and his mother running from hunters, which I'm sure has frightened many a little child.
I find it ironic that roughly 60 years after the film's release, the reason the deer population is out of control is because of humans.
After cutting down forests and building highways over the past 100 years, we have eliminated most of deer's natural predators - enabling them to breed on a massive scale and causing their population to explode.
Despite the protests of animal rights activists and some Cedar Rapids residents, the city's scheduled deer hunt is completely necessary and must go forward.
Anyone who has ever taken environmental science knows if you eliminate a species' predators you witness a large growth in population.
We could reintroduce some of those predators back into Iowa but we would have to deal with problems those animals could cause humans and livestock.
Why must humans kill all the fuzzy critters?
Thanks to us, the deer population has nothing to keep it in check. We got rid of their main predators and now its our problem.
Killing deer by car doesn't do the trick and it's deadly for everyone involved. Iowa suffered 15,000 deer-vehicle collisions last year and 10 people were killed in deer-related accidents in 2003. Many deer-related accidents happen in urban areas.
People shouldn't have to worry about a family of deer crossing the road while they are driving home or to work.
The deer hunt began Oct. 1 and will last until Dec. 2. It will resume on Dec. 19, the regular starting date for deer hunting, and last until Jan. 10.
Sharpshooters hired for the hunt use bows instead of guns, eliminating the chance of a glancing bullet hitting a passerby or a nearby house.
Using sharpshooters makes much more sense than calling on all Iowa hunters - they have families and jobs to take care of. Plus they'd have to buy a tag for every deer shot not to mention high gas costs.
Disease is also a concern. Weaker deer that aren't killed can develop the dreaded Chronic Wasting Disease.
Deer have also been known to completely strip whole areas of vegetation.
Simply put, Cedar Rapids has no choice but to use sharpshooters to trim and reduce the deer population.
- Andrew Madsen, staff writer
Wolves could naturally solve deer problem
Everyone in his or her life has seen a deer - cute little herbivores that typically do not harm other living things.
Their instinct is to survive. They are designed to run from predators who chase after them.
Now humans come into play. We have an unfair advantage against deer - weapons. People use weapons to take care of the deer overpopulation. Cedar Rapids is addressing this problem by bringing in sharpshooters to help "control" the growing deer population.
Allowing hunters, even if they are sharpshooters, in town is just bringing another hazard into the city. It just begs for children to stumble upon an arrow and injure themselves.
If it is so safe to use bows instead of other weapons to eliminate ricocheting bullets, why do people have to wear fluorescent orange to be seen? There is still the chance that they may be mistaken for a deer. This is the city and people walk places.
Also, by allowing these hunters, it eliminates nature's way for deciding what lives and what dies. Natural selection becomes obsolete because of man's mind set.
Most humans choose the bigger, more fit deer to slaughter. Man's pride drives him to kill the buck so that he can have a trophy on the mantle.
How is allowing sharpshooters into town to "control" the deer population going to make any difference?
In the rutting season (normally the fall to winter months), one buck can impregnate over 30 does. This number may vary if the size of this buck territory is larger or smaller. That is at least 30 more fawns, not including twins or triplets.
If one buck is killed, then the does in his area will migrate to an area where there is another buck. This opens up more does to impregnate. This means more fawns in another area.
If any of the deer are to be killed, then let it be the does. But the common person, even people hired to kill, does not see it this way. The guidelines for hired people allowed to hunt in town do not state that a certain number of does should be hunted either.
Also, what happens to all of the meat from these state mandated killings? Many hunters have to search for the deer they shot because it runs after it is hit. Their main reason is because they can only kill a certain number of deer, and if they lose one, there goes a tag. That means one less deer they can bring home in fear of legal prosecution.
These chosen hunters are not required to buy tags for the deer they kill. They are here to do just that, kill.
Another solution needs to be made, a simple solution to the growing problem.
What Cedar Rapids officials need to do is to reintroduce natural predators into the area to control the deer population instead of using humans. Wolves are one example of a natural predator of deer.
Natural predators will pick off the weakest members of another species. That would mean that more does would be killed because humans would not be hunting, especially for sport.
Some people may argue that this is allowing a worse hazard into our city. A creature that could maim and kill humans. In fact, it is not common that humans would be attacked by wolves.
The only exception to this is if the creature is starving or ill. With the amount of deer available, the likelihood of this happening is slim to none.
It is not necessary for sharpshooters to be brought into Cedar Rapids to control the deer population. There is always another solution to a problem. It just may need more thought and planning than telling someone to bring another hazard to the city.
- Sara Dunn, layout editor